Two HomePods are NOT a Soundbar

[maflynn]

User-defined HomePod EQ

I don't own a HP [yet], but I think, that's one feature I'd welcome

 

[bmac4]

I think most people excited to try out pairing two of these things together aren't looking to replace an existing soundbar setup, but rather have an additional setup in a room that otherwise would just be making do with the TV speakers due to size.

For example, I have an excellent stereo in my living room. It gets much louder than even two HomePods would be capable of, and is pretty ideal for movies and TV shows.

In my bedroom however, I don't need or want a stereo that large. I do have a single HomePod in there though. It works great with my Apple TV. But if I could pick up a 2nd one (that's primary function is for another room) and occasionally pair it with my main one for a decent home theater experience in my bedroom, all the better.

This isn't a zero sum game. People who have interest in two HomePods could have a variety of uses for them. Home theater use is just one of many use cases.

So I know this is not Apple primary use case for the HP, but I paired it with my AppleTv and tried to watch a couple of movies. The music sounds fantastic as expected, but the voices seem really flat. They sound almost think they are talking through mud. Have you experienced that?

 

[AustinIllini]

So I know this is not Apple primary use case for the HP, but I paired it with my AppleTv and tried to watch a couple of movies. The music sounds fantastic as expected, but the voices seem really flat. They sound almost think they are talking through mud. Have you experienced that?

Interesting. I think it's because of the beam-forming HomePod does in the room. HomePod bounces sound off the wall and does some really cool things to fill a room with sound. In contrast, a sound par or fronts and a center channel shoot the audio directly at the view.

This reinforces the idea that a true Apple TV setup probably would require a modified Apple speaker for voice.

 

[bmac4]

Interesting. I think it's because of the beam-forming HomePod does in the room. HomePod bounces sound off the wall and does some really cool things to fill a room with sound. In contrast, a sound par or fronts and a center channel shoot the audio directly at the view.

This reinforces the idea that a true Apple TV setup probably would require a modified Apple speaker for voice.

Yeah the tech is amazing and I have heard a ton about it, how it uses the surface it’s on to bounce bass off of to make it more full. All for that is amazing, but it blows my mind how it does translate into audio for tv. I was just wondering if maybe I had it setup wrong, but that was going to be a huge deal for me. I wanted something really compact like the HP for my AppleTv, but as it stands now. It simply does not work that well. I don’t know that two HPs correct that either. Even if they did, that’s $700 and I think that’s way too much.

 

[AustinIllini]

Yeah the tech is amazing and I have heard a ton about it, how it uses the surface it’s on to bounce bass off of to make it more full. All for that is amazing, but it blows my mind how it does translate into audio for tv. I was just wondering if maybe I had it setup wrong, but that was going to be a huge deal for me. I wanted something really compact like the HP for my AppleTv, but as it stands now. It simply does not work that well. I don’t know that two HPs correct that either. Even if they did, that’s $700 and I think that’s way too much.

There are some good to great atmos soundbars for under $700, too

 

[bmac4]

There are some good to great atmos soundbars for under $700, too

Yeah for sure! That’s my biggest disappointment with the HP. I wanted a smart speaker that I could use with my tv, but it appears Apple did not have that in mind when they made it. Maybe they tune if for that later, but as it stands now, that is not at all what it is. That’s the only thing making me hold on to it. I have almost thought about returning it several times.

 

[vipergts2207]

A Ford 450 could tow my jetski too.

Not many people have the desire to have a full blown HT or the desire to run wires for speakers or power.

My Klipsch RB-7s, RS-7s and RC-7 give way to the bose soundbar and now the HomePod.

well over 95% of the time I do not need the HT experience. 4% of the time I am too lazy to configure the HT and the remaining 1% of the time I run the HT.
Sure the numbers a tad skewed but I am sure you get the gist of what I am saying.

The homepod and other bluetooth speakers provide adequate sound, relatively low cost, small footprints and can be easily moved and transported.

I was just answering the query as to what else besides HomePod would fulfill those requirements. You may want to imply that it’s overkill, but it’s really not, hence why ATV supports DD+ in 7.1. Atmos may or may not be coming eventually as well, time will tell.

Some people desire something a little more serious than a Bose setup or HomePod for a home theater. If you’re happy with those solutions though, then have at it. Personally, my setup doesn’t require any configuration to get going. With a harmony elite remote I can press a single button and all of the appropriate devices fire up, and switch to the correct inputs and settings.

 

[bruinsrme]

I was just answering the query as to what else besides HomePod would fulfill those requirements. You may want to imply that it’s overkill, but it’s really not, hence why ATV supports DD+ in 7.1. Atmos may or may not be coming eventually as well, time will tell.

Some people desire something a little more serious than a Bose setup or HomePod for a home theater. If you’re happy with those solutions though, then have at it. Personally, my setup doesn’t require any configuration to get going. With a harmony elite remote I can press a single button and all of the appropriate devices fire up, and switch to the correct inputs and settings.

Many things to consider.
This forum, and others, seem to have classified the HomePod as the end all solution to home speakers, home theater and just listening to a speaker.

I don’t recall the HomePod being touted as a sound bar. However, I am using it as a sound bar.
I love my reference 7 set up. My appletv, directvnow and my iPad mini as my remote equates for the vast majority of tv/movie enjoyment.
The Bose and HomePod are good enough for typical viewing and that were I feel the HomePod will grab the market share, the good enough audience. Not to mention the HomePod has a fantastic WAF,

 

[cap7ainclu7ch]

I don't think that would be possible, like at all. wireless subwoofers only work with the product it's designed for, such as the sonos one, and there's no way it would work with airplay 2. That's the only way this would work.

The biggest issue is the fact that this will only work with the Apple TV. It won't work with other sources connected to your TV, and I don't think the Apple TV has the capability to ARC it over.

Also, it's not going to do surround sound. While Apple could update the stereo feature to work as two discrete audio sources, it's highly unlikely they will allow it to work as surround speakers. If you got two more homepods to sit either side of you, they would play the same sounds as the front speakers would. And as pointed out, you need a centre channel otherwise the dialogue would just sound weird as it's coming from either side of your TV instead of underneath, and again I dbout it would ever get support to be used as a 5.1 channel setup if you got a third to sit under the TV (at that point you're wasting your money anyway)

I would love to replace my home theatre setup with a homepod, but it's just not designed for that. You could use a single one perhaps under your TV and it would still sound great and better than the built in TV speakers, but any more than that and it's unlikely to work the way you hope.

My idea revolves around an Apple soundbar that has inputs and is also configured to support a separate sub.

 

[bmac4]

Many things to consider.
This forum, and others, seem to have classified the HomePod as the end all solution to home speakers, home theater and just listening to a speaker.

I don’t recall the HomePod being touted as a sound bar. However, I am using it as a sound bar.
I love my reference 7 set up. My appletv, directvnow and my iPad mini as my remote equates for the vast majority of tv/movie enjoyment.
The Bose and HomePod are good enough for typical viewing and that were I feel the HomePod will grab the market share, the good enough audience. Not to mention the HomePod has a fantastic WAF,

Do you not find that the voices sound muddy while using the HomePod with the AppleTV?

 

[bruinsrme]

Do you not find that the voices sound muddy while using the HomePod with the AppleTV?

Yes I do.
I also think there aren’t many center channels or sound bars that excel in handling voices well, for movies that is not really applicable to music.

I don’t particular think the HomePod equalization is optimal.

 

[bmac4]

Yes I do.
I also think there aren’t many center channels or sound bars that excel in handling voices well, for movies that is not really applicable to music.

I don’t particular think the HomePod equalization is optimal.

Yeah me either. The music sounds absolutely fantastic, but is missing a ton for movies. If Apple could fix that with software, I would be completely happy. It’s for a bedroom, so I don’t need a 7.1 setup.

 

[cyb3rdud3]

Yes I do.
I also think there aren’t many center channels or sound bars that excel in handling voices well, for movies that is not really applicable to music.

I don’t particular think the HomePod equalization is optimal.

I’m surprised you say that about center channels. Makes me wonder you’ve never heard a properly setup system.

 

[Jamie0003]

Agreed, but a man can dream

TBH I think of my wish-list I think these two will happen via s/w upgrades:-

• HomePod in HomeKit scenes - "play playlist x/scary dog barking if motion sensor triggered" "play song y at 07:00 every morning" "play jazz and set the lights at dinner time" and so on
• HomePod voice recognition (enabling multiple accounts)

and I'll add a third:-

• User-defined HomePod EQ

I think it’s guaranteed this will happen, there must be a reason the HomePod is controlled via the home app, seems strange you can’t do automations with it already. Also, in iOS 11.3, the Apple TV will be available in the home app. Who knows what this will mean but hopefully you’ll be able to control it and for example walk into your living room and say, hey siri, play black mirror on Netflix. Would be so cool

 

[jjjjjooooo]

In contrast, a sound par or fronts and a center channel shoot the audio directly at the view.

This reinforces the idea that a true Apple TV setup probably would require a modified Apple speaker for voice.

1. I believe (but will have to look into later) most soundbars were stereo until recently.

2. I’ve experimented with 2 center channels (Pioneer, Sony) of horizontal design placed on the upper shelf of a cheap Walmart store brand stand (https://www.walmart.com/ip/Mainstays-TV-Cart-for-Flat-Screen-TVs-up-to-26/16451701)—I didn’t attach the back piece of the stand.

Based on that limited experience I am far from convinced that it is an ideal location from which to receive dialogue (I didn’t for whatever reason get a receiver with Audyssey (I chose Sony), so perhaps that choice is what made the difference). (The TV I used was a 55” Sony LCD w/active 3D). The movies I tested it with were Breaking the Waves, Cave of Forgotten Dreams 3D, and Rickie and the Flash Blu-rays on a Sony player.

Cave I found totally off putting with “center”-channel vocals—Herzog (IIRC) begins narrating from offscreen and sounded noticeably under the screen to my ears. My enjoyment of the film increased dramatically after switching to stereo.

Waves ironically was intended to be heard mostly mono theatrically—except for the “chapter music,” e.g. this(

) song. Nonetheless I still preferred the stereo mix. Although I found I somewhat soured on the movie from the first time I’d seen it (more on this later).

Flash was the most enjoyable with a “cc,” but after going back and forth many times ultimately settled on stereo and more or maybe somewhat less enjoyed the remainder of the movie.

Conceptually, I’m altogether skeptical of watching traditional scripted movies and shows with a sound that does not seem to originate from the device itself (I don’t, for example, enjoy watching Netflix dramas on my “jet-black,” iPhone 7 through EarPods because the dialogue sounds like it’s coming from inside my ears (I prefer the stereo speakers), while “YouTube-videos,” e.g. this(

)one are generally much improved: “surround sound”—or even stereo seperates—strikes me as a possibly a false metaphor: I don’t think I believe I’m “really there,” so if video is originating from a screen, why shouldn’t the audio come “from the same place”? (Perhaps you can project it from that “place” in compelling ways.) [...]

 

[bruinsrme]

I’m surprised you say that about center channels. Makes me wonder you’ve never heard a properly setup system.

I have had my system calibrated at the prime of my HT enthusiasm.

For the longest time I wanted to reposition an klipsch RS-7 as a center channel.

Some day.

Maybe purchase a new AVR in the meantime.

 

[subjonas]

I’m really curious what “stereo-like” really means. For instance, how will two paired homepods handle a song like Such Great Heights by Postal Service which completely isolates left and right channels? The stereo effect is a big part of the song so I hope the paired HomePods do a good job of recreating it as part of the “sound stage”.

 

[jav6454]

I think the majority of wish list items will never see the light of day, partly because most mainstream consumers don't need optical in , dolby atmos/5.1 etc etc. The same with aiplay 2(3?).

I don't know if we'll be seeing hompod components roll out of apple anytime soon, but rather we'll see refinement of the homepod, just like the apple watch. We've seen refinements on that.

I'd rather Apple concentrate on refining their current line-ups and OS offerings.

 

[cyb3rdud3]

I have had my system calibrated at the prime of my HT enthusiasm.

For the longest time I wanted to reposition an klipsch RS-7 as a center channel.

Some day.

Maybe purchase a new AVR in the meantime.

I'm not familiar with the RS7, a quick look suggests it looks like a bi/di pole surround speaker, but then reading the material it actually isn't, it is a normal surround speaker but with wide dispersion technology, i.e. the tweeters seem to angle out of the way. Not sure why they didn't simply go with a normal bipole format, or dipole.

Either way, looks like the worst kind of speaker to use for centre channel duties

 

[BlankStar]

I think it’s guaranteed this will happen, there must be a reason the HomePod is controlled via the home app, seems strange you can’t do automations with it already. Also, in iOS 11.3, the Apple TV will be available in the home app. Who knows what this will mean but hopefully you’ll be able to control it and for example walk into your living room and say, hey siri, play black mirror on Netflix. Would be so cool

I got 11.3 beta running on my iPhone X & Apple TV 4K. You can't ask to start Netflix, but when something is playing you can control it via Siri on the HomePod. "Hey Siri, pause the movie" or "Hey Siri, skip 3 minutes" works perfectly.
I do hope they add the functionality to really control the Apple TV. Would absolutely love to come home and just ask Siri to start the Apple TV (and make my TV come out of Stand by via the HDMI)...

Most reviews say that Siri is the dumbest assistant, which might be true, but Apple can start adding functionality now with updates, like AirPlay 2. I hope the rumors concerning iOS12 are true. No real new features, but optimizing and expanding existing ones, including HomeKit integration and Siri... (and some more that would really make this go off-topic)

 

[bmac4]

I got 11.3 beta running on my iPhone X & Apple TV 4K. You can't ask to start Netflix, but when something is playing you can control it via Siri on the HomePod. "Hey Siri, pause the movie" or "Hey Siri, skip 3 minutes" works perfectly.
I do hope they add the functionality to really control the Apple TV. Would absolutely love to come home and just ask Siri to start the Apple TV (and make my TV come out of Stand by via the HDMI)...

Most reviews say that Siri is the dumbest assistant, which might be true, but Apple can start adding functionality now with updates, like AirPlay 2. I hope the rumors concerning iOS12 are true. No real new features, but optimizing and expanding existing ones, including HomeKit integration and Siri... (and some more that would really make this go off-topic)

Even with that functionality of being able to control the TV, there’s still the issue of sound. Right now the HP is not tuned for playing movies. Until that is changed, I see no purpose in controlling the TV.

 

[bruinsrme]

I'm not familiar with the RS7, a quick look suggests it looks like a bi/di pole surround speaker, but then reading the material it actually isn't, it is a normal surround speaker but with wide dispersion technology, i.e. the tweeters seem to angle out of the way. Not sure why they didn't simply go with a normal bipole format, or dipole.

Either way, looks like the worst kind of speaker to use for centre channel duties

It probably is not the best solution however, it’s one of those things that has me “wondering”
Like putting gravy on fries.
Did that 30+ years ago at a restaurant and people looked at me like I was crazy.

 

[cyb3rdud3]

It probably is not the best solution however, it’s one of those things that has me “wondering”
Like putting gravy on fries.
Did the 30+ years ago at a restaurant and people looked at me like I was crazy.

You are, fries need frite saus, preferably by Remia. Or as some refer to it; mayonnaise.

You are bonkers

 

[jjjjjooooo]

My idea revolves around an Apple soundbar that has inputs and is also configured to support a separate sub.

Apple may be making this (https://www.macrumors.com/2017/08/16/images-depict-alleged-apple-oled-tv/). With a base that is also a thin “sound-bar like” speaker and a “square-metal looking,” “Apple TV,” that doubles as a display-mount.

Looks good to me.

I'm not familiar with the RS7, a quick look suggests it looks like a bi/di pole surround speaker, but then reading the material it actually isn't, it is a normal surround speaker but with wide dispersion technology, i.e. the tweeters seem to angle out of the way. Not sure why they didn't simply go with a normal bipole format, or dipole.

Either way, looks like the worst kind of speaker to use for centre channel duties

I still want to try these “omnis,” (https://www.amazon.com/Mirage-Nanosat-5-1-High-Performance-Discontinued/dp/B001H2VBD0), but they’re discontinued.

 

[cyb3rdud3]

I still want to try these “omnis,” (https://www.amazon.com/Mirage-Nanosat-5-1-High-Performance-Discontinued/dp/B001H2VBD0), but they’re discontinued.

If they were any good then they would still be on sale I really wouldn't bother, and if you are after a home cinema setup there are so many more much better options that can actually play back the sound formats accurately.

The key point for home cinema use is that speakers need to be able to work with the processor to place an sound object somewhere specific. Any kind of this omni directional or full sounds or dispersion technologies will detract from the primary task that is required of them.