In the heyday of CRT picture tube technology, owning a 29" TV set was a status symbol in itself. These bulky displays sported surprisingly well-made inbuilt speakers, while some even featured onboard subwoofers. Unfortunately, sound in TV sets was never the same after CRTs went on a crash diet and morphed into logistic-friendly darlings of the consumer industry—flat-panel displays. As things stand now, it doesn't matter if you cough up Rs 30,000 or three lakh for a TV, you can still be sure that they both will sound equally terrible. It's a pity then that the average consumer has neither the time and patience, nor the knowhow to wire up a complicated outboard speaker and amplifier system.The solution to this problem arrived circa 2005 with the advent of the soundbar—a single enclosure housing multiple speakers delivering the sort of full-bodied, room-enveloping sound that's lacking in flat panel televisions. Not only are soundbars extremely easy to install and configure, but they also blend in with the décor thanks to a distinct lack of cable clutter associated with traditional speaker solutions. Although physics dictates that it's nigh impossible to achieve acceptable stereo image through a singular enclosure, soundbars get around this limitation by employing advanced DSP (Digital Signal Processing) techniques and multiple speakers placed in a phased array, in order to widen the soundstage as well as improve spatialisation.Click here for full story
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