Moving On Up

Have you ever considered an article aimed at readers who would like to move up from a soundbar to separate components but don’t want to spend a lot of money? My soundbar is okay, but I’m sure audio quality would improve significantly if I made an upgrade to separates. I have tried to figure the situation out myself, but technology is changing so fast. Should I use wireless bookshelf speakers connected to HDMI-ARC from my TV, or would wired components work better? Also, how would these components respond to the TV remote, or has the industry already solved that problem?

Dennis Devore / Grand Junction, Colorado

Switching from a basic soundbar to powered wireless bookshelf speakers such as the SVS Prime Wireless or KEF LS50 Wireless II (reviewed in our June/july issue) would provide a solid sound quality upgrade, and so, of course, would an A/ V receiver driving a full surround system. HDMI-ARC— a connection option found in recent A/ V receivers and on the KEF wireless speakers mentioned above should in theory allow you to control other devices in the system using your TV’S remote using the

CEC (Consumer Electronics Control) protocol, but it’s been our experience that CEC doesn’t work reliably with all combinations of gear. So, in short, no— the industry hasn’t yet totally solved that problem.

Correction: Our review of the SVS SB-1000 and PB-1000 Pro subwoofers in the June/ July issue listed an incorrect phone number for the company. SVS can be contacted at: 877- 626- 5623.