Intro and Question - Soundbar Alternative

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Emsflyer84

Audiophyte
Hey all! I'm nowhere, looking forward to some great info and chats!

Here is my question and dilemma. I have a 6 year old Sharp Aquos TV which I love. It only has an optical audio output and a 3.5mm output. Both are fixed level output (not adjustable by tv volume control). I currently have two powered Bluetooth speakers that I use only for audio from another device. They are not connected to the TV. I've basically given up on trying to connect them to the tv. They have 3.5mm inputs, but each speaker has a right and left channel (two tweeters). They pair wirelessly together and automatically switch so that the entire left speaker is the left channel and the entire right speaker is the right channel. This only works in Bluetooth mode. If I run a 3.5mm cable from the TV to each speaker, each speaker will be playing a right and left channel. I know I can do some fancy wiring - basically I have to turn the right and left channels into a mono signal, then back to stereo when they terminate at each speaker so each speaker is receiving a stereo signal of just the right or just left channel. If a mono signal of right or left channel goes into the speakers, one of the tweeters doesn't play. Confusing. Plus once it's all done, I still can't control the volume with the tv remote, only on the actual speakers, which makes this setup totally inconvenient. Any other thoughts on this are welcome of course.

So I'm on to adding a soundbar, but an actual soundbar doesn't fit on my tv stand. The base for the TV is basically the same depth as the tv stand, so any sound bar would have to sit on top of the tv base. Then it blocks the signal from the remote and covers the bottom inch of the screen.

So here's my real question: Does anyone have a recommendation for a system that functions just like a sound bar but is actually two separate speakers that can sit next to the TV? They would have to be fairly small. Something that a universal tv remote can be programmed to for volume control like a typical sound bar? I'm not looking to shake the house, just a decent boost over the tv speakers which are terrible. I have a Vizio sound bar in another room which actually sounds quite good. It has a wireless sub as well. Something like this would be ideal, but again, it would have to be two individual speakers, not a bar.

Any thoughts? Thanks again, and sorry for the rambling!
 
WaynePflughaupt

WaynePflughaupt

Audioholic Samurai
Looks like this will work. Searching for remote-controlled speakers may come up with more options.


Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt
 
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