soundbars

This is an update of a deal I posted earlier this year. The first time around, it sold out very quickly, but this time I'm assured the vendor has some 5,000 units in stock.

Not wild about the audio coming from your laptop? No surprise there -- it's fairly miraculous that manufacturers manage to squeeze in speakers at all.

And yet many folks use their laptops as media centers in dens, offices, and bedrooms. So how can you get more aural enjoyment from your games, movies, and music?

Simple: add a sound bar. Even an inexpensive one … Read more

I've written many times about the merits of augmenting your TV's crummy built-in speakers with an external sound system. Even if you add lower-end speakers, the difference is night and day.

I've also written many times about Vizio's sound bar, which has sold for as low as $50 (refurbished). It's pretty good on its own, but if you really want to kick your TV sound system up a notch, you need a subwoofer.

Today only, and while supplies last, JustDeals has the refurbished Vizio VHT210 sound bar and wireless subwoofer for $109.77 shipped. That'… Read more

Not happy with the audio coming from your laptop? No surprise there -- it's fairly miraculous that manufacturers manage to squeeze in speakers at all.

And yet many folks use their laptops as media centers in dens and bedrooms. So how can you get more aural enjoyment from your games, movies, and music?

Simple: add a sound bar. Even an inexpensive one should offer a huge improvement over the tiny, tinny speakers built into your system. If nothing else, it projects the sound forward instead of down, out, or up (depending on where the internal speakers are mounted).

Today … Read more

The other day, our audio reviewer Steve Guttenberg told me that when he was choosing his new television he spent a good deal of time at his local electronics retailer testing TVs against each other. But instead of evaluating the picture he was more interested in evaluating the sound quality, which I'm sure did not impress the salespeople who were used to just flicking on a copy of "Up" and waving at the TVs theatrically.

Sound quality is underappreciated in a product that is primarily designed to give you a picture, and unless you buy an expensive … Read more

CNET Reader Kato asks:

I have speakers directly hooked up to my TV via the "speaker audio out." It works fine. I then hooked up additional speakers I had from a computer. Upon doing so the volume on the original speakers went way down and I get even less from the new speakers. What am I doing wrong?

Oh, so many things...… Read more

LAS VEGAS--If you consider yourself a "Fandroid," you might like to know that Philips has announced the CSS5123 SoundBar: the "first Android streaming Home Theater experience."

The $349.99 SoundBar is designed to sit at the center of a home-streaming setup controlled with a dedicated Android app, SimplyShare, which Philips is pitching as an alternative to AirPlay. It's worth clarifying that the SoundBar itself doesn't run on Android.

SimplyShare is based on DLNA and is compatible with other DLNA devices including Windows PCs, network servers, and dare we say it, (probably) DLNA apps on … Read more

Lets face it: sound bars are popular mostly because they reduce home theater clutter. The other big plus is that they eliminate the need to buy an AV receiver, and the cost savings can be considerable. That's all good, but I'm still waiting to hear a sound bar an audiophile could love.

I had hopes for Klipsch's new Gallery G-42 sound bar ($699), but it doesn't have internal amplifiers, so it must be used with a receiver. That's potentially a very positive sign, because the amps built into sound bars aren't as good or as powerful as the ones in Denon, NAD, Onkyo, Pioneer, or Yamaha receivers. Like all Klipsch speakers, the G-42 sports horn-loaded tweeters (more on that later). The sound bar is part of a new Klipsch series of Gallery speakers and 5.1 channel speaker packages.

Decked out with a gorgeous glossy black finish, the G-42 has a high-end sheen, and its 6-inch-high, 42-inch-wide, and 2.4-inch-deep cabinet feels sturdy. The 12-pound speaker can be wall-mounted or set on a cabinet with the included table top stand. The rear panel houses all-metal connectors for the speaker's left, center, and right channels. … Read more

Let's say you have a TV you like. Maybe it's a few years old; maybe it's new. But you have the upgrade bug, and can't decide what's best to get.

The following guide should help you figure out where the most bang will come from your dollars. … Read more

Road warriors who want to improve the sound of their laptops' speakers have several choices to select from, including Altec's Orbit speaker and various other portable PC speakers; however, many of these can be a bit bulky and aren't the easiest with which to travel.

The Philips SPA5210B is a little different from most of its competitors in that it's a sound bar-style speaker that clips on to the top of a laptop screen--it can also sit on a table, if you'd prefer. It includes a clip-on mechanism with a hand-screw on its back that lets … Read more