Surround Speakers Overview
Types & Styles
Rear Surround Speakers
Wireless 5.1 Surround Speakers
Surround Bar Speakers
Popular Brands
Where To Buy
Surround speakers are a must for any movie lover and audio enthusiast. They are the key to providing full home theater sound that makes you feel like you are right in the middle of the action. Most serious audiophiles wouldn’t dream of watching a blockbuster hit movie or playing the latest action packed video game without surround sound. This article will describe the two most common surround sound setups, surround speakers and surround bar speakers, and then point you in the right direction to make a purchase.
Surround Speakers Overview
Surround speakers are the side or rear speakers that produce ambient background audio and give listeners the feeling that they are in the middle of a 360 degree field of sound. These speakers are part of what is sometimes called a 5.1 surround sound speaker system, because they are two of five total speakers (plus a subwoofer) that complete the full 360 degree sound field. While any speaker capable of being wired into a receiver can be used as a surround speaker, to get the best quality sound, you should buy speakers that have the same shape, size and wattage. Surround speakers can be wired or wireless, and they are often mounted on walls or sit atop speaker stands on the sides of listeners or behind them.
Types & Styles
Surround speakers typically come in two general types: cinema surround speakers and computer surround speakers. They don’t differ at all in their purpose, just their style and shape. Computer surround speakers are generally built smaller to fit in with the compact setup of a home computer setup. Wherever you put them, take their environment into consideration when trying to match colors. For instance, if you have white walls in your home theater, and you want your speakers to blend in and be more hidden, pick up a pair of white surround speakers. You don’t have to be a design genius, just use your common sense when choosing colors.
Rear Surround Sound Speakers
Rear surround sound speakers are what really gives the audio portion of movies and games depth. These speakers often reproduce very ambient background sounds like crowds of people talking, fires burning or race cars zooming by. Rear surround sound speakers make the audience feel like they are literally surrounded by sounds, just as they are in real life. To read how lifelike rear surround sound speakers can make movies seem, visit your favorite online retailer and read a rear surround speakers review or two. If you’ve never experienced what these two little speakers can do for your movies and games, you’re in for a treat!
Wireless 5.1 Surround Speakers
Let’s face it, running wires for your home theater system and then trying to hide them is not easy or fun. That’s why many home theater buffs opt for wireless 5.1 surround speakers. Typically, these consist of two rear surround sound speakers that are wireless. The two speakers under your TV are much easier for hiding wires, so that’s why the wireless version is mainly used in the rear of your audio setup. 5.1 surround sound wireless rear speakers often sit on top of stands, which sometimes come with the speakers or may have to be purchased separately. The advantage of the stands is to position the wireless surround speakers 5.1 cinematic sound at the ear level of your audience.
Advantages of wireless 5.1 surround speakers:
- No wires means no hassle setting them up.
- 2. No unsightly wires or wire conduit in your home theater setup.
Disadvantages of 5.1 surround wireless speakers:
- They can sometimes pickup interference from other household appliances or even radio signals.
- They run on batteries, so they must be replaced from time to time.
Surround Bar Speakers
Surround bar speakers consist of a wide, narrow bar that mounts or sits just below a flat panel television and provides the sound effect of full theater sound in one speaker unit. It uses precise timing elements that simulate front, center and rear speaker output without the need for extra speakers. Surround bar speakers typically have their own amplification built in, so they do not require a separate receiver unit to power them. For complete home theater sound, a separate subwoofer should be added to reproduce quality bass audio.
Popular Speaker Brands
When it comes to surround speakers, there are almost too many brands to count. If you’re a brand loyalist, you probably already know what kind you’re going to buy. But if you’re like me, you like to know what other people are buying. Safety in numbers, right? So, here’s a list, in alphabetical order of some of the more popular surround speakers:
- Canton
- Denon
- Jensen
- JVC
- Kenwood
- LG
- Mission
- Panasonic
- Philips
- Pioneer
- PSB
- Tannoy
- Technics
- Wharfedale
- Zenith
Where To Buy
The fastest and most popular place to shop for surround speakers is online. There are loads of great retail sites that not only carry a wide selection of surround speakers, but contain informative how to videos and articles on everything from sound quality to speaker installation. Just put “surround speakers” into your favorite search engine. If you’re feeling lucky, you might want to head over to an auction site like eBay and see if you can find them even cheaper. Once you’ve found what you’re looking for, you can either make your purchase online or visit your favorite audio/video store to take a closer listen before you buy.
Conclusion
If you care at all about how your movies or games sound, you’re sure to have surround speakers as part of your home theater setup. Whether installing separate surround speakers or mounting a surround bar speaker under your television, you’ll end up with the full theater audio you need. So, do some online research and then make your purchase. You’ll never want to listen to anything in stereo again.