Polk Audio SurroundBar (42", 50", 360 DVD Theater, SDA IHT) - Review/ Help Thread

[newrival]

quick review for my demo of the SB3000:

I demo'ed this product for an extended period of time and have had a great time with it. The sound is an order of magnitude better than the sound from any TV speakers in both quality and quantity. For the demo I set it up at my Aunt and Uncle's house. They are in their late 50's and they do not like clutter or complicated electronics.

Build quality/aesthetics: Being into high-end audio, I was initially unimoressed by the construction of the Surround Bar and sub. Specifically the weight and materials. It was very light and while it did not seem flimsy at all, the lack of heft had me skeptical. It did indeed sem sturdy enough, just not heavy. My Aunt and Uncle loved this aspect. They were very happy it was light and they could easily pick up the speaker and the sub. The form factor is nice and slim. Both the SB and the sub are slim and disappear easily into the room.

Setup: SUPER simple. set the single speaker enclosure by your tv, plug in power cord, plug in one audio cable, plug in subwoofer power cable, done. no receiver, no mess of cables, nothing but simplicity. My Aunt's comment: "Wow, that's someting even I could setup. That is important to old ladies like us *laugh*"

Soud: The sound really impressed them. They instantly said "wow." My Aunt kept commenting that it was "like being at the movie theater." Personally, it wasn't THAT good, but it was a noticeable improvement. Additionally, they both noticed that they listened at much lower levels because of the sound quality. with the tv speakers, They would turn it up because they couldnt hear dialog over the music. With the Surround Bar they could hear everything very clearly and not have to turn it up to levels that made it very harsh.

[cincycat13]

I initially picked this up to use on a gaming system that I haven't gotten to, so I decided to at least listen to it today.

My TV is a Sony XBR4 which I partially selected because it has decent speakers.

My current theater front set up is an Onkyo txsr 876 with RT3000p fronts and a CS400 center. You can see one of the RT sub bases in the bottom right...the dusty blip behind the right part of the bar.

I set up the 50" bar on a Sony STR DE845. Not a straight comparison, but I don't have a swap friendly set up.

This was easy to set up. I had it up and down all in one morning including unboxing and repacking. Way better than the TV speakers. I did not have the technology to turn up the surround dB so I could not play with that to help the surround. I added a sub for a bit, but I think the AVR used limited the help.

This bar could be made to look very good in a small room and I am pleased with the purchase. I would recommend for sure.

[stygz]

Thinking of trying out the Original surroundbar (42"). My room is 14x19 with tall ceilings. I will be using a Yamaha RX-V663 (95w/ channel high current) with a Polk PSW303. We bought a new house and will be putting the system above a corner fireplace (electric). We watch mostly movies with some music listening. I tried out a Boston Acoustics TVee model 30 (3.1 system) and was mostly satisfied but wanted more surround effect. I thought about ordering from crutchfield because of easy returns if I do not like the surroundbar. I am also concidering the IHT 6000 due to simplicity. I listened to the 6000 system alittle but thought I may not like how it processed music. I am looking to replace my RM 6700 system.

[brycejmcewen]

I bought one of the original sound bars used (Model: Surroundbar Titanium - S/N: AM405702837) and the seller didn't have the cradle or the wall mount (he had used Soundbar Brackets to attach to his tv, which he kept to attach his centre channel for his 5.1 system).

Does anybody out there have a wall mount for this model cluttering up their closet they'd be willing to part with? I contacted Polk, and they can get the parts, but being in Canada, by the time the Canadian Rep gets the parts and ships them to me, it'll cost me as much as ordering the Soundbar brackets (and that's shipping them to my American drop address and not paying duty). It's also a bit of a hassle to pay the guy, as I'd have to mail him a check, wait for him to get it, ship, etc, etc...

I can pay with paypal and have an account with FedEx I can use for shipping.

Fingers crossed...

Bryce