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Please recommend a pair of good speakers for large screen TV

hajime said:
Actually, are Sony's soundbars good?
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Sure, but there are plenty of good options. Don't limit yourself to Sony just because the TV is Sony.

As others have pointed out, advice here is based on a very limited set of information. You mention Windows and Mac, as well as 49" TV and desk. Clearly not a computer workstation (49" monitor is clearly overkill). So what is the use case (monitor, general TV viewing, the main home theater), what gear is feeding content to the TV, what kind of outputs and inputs on the TV, etc might help refine the advice.
 
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EthanNixon said:
There is no such thing as simulated surround sound. Either you have speakers behind you, or you don't. No speaker in front of you is going to sound like it's behind you. That's physics. Unfortunately some people believe marketing too much.
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Have to partially disagree with you here. There are algorithms that simulate surround sound. NEO is one of them. They fool your mind to think the sound is wider than it is, or coming from around/behind you. No marketing, I've heard it.

For the OP - I'm very much a Polk fan. Their speakers are quality and reasonably priced. To answer your question about which speaker setup is best for your situation we need to know how far away you will be from the screen. Sound bars tend to be cheap solutions but you may like them. Two speakers may be okay if you are some distance away, but having a third for the center channel may be a better solution. As EthanNixon stated though, best surround sound is achieved by using actual speakers. The algorithms used to "mimic" surround sound may wear on you after some time.
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hajime said:
I guess active speakers is better. Ideally, small but powerful speakers. Do the speakers have to be tall enough to match the level of my ears in order for me to experience realistic immerse environment?
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The general answer is no. But how close will you be to the TV? I have a 52" LCD with speakers above and spread out. I sit about 8' away from the TV and speakers are about 12' away diagonally. Yes, the TV is closer to me than the speakers. The sound is perfect and I am immersed in the sound.
 
techwarrior said:
Sure, but there are plenty of good options. Don't limit yourself to Sony just because the TV is Sony.

As others have pointed out, advice here is based on a very limited set of information. You mention Windows and Mac, as well as 49" TV and desk. Clearly not a computer workstation (49" monitor is clearly overkill). So what is the use case (monitor, general TV viewing, the main home theater), what gear is feeding content to the TV, what kind of outputs and inputs on the TV, etc might help refine the advice.
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Actually it is mainly for a computer workstation. I could not find 4K monitor in the 40-43" range without issue. This one received good reviews, has Chroma 4:4:4 and I like the colors, so I just chose it. For play time, I want to use it to watch youtube videos of classical music, films and play games. Link to inputs and outputs specs on the TV are listed in Post #25.
 
hajime said:
Actually it is mainly for a computer workstation. I could not find 4K monitor in the 40-43" range without issue. This one received good reviews, has Chroma 4:4:4 and I like the colors, so I just chose it. For play time, I want to use it to watch youtube videos of classical music, films and play games. Link to inputs and outputs specs on the TV are listed in Post #25.
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From what you are saying, your audio may be driven from the computer rather than the TV. You may need to investigate how your computer handles a TV as a monitor and how sound is directed. It may be as simple as the HDMI going to your TV being the default for audio out or if the computer has speakers attached, you either default or set the output to those speakers.

Surround - you are not going to get a fully "immersive" surround feeling from 2 speakers or even 3. A stereo set of speakers set up properly can produce a "phantom stage" for movies which give the feeling of a center speaker.

Options - if the sound comes from your computer rather than TV, you may simply want to investigate some higher end active speakers which work well with computers (someone mentioned AudioEngine before as example). There are some real computer surround speaker "kits" that are actually okay and appeal to some gamers. Personally, I would get a decent pair of AudioEngine or something like M-Audio M40 or similar along with a decent set of over the ear headphones. Certain headphones in many ways provide a better sense of depth, spacial staging and overall feeling of being "immersed."

Quality of sound - what you mentioned as far as music sources none really need top of the line speakers just decent good speakers.
 
phrehdd said:
From what you are saying, your audio may be driven from the computer rather than the TV. You may need to investigate how your computer handles a TV as a monitor and how sound is directed. It may be as simple as the HDMI going to your TV being the default for audio out or if the computer has speakers attached, you either default or set the output to those speakers.

Surround - you are not going to get a fully "immersive" surround feeling from 2 speakers or even 3. A stereo set of speakers set up properly can produce a "phantom stage" for movies which give the feeling of a center speaker.

Options - if the sound comes from your computer rather than TV, you may simply want to investigate some higher end active speakers which work well with computers (someone mentioned AudioEngine before as example). There are some real computer surround speaker "kits" that are actually okay and appeal to some gamers. Personally, I would get a decent pair of AudioEngine or something like M-Audio M40 or similar along with a decent set of over the ear headphones. Certain headphones in many ways provide a better sense of depth, spacial staging and overall feeling of being "immersed."

Quality of sound - what you mentioned as far as music sources none really need top of the line speakers just decent good speakers.
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Now I hesitate between 2018 MBP and Windows laptop. Let's see what Apple come out at WWDC.

In case I get the 2018 MBP, it will be through the TS3+ dock's displayport. Then, displayport to HDMI 2.0 adapter. Then, HDMI 2.0 cable to the TV's HDMI 2.0 port. Alternative, from USB-C port to Anker's USB-C to HDMI 2.0 adapter and then a HDMI 2.0 adapter.

Sony tech support just recommended connecting the soundbar via an optical port at the back of the TV.
 
here is a pic of my bedroom set up with a 46"....Center Channel Speaker and R & L speaker....cost was about $800...run by Yamaha Receiver.
 

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hajime said:
Sony tech support just recommended connecting the soundbar via an optical port at the back of the TV.
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That would probably be among the easier routes. But, again, don't assume Sony bar to be the only choice. Sound bars with an optical input are common, and use a standard signal that should work on just about any TV.

The Mac > HDMI > TV path should send both A&V to the TV. If something is plugged in to the digital\optical port on the TV, it will typically automatically send audio out to the bar or receiver on the other end of that. Worst case, the TV settings might need to be tweaked to set the default for the digital out for sound.

I would guess that since this TV is doubling as a computer monitor, your space may be a little limited for an AV Receiver, thus the bar recommendation. If you search, Amazon, Best Buy, etc for a 5.1 soundbar, you should get a lot of results.
 
techwarrior said:
FYI, you would have gotten to this point a lot sooner. Folks are happy to help, but the more specific you are up front, the better and more direct the advice will be.
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Sorry. If the MBP 2018 turns out to be as bad as the 2017 model, I may also need to spend money to make a powreful desktop workstation. So, let's limit the budget to $300.
 
hajime said:
Sorry. If the MBP 2018 turns out to be as bad as the 2017 model, I may also need to spend money to make a powreful desktop workstation. So, let's limit the budget to $300.
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https://www.amazon.com/VIZIO-SmartC...8&qid=1527372962&sr=8-6&keywords=5.1+soundbar
https://www.amazon.com/VIZIO-SB3851...8&qid=1527372962&sr=8-8&keywords=5.1+soundbar
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-5-1-...8&qid=1527372962&sr=8-3&keywords=5.1+soundbar

Just a few options. I bought a Vizio 5.1 a few years ago, it was a refurb unit from Woot (Amazon's clearance operations) and it was missing parts that I had to order separate (power cable, rear speaker cables, etc. So, there are a few refubs that show up, but be aware that the savings may, or may not be as good as they sound if parts are missing. I would think Amazon would be a better bet than Woot for refurb units.
 
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Anybody tried the Creative Labs Sound BlasterX Katana? Users seem to love it but all the cool surround features only work under Windows. The company said that under Mac OS, it just serves as a basic speaker.
 
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