Outdoor Pavilion/Pool Sound Setup

[CP4]

Looking for advice/recommendations for an outdoor pavilion and pool sound system. Fairly new to the home/outdoor audio but well versed in the portable/car/marine (12v) world. Looking to fill a 2500-3000 sq ft area for ~$2000. There is currently no head unit or amps to pull from. Will be a complete from scratch build. Any advice is welcome. Things I am contemplating include but are not limited to, speaker placement (on the ground or in the eves), amount of speakers (2, 4, 6+), type of speaker (brand, model, style), amp choice (integrated amp vs head unit and amp, which amp, which head unit if necessary), 70V or 100V system (what’s the point, how do they work, is it necessary), sub/sat (are they worth it), preferred brands (what’s junk and what’s not), etc. Pictures of area are included below, there is no internet that reaches the pavilion or pool so a Sonos/sonance system is unattainable. The only source type wanted is Bluetooth. Head unit and/or amp will be stored in a bar built under the pavilion. Wires and installation will be done be me and my brother so the budget does not need to include labor. Crutchfield recommended 4 Polk atrium6 with a well matched amp. Are these speakers junk? Are the DefTech aw5500s better for the same price? Bose 251s? Again all advice/recommendations/preferences are welcome and appreciated. Looking for system accurate enough to enjoy at low casual listening levels but loud enough to turn the place into a party with a decent amount of people. Both quality and volume are important as well as noticeable bass. No neighbors, no noise complaints to worry about. Willing to go over budget for the right system, if it worth it.

 

[MalVeauX]

Hi,

Before getting into the "what" to buy, more specifically it's important to know your goals. For example, it's an open space, not a room, and some speakers may be facing each other. What is the purpose of the system? Just music? What kind of SPL are you looking to achieve across all potential listening positions? Do you just want outdoor speakers or do you also want subwoofers mixed into this (and if so, how bassy do you want things to get)? Are you looking to go all-weather or partial exposure to weather. With a $2k budget a lot of it will go into the all weather build quality and not so much into "audio quality" because this is an outside setup with sub-optimal placement with respect to stereo imaging (this looks like its just for ambient fun music while playing) and the amplifier or receiver system to drive it all. Speaking of that, are you wanting to control the audio from a phone or tablet or with a remote or what?

Very best,

 

[CP4]

Hi,

Before getting into the "what" to buy, more specifically it's important to know your goals. For example, it's an open space, not a room, and some speakers may be facing each other. What is the purpose of the system? Just music? What kind of SPL are you looking to achieve across all potential listening positions? Do you just want outdoor speakers or do you also want subwoofers mixed into this (and if so, how bassy do you want things to get)? Are you looking to go all-weather or partial exposure to weather. With a $2k budget a lot of it will go into the all weather build quality and not so much into "audio quality" because this is an outside setup with sub-optimal placement with respect to stereo imaging (this looks like its just for ambient fun music while playing) and the amplifier or receiver system to drive it all. Speaking of that, are you wanting to control the audio from a phone or tablet or with a remote or what?

Very best,

Some of these questions are ones I am both considering myself and asking for assistance on, however some can be answered. SPL wise, I am not looking for something that will be deafening across the entire soundstage but will be the dominating sound in the area, at least loud enough for someone to have to raise their voice in a conversation. As for bass, a subwoofer could be in the cards, however if the speakers used produce “noticeable” bass, as in there is an audible cue of a bass note and it is not lacking from the music entirely. I am not looking to vibrate the entire pavilion, but do not want to be lacking of bass. When it comes to whether they will be full exposure I do not believe so. At the moment I am currently looking at 4 DefTech aw5500s that will be placed under the pavilion powered by a Denon Amp. Two facing each other from the middle posts and two facing the pool from the outside posts. The latter two will be more exposed but still have some protection from the elements. The system will be for music, controlled from a phone. Do you have any recommendations or comments regarding this setup based on what I have described?

 

[MalVeauX]

Hi,

So, one thing to consider, is don't have the speakers facing each other if possible. If they are going to mostly be covered, that will help a ton despite being "weather resistant" builds on outdoor speakers. Don't expect great quality from an outdoor speaker, there are good ones, but you pay a lot for average speakers due to the materials and there's compromise on that in audio quality of course. It won't sound bad, it just won't hold a candle to a well treated room with some good speakers properly set up. Most outdoor speakers in the 5.25 to 6.5" driver area have small cabinets, and are sealed, so don't expect bass (especially farther away from the speakers like opposite the pool). There are outdoor subs, they are down firing usually (and some are actually buried, if that's you're thing, not mine as that's a lot of work and digging it up to trouble shoot lol, no thanks). A basic receiver or multi-channel amp in the 50 watt+ area should handle these speakers for that area if you just want ambient audio but not like reference level sound (75db, or 85db depending on content goal). Hitting 65~70db should be pretty easy which is what you've described (not overpowering, not the only thing you hear).

Check out OSD outdoor speakers (6.5" drivers) and outdoor subwoofers (10" at least, maybe look at having two of them). Well within your budget. Pretty good builds. Subs add a huge amount of improvement over essentially outdoor bookshelves.

Any receiver will do the job on this basically. You can also just buy an integreated or poweramp and a DAC interface for the bluetooth if you want more control on higher power (probably not necessary). Whatever you choose you'll want to keep it fairly covered or it will become dust/bug city and eventually fail to humidity, etc. But if it's in a cabinet or well covered (but ventilated) it should last a good long time. I operate equipment in Florida outdoors for years like this, just covered from the elements and the bugs/humidity do their thing but I get years out of the equipment, so its not that bad.

Very best,

 

[lovinthehd]

I always like to see if anyone with a pool setup might go this far https://clarksynthesis.com/aq339/

Might also consider just a distribution amp for your purposes.

 

[rdkusher]

another important consideration related to spl requirements is how close you are to your nearest neighbors.

 

[MalVeauX]

another important consideration related to spl requirements is how close you are to your nearest neighbors.

He gave that information:

No neighbors, no noise complaints to worry about.

Very best,

 

[rdkusher]

sorry i didn't see that part.

 

[erpauls]

Watching this topic. Going to be moving into new house with pool area. For what its worth at my current house I have a pair of older(5yrs) OSD speakers w/6.5" woofer that have served quite well for my deck area. For their price hard to beat.
They have held up extremely well too.
I am wondering about what to use around the pool area though.