Home Theater experts: Bose Cinemate system question

hey guys,

i wanted to buy the bose cinemate system for my plasma in my bedroom. don't want thing BIG or 5 speaker system. i know their 321 system uses 2 speakers + sub. but i wanted to go with cinemate system, which is also 2 speakers + sub, but doesn't come with the reciever/dvd unit. which i have an up convert dvd player anyways.

i noticed that the reciever on the cinemate has room for only 1 AUDIO input. which based on their manual says to plug the TV audio into it.

MY QUESTION IS: if i hook up devices such as: xbox 360, dvd player all into my plasma, then have the audio outs going from TV to bose unit, does the bose system pick all of that up?

i ask this cause outside i have the lifestyle system, and all my audio inputs go directly into the bose system, not via the tv.

does this affect sound quality? thanks in advance!

No highs, no lows must be Bose!

You can do much, much better for the same price or less.

CL65 Captain said:

No highs, no lows must be Bose!

You can do much, much better for the same price or less.

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really? i thought my lifestyle system was great... :tongue:

any recommendations? again, looking for great all around sound, but also something compact.... probably between 400-600 give or take. thanks!

CL65 Captain said:

No highs, no lows must be Bose!

You can do much, much better for the same price or less.

Click to expand...

X 10000000.

Bose is pure marketing. This is the kind of crap you buy the inlaws for Christmas b/c they don't know anything about music and they think Bose is great b/c they saw the infomercial last night.

What is your budget? I can find you a much better quality package for less.

Start from here.

http://www.hometheatermag.com/compactspeakers/

http://www.energy-speakers.com/v2/products/product-line.php?id=7

http://www.axiomaudio.com/m3ti_main.html

Do some reading then get back with us.

If you want a real simple solution these are much better than the Bose:

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/soundprojectors.html?CTID=5001100

Agree with all above, truly Amir Bose is a marketing genius but he is laughed at by anyone and everyone in the industry.

The Bose FAQ is well worth reading, especially if you're in the mood for a bit of humor.

http://zhome.com/ZCMnL/PICS/stereo/bosefaq.htm

New-comers to the audio newsgroups often ask about Bose. Their interest is often inspired by a sale, in which Bose speakers are offered at a seemingly irresistible price, and the poster feels a strong urgency to buy before the sale ends. If this FAQ does nothing else, at least rest assured that Bose products go on sale frequently and, when this sale ends, there will be another soon. In fact, you can often receive the sale price after the sale ends just by asking. So take your time, listen carefully, and compare!

The usual naive request for information about Bose is often followed by a flame war, often to the original poster's great surprise. While Bose may be "The Most Respected Name in Audio" --- according to the Bose marketing department --- Bose gets little respect from most of the participants in the audio newsgroups. In fact, moderate to strong anti-Bose sentiments outnumber pro-Bose sentiments perhaps 20 to one on the audio newsgroups! However, there are always at least two staunch defenders of Bose. Perhaps because they face such overwhelming odds, the Bose defenders tend to phrase their arguments in brief and repetitive ways, which almost everyone else finds extremely irritating, especially after several months of exposure. The flavor of this debate has to be personally experienced to be truly appreciated. But, as a feeble attempt to duplicate it, here is the structure of a typical exchange:

NEWBIE: Does anyone have any opinions about Bose speakers?

FIVE RESPONSES: There are better speakers for the money including brands X, Y, and Z

BOSE DEFENDER: But Bose speakers offer superior design. They're the most popular speaker in the world, and for good reason.

TEN RESPONSES: Popularity does not equal quality. (Many long detailed rebuttals to the Bose defender. Tone tends to be slightly hostile since they've done this several times before. Some are very hostile --- "Bose sucks!!!")

BOSE DEFENDER: No. You're all wrong.

FIFTEEN RESPONSES: What?! (Many more long posts explaining again why they are right)

BOSE DEFENDER: But Bose is a large corporation with excellent customer service. Other smaller companies may fail, leaving you without service.

TWENTY RESPONSES: Good service for a poor quality product? So what? (Many more detailed responses about the problems they perceive with Bose, plus more "Bose sucks!!!" posts)

BOSE DEFENDER: Bose is a very popular speaker. More people buy Bose speakers than any other speaker, and Bose has very high customer satisfaction rates.

TWENTY FIVE RESPONSES: Agggh!! We just explained that quality does not equal popularity. Can't you read? Are you an IDIOT?

BOSE DEFENDER: No. I'm not the idiot, you're all idiots. This newsgroup is populated by a small clique of crazy "audiophile" types who spend hundreds of dollars for cable that doesn't even make a difference.

NEWBIE: (forgot about the newbie didn't you!) (in a weak voice) I want my mommy.

Two words brother....Hsu Research.

I have a Bose surround sound system in my great room. I agree that they are not the best value in the speaker market and I don't think I would replace them with new ones today if I was in the market (I am much less brand conscious now then I was back then). That said I am very satisfied with the footprint and sound performance of these speakers (my wife would NEVER let me put some of the speakers mentioned on here in our great room and with the designer paint work we could never recess them and match the paint).

The ones at Sams Club are never on sale and sell like hotcakes (just ask anyone that works in member services). They sell because they have a demo setup and people like what they hear AND want the Bose brand.

I do agree with the comments about marketing genius but they hold a number of patents and have innovated everything from speakers to car shocks.

I believe 100 to 1 that more marketing money is wasted at the feet of Apple then will ever be wasted at Bose. It always cracks me up how so many people are on a vendetta against Bose and yet have thousands wrapped up in other audio/video components that are overpriced as well! :tongue:

While I hear all the bad comments about Bose products, I have to go by what my ears actually hear.
I have the Wave radio and absolutely love it. I've had friends come over and I'll bring it into a room and hide it under a table or something and have the wonder and ask where the music is coming from. I show them what it is and they are astonished that the music coming out of it is that crystal clear.
I gave one to my father a few years ago and it is one of his most prized things he has.
FYI, it is so bad, why then did Ferrari just make them the exclusive supplier of audio systems for their cars?? Just good marketing there too?
If the products are so bad then how has the company seemed to last so long and continue to develop new relationships with different auto manufacturers?
JDM,
If you are happy with your Lifestyle system then that is all that matters.

CL65 Captain said:

No highs, no lows must be Bose!

You can do much, much better for the same price or less.

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I agree!!!! Why is it that bose doesn't publish frequency response of their speakers???

Check out SVSound.com. Excellent product especially for the price. I am not sure how large of speakers you do or don't want but they do have a satellite system.

that yamaha system looks great... i don't have too much chance to get out and hear these systems for myself... but being that i am a sci-fi movie junkie, and action film junkie... i want good highs AND lows... great crisp LASERs being fired, and good stomach grumble for those explosions....

what are everyone's personal picks?

NSXLuvr said:

X 10000000.

Bose is pure marketing. This is the kind of crap you buy the inlaws for Christmas b/c they don't know anything about music and they think Bose is great b/c they saw the infomercial last night.

What is your budget? I can find you a much better quality package for less.

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haha... thanks for the input guys. i didn't realize bose was as bad as people make it sound? i've had the lifestyle system for like 2 years now, and loved it... i guess just not exposed to whats 'better' yet....


CAN'T be any worse than "wanna buy some speakers i have in the back of my van. they overloaded my delivery truck..." :tongue: :biggrin:

92NSX said:

FYI, it is so bad, why then did Ferrari just make them the exclusive supplier of audio systems for their cars?? Just good marketing there too?
If the products are so bad then how has the company seemed to last so long and continue to develop new relationships with different auto manufacturers?
JDM,
If you are happy with your Lifestyle system then that is all that matters.

Click to expand...

Why? Because
a) Bose gives them a great deal on pricing
b) due to Bose marketing, people who don't know better perceive them to be a top quality brand, and the car manufacturers tout this as well

Bottom line though, if you're happy, great, but if you're just buying a system, listen to a variety, don't buy just because it's "Bose". Someone mentioned HSU above, I also think these are a great value for the $$. Also look at the Energy. Also you can get KILLER deals on used speakers, speaker technology hasn't changed much in decades so no reason not to consider used, it's not like buying the newest product line will gain you anything.

robr said:

Why? Because
a) Bose gives them a great deal on pricing
b) due to Bose marketing, people who don't know better perceive them to be a top quality brand, and the car manufacturers tout this as well

Bottom line though, if you're happy, great, but if you're just buying a system, listen to a variety, don't buy just because it's "Bose". Someone mentioned HSU above, I also think these are a great value for the $$. Also look at the Energy. Also you can get KILLER deals on used speakers, speaker technology hasn't changed much in decades so no reason not to consider used, it's not like buying the newest product line will gain you anything.

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i think for me the few things i'm looking for for my OWN personal room system is:


1) cost effective (probably ballpark of 500-800 bucks) since its just for my room

2) small/compact setup. trying to void large floor stands, or 5 speaker setups

3) good range of sound, with crisp highs and low bass



and i figured that bose cinemate for like 450 bucks wasn't so bad... the yamaha one looks great.. but a bit too much $$$ for just my room

Where the hell is Turbo2Go to put in his recommendations anyway?!?

92NSX said:

FYI, it is so bad, why then did Ferrari just make them the exclusive supplier of audio systems for their cars?? Just good marketing there too?

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Car Audio and Home Audio are 2 completely different fields. It is much easier to design a system around a set dimensions of a car and the position of a listener(driver's seat). The "sweet spot" for the music is the driver's seat and the acoustics can be designed in such a way as to please the driver.

A home speaker system has to have a much broader reach and be able to provide excellent sound over a much larger area and sweet spot.

Bose does two things well. 1. Marketing 2. Designing their systems into small, cute packages. The problem is they do both at the cost of audio quality. You can't cheat the laws of physics, but Bose tries to compromise to give up some low frequency for smaller packages. At the same time they give up highs for cost savings.

Now, there are other companies that do very, very well at design but they are also $$$. Bang & Olufsen for one. But that's a complete different thread.

People hate Bose, because they are selling you marketing over quality. Bose's "wave guide" - known to the rest of the world as a Port. :biggrin:

I bought the Orb Audio 5.1 MOD1 speakers for my bedroom and my wife and I love them, both for their aesthetics and sound (not to mention excellent bang for the buck).

The PS3 rocks this system. Games like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Uncharted: Drake's Fortune sound especially impressive...as do most Blu-ray movies.

robr said:

Where the hell is Turbo2Go to put in his recommendations anyway?!?

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UP ABOVE!!! I recommended the Yamaha system to him.

I just don't want to get into another Bose discussion. I agree with the rest of the guys. Good marketing, and cute packaging, on a rather poor product. Great customer service, and very easy to use, designed for people who know nothing about audio. I can write pages on why Bose is actually poor product, but I just don't have the energy.

Bose has 40 full time lawyers, on staff. They are the only company in the world that gets away with full price fixing. Discount a Bose item as a dealer and get axed for life. Display Bose next to other competitive product, and lose the line.

Ever notice that Bose products are always in a corner by themselves? Have you ever noticed that when you go to listen to speakers all the brands are mixed on the same shelf in a store and over on the other side is the Bose section? This is not by accident. They don't want you to see what the speaker system is actually MISSING.

An acoustimass system has a parts cost of $38. I know this for a fact, as I have friends that are high up at Bose. I have talked to Amar Bose personally on several occasions regarding the shortcomings of his products. And the man, without taking any offense, took his notepad out and wrote down everything I told him. That my friends, is why he is a gazillionaire.

How does he get car manufacturers to install Bose? Like someone else said, Price, and don't think that the guys high up Ferrrari know audio anymore than the average person. The same marketing that appeals to most consumers also appeals to the guys at Ferrari or Mercedes.

Is it good product? No. Is it good for some people? yes. For 2 decades no one else made a nice clock radio. No one else made a freindly RF remote. No one else made satellites as cute looking. They do certain things very well. But I would never want to buy a pair of their speakers, because I know what would be missing.

JDM, the Yamaha system is an excellent one box solution. It does deliver truly believable surround effects off that one single speaker when setup properly. There is no receiver to deal with, no multiple remotes, etc. If you want to spend less then Boston Acoustics has another single box solution here with a wireless subwoofer at $280 on ebay.

I don't want to discount the suggestions made here, all these guys are suggesting some good speakers, I have not read any bad recommendations so far. But if you want to keep it cheap and simple, this is a good way to do it.

the boston acoustics definitely seems like a worthy candidate.... i KNOW its pretty fair to say it won't sound as great as the yamaha ones running nearly 2000, but for almost 300, would you say this would fair better than even the bose entry level systems?

JDMnsxR said:

the boston acoustics definitely seems like a worthy candidate.... i KNOW its pretty fair to say it won't sound as great as the yamaha ones running nearly 2000, but for almost 300, would you say this would fair better than even the bose entry level systems?

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Probably a toss up. The Bose is using two speakers and two seperate speakers placed further apart will generally outdo a single "soundbar" type of speaker, but the BA's sub is probably slightly better. Honestly at this price point I would just save my money and get the BA. We are kind of splitting hairs here. For $280 to get an amp, a sub, and a front speaker array you can't have real high expectations. Its a 100% improvement over the flat panel speakers, that's for sure. If you want to take the next step, then get a receiver and any of the excellent speakers the guys recommended here (Hsu, Orb, NHT, Energy, Etc). All this is more work than I think you want to get into. The BA is a simple setup and the feature where it learns YOUR remote's IR codes to do volume along with the wireless sub is very cool.

92NSX said:

FYI, it is so bad, why then did Ferrari just make them the exclusive supplier of audio systems for their cars?? Just good marketing there too?
If the products are so bad then how has the company seemed to last so long and continue to develop new relationships with different auto manufacturers?

Click to expand...

Dont forget that bose was the supplier of the audio system in our NSX and look where that got us. The speaker amps were so poorly designed that the amps would overheat until they eventually failed after 4-5 years. The failures weren't limited to NSXs either as many other makes and models (corvettes, infiniti/nissan, etc) using bose audio systems also had their share of failures.

Is this the kind of quality and excellence you want in your NSX or Ferrari?

Briank - Will you be fixing ferrari amps anytime soon? :biggrin:

-- Joe

TURBO2GO said:

Probably a toss up. The Bose is using two speakers and two seperate speakers placed further apart will generally outdo a single "soundbar" type of speaker, but the BA's sub is probably slightly better. Honestly at this price point I would just save my money and get the BA. We are kind of splitting hairs here. For $280 to get an amp, a sub, and a front speaker array you can't have real high expectations. Its a 100% improvement over the flat panel speakers, that's for sure. If you want to take the next step, then get a receiver and any of the excellent speakers the guys recommended here (Hsu, Orb, NHT, Energy, Etc). All this is more work than I think you want to get into. The BA is a simple setup and the feature where it learns YOUR remote's IR codes to do volume along with the wireless sub is very cool.

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thanks for your input... looking at possibly buying the ebay unit now.... thanks again guys!