Wireless rear speakers?

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jpollock

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#54900 22-Dec-2009 20:33

I'm looking for some wireless rear speaker options for my home theater setup. I've seen ads for some in the US, does anyone know of any in NZ anywhere?

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alikat

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#284701 22-Dec-2009 20:37

A few years ago friends of mine got some wireless rear speakers from Sony. They had to order them in and they required connection to a power jack on the other side of the room. Similar to these - http://www.sony.co.nz/product/waht-sbp1 - but the main stereo amp had to be compatible.

jpollock

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#284768 23-Dec-2009 08:37

Thanks alikat. Yeah, those look to need a compatible amp. I'm looking for more of a generic one, something like:

http://www.rocketfishproducts.com/pc-36-5-rocketfish-wireless-rear-speaker-kit.aspx

It's starting to look like I'll have to have some wire pulled.

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jpollock

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#284769 23-Dec-2009 08:39

Actually, does anyone know of any baluns that can be used to run a set of rears? I'm guessing that RCA is a different power level to regular speakers, they might not be appropriate?

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richms

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#284803 23-Dec-2009 11:35

I have just used cat-5 for speaker cable in a few places around the house - not via the RJ45's however. Just grabbedall the whites for - and all the colours for +. rears are low power so should be fine on that too.

Richard rich.ms

gumdigger

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#285072 24-Dec-2009 23:56

what about these
http://www.rapalloav.co.nz/product/1479/Speakers/JBL/

they sound very good,

raytaylor

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#285355 27-Dec-2009 00:34

The sony rear speakers were annoying
I used to install them in the home theatre kits for customers when I worked at the local retravision.

Basically you had 2 choices in rear speaker
- Infrared so whenever someone walked between the transmitter and one of the speakers, the sound cut out
- 2.4ghz usually analog so they screwed with your wifi network

Also alot of them still require a cable because the reciever is only in one of the rear speakers.

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Deev8

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#285435 27-Dec-2009 14:56

gumdigger: what about these http://www.rapalloav.co.nz/product/1479/Speakers/JBL/ they sound very good,

They sound as if they could be quite good, BUT they only have a line-level input which will limit the receivers that they could be used with.

The following is an extract from a cnet review of the speakers in 2007:

The only connectivity available is a single pair of line-level RCA inputs. That means the transmitter will interface with any piece of audio/video gear with an analog A/V output or even just a headphone jack (a minijack-to-RCA adapter cable is included). Unfortunately, the single stereo connection limits the usefulness of the entire On Air Control system when connecting to A/V receivers. Whether you want to use the On Air Control 2.4G speakers as the rear channels in a 5.1- or 7.1-channel surround system, as front stereo speakers, or as Zone 2 speakers in another room, your A/V receiver will need to have preamplifier outputs. The problem is few moderately priced ($500 and less) receivers are so equipped. Why JBL engineers didn't include speaker level inputs on the transmitter to ensure universal compatibility is impossible to fathom, and we guess the RCA-only input scheme might be a deal breaker for some potential buyers.

Deev8

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#285436 27-Dec-2009 15:00

raytaylor: Also alot of them still require a cable because the reciever is only in one of the rear speakers.

That's right most require speaker cable running between the left and right rear speakers, and a power cable to either left or right rear as well. But they do eliminate the most annoying cable(s) from the receiver at the front to the rear speakers.

jpollock

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#285451 27-Dec-2009 16:29

Yes, the RCA only inputs are a bit of a deal breaker. I don't have a problem finding power near the speakers, it's more that I don't want to have to pull wire to the other end of the room for the surround speakers. However, it's starting to look like that's just what I'm going to have to do!

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chiefie

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#285468 27-Dec-2009 17:47

We have the wireless module for out Sony HT-IS100 with WAHTSA1 (wireless surround receiver unit).

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Deev8

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#285548 28-Dec-2009 10:02

chiefie: We have the wireless module for out Sony HT-IS100 with WAHTSA1 (wireless surround receiver unit).

That's good for compatible Sony equipment, but it's not a general purpose wireless add-on solution for someone who has non-Sony receiver and speakers.

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chiefie

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#285555 28-Dec-2009 10:41

All I'm saying is that, not a lot of wireless unit/module if it is not of a same manufacturer. It is quite a hit-and-miss sort of combo. YMMV with DIY combo.

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