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

[araquen]

My apologies if this topic has been discussed previously. Sneaking in the question at work . . .

My husband and I are considering the Sound Bar 360. The structural layout of our living room makes positioning a speaker-based surround-sound system very problematic and the Soundbar seems to be an excellent and elegant solution.

However, our television is one of the older, rear-projection Mitsubishi 65" televisions--designed as an all-in-one "monolith." There is simply no place to put the Sound Bar at head level, unless we mounted it on the wall behind the tv (which seems odd to have this big hulking mass of tv obstructing the speaker system).

Is it possible to still obtain surround sound with the bar mounted on the top of the TV?

The dimensions of the room are are approx 12'x15' with the tv set against one corner and our seating diagonally across the room. Ceiling is normal height. The height of the TV is probably about 6'-6'6".)

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

[jello212]

Are there any plans for a new Soundbar 360 with a blu-ray instead of a dvd player?

[SCompRacer]

Is it possible to still obtain surround sound with the bar mounted on the top of the TV?

Welcome to Club Polk!

Yes, the SB360 works fine on top of a TV, provided there is enough width and the surface is somewhat level for the support cradles. Here is a pic taken of the SurroundBar 360 at a recent get together of the Rockford Audio Society. Just place the support cradles on the TV and set the surround bar on the cradles. Low and high cradles are included with the SB360. The 'high' cradles are used here. The cradles have a non-slip surface on the top and bottom to keep them and the SB in place.

[lordmehy]

hi everyone!

i came here after hearing about this forum on AVS. i'm a tech newbie and really don't know/understand the gazillions of settings options you can use on a powerful receiver to fully optimize the audio from your speakers. in any case, i was in charge of upgrading my parents HT setup, and this is what i got for them:

TV: Pioneer Kuro pdp-6020fd
Receiver: Onkyo TX-SR606
Speakers: Polk SurroundBar 50
DVD: Panasonic DMP-BD35K
Remote: Logitech Harmony One

Existing equipment:
Dish network HD-DVR
Bose accoustimass speakers purchased in the mid-90's for the outgoing HT currently in place. (i.e., these are 5 pairs of those small cube speakers)

Now the questions i have regarding setup of this system are as follows:

1) Should i scrap the wires the polk surroundbar comes w/ and get 12awg instead? Will the surroundbar accept banana plugs?

2) What are the settings i should use when setting up the speaker to the receiver? i had read on an earlier page in this thread to set the speakers to small because the surroundbar already had a filter (i don't know if this was specific to the 360 or to the 50).

3) Can i poach 2 pairs of the old Bose speakers i have and use those as surround speakers? Would you recommend this?

4) The Bose system also came w/ a Subwoofer. I plan on poaching this too, unless it doesn't hit nearly as well as i'd like it to. i have the PSW-505 on standby in my amazon cart if need-be.

5) Is there any way you (much more tech and audio savvy people than me) direct me to get optimum performance out of this setup?

Thank you

[harborbreeze]

I have the 360 system.
I have it hooked up to a blue ray player via optical cable.
The volume is barely adequate at max level, this occurs when using the blu ray or the built in dvd player on the 360.
Yet when used on the cable/ sat input the sound is Loud, can't turn it up anywhere near max.
Am I doing something wrong???

[dorokusai]

hi everyone!

i came here after hearing about this forum on AVS. i'm a tech newbie and really don't know/understand the gazillions of settings options you can use on a powerful receiver to fully optimize the audio from your speakers. in any case, i was in charge of upgrading my parents HT setup, and this is what i got for them:

TV: Pioneer Kuro pdp-6020fd
Receiver: Onkyo TX-SR606
Speakers: Polk SurroundBar 50
DVD: Panasonic DMP-BD35K
Remote: Logitech Harmony One

Existing equipment:
Dish network HD-DVR
Bose accoustimass speakers purchased in the mid-90's for the outgoing HT currently in place. (i.e., these are 5 pairs of those small cube speakers)

Now the questions i have regarding setup of this system are as follows:

1) Should i scrap the wires the polk surroundbar comes w/ and get 12awg instead? Will the surroundbar accept banana plugs?

2) What are the settings i should use when setting up the speaker to the receiver? i had read on an earlier page in this thread to set the speakers to small because the surroundbar already had a filter (i don't know if this was specific to the 360 or to the 50).

3) Can i poach 2 pairs of the old Bose speakers i have and use those as surround speakers? Would you recommend this?

4) The Bose system also came w/ a Subwoofer. I plan on poaching this too, unless it doesn't hit nearly as well as i'd like it to. i have the PSW-505 on standby in my amazon cart if need-be.

5) Is there any way you (much more tech and audio savvy people than me) direct me to get optimum performance out of this setup?

Thank you

1) You can certainly upgrade the wires if you want but I'd stick with the stock harness until you get it setup.

2) Refer to the owners manual. The settings may depend on your AVR's capabilities.

3) Yes, for 6.1 or 7.1 they would work fine. I'm not sure of the impedence of the cubes but it shouldn't be a problem either way.

4) The PSW505 is a better choice than the Bose subwoofer. Better yet, check out Polks' new DSW subwoofer series.

5) You're doing fine. Good luck!

[dorokusai]

I have the 360 system.
I have it hooked up to a blue ray player via optical cable.
The volume is barely adequate at max level, this occurs when using the blu ray or the built in dvd player on the 360.
Yet when used on the cable/ sat input the sound is Loud, can't turn it up anywhere near max.
Am I doing something wrong???

Have you tried another input? There are 3 choices on the rear of the S360.

[Caveman1]

I am interested in purchasing the Surroundbar Titanium for 42" plasma that is mounted to a Sanus Full motion mount (VMDD26). I need to know if the Surroundbar will mount to the Sanus Universal Center-channel speaker mount (VMCC1) that attaches to the full motion mount. Does anyone know the answer? Thanks.[B][B]

[BAlGaInTl]

So, I've been thinking about getting the SoundBar 50 for a bit now... I ran across the titanium version for only $399 and couldn't pass it up.

It will go fine with my TV for now.... but if I upgrade to a black tv in the future, can you change out the speaker cover for a black one? I don't see any way to order it as a "part" from the site.

I'm quite excited about it....

Now I just need to get a better sub to go with it. It should beat my RCA 2.1 that I have going now....

:)

[CaligulaPolk]

I see that SB360 DVD player have subtitle feature but will Closed captioned [CC] work? I will have to hook up via compoent not HDMI to get CC to work. DVD does have cc, as for Blu-ray it will be subtitles. I would rather to have a player that enable CC via component.

How does this work with PS3? Will i need the dvd player if I hook it up to PS3?

[dorokusai]

It will go fine with my TV for now.... but if I upgrade to a black tv in the future, can you change out the speaker cover for a black one?

Great post and experience but no, you cannot change the "cover". It's extruded Aluminum and not designed to be changed.

[BAlGaInTl]

Great post and experience but no, you cannot change the "cover". It's extruded Aluminum and not designed to be changed.

It looked like the front grille was removable from the technical documentation. Or is that just for illustration purposes?

I still feel like I stole it at $399. Has the Titanium version been discontinued or something?

[dorokusai]

I thought you meant the housing....yes, you can remove and change the cover if you wish.

[BAlGaInTl]

I thought you meant the housing....yes, you can remove and change the cover if you wish.

Very cool...

I was hoping so.

Any idea on where somebody could find one?

;)

[MikeC78]

Just email of call Polk CS, they'll send you one.

[CaligulaPolk]

I see that SB360 DVD player have subtitle feature but will Closed captioned [CC] work? I will have to hook up via compoent not HDMI to get CC to work. DVD does have cc, as for Blu-ray it will be subtitles. I would rather to have a player that enable CC via component.

How does this work with PS3? Will i need the dvd player if I hook it up to PS3?

anyone can pop in dvd and have CC icon on back of your dvd to see if dvd player will enable CC on DVD. Do not use dvd subtitles. I did some sample on 360 at best buy this afternoon. people behind me came to me said does it havef subwoofer and it sounds really good. they were amazed. it sold me but i am wondering how 360 will do with blu-ray and how do I connect it if it can be replaced polk dvd player. but i need dvd player with cc ability since PS3 can not play CC via HDMI or component. Thanks in advance.

[bradbxyz]

I did the same thing, picked up a titanium SB50 from AMAZON for 399, and mailed cust service to get the black grill. Here is their response:

Good-afternoon Mr. Bender,
The Grilles for the SurroundBar 50 come in Black (RF5054-1) or Titanium (RF5056-1) and are available at $30.00 each + S&H.
You can order parts with a Credit Card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express) or Money Orders.
Please contact us at the address listed below. Most States require that you pay Sales Taxes.

Customer Service / Parts
5601 Metro Dr.
Baltimore, MD. 21215
1-800-377-7655
Fax- 410-764-5470

[CaligulaPolk]

I see that SB360 DVD player have subtitle feature but will Closed captioned [CC] work? I will have to hook up via compoent not HDMI to get CC to work. DVD does have cc, as for Blu-ray it will be subtitles. I would rather to have a player that enable CC via component.

How does this work with PS3? Will i need the dvd player if I hook it up to PS3?

Anyone at POLK can answer this question? Its important to have this ? answered.

[skeptic]

It looked like the front grille was removable from the technical documentation. Or is that just for illustration purposes?

I still feel like I stole it at $399. Has the Titanium version been discontinued or something?

WOW, it's not a steal, it's grand theft! :-)

I assume this is the SurroundBar 50, right? Seriously, even for a SurroundBar 50 Titanium, it's too good to be true. But how do you know it's not faked product from China. You know that, these days, the folks over there can create fake consumer product from virtually any company.

[bradbxyz]

"But how do you know it's not faked product from China?"

The Box was Polk, The Paperwork was Polk, and I was able to register the serial number with Polk....

[MikeC78]

If it was purchased directly from Amazon, it's real. BTW, I believe the speaker is manufactured in China for Polk.

[CaligulaPolk]

anyone can pop in dvd and have CC icon on back of your dvd to see if dvd player will enable CC on DVD. Do not use dvd subtitles. I did some sample on 360 at best buy this afternoon. people behind me came to me said does it havef subwoofer and it sounds really good. they were amazed. it sold me but i am wondering how 360 will do with blu-ray and how do I connect it if it can be replaced polk dvd player. but i need dvd player with cc ability since PS3 can not play CC via HDMI or component. Thanks in advance.

I guess ill have to go to best buy with my own DVD with cc to answer my own question, seem no one has clue...

[zengel442]

Are there any plans for a new Soundbar 360 with a blu-ray instead of a dvd player?

Any takers on this one?? I'd kinda like to know too... :D

[dorokusai]

Any takers on this one?? I'd kinda like to know too... :D

At the time of SB360 product design the matter of Blu-Ray was never mentioned in the focus groups. It was in it's infancy at that time. Currently, I don't know where that idea stands within Polk Audio.

[dorokusai]

I guess ill have to go to best buy with my own DVD with cc to answer my own question, seem no one has clue...

How about sending an email directly to Customer Service? You could have had your answer by now.

polkcs@polkaudio.com

[gdpeck]

Doro- you are correct, I really need to post pics! Between my 2 channel setup and the modified surround, it's a pretty thing. I was honestly waiting to get my Krell Kid to finish off the room! Thanks for the suggestion! D.

I'd really like to see some pics of your surroundbar 50 setup as well as hear more of your impressions. Because of your posts, I'm really leaning towards picking up that Cambridge Audio receiver for a bedroom surround system I'm building and pairing it with a surroundbar 50.

This post: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showp...11&postcount=7 (which I'm guessing is from you) was very helpful, but I'd still love to see the pics, and hear longer term impressions.

Thanks!
George

[acekaye]

I did the same thing, picked up a titanium SB50 from AMAZON for 399, and mailed cust service to get the black grill. Here is their response:

Good-afternoon Mr. Bender,
The Grilles for the SurroundBar 50 come in Black (RF5054-1) or Titanium (RF5056-1) and are available at $30.00 each + S&H.
You can order parts with a Credit Card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express) or Money Orders.
Please contact us at the address listed below. Most States require that you pay Sales Taxes.

Customer Service / Parts
5601 Metro Dr.
Baltimore, MD. 21215
1-800-377-7655
Fax- 410-764-5470

Would it be possible to send a picture of the Titanium SoundBar 50 with the black grille on the front? I am thinking of doing that too and would like to see how it looks before I invest.
Thanks.

[fireshoes]

I am interested in purchasing the Surroundbar Titanium for 42" plasma that is mounted to a Sanus Full motion mount (VMDD26). I need to know if the Surroundbar will mount to the Sanus Universal Center-channel speaker mount (VMCC1) that attaches to the full motion mount. Does anyone know the answer? Thanks.[B][B]

Hi Caveman,
PolkAudio.com does list the Sanus VMCC1 as a supported mounting option.

Have fun!

[zengel442]

At the time of SB360 product design the matter of Blu-Ray was never mentioned in the focus groups. It was in it's infancy at that time. Currently, I don't know where that idea stands within Polk Audio.

It sure would be nice to see THAT package offered... :)

[jps]

I would like to solicit advise on adjusting my HT system. I would like to purchase a new center channel speaker, one that fits better with my LCD TV. If I opt for the SurroundBar, can I still use the HT speakers that are mounted in the ceiling and my Polk sub? Or, can you recommend a better center channel solution?
Thanks