Newbie needs guidance building home audio/theater

[SonicYutes]

Samsung QN90BA with EARC/Optical
Nvidia Shield Pro 2019
Polk Audio monitors 5jr 29126 (passive, speaker wire connects)
Cheap Bluetooth receiver
Cambridge Soundworks Subwoofer (ancient)

I want to improve my theater and music experience without breaking the bank.

My current janky setup: the subwoofer powers the Polk speakers, and the BT receiver is connected to the subwoofer via a 3.5 headphone cable. The TV BT connects to the receiver, as do our phones. Shield connects HDMI to the Samsung TV, and most music comes from our phones connecting to a BT receiver.

I was thinking of getting a class D amp, and connecting it to the optical out from my TV, and using it to power the polks and subwoofer, and connecting my phones to same via Bluetooth. I have read that EARC is better than optical, but the amps are expensive AVRs. The Shield also has Bluetooth and USB ports, as does the Samsung TV.

Any suggestions? Is Dolby Atmos possible ?

Thanks

 

[Steven Holt]

You really might want to work on the 'Cheap Bluetooth receiver'. Take a good look at the Yamaha AS series. I'm not big on subwoofers, but you're into HT so I can see it. From what I have seen on this forum, you can't go wrong with REL, KEF, or SVS. By the way, welcome to ASR!

 

[alex-z]

Get a proper AV receiver. Right now your setup is limited to 2 channels, and has no room correction software.

Even an older model from the pre-4K era will at least allow you to connect it via optical, giving you lossy 5.1 support. Having a dedicated centre channel and subwoofer is huge when it comes to movies.

 

[SonicYutes]

Any suggestions in particular? I was looking at the Fosi Audio DA2120A.

 

[GXAlan]

I would look any old Denon or Marantz or Pioneer or Yamaha or Sony with HDMI ARC. Don’t need eARC.

You can find them used for $150 or less sometimes.

 

[SonicYutes]

Are they better than a newer class D amp in the same price range ?

 

[GXAlan]

Are they better than a newer class D amp in the same price range ?

Yes from the standpoint that average SINAD with room correction likely trumps good SINAD without room correction, when in the <$200 price range.

To be fair, we are also comparing used AVR vs. new amp.