The Convenience of Surround Wireless Speakers
The fabulous sound of 5.1 home theatre systems is making them a hit worldwide.
You can now have a sound system in your own home that matches that of the
theatres. The major drawback to surround sound systems is all the wires required
to connect the 6 speakers to the amplifier. Some people run the wires through
the wall and others rip up carpets to install the wiring. Wouldn’t it be nice if
we could eliminate the wires? We can – with surround wireless speakers.
Several companies are coming out with surround wireless speakers. There are
basically two technologies available – 2.4 GHz RF (radio frequency) and infrared
(IR) systems. Each manufacturer claims that their system is the best, but both
RF and IR can deliver full range audio sound to wireless speakers.
Sony has developed a proprietary IR system for surround wireless speakers called
Digital Infrared Audio Transmission (DIAT). It delivers uncompressed audio
signals and has a redundancy system to prevent dropouts if the IR signal is
blocked.
The 2.4GHz RF system is used by several manufacturers including Pioneer and
Kenwood. The surround wireless speakers need an RF receiver unit and a separate
amplifier. The amplifier has a power cord, so the speakers must be placed near
an electrical outlet. Not really wireless - but at least the long wire runs are
eliminated.
For a truly wireless system, Kenwood has integrated an amplifier into the RF
receiver unit. These surround wireless speakers can be used up to 100 feet away
from the transmitter, and has a maximum power output of 100 watts x 5.
This is new technology which is still being developed. Surround wireless
speakers are a bit less powerful than their conventional wired cousins, but this
limitation is sure to be overcome in the future. The convenience of wireless
technology gives wireless products an edge in the consumer market. We are sure
to see many more wireless products in the near future.
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