New TV or stay with the same old stuff
Discussion
I'll try to keep this brief and relevant as possible.
I currently have a Samsung UE55H6500ST LED TV coupled to a Yamaha HTR-4065 both of which, whilst not in their first flush of youth, still work fine. in fact a lot of people are surprised by the quality of the picture on the TV, even though it is only 1080i. It also seems OK to my eyes although I know that there is a lot of better stuff about.
I'm currently considering upgrading to 4K, OLED/QLED but not convinced that I'll really benefit from it, sitting around 3 - 3.5M away from it as I tend to do. I've looked at the QE55Q90R from Samsung, currently available from a few retailers at £1799, which includes a free HW-Q70R soundbar. My alternative option is an LG OLED55C9PLA which, whilst being cheaper and having lots of excellent reviews, comes with standard sound so, as most reviews recommend using a decent amp, I'd have to factor this in or use the little Yamaha which I already have in place.
One of my main dislikes of the current audio system is the amount of wires needed to connect the speakers and also the limited space I have to position the rear/surround ones correctly. It would probably be fine in a perfectly square or dedicated room but it's basically my living room which has the inconvenience of furniture, radiators etc. I'm therefore wondering if I actually need a 5.1 system or would a sound bar with sub be OK for me? I'm not a kid so consequently a bit cloth eared but do like the occasional bit of music through my speakers. I'm not bothered about films or stuff like that, my main viewing habits are documentary or quiz type programmes and sport - F1 stuff & Cricket mainly, not a football person.
A quick summary would be: -
1. Samsung QE55Q90R with "free" soundbar.
2. LG OLED55C9PLA with my (or possibly an updated) 5.1.
3. LG OLED55C9PLA with a new and bought soundbar.
4. If it ain't broke....
Any other suggestions welcomed but 55" is the only size I'm interested in as it fits the room.
I currently have a Samsung UE55H6500ST LED TV coupled to a Yamaha HTR-4065 both of which, whilst not in their first flush of youth, still work fine. in fact a lot of people are surprised by the quality of the picture on the TV, even though it is only 1080i. It also seems OK to my eyes although I know that there is a lot of better stuff about.
I'm currently considering upgrading to 4K, OLED/QLED but not convinced that I'll really benefit from it, sitting around 3 - 3.5M away from it as I tend to do. I've looked at the QE55Q90R from Samsung, currently available from a few retailers at £1799, which includes a free HW-Q70R soundbar. My alternative option is an LG OLED55C9PLA which, whilst being cheaper and having lots of excellent reviews, comes with standard sound so, as most reviews recommend using a decent amp, I'd have to factor this in or use the little Yamaha which I already have in place.
One of my main dislikes of the current audio system is the amount of wires needed to connect the speakers and also the limited space I have to position the rear/surround ones correctly. It would probably be fine in a perfectly square or dedicated room but it's basically my living room which has the inconvenience of furniture, radiators etc. I'm therefore wondering if I actually need a 5.1 system or would a sound bar with sub be OK for me? I'm not a kid so consequently a bit cloth eared but do like the occasional bit of music through my speakers. I'm not bothered about films or stuff like that, my main viewing habits are documentary or quiz type programmes and sport - F1 stuff & Cricket mainly, not a football person.
A quick summary would be: -
1. Samsung QE55Q90R with "free" soundbar.
2. LG OLED55C9PLA with my (or possibly an updated) 5.1.
3. LG OLED55C9PLA with a new and bought soundbar.
4. If it ain't broke....
Any other suggestions welcomed but 55" is the only size I'm interested in as it fits the room.
It sound like the issue is not the quality of the TV picture but the audio setup & I'm not sure you need to change the TV to address that issue. Get the audio as you want it & then you can add any TV you like in the future. While 4K pictures are stunning there isn't much content at the moment so you're not missing out on a lot.
There's a lot of discussion over on AVForums:
https://www.avforums.com/forums/
Personally I'm not sure a soundbar is the best for listening to music so maybe going down to a 2.1 setup with speakers would be better? Even a wireless 5.1 system needs power cables to the rear speakers. However it doesn't cost a fortune to try a soundbar. You could try a Sonos Beam for £400 & flog it for not a big loss if you don't get on with it.
https://www.whathifi.com/best-buys/home-cinema/bes...
https://www.whathifi.com/best-buys/best-dolby-atmo...
There's a lot of discussion over on AVForums:
https://www.avforums.com/forums/
Personally I'm not sure a soundbar is the best for listening to music so maybe going down to a 2.1 setup with speakers would be better? Even a wireless 5.1 system needs power cables to the rear speakers. However it doesn't cost a fortune to try a soundbar. You could try a Sonos Beam for £400 & flog it for not a big loss if you don't get on with it.
https://www.whathifi.com/best-buys/home-cinema/bes...
https://www.whathifi.com/best-buys/best-dolby-atmo...
Given your preferences there's no point replacing the Telly.
I'd also argue (and as pointy says) that you're probably not using the rear speakers much at all so you could get rid and going back to a soundbar from separate speakers will likely be disappointing unless you spend a lot of money. But I would have the centre speaker as well for TV use.
Your Yamaha amp Should be able to run as 3.1 ie Left Right centre & sub. You might not even need the sub if you've got large enough front speakers.
If you really want to up the quality I'd go for a set of 3 front speakers and maybe an new 5/7 ch amplifier but a good halfway house option retaining all 5 is what I use for my games room:
https://www.richersounds.com/canton-5-1-speaker-pa...
The speakers are pretty small and easy to mount high up on the walls pointing down. Nice and out of the way and with the sub surprisingly good quality.
I'd also argue (and as pointy says) that you're probably not using the rear speakers much at all so you could get rid and going back to a soundbar from separate speakers will likely be disappointing unless you spend a lot of money. But I would have the centre speaker as well for TV use.
Your Yamaha amp Should be able to run as 3.1 ie Left Right centre & sub. You might not even need the sub if you've got large enough front speakers.
If you really want to up the quality I'd go for a set of 3 front speakers and maybe an new 5/7 ch amplifier but a good halfway house option retaining all 5 is what I use for my games room:
https://www.richersounds.com/canton-5-1-speaker-pa...
The speakers are pretty small and easy to mount high up on the walls pointing down. Nice and out of the way and with the sub surprisingly good quality.
Edited by hornmeister on Monday 18th November 11:45
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