Hello my fellow Plexians!
I’m sorry if this isn’t the right place for this question, but I can’t seem to find anywhere better to ask it.
Brief background:
I primarily access my Plex Media Server content via an AppleTV (Which ever the newer 4K model is, though I only use 1080) connected to my flatscreen. I love the way that the AppleTV remote is able to turn the TV on and off and control the volume of the TV itself. It’s reduced our number of remotes down to one, and I don’t want to give that up.
The Problem:
Whenever I watch content that has 3.1, 5.1, or 7.1 audio, I can’t hear any dialog through my TV’s stereo speakers because it’s all on the center channel.
The Question:
Is there an inexpensive (<$100) way to add a center channel to my TV? I don’t really have the room or access to sufficient power to add a receiver/amplifier and 3-5 new speakers. As an apartment-dweller, I’m largely content with the audio of the TV’s left and right channels, I just really want to add a center channel without having to add an extra remote. Most of the soundbars with a center speaker are $750+ and require the addition of another remote. I’ve started re-encoding some of the worst offending files with a stereo mixdown track, but it’s SO time consuming!
Any advice would be gladly welcomed! I’m also an engineering student, so I’m not above hacking together my own circuit boards and speakers if necessary.
