SurroundBar SDA Instant Home Theater

by Kevin, February 27, 2009

Strengths:

easy setup and virtually impossible to foul up. 260 total watts of power

Weaknesses:

I haven't yet found one

Review:

I just received this system about a day ago and I love it. It's a great product for a little price. I have yet to watch movies but video games come to life and sound great, easy setup in fact it took me longer to unwrapped the units from the box. If you have a small room with a nice flat panel tv and you want some great sound quality then this is the system for you.

by Steve, March 29, 2009

Strengths:

Extremely easy to set up (should take no more than 10 minutes) and provides great sound from a small package - so much better than TV speakers.

Weaknesses:

Not a true 5.1 system, but sometimes you’ll think that it is.

Review:

I got the Polk SurroundBar SDA IHT to use in our small family room. Up until now we have just been using the TV speakers (our real home theater system is in our basement). At first I was a bit skeptical about the wireless subwoofer. I have heard bad stories about other wireless audio products, and since this was Polk’s first entry into the wireless business I was not sure what to expect. But, I must say that the wireless performance is excellent. I have not had any problems with drop-outs or audio quality. Even better yet, the wireless subwoofer is well-blended with the SurroundBar creating a very pleasant and natural audio presentation. But the best part of the SurroundBar SDA IHT is how easy it was to setup. I was literally testing out some of my movies within 10 minutes of opening the box. Great job Polk Audio!

by Russ Gates, November 10, 2009

Strengths:

Big sound, super easy hookup and setup. Highly recommended for smaller rooms, and not just for video application, feel free to just sit back and listen.

Weaknesses:

'Not up to Polk quality' tweeter can be harsh, especially at higher listening levels. Crossover blend from subwoofer to speaker bar is higher than I would like, but a necessary evil.

Review:

SDA, what a touchy subject. Here it is, a small, easy to setup and use, all in one package. Let's start with the good. ROOM filling sound. The wireless subwoofer POUNDS, shockingly so for its diminutive size. Now, are you going to get the soundstage like the big floorstanding SDA of the past? No, you simply aren't - BUT there is a lot of peripheral information WAY outside of the bar itself. The SDA works, plain and simple. The built in amplification, gain settings, and easy of hookup are simply AWESOME. This is truly a plug and play unit. The bad. Cheap mylar tweeters. They do settle down a bit after a break in period, but I don't know why they are there to begin with. I think Polk would be better off using the RM series soft dome tweeter, especially considering they chose the RM series midwoofer for the IHT. Last, and not really a complaint, but moreso a limitation of ANY small system like this - the subwoofer is crossed over at high enough frequency that it can be localized, if you are critical of that sort of thing. I couldn't get the sub to disappear, unless it was close to the bar itself.

by Jeff, January 7, 2010

Strengths:

Extremely easy to setup. Wireless sub makes for less wire clutter. Great improvement over TV speakers.

Weaknesses:

None that really stood out.

Review:

Got a chance to try this out and I must say I was very impressed. Opening up the box I was pleased to see that everything looked fairly easy to setup and it was. Took me about 5 minutes to get it all setup and working. I have a fairly decent HT system already, but was eager to see what the IHT could offer me besides my TV speakers. It was amazing the difference between the two, first the volume was a lot louder and much more detailed. Wasn't able to get halfway to the usual volume I usually listen to my TV at. I didn't wall mount this as I have a 60" Sony SXRD, but it wouldn't have been that hard with the included wall template. I would have to say that I was most impressed by the sub in this unit. It is small and compact and can fit pretty much anywhere, but man does it have some kick to it. I watched TV, watched a few movies on my PS3 (also easy to setup) and even hooked it up to my Zune and listened to some music. I was very impressed by how it sounded with music especially, it really did an excellent job. In conclusion, Polk did an excellent job on this product. If space is a factor and you need something low profile to get good sound, the Surroundbar SDA IHT should be at the top of your list.

by Tom, November 8, 2010

Strengths:

Cost Ease of Setup The sound is Great!

Weaknesses:

Front soundstage was a bit brighter than my existing 5.1 system, which I didn't care for. I don't know that the warmer sound I already have might just be what I am used to, though, and that was the basis for my opinion.

Review:

This unit was very easy to set up and get going. Even the technically challenged could do this easily. I tried this out with inputs from our DirecTV HDDVR and our Toshiba upconverting DVD player. The sound was really amazing compared to a 5.1 setup. The surround effect is quite impressive, and the LFE from the wireless sub is impressive. I don't know if it would fill a dedicated home theater, but for a bedroom where I tried it it was adequate. I was really amazed by the surround content and placement from this system. It was hard to fathom that there really were no side/rear speakers. This system would be ideal for someone who wants the home theater experience, but who doesn't have the budget or know-how to set up a total surround sound setup, or where wiring for surround speakers would be impossible. It also has a very high aesthetic acceptance factor.

by Shawn, February 16, 2010

Strengths:

Sound Subwoofer Ease of Use

Weaknesses:

Aesthetics

Review:

My father-in-law has been searching for a long time for something that he can apply into his living room. He HAD the perfect set-up, but he moved his mother into the house and made an in-law suite taking away his original space. Te room he has now is not optimal and requires television placement in a corner of the room, making a 5.1 set-up almost impossible. He has been looking at the surround bars, but wakes up in cold sweats when he thinks about how to connect them, use them properly, and cannot even think about changing any of the settings to his AVR. For his sanity (and mine because I am the one he si always calling to fix something he pressed, etc.), I thought this would be the perfect application. Boy was I right. The ease of setup (if you know how to plug something in and use a set of RCA cables) is incredible. I sat down while he unboxed everything, read the instructions and hooked it up. It took more time to move the tv stand to access the plug then it did to hook this up. The sound that comes from this little bar and subwoofer is pretty impressive. It filled the room and he and my mother-in-law were very impressed with how much of a difference it made from their television (Sharp Aquos 46" LCD) speakers. They were very happy with the sound and they both stated that they "could hear things better". The sub packs quite a punch for something so small and its wireless! The remote is easy to use and probably easy to lose (especially with the 2 grandkids running around the house!). Sub is wireless which is a great feature. Now the review. When I was over, we watched the Vikings playoff game. The soundbar and sub performed impressively. However, one thing I noticed was the crowd noise - when there was a really loud cheer in the crowd the soundbar got pretty harsh and almost seemed to distort. It wasn't turned up too loudly so the only thing I could think of was it was either the broadcast of the game or that the bar reached its limit. This was confirmed while watching a movie, Blood Diamond. The same "distortion" happened during an explosion in the movie. Mind you, these were very few and far between and only happened in 2 instances that I can recall in probably over a 10 or 12 hour period of me physically using this. My in laws say that they haven't noticed it again. The Subwoofer during viewing packs quite a little punch. It is compact and blends into any room. It definitely adds a whole new dimension to the in-laws listening experience. There was a scene where someone was knocking on a door and the dog barked and my mother-in-law got up to answer the door thinking it was the UPS guy or something. We had a laugh over that one. Now the "drawbacks". Aesthetically the subwoofer looks fine. The soundbar could use a little dressing up. It is made of plastic and it didn't blend in well with the gloss finish of the LCD tv. The plastic is a matte finish I guess you could say. Maybe Polk could offer two finishes in this speaker (gloss and matte?). Just thinking out loud here. The other aesthetic thing is that I was accustomed to the larger surroundbars. Seeing this one in front of a 46" tv looks tiny and, well, cheap. The other surroundbars are very sleek and trimmed nicely. This one seems to have cut some corners in the trimming of it. If Polk expects people to place this in front of larger tv's (maybe the application is for smaller tv's), I would expect them to dress it up a bit. Anyways, there you have it. My ONLY complaints about this unit are the aesthetics of it. The sound coming out of it is quite impressive for the size and the ease of use is awesome. My father-in-law does not want to give this back; usually he is calling me a couple days after asking me to come over and "Get this thing out of here". This is a HUGE plus in my opinion. For the price, you get the quality of Polk Audio and something that is fool proof in its application. This would be perfect for a bedroom set-up, a play room, a gaming rig, etc., but certainly will not be mistaken for a 5.1 or SurroundBar set-up. Overall, I would give Polk a 3.5 out of 5 stars for this; if they could address the aesthetics to match the gloss finish of most televisions now I think they would really be onto something here (and would raise my rating to 4 stars).

by Eric, March 30, 2010

Strengths:

Huge bass from such a small sub Flexible set-up options and room placement

Weaknesses:

No remote and learning your tv remote can be tricky

Review:

For those not looking for a full surround sound system, this just may be the ticket. With its very visually pleasing design, the SDA IHT matches well with todays HDTV sets. Sounds fantastic, and the bass that the wireless sub provides is very nice for such a small cube. Setting up the remote to learn your TV codes can be tricky. I would like to see Polk incorporate a small cheap remote with this package. Nice all-in-one system!

Polk Response:

This unit does come with a remote- if yours did not it could be a very early production model. Please contact us if you'd like the remote.

by Jim Linke, January 25, 2010

Strengths:

Surprisingly good surround stage, plus it's a fine mini 2.1 audio system.

Weaknesses:

Wall mounting produced unwanted resonance in the lower mid range/upper bass.

Review:

I have always been intrigued Polk Audio's SurroundBar technology since their first model came out. I have the SurroundBar 42" in my home theater. When a chance to test a SurroundBar Instant Home Theater I jumped at it. Since the SB IHT can accept any stereo line level input, I thought I would first give it a try as a stereo computer speaker. I first set it in front of my dual Apple Cinema Displays, and connected it up using a Griffin iMic as a USB digital-analog converter. Using an 1/8" mini-jack to RCA stereo pair adaptor cable I plugged the RCA ends into the SB inputs, connected the power cables to the SB and wireless subwoofer. I set the subwoofer on the floor near the corner of my office. Launching iTunes and playing a variety of music it soon became apparent that the SB was too close to my ears (27") and too crowded by other desktop stuff for the SDA effect to fully develop. I got a good spread of soundstage to the right, but it seemed like the printer to the left obstructed the sound. I would like to have been able to tuck the SB under the displays, but it is too tall for that; I would have to buy some articulating monitor arms to make that arrangement work. So my next step was to mount the SB on the wall above the window across from my desk. I made some angled blocks so that I could aim the SB downward 30 degrees towards ear level at my sitting position at my desk. Now 7 feet away and completely unobstructed, the SDA effect was fully developed, spreading out to fill the 12 foot wide space and about 150°. This would have been wonderful except that sound quality suffered from wall mounting. Upper bass or lower mid range notes resonated in this 12' x 10' room in a very unpleasant way. I don't fault the SB for this; I think it is a room effect aggravated by mounting the SB on the wall. My last option was to set the SB on an open shelf behind and above my monitors. This puts the SB-IHT about 36" away and just above ear level. This proved to be just about right; I still get a 150° soundstage spread and the resonance is gone. I have never had computer speakers before, so I can't compare with others of the type. I can say that sound quality is very clean, stereo imaging is good and the subwoofer, when properly located, provides just the right amount of bass. The only downside of the SDA-IHT for this use is that it will reveal the defects of low bit rate MP3s. Most of my iTunes library is encoded at 320 kbps or in Apple Lossless. I definitely notice the difference on those that are encoded at lower bit rates. I kept this setup for a week and continued to like what I heard. After a week as a computer speaker I then replaced my SurroundBar 42 with the SB IHT in my home theater rig. My SB42 is mounted on the same pivoting bracket as my 37" Sharp Aquos, positioned above the screen. I have found that I get a wider soundstage if the SB is above most of the surrounding furniture. For over the air HDTV the IHT worked fine and sounds a lot better than the TV's built in speakers. But I was really surprised by its performance as a surround sound speaker. This is, of course, a 2 channel stereo speaker and yet I found that the sound really did wrap around me. One movie, There Will Be Blood, has a pipeline construction scene where hammering noises actually sounded like they came from behind me. This is better than the SB42 ever did. The IHT had plenty of power to fill a 13' x 19' room with sound and the subwoofer, while not thunderous, delivered low end thump that was satisfactory enough. I did miss having a center channel. I like to be able to boost the volume of the center if the other channels overwhelm the dialog. If I had to choose all over again between the original 42" SurroundBar and the SurroundBar Instant Home Theater I would go for the IHT based on its greater surround stage.

by Ricardo, March 4, 2010

Strengths:

Extremely easy setup. Impressive bass. Great improvement over TV speakers

Weaknesses:

My Directv remote has to point directly to the sensor in the Surroundbar to get volume to work (Not a majotr issue once you get used, but annoying at first).

Review:

I have a 7.1 system in the basement with full range speakers, big subwoofer, etc. I wanted to improve the sound in our upstairs room, so I decided to try the IHT Surroundbar. I was a bit skeptical at first, but this thing really surprised me. Setup is as easy as it can get. Plug a couple cables and that’s it. The most time consuming task was getting the DirecTV remote to work with the surroundbar, and that took less than 5 minutes. As soon as I turned it on, I was impressed. First thing that called my attention was the lows. How can this little sub make such an improvement? I expected boomy bass, but it was actually very good. I placed the sub behind the couch, and you can’t tell it’s there. Also the soundstage and side effects was impressive. I kept looking at the sides of the room thinking I would see a speaker there, but nope, it’s the SDA effect from the surroundbar. I noticed that when watching TV sometimes you don’t get much side effects, but I guess it depends on the station or type of program you’re watching. For DVD’s it is great. The best part, even my wife noticed an "improvement in sound"; I never thought I'd hear those words from her. Overall I think this is an incredible value. No cables exposed, and the sound is great. The only problem I have is that the directv remote has to be pointed exactly to the bar’s sensor or it does not work. Not sure if this is the bar or the remote’s compatibility, but in any case it is just a bit annoying until you get used to it. Thumbs up for a great product!!!

by george mackey, September 27, 2010

Strengths:

great sound for movies and games looks good on your shelf too

Weaknesses:

i have a TV with digital inputs and the unit only has RCA jacks so i am limited on how to use it, if you have an idea please help

Review:

this is a great add on to your new TV the sound is really great very simple to hook up

by mr bofus, December 12, 2010

Strengths:

Very easy to hook up. very affordable big sound for a small package Good bass and my wife even liked it

Weaknesses:

this unit didnt have a remote and "learning" the master remote took some time- no really a big deal Might be a bit weak on dialoge at times

Review:

I recently had the chance to "demo" this unit and was quite impressed from the very begining. I do not have a lot of experience with home theater / surround sound systems but this little unit sure did add extra BOOM and clean sound to my flat scren TV. The sub adds tons of bass vs standard flat screen speakers and the sound bar itself seemed very clean and clear. This unit was a snap to hook up and a pleasure to demo. I would have to say that if anyone wants to add something extra to their flat screen TV without lots of speakers and without breaking the bank, this is it. I gave it 4 stars. It isnt surround sound and wasnt meant to be but I think a little more "Umph" and tweeking the sound quality would earn 5 stars. I cant get into all the technical stuff but I can attest to what my ears heard and I dont thing one could go wrong with this for smaller applications/rooms. And as a bonus, my wife even liked it so this unit could be in my audi future.

by Steve, December 31, 2010

Strengths:

Price. Performance. Wireless sub.

Weaknesses:

Somewhat limited connectivity

Review:

This is a great little package, especially considering the price. Insanely easy to hook up too. I have a full HT setup in my main viewing area, and this certainly won't take the place of that but I wouldn't expect it to. I have two floorstanders and a center channel in my bedroom and the IHT was a much better solution. It took up less space, had better aesthetics and the subwoofer offered additional punch. The fact that the sub is wireless meant that it could be placed close to the listening position and not have wires strung all over the place, a definite plus! The sound is very clear and dynamic, and the SDA processing does a laudable job of giving the illusion of a surround setup. I would have liked an optical connection in addition to the analog - fewer wires and better sound. Optical is available on their bigger models, so it is available. I had a visitor listen to the IHT and he is buying the top of the line unit for his new basement remodel, he liked it that much. He is getting the bigger unit since he has a lot more space to fill and this one won't quite be up to that task.

For gaming, the SB IHT takes up very little space, yet provides big sound and deep bass that will make the gaming experience better in any room in the house.

Dan Keener, GamingNexus.com

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