Warm weather is finally here in the Northeast and I'm ready to do some outdoor entertaining. Does anyone have a recommendation on a pair of good wireless outdoor speakers? The transmitter will be connected to an Onkyo TX-SR606 using Zone 2. Obviously, good wireless reception and sound are of utmost importance here. The speakers will probably be placed around 50-70 ft. from the transmitter but it will have to travel through two walls, one of which is concrete.
Wireless Outdoor Speakers
- Thread starter flashlite
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Onuris
Newly Enlightened
Hi flashlite, I might be able to help you with this as this is what I do for a living- I own a company that installs home theater and whole house electronics.
First you will want to find something that transmits at a frequency that will provide the least interference for where you are at. There are basically 4 frequencies at which most wireless devices transmit- 46-49 MHz, 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, and 5.8 GHz. The 46-49 MHz band was used extensively for early cordless phones, cheap walkie-talkies, baby monitors, etc. This band is not used as much anymore, and it is very prone to interference from all kinds of household devices, such as TVs, refrigerators, etc. 900 MHz devices are very heavily used for wireless electronic devices such as cordless phones and LANS routers, so anything on that band is subjet to interference from them. 2.4 GHz is also starting to be used a lot for cordless phones, and is also susceptable to interference from microwave ovens. 5.8 GHz is even less prone to interference, and has even greater range.
In theory the lower the frequency, the better the signal will be at going through obstructions, such as your concrete wall, and the higher the frequency, the better the range that you will have barring any obstructions, at the same wattage. But since you are using this for audio, another factor that must be considered is sound quality. This is affected much by how well the reciever picks up the signal from the transmitter. What becomes important is the signals ability to be reflected and then find the reception antenna. Low frequency signals in the 46-49 MHz range have wavelengths of about 18 ft, so they must be repeatedly deflected to cover and area effectively. Because signals in the 900 GHz range only have wavelengths of a few feet and signals in the 2.4 and 5.8 GHz have wavelengths of only a few inches, it is easier for them to cover an area more completely. More of the signal is received cleanly, resulting in greater signal and sound quality.
At only 50-70 ft I would think that your concrete wall would not present much of a problem, so I would recommend that you look for something that is transmitting at 2.4 or 5.8 GHz.
If you have a set of spare speakers, an excellent system is a Rocketfish transmitter and receiver/amplifier. You can get them at Best Buy and online for around $100.
If you need the speakers as well, I would suggest something that is weather resistant and made for outdoor use. If you are looking for something like a conventional speaker to set on a deck, or mount somewhere on the outside of your house or under your soffit, they I would suggest looking at Boston Acoustics, Polk Audio, or Klipsch.
If you want something that blends into the surroundings and are visually unobtrusive you have a few options available. Rockustics makes some very nice speakers that are designed to look like landscaping rocks, planters, etc, and Niles Audio has some excellent sounding speakers that look like rocks as well.
Hope this helps.
First you will want to find something that transmits at a frequency that will provide the least interference for where you are at. There are basically 4 frequencies at which most wireless devices transmit- 46-49 MHz, 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, and 5.8 GHz. The 46-49 MHz band was used extensively for early cordless phones, cheap walkie-talkies, baby monitors, etc. This band is not used as much anymore, and it is very prone to interference from all kinds of household devices, such as TVs, refrigerators, etc. 900 MHz devices are very heavily used for wireless electronic devices such as cordless phones and LANS routers, so anything on that band is subjet to interference from them. 2.4 GHz is also starting to be used a lot for cordless phones, and is also susceptable to interference from microwave ovens. 5.8 GHz is even less prone to interference, and has even greater range.
In theory the lower the frequency, the better the signal will be at going through obstructions, such as your concrete wall, and the higher the frequency, the better the range that you will have barring any obstructions, at the same wattage. But since you are using this for audio, another factor that must be considered is sound quality. This is affected much by how well the reciever picks up the signal from the transmitter. What becomes important is the signals ability to be reflected and then find the reception antenna. Low frequency signals in the 46-49 MHz range have wavelengths of about 18 ft, so they must be repeatedly deflected to cover and area effectively. Because signals in the 900 GHz range only have wavelengths of a few feet and signals in the 2.4 and 5.8 GHz have wavelengths of only a few inches, it is easier for them to cover an area more completely. More of the signal is received cleanly, resulting in greater signal and sound quality.
At only 50-70 ft I would think that your concrete wall would not present much of a problem, so I would recommend that you look for something that is transmitting at 2.4 or 5.8 GHz.
If you have a set of spare speakers, an excellent system is a Rocketfish transmitter and receiver/amplifier. You can get them at Best Buy and online for around $100.
If you need the speakers as well, I would suggest something that is weather resistant and made for outdoor use. If you are looking for something like a conventional speaker to set on a deck, or mount somewhere on the outside of your house or under your soffit, they I would suggest looking at Boston Acoustics, Polk Audio, or Klipsch.
If you want something that blends into the surroundings and are visually unobtrusive you have a few options available. Rockustics makes some very nice speakers that are designed to look like landscaping rocks, planters, etc, and Niles Audio has some excellent sounding speakers that look like rocks as well.
Hope this helps.
Thanks Onuris. That really helps a lot. I never thought of the separate transmitter/receiver idea (Rocketfish). That would give me some flexibility. And thanks for the education on how the various frequencies behave. I never knew that.
Onuris
Newly Enlightened
You're welcome. Glad I could help.
The Rocketfish is only available at 2.4 GHz. If you find that you are getting a lot of interference from cordless phones etc, you might want to try an Amphony 1520 or 1550. They transmit at 5.8 GHz, which is a less crowded frequency. We carry these in our shop, have had good success with them.
http://www.amphony.com
The Rocketfish is only available at 2.4 GHz. If you find that you are getting a lot of interference from cordless phones etc, you might want to try an Amphony 1520 or 1550. They transmit at 5.8 GHz, which is a less crowded frequency. We carry these in our shop, have had good success with them.
http://www.amphony.com
