Premium soundbar vs 7.1 surround sound for flat

[nugget2014]

Hi there. so you may have seen my threads over the months as i gain knowledge and purchase ideas. i have just finished setting up my 7.1 home cinema in my flat which consists of:

dali zensor 3,vokal centre, cambridge audio minx min11x4, dali ikon sub mk2.

however i am lucky that my neighbour is tolerant for when i have my music or film on the odd time and i mainly have it on when he is out. here's the problem.

i never was going to live here permantetly only for a year or two maximum and finding another neighbour as tolerant would be near impossible as you cant exactly choose where to live (council flat) therefore would a premium expensive soundbar anywhere near replicate 7.1 or 5.1? if i had to sell my home cinema then i would be very disappointed. i dont know what to do!

 

[bigboss]

A soundbar will never match a 7.1 setup. Besides, having 1 or 7 speakers doesn't matter with regards to loudness; both will be equally loud! You simply have to turn the volume down.

 

[nugget2014]

A soundbar will never match a 7.1 setup. Besides, having 1 or 7 speakers doesn't matter with regards to loudness; both will be equally loud! You simply have to turn the volume down.

i guess. it'd be a real shame if i had to sell my sub as thats my most loved part of my kit! i listened to a song without it on using only the zensor 3's and i was like "meh" it's like watching 4k then going back to 720p.

 

[Leeps]

An alternative would be to keep your current system for early evening use and get a decent DAC/headphone amp & a pair of good headphones for late evening.

Also, check out the different settings on your AV receiver. Some have specific settings to reduce the dynamic range, so in practice it makes the quiet bits louder. On my AV receiver it's called Optimum, but yours will likely have an equivalent. Most blurays are designed for cinema use not an ordinary living room. Very often the dialogue is too quiet and the crash bang wallop effects through the main left & right channels are MUCH louder.

By playing about with the settings and channel levels you may be able to find a compromise that still provides sufficient dynamism to be exciting but doesn't annoy your neighbours either.

And as someone who lives in a flat, I can accept a certain amount of noise during normal waking hours, but it's noise after 10:30/11:00pm that I find annoying, hence the headphones suggestion.

 

[Leeps]

You didn't mention if you're on the ground floor or not, but if not, maybe look into ways to help prevent the sub's sound from resonating with the floor, such as the Auralex subdude II.

Once you've owned a decent surround system I really don't think you'd be happy with a soundbar, even a high-end one.

 

[nugget2014]

An alternative would be to keep your current system for early evening use and get a decent DAC/headphone amp & a pair of good headphones for late evening.

Also, check out the different settings on your AV receiver. Some have specific settings to reduce the dynamic range, so in practice it makes the quiet bits louder. On my AV receiver it's called Optimum, but yours will likely have an equivalent. Most blurays are designed for cinema use not an ordinary living room. Very often the dialogue is too quiet and the crash bang wallop effects through the main left & right channels are MUCH louder.

By playing about with the settings and channel levels you may be able to find a compromise that still provides sufficient dynamism to be exciting but doesn't annoy your neighbours either.

And as someone who lives in a flat, I can accept a certain amount of noise during normal waking hours, but it's noise after 10:30/11:00pm that I find annoying, hence the headphones suggestion.

yeah i seen that on my sony str-dn1040. i thought it wouldnt be much good and just making everything drop in quality. but i'll make sure to try it out. i might even try it tonight or tomorrow. regarding the headphones i have a little fiio e17 dac/amp and beats studio 2.0 wireless (good enough for me) as im a basshead. and i normally turn films or music off on my system after 9pm or 9:30 latest.

also im above my neighbour so not ground floor. i can try investing in one of those subdudes or something similar such as the auralex.