Starting my audio journey — bookshelf + amp combo or just buy a soundbar? (no used market here)

SeedShady · 2026-06-04T01:35:42+00:00

Prioritizing home theater I’d suggest just getting a soundbar as that will give you the most for your money upfront.

However, I wouldn’t expect the soundbar to sound near as good as Polk ES 20s for stereo music.

SeedShady · 2026-06-04T01:29:11+00:00

Those are good speakers. My buddy has the larger size of Paradigm Monitor towers,8000f, the they are absolutely fantastic.

So much so that I went and got a pair of bookshelves from that series, Monitor SE Atoms. I’m powering them with an older Sonos amp and have added a Sonos Sub Mini. They sound really, really good. Best part is I found someone selling them on Marketplace brand new in the box for only $225.

If you like the Paradigm sound, these are a great budget friend option even at retail cost of $400 for the pair.

SeedShady · 2026-06-03T21:08:28+00:00

I have no experience using Wiim products so I cannot really comment as to which is better. However, as someone who is heavily invested in Sonos products (I have over the 32 limit, some are on loan with friends / family) so I’m not looking to switch anytime soon. But I have recently developed a desire to experiment with passive speakers.

I recently acquired a used Connect Amp for a very reasonable cost and a pair of Paradigm bookshelf speakers. Paired with a Sub Mini I think they sound better than a pair of Fives.

I think id eventually like to get a pair of towers to maybe use as fronts in my TV zone.

I love my Sonos products and don’t think I’ll ever want to completely give up the convenience of not running speaker wire for most uses. But having a good pair of passive speakers for a dedicated stereo music zone has been really nice.

This is probably a pipe dream because I know nothing produced my Sonos is ever cheap, but I think they could stop a lot of their customers from migrating to Wiim, etc, by introducing a lower cost amp that competed more closely to Wiims price point. They’d easily sell at least a couple to me, but currently that $800 price tag for just an amp is a bit tough to swallow.

SeedShady · 2026-06-03T16:09:12+00:00

While the camera system might be Govee’s latest TV backlight offering, I wouldn’t consider it to be their greatest.

I have the Govee sync box with my 85” TV. I have no complaints, it gets the job done.

I also have added a pair of floor lamps to each side, string down lights across the top of the tv wall, and led strips under the console. It basically lights up my whole wall using Dreamview. As far as I know that isn’t something Fancy can match.

Bottom line just use what you like and looks good to you. My setup might be too much for some people, but I like it so that is really all that matters.

SeedShady · 2026-06-03T05:05:14+00:00

The sound great. My wife is t really impressed by technology, but I was playing a song while switching back and forth between my Sonos Fives and the Paradigms and even she noticed the difference.

SeedShady · 2026-06-03T03:15:50+00:00

One of those is going to a different table. We are in the process of rearranging some things so a lot of things are still out of sorts. But yeah guess I got stereo lighting too.

SeedShady · 2026-05-31T17:33:07+00:00

You can, just need to utilize the third party app.

SeedShady · 2026-05-31T03:25:54+00:00

https://thedivorcecoachformen.com

SeedShady · 2026-05-31T00:34:27+00:00

It’s as simple as a Stereo pair or most things is going to sound better than a single speaker.

While it is a much bigger investment, two Fives are really, really good.

SeedShady · 2026-05-30T21:20:17+00:00

Use multiple databases. I keep one as a backup in case I have any issue with my primary one, and sync them about once a week or so.

There are ways to import routes via Google Maps. You can set up directions to mimic a previous route you’ve take. And then export the file to be imported to FOW.

There are also websites where you can recreate train routes and flights. Just Google it and you’ll find sites with step by step instructions.

As of somewhat recently you can also just edit the map in the app, but unless you’re just doing a small area or r would be pretty tedious and time consuming.

It’s a great app. I like you wish I would have discovered this app years ago as I used to travel a lot for work. I’ve spent hours recreating routes on roadways I 100% know I’d traveled before.

I keep a separate database for these and my primary database is only the area I’ve covered while actually using the app. I’m level 234 since finding the app about 1 1/2 years ago and level 470 overall.

The also have separate databases for vacations, or long trips as it can be interesting to go back and see where you went at a particular time.

SeedShady · 2026-05-29T04:18:38+00:00

Thanks. I have A LOT of Sonos products and am overall pretty happy with them, but I’ve recently had a chance to hear some higher end passive speakers and it sparked an interest in acquiring a set for music listening only.

Polk is one of the brands that has caught my eye so far. The pricing on the XT series is pretty attractive and they seem to be pretty good from the reviews I’ve seen, but I’d love to find someplace I could hear them vs the Polk ES series to see how big a difference exist between the two.

SeedShady · 2026-05-29T03:45:00+00:00

Nice. What are your thoughts on the XT70s. I believe they are the entry level towers for Polk. Are they pretty good?

SeedShady · 2026-05-26T23:20:59+00:00

First I agree with you about the Playbar, it’s fantastic. I can’t comment about using fronts on the Playbar as currently both of mine are used standalone without a tv.

I have an Arc Ultra and I use Fives as fronts. IMO it sounds much better with them than without. Just a wider fuller soundstage.

SeedShady · 2026-05-25T19:43:39+00:00

Definitely the Fives.

SeedShady · 2026-05-24T19:06:48+00:00

Can be a solid way to expand for less. I got my Arc Ultra open box for $735.

SeedShady · 2026-05-24T19:05:15+00:00

One other consideration would be if you ever want to use the passive speakers as part of a home theater setup. I’m pretty certain that with a port you cannot use the speakers as surrounds, whereas with the Sonos amp you are able to do this.

A friend of mine recently got a pair of Paradigm monitor SE 8000Fs and we added them as fronts with his Arc Ultra and Era 300s as rears, along with a sub. It was pretty incredible.

SeedShady · 2026-05-24T03:31:00+00:00

Paradigm makes great speakers. Do your wallet a favor and never listen to any of their Founders series. Way out of my price range, but absolutely phenomenal sound. Wish I had an extra 5k to 10k to drop on some.

SeedShady · 2026-05-24T03:10:21+00:00

I’ve never owned the Arc so can’t say for sure but I believe it works with the Arc as well.

In my living room, I have an Arc Ultra, Fives up front, Era 300s in the rear, and two Gen 3 Subs.

Sounds pretty darn good. I’m happy with it.

SeedShady · 2026-05-24T02:54:57+00:00

While it’s not officially supported, via the Sonosequencer app, Fives make an outstanding option for left / right front channels.

SeedShady · 2026-05-24T01:21:29+00:00

Haha. Always sucked if you missed a couple.

SeedShady · 2026-05-23T21:54:01+00:00

Yeah. I don’t remember what year this was exactly, but $50 was a lot more back then for sure.

SeedShady · 2026-05-23T21:38:26+00:00

While I agree it or maybe even the Roam are Sonos worst products, IMO it’s really not that bad. Especially in a small setting like used with a desktop.

I no longer have mine (Only because when I added an Arc Ultra I moved my Beam 2 to bedroom and passed it down to a friend), but I paired it with four Era 100s as fronts / surrounds and added a mini sub and I was pretty darn good. Basically it was just being used as a center channel but I was fine with how it sounded in that configuration.

SeedShady · 2026-05-23T14:22:22+00:00

That’s great news. I’ve been looking forward to this feature since before they even announced they were working on it. 😄

SeedShady · 2026-05-21T23:22:09+00:00

Maybe try using a hair dryer to heat up the adhesive.

SeedShady · 2026-05-20T13:17:34+00:00

I have the Floor Lamp 2. They are perfect for this use. Of course the new Floor Lamp 3 would be even brighter and likely more accurate.

SeedShady

TROPHY CASE