Replacing 5.1 HT system with a 3.1 Soundbar

[Cropduster172]

I decided to replace the Home Theater 5.1 setup in our beach house with a 3.1 soundbar with a wireless subwoofer.

Going: Pioneer VSX-820 receiver. Polk Audio 10" subwoofer. 2- Canton 2 way cast aluminum front-L/R 2 way speakers. 1- Yamaha center channel. 2- Acoustic Research R/L 2 way surround speakers.

Coming: 1- Samsung HW B650 soundbar with wireless subwoofer.

TV there is a circa 2018 65" Hisense R7 series... has a great picture.

Why? The 5.1 setup sounds great but is overkill and underutilized. I can't enjoy the full range of sound without disturbing my wife or the neighbors...or both in the summer and there was never good placement of the rear surrounds without drilling and running speaker wires through the attic and walls...and the wife approval of appearance factor.

Also, I have a very decent 5.1 HT system in our basement of our primary home. It's paired with a 75" Hisense TV and our basement there is thoroughly soundproofed with acoustic suspended ceiling tiles and insulated drywall along with wal to wall carpet. So the true HT experience is substantially more acceptable there.

I've got to liquidate much of my accumulated home theater inventory as well.

 

[Vil_Riker]

Isn't wireless laggy?

 

[Cropduster172]

Isn't wireless laggy?

I don't think for the current generation of soundbars...at least not for the subwoofer. I think that was a problem with the early generations of wireless speakers.
The problem with wireless surround speakers is they need to be plugged in...so you're losing speaker wire but gaining power wire needing an outlet for each surround...another reason for 3.1 vs 5.1 at least in my situation.

 

[Dave1027]

I have a Polk soundbar with wireless subwoofer. There is no lag at all. I really like the Polk system. Sometimes it fools you and you'll hear sounds way off to the side as if it has separate speakers but it doesn't. Center channel voices are clear. It's good loud when you want it and also way low for late night watching when others have went to bed.

 

[Cropduster172]

I have a Polk soundbar with wireless subwoofer. There is no lag at all. I really like the Polk system. Sometimes it fools you and you'll hear sounds way off to the side as if it has separate speakers but it doesn't. Center channel voices are clear. It's good loud when you want it and also way low for late night watching when others have went to bed.

I like the night time watching feature. The Samsung has it too.

 

[TijY_]

Isn't wireless laggy?

There is lag, but it will be compensated for with HDMI 2.1 eArc if implemented correctly.