RF Speaker Solution Sought

iamsludge

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Hi all,

Currently I use either Sennheiser RS12 RF Wireless Headphones or my OrbitSound T13 sound bar when watching A/V material on either my little LCD monitor or my projector.

My A/V gear is not where the projected image is, it is off to the right hand side. At present I get much better sound from the headphones than the sound bar. Sometimes I have to use the headphones as I can't hear spoken word from the sound bar (and I can't crank it up too high and wake up the boy-child).

We are in the process of buying a new house and there I expect to be in a similar situation (still using a small monitor and a large projected image). The difference being that I'm thinking of having the LCD monitor in an adjacent room to the main room with the sound bar (as it might function better in a small room) and so need to think about audio solution for the room with projector in it. In this new room the A/V gear is likely to either be behind the seating position or to the right of it.

I don't want cables everywhere so am wondering if I can find any wireless speaker solutions that will receive the audio that the Sennheiser headphones receive?

I'm only looking for a cheapish option if one exists.
 
I think that what you are looking for is not possible.

Your headphones work of battery power.

Passive speakers need cable connections from your amp

"wireless" speakers need power from the electricity supply.

Either way you cannot get away from cables.

It is quite easy to blend cables into your decor so that they do not stand out.

With regards to your sound bar and headphones difference.

It sounds like you have the sound bar next to your tv? It should be under it.

Headphones are going to seem better as they are on your head and are always with you so the sound will be also.
 
I'd be happy with battery or electric powered speakers just don't want to have to run a cable across the ceiling, and round the walls would be a csble run four times the length :(

I've seen wireless rf speakers that come with a transmitter but wondered if any of them would work with the headphones transmitter.

Maybe amazon test and return is in order.

R.e. the soundbar, I have it on my right where the a/v source is. Under the monitor is not an option in the current place but it could be in the new house. I think the awful acoustics in current place result in having to be loud before I can hear voices adequately. Hopefully it won't be as bad in the new place but it's still a 28' x 16' room even if it a smaller room.
 
Most wireless systems have a central receiver and amp which you then cable the speakers to. They are designed for rear speakers which take less information but even then you tend to get a drop in sound quality. I would not recommend them for fronts. Why could you not have the av receiver or soundbar under the projector screen?
 
Have you got a wheel barrow full of money?

The problem with wireless speakers is that they are either cheap or they are NOT. A good Radio or IR transmitter receiver are money spend that does not go into the speakers, so you either sacrifice on quality or you spend a lot of money.

Case in point -

Bookshelf Speakers Dynaudio XEO 3 SET | hifix.co.uk

I've heard these speakers, massive sound stage, tremendous presence, good bass for such a small speakers, they would be fantastic for movies. Excellent at low volume or high.

But, rumor has it that they are actually a pair of these speakers with Active Amps and the Transmitter/Receiver -

Bookshelf Speakers Dynaudio EXCITE X12 | hifix.co.uk

Notice the wireless Active speakers are nearly twice the cost of the passive speakers they are based on.

An alternative is to buy a stand alone Transmitter/Receiver and use your own passive speakers.

You can search Google-UK Shopping for "Wireless Speakers" and you will get a long list of possibilities, but as previously mentioned, they are either going to be cheap or they are not. There seems to be little middle ground.

Also some of the wireless speakers I'm encountering are wireless in the sense of wireless computer networks or Blue Tooth. They are meant to stream audio over the computer network from an archive of songs on the computer or on network attached storage. Alternately, directly from a Smart Phone. When you are shopping, make sure you get the type you need, which is the Transmitter/Receiver type, not the computer network type.

Canton, in general makes good speakers, and I've found a pair of Wireless Transmitter/Receiver speakers from them -

Superfi - CANTON YOUR_WORLD STARTER PACK DOCK DUO

This is meant to be for the included iPod Dock, but the Dock apparently has a pair of Stereo Input connections which would allow you to connect to an external source of sound.

Another alternative would be the Wireless JBL Control ONE speakers -

Superfi - JBL ON AIR CONTROL 2.4G WIRELESS SPEAKERS (PAIR)

As to Headphones vs Sound Bar, it is easy to make great sounding headphone as they only have to move about a tablespoon full of air. The drivers can be small and light and still give good bass performance. Given that you are using Sennheiser, I would expect them to sound great. However, to get a Sound Bar to equal them, would cost a pretty substantial amount of money.

Also, are you sure you gave us the right model number on the OrbitSound sound bar. I find the M12 and the T12, but no T13?

I'm also confused about the configuration of your room. From what I understand you have a TV, Sound Bar, and Source Players on one wall of the room, and you have a Projection screen on another wall? Does that sum it up, or have I completely misunderstood. I'm also confused as to why they Source Player needs to be so far from the Screen? Again, I'm not really sure I understand the How, What, Why, and Where of this room configuration, especially since you are moving to a new place. Does the new place have to be as convoluted as the old?

Again, I confess I'm somewhat baffled by the room configuration, so maybe the problem is on my end, in not understanding the configuration.

ADDED NOTE:

PSM1 was apparently posting that the same time that I was. I do agree, most wireless systems are for Rear/Side Surround speakers, and as such are of limited value for Front speaker unless you spend a Pile of Cash.

Steve/bluewizard
 
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Thanks for the replies guys :) Attached (hopefully) is a rough (not entirely to scale) floor plan. Red X shows where I intend placing the bulk of the A/V gear (PS3, AppleTV, Projector etc.) Green bar is where I intend screen to be. I'm now thinking maybe I should get a unit where the yellow bar is, to put a sound-bar beneath the screen. Originally I wanted to keep the area clear as when I get seating in I wanted to keep it quite open-plan.

My main original question was can I get any speakers that will pick up the signal from the headphones rf transmitter. I guess the answer must be no, I'd have to get a separate transmitter/receiver package for a wireless speaker solution that either includes speaker/sound-bar or adds onto my existing sound-bar (yes it is a T12 sorry for my mistake earlier).
 

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Just to say I like the look of those Dynaudio speakers :) might even go for them wired and put the other £600 to something else. The Canton ones look real nice too. But I must admit, I'm now also thinking of pairing a Libratone Lounge with a wireless audio transmittter/receiver.
 

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