Hi there,
I am building my house right now and was going to use a sonos sound bar in my great room. I was going to build this into the wall and have it flush, however once I opened the box I noticed that the sonos sound bar actually projects sound out the sides/back. This will clearly not work as it would more than likely distort the sound.
I am looking for a white sound bar that only projects forward, that would be comparable to the sonos playbar. Any suggestions? I was going to put the soundbar in a void in the wall, and then do millwork around it to have a nice clean look.
Someone had suggested to me that bose has a nice white soundbar, but when I looked at it, it seems to project sound out the side (and possibly back) as well which would again cause issues if it is in the wall.
Thank you
I am building my house right now and was going to use a sonos sound bar in my great room. I was going to build this into the wall and have it flush, however once I opened the box I noticed that the sonos sound bar actually projects sound out the sides/back. This will clearly not work as it would more than likely distort the sound.
I am looking for a white sound bar that only projects forward, that would be comparable to the sonos playbar. Any suggestions? I was going to put the soundbar in a void in the wall, and then do millwork around it to have a nice clean look.
Someone had suggested to me that bose has a nice white soundbar, but when I looked at it, it seems to project sound out the side (and possibly back) as well which would again cause issues if it is in the wall.
Thank you
All sound sources project all around.
Some more, some less, but all do.
Not sure what your problem is, embedding it in a wall does NOT cause distortion.
Some more, some less, but all do.
Not sure what your problem is, embedding it in a wall does NOT cause distortion.
The size of the soundbar doesn't lend itself to being able to control lower and middle frequencies on its own. The direction of ports and drivers is therefore not doing much to direct this sound, it will go in all directions regardless.
Your idea of putting it in a wall would potentially offer directional control. Clearly you don't want things happening on the back when the speaker is to be mounted in a recess.
The way I see it, there should also be a graceful interface to the wall. This may include directional highs that avoid the wall, and a seamless baffling of lower frequencies.
Your idea of putting it in a wall would potentially offer directional control. Clearly you don't want things happening on the back when the speaker is to be mounted in a recess.
The way I see it, there should also be a graceful interface to the wall. This may include directional highs that avoid the wall, and a seamless baffling of lower frequencies.
See the attached image for what I am referring to
image - Image on Pasteboard
essentially want to put the soundbar in the void, facing forward towards the room/couch etc. The problem say with the sonos playbar is that it would project backwards into the void.
image - Image on Pasteboard
essentially want to put the soundbar in the void, facing forward towards the room/couch etc. The problem say with the sonos playbar is that it would project backwards into the void.
All sound sources project all around.
Some more, some less, but all do.
Not sure what your problem is, embedding it in a wall does NOT cause distortion.
So if I were to mount the sonos playbar in the void, and do mill work around it...I would still get a good clean sound even though some of it is being projected backwards?
Are we talking about ports on the back/sides, or actual speaker drivers and where on the back/sides are they?
What are the dimensions of your opening? Have your speakers pointing forward as well as the ports if going ported.
Yes.So if I were to mount the sonos playbar in the void, and do mill work around it...I would still get a good clean sound even though some of it is being projected backwards?
No problem at all by having some sound going backwards.
FWIW a popular cabinet style is the "Infinite Baffle" or "Open Board Baffle", essentially a large sheet of plywood or equivalent and a speaker monted on a hole.
By definition it radiates sound both ways, towards the listener and into the "empty space" behind.
In your case you have a cabinet designed to work on its own, which already radiates some sound backwards, way less than what a "raw" speaker would, so even less of a problem.
Yes.
No problem at all by having some sound going backwards.
FWIW a popular cabinet style is the "Infinite Baffle" or "Open Board Baffle", essentially a large sheet of plywood or equivalent and a speaker monted on a hole.
By definition it radiates sound both ways, towards the listener and into the "empty space" behind.
In your case you have a cabinet designed to work on its own, which already radiates some sound backwards, way less than what a "raw" speaker would, so even less of a problem.
You seem to be missing his point.
The original plan was to mount the speaker inside the wall, so the front baffle was flush with the wall.
If that speaker has drivers or ports on the sides/top/back, the sound from those would be trapped behind plasterboard - inside the wall.
This isn't a matter of speaker directionality. It's much simpler than that - the OP is looking for something where all the sound comes off the front of the speaker.
Chris
IF that is the case, OP should forget mounting it inside a wall or flush with any surface and mounting it fully in front.
Even worse: if it has back firing ports (I doubt it but let´s cover all cases) then it must be well ahead of the wall, say at least a couple inches.
You don´t actually know details about that "soundbar" because OP has NOT shown any pictures of it (specially sides and back) NOR linked to any specific datasheet.
Even worse: if it has back firing ports (I doubt it but let´s cover all cases) then it must be well ahead of the wall, say at least a couple inches.
You don´t actually know details about that "soundbar" because OP has NOT shown any pictures of it (specially sides and back) NOR linked to any specific datasheet.
Well, he said it's a Sonos Playbar. If you do an image search, you can see it's unsuitable for in-wall mounting as the OP would like.
It appears the long slots across the back of the unit are indeed bass reflex ports.
I hope we're all on the same page now.
Chris
It appears the long slots across the back of the unit are indeed bass reflex ports.
I hope we're all on the same page now.
Chris
Hi everyone - thank you for all your input.
That is correct - the intention is to mount the soundbar in the wall, and have the sound projecting forward. This would make it flush with the millwork.
I don't believe the sonos playbar is a good option due to the fact that it would project sound into the wall/void.
I am looking at a bose soundbar now, specifically
https://www.amazon.ca/Soundbar-Alex...ocphy=9001504&hvtargid=pla-568798559222&psc=1
It appears to only project sound forward as opposed to having speakers in the back of it as well. Thoughts on something like this?
That is correct - the intention is to mount the soundbar in the wall, and have the sound projecting forward. This would make it flush with the millwork.
I don't believe the sonos playbar is a good option due to the fact that it would project sound into the wall/void.
I am looking at a bose soundbar now, specifically
https://www.amazon.ca/Soundbar-Alex...ocphy=9001504&hvtargid=pla-568798559222&psc=1
It appears to only project sound forward as opposed to having speakers in the back of it as well. Thoughts on something like this?
It looks like the Bose also has rear-firing ports.
Depending on your skillset, you might be better off DIYing this.
Chris
Depending on your skillset, you might be better off DIYing this.
Chris
Yes, great opportunity to make a DIY speaker without the hassle of figuring in the baffle. You could even simply make a plate for the wall and mount the drivers.
I agree with Allen here, but perhaps it's better to just purchase some speakers intended for wall mounting, the plate for wall mounting is a nice idea, and use the wall as the box.
No need to build anything other than cut a few holes.
No need to build anything other than cut a few holes.
Depends on what, if any, outboard electronics are available.
Modern soundbars do some pretty impressive stuff with DSP etc, which the average DIYer wouldn't be able to reproduce.
Chris
Modern soundbars do some pretty impressive stuff with DSP etc, which the average DIYer wouldn't be able to reproduce.
Chris
Sure. The Bose 700 soundbar mentioned above claims to calibrate the speaker to the room. Apple's Homepod is better documented, and actually does beam forming.
Then there's the dynamic EQ and smart limiting that means you can use a few okay-ish drivers and get astonishingly good sound, even at high levels. If you listen carefully, you can tell the excursion limiters are coming in, but the sound certainly doesn't fall apart if you crank it.
It's all pretty impressive IMO. I still prefer my 8"+horn HiFi speakers, but the gap is getting smaller.
Chris
Then there's the dynamic EQ and smart limiting that means you can use a few okay-ish drivers and get astonishingly good sound, even at high levels. If you listen carefully, you can tell the excursion limiters are coming in, but the sound certainly doesn't fall apart if you crank it.
It's all pretty impressive IMO. I still prefer my 8"+horn HiFi speakers, but the gap is getting smaller.
Chris
Yeah, the Sonos bars I've seen makes you do some calibration steps with a phone.
It's not very different to other calibration stuff, DSP is everywhere now.
It's not "bad" and it does make pretty good sound for the effort required, but on all the modern compact thingys I've heard, the bass is very muddy/lacks detail. The mids and highs are usually "okay". Have yet to be significantly impressed.
It's not very different to other calibration stuff, DSP is everywhere now.
It's not "bad" and it does make pretty good sound for the effort required, but on all the modern compact thingys I've heard, the bass is very muddy/lacks detail. The mids and highs are usually "okay". Have yet to be significantly impressed.
Yeah, it's impressive. Quite doable DIY as well.which the average DIYer wouldn't be able to reproduce
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