Just add movies: Polk Audio intros beefy SorroundBar 9000 Instant Home Theater System

By Adam Poltrack January 16, 2013

Polk Audio has introduced its SorroundBar 9000. The product is billed as an instant home theater system that includes a sound bar loaded with eight drivers and a wireless subwoofer.

The American audio company dubs itself “the speaker specialists,” and it has packed plenty of power into its new product. The SorroundBar system’s sound bar is imbued with drivers, sporting eight in total, including five 2.5-inch midrange drivers and three 1/2-inch silk dome tweeters. Add that sonic energy potential to the downward-firing, long-throw wireless subwoofer, and you’ve got yourself a pretty beefy system.

On the whole, the SorroundBar 9000 is said to be capable of pumping out 510 watts of peak power. But, since we know that companies tend to inflate wattage numbers, we suggest you season what you read with some salt, and defer to your ears for final judgement. That being said, the spec sheet claims an output of 45 watts per driver and 150 watts from the sub, which sounds pretty reasonable.

Concerning convenience and aesthetics: Polk Audio says your wireless sub should work anywhere inside of 50ft away from its partnered sound bar, which is best-suited to hang beneath a 50-inch flat-panel display.

Delving into the more technical side of things, Polk Audio looks to be anticipating every audiophile gripe it can. It claims to have included its patented Stereo Dimensional Array (to eliminate crosstalk between channels), an Optimized Center Array (to spread center channel audio over a wide listening area) and Full Complement Bass (to spread resonant bass throughout the entire room).

At first blush, this system seems suitably loaded for its price point ($800). It’s available now, and if the reviews vibe with the marketing materials, you may want to pull the trigger.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Contributor

Adam is an A/V News Writer for Digital Trends, and is responsible for bringing you the latest advances in A/V…

Deals

Monoprice home theater system takes your entertainment room to next level (25% off)

Monoprice 10565 Premium 5

There are standard TV setups, and then there are real entertainment centers -- rooms that make you feel as immersed in what you're watching as you do when you're in a theater. If you've already spent a pretty penny on a killer TV, or even if you're just looking to upgrade your existing entertainment room layout, the next logical step is to invest in a home theater system such as the Monoprice 10565 Premium 5.1 Channel Home Theater System with Subwoofer, currently discounted by 25 percent, to only $171, on Amazon.

This entertainment system consists of four satellite speakers, a single center speaker, and 8-inch down-firing subwoofer. The single center speaker features a 3-inch polypropylene midrange driver and a 3/4-inch aluminum dome tweeter, while the subwoofer boasts four large rubber feet to reduce floor vibrations. Together, these units deliver many of the same features as higher-end surround sound systems but are available at a much more affordable price point. The subwoofer is particularly impressive, as you can use it with any amplifier, thanks to both line level and speaker level stereo inputs. It also has a built-in phase control switch on the rear that lets you adjust the phase of the subwoofer as needed.

Audio / Video

Sony to release home theater sound system featuring 4K upscaling and canned Brazilian stadium noise

Image via: Mobilenews.bg
Today, Sony formally announced two home cinema systems along with a surround sound bar. Modeled after the “Sense of Quartz” design implemented in Son'ys Bravia televisions, the trio of new products are sleek, angular, and stocked with features never before seen from the company.
The BDV-N9100W Home Cinema System claims a whopping 1000-watts of peak power, and features a 3D/2D Blu-ray disc player with 4K upscaling. Like its kin, the BDV-E6100 Home Cinema System features Bluetooth and NFC (near field communications) capabilities, but if you’re one of the 1,000 or so consumers on earth with a 4K/Ultra HD TV, you’ll be disappointed by the absence of upscaling technology.
Both home theater systems bring new features to the table as well. Sony's TV SideView app enables second screen browsing and remote control capability, while Football Mode pipes in pre-recorded audio captured from a Brazilian soccer stadium, allowing you to substitute canned crowd noise for the often-platitudinous commentary that comes along with sports broadcasts. How will that work with tennis, we wonder?
The HT-CT660 Surround Sound Bar might seem like an afterthought next to the big boys, but the bar appears to hold its own, offering 330-watts peak power, Bluetooth, NFC, and four HDMI ports (three in, one out).
All three products are expected to release in May. No word yet on pricing , but we can probably expect some premium price points to go with the new features. Anything 4K-capable at this point is setting its bait to attract wealthy home theater enthusiasts.

Audio / Video

Aperion Audio unveils the Aperion Verus Forte home theater speakers

The Verus Forte was engineered from the start for highly accurate sound reproduction that immerses movie and music lovers into a performance.

“We worked to produce uncolored, authentic sound in a small form-factor speaker by achieving a flat frequency response, a power response that slowly and evenly rolls off toward the highs and the lowest possible distortion,” says Ken Humphreys, Aperion’s lead speaker engineer and a 25-year-veteran of speaker and component design for the audio industry’s most respected brands. “The Axially Stabilized Radiator tweeter we developed specifically for the Verus family handles a range beneath most tweeters, supporting the mid-range driver so the mid-high frequencies are as crystal clear as those at the top of the range.”