Hi there! We have just moved into a house with an existing Bose home entertainment. We would really like to use it - however we are unable to identify which system it is and how to link/set it up. We have speakers all around the house, as well as a couple in the courtyard.
I’ve attached some photos here if that’s helpful.
Any thoughts would be most appreciated. Thank you!
Bose product name
Country
Firmware Version
App Version
What devices were you using that were affected and what version are they on (e.g. Samsung Galaxy S9 on Android 11, iPhone X on iOS14, etc.)
Detailed description of the issue and steps to reproduce
What environment do you experience the issue in? (e.g. noisy office, quiet kitchen, etc.)
When did you start to experience the issue? Did it work correctly previously?
Hi there! We have just moved into a house with an existing Bose home entertainment. We would really like to use it - however we are unable to identify which system it is and how to link/set it up. We have speakers all around the house, as well as a couple in the courtyard.
I’ve attached some photos here if that’s helpful.
Any thoughts would be most appreciated. Thank you!
That could be any number of systems. Did they leave behind the Bose Subwoofer or Reciever? If so can you let us know the model number or take photos of them?
If they only left behind the wiring and cube speakers, you will need a receiver, subwoofer, and the cable that connects them together (unless that is also in the wall). If you need to purchase a new receiver & subwoofer you have 3 choices:
You could go the Lifestyle Route, where the receiver and speakers are all made by Bose.
I would recommend the AV35 receiver and an LSPS III subwoofer. I talk about them briefly in this upgrade guide and I show the proper subwoofer to receiver cable in this post.
Do know that the AV35 receiver was sold from 2010-2016 and so it does not support 4K, ARC, or CEC. But it does support Lossless audio and you can use it with a 4K TV and media if you follow this guide.
You could go the Acoustimass Route, where the speakers are all made by Bose, but the receiver is made by a 3rd party
Since you do not need the cubes you might want to look for an Acoustimass Subwoofer on eBay. It looks like theAcoustimass 10 Vis the most current model and uses different looking cubes to the one you have. So you should be able to use either the series III orseries IV subwoofer.
After that, you can purchase any 3rd party receiver to work with your Bose speakers
The last option is to replace what you have at the moment and not purchase anything second hand, but look and see what is on the market which you like. Be it a Bose SoundBar or anything else. You might not even use the existing prewiring shown.
I hope that this helps answer your question. Let us know what you end up doing 🙂
I would check eBay for a Bose Acoustimass 7 bass module. You can use that to connect the three double cubes for your TV surround sound left, center, and right. Then, I would use a 3rd party receiver to run /- speaker cables from the receiver speaker outs for left, center, right to the Bose Acoustimass 7 bass module.
If there are two rear double cubes available, you can purchase a Bose Acoustimass 5 bass module on eBay and use that for the rears. Run two /- speaker cables from the Bose Acoustimass 5 bass module to your 3rd party receiver left and right rear surround speakers outs.
Or, perhaps you can find a Bose Acoustimass 10 bass module that can be used with 5 double cubes and a 3rd party receiver.
I would check eBay for a Bose Acoustimass 7 bass module. You can use that to connect the three double cubes for your TV surround sound left, center, and right. Then, I would use a 3rd party receiver to run /- speaker cables from the receiver speaker outs for left, center, right to the Bose Acoustimass 7 bass module.
If there are two rear double cubes available, you can purchase a Bose Acoustimass 5 bass module on eBay and use that for the rears. Run two /- speaker cables from the Bose Acoustimass 5 bass module to your 3rd party receiver left and right rear surround speakers outs.
The downside to this would be the Acoustimass 5 & 7 are not powered, so you would need a powered subwoofer to get the ".1" from a 5.1 or 7.1 receiver. That would mean you'd have 3 rather large speakers on the ground.
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Or, perhaps you can find a Bose Acoustimass 10 bass module that can be used with 5 double cubes and a 3rd party receiver.
This would make more sense as it's powered and would mean you'd only have a single large speaker on the ground. I mention it as my second option.
I did this with a Klipsch subwoofer and Onkyo receiver. It made a great 5.1 surround sound system. For a while, I had two wireless Bose speakers for a 7.1 system, but those extra two speakers didn't add much.
I did this with a Klipsch subwoofer and Onkyo receiver. It made a great 5.1 surround sound system. For a while, I had two wireless Bose speakers for a 7.1 system, but those extra two speakers didn't add much.
Yes, it is a possible setup, just one that has some drawbacks that should be mentioned (and no benefit that I can think of), especially if other family members might not appreciate having 3 subwoofers in the living room.
An Acoustimass 10 subwoofer or a Lifestyle subwoofer (depending on the choice of the receiver) would solve those drawbacks. I think the most versatile choice is the Acoustimass 10 as you can use any receiver, the only drawback is the subwoofer is a lot larger than a Lifestyle one. Possibly the most family-friendly is a Lifestyle receiver as long as you don't plan to use 4K. There are solutions around that, but it can make things more complicated, so it will no longer be more family-friendly than a normal receiver.
I even made a guide to help people who have a particular subwoofer that came out 15 years ago upgrade to a receiver that came out 11 years ago that has HDMI and supports lossless audio, but doesn't support 4K, ARC, or CEC. If anything I am highly conscious of that 🤷♂️
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Please don't downplay my advice.
I don't see how that's a downplay. I mentioned that what you said would require 3 subwoofers to work as opposed to a single subwoofer; the Acoustimass 10. This subwoofer is something you suggested in the past when I only mentioned the Lifestyle options. It is something I also agreed was a good choice and I have tried to mention it ever since.
If anything 3 subwoofers with delivery would plausibly be more expensive than a single Acoustimass 10 subwoofer. Is there an advantage to having 2 passive Bose subwoofers and a 3rd party powered subwoofer as opposed to a single powered Bose subwoofer that I cannot see? If so please let me know. It might be something I start to mention as I did after you pointed out that I didn't mention the Acoustimass 10 🙂
Again, if you're looking for used Bose pieces on eBay, it frequently comes down to what is available at the time. There is more than one way to accomplish what the OP is asking.
Again, if you're looking for used Bose pieces on eBay, it frequently comes down to what is available at the time. There is more than one way to accomplish what the OP is asking.
A working passive Acoustimass 10 subwoofer only was sold for $29 yesterday. A working powered Acoustimass 10 only was sold for $130 two weeks ago... I don't think what you mentioned is necessarily a cheaper option. Yes, it is a viable option, though there are other things to consider. They would be purchasing two Acoustimass subwoofers, most likely from two different people. Each shipping box would be rather sizable. Then they have to have them both shipped, and on top of that, they would either purchase a powered sub from eBay or from a regular retailer.
Also since they are currently prewired (I believe for a Lifestyle system) the speaker wires have RCA terminals on the ends and not bare speaker wire. So if they wish to add an Acoustimass 5 or 7 it would require them to cut off the ends of those cables and to figure out which wire is positive and negative to make sure the speakers won't be out of phase. Personally, I think that's pretty simple to do, but something (which I know from personal experience) that not everyone feels comfortable doing.
Now if they said they had an Acoustimass 5 & 7 and that they wanted a powered subwoofer, I would tell them to purchase a 3rd party subwoofer and add it to their system. But I would also point out that would mean 3 subwoofers on the ground and that they could purchase a powered Acoustimass 10 subwoofer to combine all 3 subwoofers into a single speaker. In that case yes I think the Acoustimass 10 subwoofer could be the more expensive choice, but I would still give people options.
Pointing out that what you proposed would mean that they would have 3 subwoofers I don't believe should be that controversial. I'm sorry if it came off that way as that was not my intentions. I believed what I said was a statement of fact and something that your message didn't mention and I thought it should be brought up 🤷♂️
