Will a Bose Acoustimass 6 Series III work correctly when hooked up to a television set?

Question

I have a Bose Acoustimass 6 Series III home speaker system, and I just realized that I don't have an actual receiver. I understand that a DVD player, etc. would be considered a receiver, but my main concern is to be able to use this speaker system with my television. The television only puts out stereo and mono, while the Bose system is designed to put out 5.1 surround sound. Can I expect to get decent, if any, sound out of this Bose system by simply hooking it up to my television? Also, is there a receiver out there that could convert the stereo or mono output from the television to a 5.1 for the Bose????

Answer 1

That is a GOOD question. If the Bose system is complete with its own amplifiers, you might be able to at least get stereo via the TV's audio outputs (if your TV has those....which raises another question. does your TV have those?). As far as I know, you won't get surround sound from the TV alone.

  If the speakers require a separate amplifier, things get complicated. You must buy a surround sound receiver and hook up the speakers as instructed by Bose in the instruction manual. Then, you have to run the DVD player through the receiver and "configure" the sound transmission  according to the instructions that came with the receiver and the DVD player.  You will also want to run the video connections to the TV via the receiver.  That's the only thing I can offer on this.

  Perhaps, someone else reading this may be able to "shed some better light" on this issue.

Answer 2

Basically, you need a receiver (amplifier) that is surround-sound built to run your Bose system. I honestly recommend a Yamaha, Onkyo or Harman/Kardon setup. To run your television sound through the Bose system, you'll have to run your TV Cable to your TV as normal, but run your A/V cables from your "Sound Out" on your TV to your "Sound In" on your receiver/amplifier. After that, you should be able to get your sound from your TV (obviously, you'll have to select the proper mode on the receiver/amplifier to do that, i.e. TV, CD/MP3, DVD, AM/FM, etc.), and the amplifier will do the rest. Make sure to follow the directions in the manual for setting up your Bose system as they are quite particular with their setup. I have a close friend who works for Bose, so I've seen what they can do if they aren't set up properly. The 6 series is a neat system, I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Good Luck!