The soundbar has now become one of the most important home audio product groups. We look at what it can do and who it can work for.
It's been over a decade and a half since the first sound projectors, also known as soundbars, first appeared and have now conquered homes, leaving behind more traditional players such as home theatre sets, micro towers or mini hifi. In this article, we'll take a look at what you need to know about soundbars and who can benefit from these machines, which have been available from Xiaomi for some time now.
Instead of the sound of the TV
Sound projectors were basically developed to replace the relatively poor sound quality of the integrated audio system in televisions. The engineers' original aim was to create a product that would take up relatively little space, could be hidden away, be out of sight, be convenient to use and, above all, sound better than televisions.
For this reason, they opted for a beam design, which is now the sound projectors has become a trademark. A soundbar is wide, which is no problem, because the TV is wide, but it is flat and narrow. This means you can easily put it in front of or under a TV, in the 'dead space', a place where you wouldn't really store anything anyway. Also importantly, the fact that a sound projector can be placed in close proximity to the TV means that there is no need to run cables across the room, as with a home theatre set. In almost all cases there is a control panel and connectors on the cabinet, so the unit itself contains the amplifier and the electronics needed to control it.
How does it sound?
The speakers are located in the front, traditionally behind a loudspeaker grille, but facing the audience. So unlike televisions, they are not hidden inside the cabinet, which in itself guarantees better sound.
In addition, the soundbarok are also better than TVs at creating stereo soundstages, often with an integrated subwoofer or even wirelessly connected to an external subwoofer. This means they are much better than conventional TVs at reproducing bass, which is key to creating dynamics. This makes the end result more natural and realistic than that produced by TVs.
So a good soundbar is clearly capable of doing its job and achieving its goal. It's not just for movies, but also for TV shows, match broadcasts and games. An audio projector can even be used for listening to music.
Content quality
Audio content can be delivered via the usual cable, HDMI, optical digital audio or 3.5mm analogue audio ports. In addition, today's audio projectors typically support Bluetooth technology. This means that music tracks, for example, can be transferred from compatible devices such as computers, phones and tablets.
Therefore, they are capable of replacing even a conventional hi-fi tower. Finally, it's worth noting that many of today's sound projectors are already equipped with WiFi and/or Ethernet connections, enabling them to connect to the Internet. This in turn allows direct access to various Internet music applications, i.e. users can, for example, use the huge database of Spotify or Deezer to stream music online.
Who can it work for?
A sound projector can work in virtually any household where people use a TV or projector, watch movies, listen to music or play games. It is a very useful, easy-to-use, user-friendly product group, and its popularity is no coincidence.
