Switching from Passives+amp to Actives

[Ellebob]

The difference I find comes down to quality of sound. Most sound bars are very limited with small drivers which really can't give a nice full midrange and upper bass above the sub. I had the ARC and have installed many. I like the Sonos architecture and we use Sonos a lot at work. I like it much better than Denon Heos, Yamaha Multicast, Bluesound and definitely better than Play-fi but some of the others have merit depending on the system. The ARC simply didn't compete with my pair of bookshelf speakers which flank the TV. The bookshelf speakers are Paradigm shift A2 active speakers with 5 1/4 woofers and built in DSP, but I do throw in the Genelec G4s or JBL 308s in the TV room sometime and they are both definitely better than the Paradigms and my family all preferred them over the ARC and any other sound bar so far. Some sound bars I have had here I feel are better sounding than the ARC but have not compared side by side.

We have done a lot of comparison with sound bars at my house and we still keep coming back to the speakers. One thing I find with using speakers for TV is to not place the speakers too far apart. Placing them further apart has some benefit for music but not for TV as it narrows the sweet spot too much. The speakers are only about 6 feet apart and the seating is 9-112 feet away depending where you are sitting on the sectional couch. I do have a Sonos port connected to it as well for listening to music. I use a signal sensing switcher to keep things simple. But, YMMV on what you prefer.

 

[16/44]

I tried a lot of 2 ch options, my Magnepan setup, Homepods, and Dynaudio Xeo 2s. Out of those it's the Homepod I liked best for TV use, but being limited to using the Apple TV for everything was a problem for me.

I agree that keeping the speakers close to the TV is good, but it was worse for music. Audiophile heresy I know... but for TV use in my particular room I liked the Arc.

EDIT: To keep things on topic, I had a similar problem as the OP and decided to go with a soundbar for TV use and a set of actives for PC.

 

[Ellebob]

A few possible solutions for you.

How much music do you listen to and is it critical listening or more background music?
A 2.1 system will give better sound but might not have as wide of a soundstage for critical listening if speakers are placed close. Your distance is not far off from what is used in mixing consoles.

How important is ease of use?
if this is important sound bar or Sonos amp with speakers and get rid of the receiver.
Only if your TV has analog outputs or headphone output than an active 2.0 or 2.1 system works well.

Size limitations? You have partially mentioned this but could your current speakers work with a smaller amp?
The Sonos amp mentioned or small sound bar. You can also use a mini-amp if not going to be played too loud and can easily be mounted to back of TV.

Aesthetics? This goes with size and keeping things neat. Sound bar works for this.

Keep the Denon?
A passive sound bar might be a good option if keeping the receiver. Many companies make them and that would give you a 3.1 system. The disadvantage is they don't have faux surround/atmos like many active sound bars. But many of them are very good sounding with quality drivers.

What are you going to be listening to and what devices do you plan to connect to the system? How often do you listen to music without the TV being on?

How loud do you like to play? For instance you mentioned the Genelec 801 and JBL LSR305. While the Genelec will have the edge in sound quality the JBLs will play much louder than the Genelec. No matter what you go with small speakers can only play so loud. Its not a matter of bigger speakers being better, small speakers can do a great job if kept within their limits. There is no way I would recommend a sound bar or small speakers if you like to "crank it". I would recommend a sub no matter what system you go with. But something like the 305 with its corresponding 310 sub will play louder and cleaner than the 810 or ARC sound bar and be less expensive.

Lastly what is max budget? We all want to spend as little as possible. And we will certainly keep that in mind but getting the right solution for your situation will make spending more hurt less. Lots of possibilities and we'll try to narrow your choices.

 

[Lorenzo74]

My partner and I are going to be moving in a month or 2 and possibly again in another 6-12 months, and again in another 6-12 months and again, etc.
We have decided we want to keep our belongings to a minimum. (I really can not be weighed down right now)

I currently own a pair of B&W 602s2 that are powered by a NADc372 for my stereo system and a 5.1 B&W 601s2+cc6 set with a BK xls300 subwoofer powered by a Denon 2310 for my movies setup. (actually, another pair of B&W601s2 with a NAD3130 for my PC setup)
This is waay too much equipment to keep schlepping around with us once or twice a year.

So I am thinking of switching to some Active speakers like the Adam t5v, Kali LP-6, or JBL 305p/306p, probably 2 setups, 1 pair for the TV and 1 pair for the PC.
I may consider getting a subwoofer but something smaller than the BK, that thing is a beast.

I know it is going to hurt going down from 5.1 to stereo (especially the center speaker) but sound-wise how do you guys think the active speakers mentioned above will fair compared to the B&W602/601s and the NADs?

I will most likely pick the Adam t5v or JBL 305p instead of the Kali LP-6 or JBL 306p due to size, I feel like it will just make life easier atm.

What do you guys think?

Is this going to be a Downgrade? Sidegrade? Upgrade? I think for the PC setup which is nearfield it will probably be an upgrade vs the B&W601+NAD3130 I currently use.

EDIT: the pricing here in the UK is
Kali LP-6 £300
JBL 306P MKII £300
Adam T5V £270
JBL 305P MKII £220

This is roughly my budget if I play to get 2 pairs.

All setups will use a decent DAC or minidsp

I would go for Adam T7v since same footprint than t5v but can play lauder and deeper. No need of a sub.
my Best

 

[milotrain]

Knowing how TV is mixed I'd never spend time on a 2.1 setup. I had one a long time ago. If it's two channels it's headphones, otherwise I want a center.

 

[txbdan]

We have a little Sonos Beam in our den and I'm impressed with it. It replaced a nice 2.1 system as the wife wanted something smaller. It's not as good as the 2.1 of course, but I'm surprisingly ok with it. It sounds much bigger and fuller than you'd expect. The DSP room correction is quite effective.

I also have NHT C3s, Energy RCs, B&W CM9s, and Monitor Audio silvers in the house. The Sonos still sounds acceptable for watching TV and even a movie. It's not a home theater system of course, but its dead simple. I'm sure the Arc is significantly better.

That said, I think that rather than moving equipment into an unknown space, you should probably wait and see what the space is and what your circumstances are first.