SpeakerCraft - CS3 80-Watt TV Sound Base
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What's Included
- SpeakerCraft CS3 80-Watt TV Sound Base
- IR remote with lithium battery, stereo RCA cable, digital optical cable, AC power cord
- Owner's manual
Specifications
- Warranty Terms - Parts: 2 years limited
- Warranty Terms - Labor: 2 years limited
- Height: 4"
- Width: 28"
- Depth: 16-1/2" with grille (16" without)
See All Specs
Enhance your home entertainment experience with this SpeakerCraft CS3 ASM42000-M TVl sound base that features two 5-1/4" subwoofers for booming bass. Bluetooth technology lets you stream music wirelessly from a compatible device.
Product Features
80W total amplification
For robust and controlled audio that is crisp and clear.
4 treated paper cone midrange drivers
Along with two 1" silk dome tweeters and 2 down-firing 5-1/4" treated paper cone subwoofers for a complete range of sounds.
Bluetooth technology
Enables easy syncing to most Bluetooth-enabled audio devices.
Bi-amp design
With independent amp channels for each woofer and each set of midrange drivers and tweeters to ensure high-quality sound.
Ported, custom-tuned cabinet
Delivers extended bass response.
Inputs
Include 1 coaxial digital audio (rear), 1 optical digital audio (rear) and 1 analog line-level audio (rear).
35Hz - 20kHz frequency response
For faithful sound reproduction.
Ratings & Reviews
70% of customers would recommend this product to a friend (7 out of 10)
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MountFinder™ takes the guesswork out of finding the perfect flat-panel TV wall mount.
Best Buy Customer Reviews
(7 out of 10)
Great sound!...a little pricey but worth it5
Posted by:
harness from blank on
03/31/2013
Great sounding speaker..completely fills up room with rockin bass. Works very well with an application where you need the TV to be on top of something. DirecTV does not have codes for changing the volume via remote but they are coming in the next remote release.0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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Amazing Surround Sound!!5
Posted by:
Makavelli from on
03/20/2013
I listened to what cnet said and listened to both this system and the ZVOX 580 and agree that this system sounds better and also has nice bass when watching movies or listening to music. The sound that comes from this when watching movies is in creditable!! I feel like sometimes I am in a theatre which sounds hard to believe but the sound is great for just a box. If you are worried about purchasing this unit read the CNET review or go to best buy and listen for yourself, you will not be disappointed! I have owned this unit for 7 weeks now and wanted to make sure I liked the unit as much as I did the first day and I still do. I highly recommend the CS3 to anyone looking for a basic easy to use home theatre system that produces amazing sound without all the random wires laying around or having to have a separate subwoofer. I have let many people listen to mine and they were very impressed and decided to buy their own. Now go get yours!!0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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worked only 3 months1
Posted by:
arrrrgh from on
03/01/2013
only worked for 3 months. buy at your own risk. remote is terrible very small. no display on soundbar. Speakercraft does not pay for return shipping of defective products , so if yours fails plan on spending a good chunk of change to ship back.0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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Does not work with AppleTV or Streaming Netflix2
Posted by:
saw8272 from chicago, il on
02/19/2013
Great sound in the store. Could not get this to work with XBOX, AppleTV or Streaming Netflix.1 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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Theater sound quality5
Posted by:
Ldes9028 from Orlando on
01/25/2013
Great one piece sound bar!! Only issue I have, unable to see volume control and direct TV does not have the brand listed to use their remote to use0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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Great Sound, Horrid Product Execution2
Posted by:
mediatrek from Liverpool, NY on
01/02/2013
If all I was grading the SpeakerCraft CS3 on was the sound quality, I would give it a 4.7 out of 5. However, there are just too many other factors to give that as the final overall grade for this product.
First off, the unit does not have its own Dolby Digital decoder. A number of TV’s (including my new Panasonic IPS LED TV) and cable boxes will not output PCM only via the optical digital output. Therefore any digital or ATSC channels from my TV, I get no audio from the SpeakerCraft CS3. The “workaround” is that SpeakerCraft started including the Gefen TV Dolby Digital Audio Decoder external box. This is what is meant by the “optional digital audio decoder included” on the side of the product packaging.
The Gefen TV decoder box does do what it was designed for. It takes the optical digital output converts it down and outputs it via left/right ANALOG connections to the SpeakerCraft CS3. For the price point of this unit, this should be done internally and not require a separate box that also uses up another power outlet.
Remote controls for sound bars tend to stink. This holds true for the SpeakerCraft CS3 as well. The indicator LED’s on the unit are next to impossible to see unless your face is right against the speaker grill. In addition, if you are not directly facing the unit… not even 10 degrees off center, the remote is not picked up by the unit. Therefore, the “user interface” with this unit gets a D- or F in my grade book.
The SpeakerCraft CS3 cabinet and sound quality are wonderful, especially the bass for the size of the unit. However, the SpeakerCraft CS3 is going back to Best Buy and I will be getting a ZVOX Z-Base 555 or 850 instead. At least ZVOX has the common sense to have the unit decode basic Dolby Digital.5 out of 10 found this review helpful.
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great system5
Posted by:
biggmann from Manchester nj on
12/15/2012
I went to best-buy in Brick nj.The sales person,James,was very helpful.He listened to everything I said and then showed me this unit.Based on his recommendation I purchased the unit. Installation was very easy.I did have to call Speakercraft support for one question and I might add they were great.One push of a button on the remote solved everything.The sound quality is great.My living room is 18x26 with a ceiling ht.of 26ft. This unit fills the whole room with crystal clear sound wherever you sit.Everything James stated was right on the money.1 out of 1 found this review helpful.
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Nice Unit - Bit Pricey but Great Sound5
Posted by:
csh1259 from Mid-MO on
12/03/2012
I purchased the Speakercraft CS3 after returning a soundbar unit with a wireless sub-woofer. For some reason the sub would not stay synced in the TV room we setup. Due to my prior experience I was looking for something that was wired but simple to install. This speaker had a great sound and fit the bill for our needs and space requirements. It was super simple to install and setup. Sounds great and the Bluetooth works as advertised. When I purchased this speaker it was not on sale so it was a bit pricey. After a couple of weeks I am glad we spent the extra money for this setup. The one area I think SpeakerCraft could improve is the operation of the remote. There are no on-screen confirmations when you enter commands. I think that would be a great feature. I plan on trying to add this to our Harmony remote setup since a separate remote for sound is annoying. Overall I am happy with our purchase.0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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Great sound & easy to install & use4
Posted by:
Fuelsbros from Marin County, CA on
10/17/2012
When my BOSE 321 died I was looking for replacement sound - the built in speakers on my 55" Vizio didn't do the job and the "home theater in a box" systems were actually worse. I didn't want to spend upwards of $2k for a "real" surround sound system, particularly since installing rear speakers in my house would be a major PITA. When I went into Magnolia to see what they had, the Speakercraft CS-3 sounded pretty good for the money. And since it didn't require a separate receiver/amplifier, I decided to go for it. Installation was amazingly easy - an optical cable from the tv output and a power cable. The sound is crystal clear even at low volumes and the surround sound feature works about as well as the Bose did. I haven't tried out the Bluetooth as yet, but expect it to work just fine. I have only two minor complaints. First, because it does not have any video interface there's no way to visually confirm or change settings. Second, the LED status light (on = blue, off = red) is virtually invisible behind the front grill. However, the front grill is removable if you want to show off the speakers. All in all, a great product.2 out of 2 found this review helpful.
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Excellent value5
Posted by:
Craft from Warwick, RI on
09/23/2012
After 16 yrs my 32"Sony XBR finally went. I purchased a Sony ex64 led 40" to replace it and it just fit in my cabinet. The salesman joked that I'd be back for speakers. After a week I was back at Best Buy for some speakers. The tv is used in my living room and I really didn't want speakers in every corner of the room. I looked at the speaker bars in the main floor then wandered into the Magnolia area in the corner. I explained to a salesman there what I was looking for. He set up the Speakercraft CS3 for me and I really loved the sound. I've never heard of this brand but he assured me it's a real quality sound bar. The sound is clear, fills the room and I couldn't be happier. Thank you Josh at the Warwick, RI Best Buy.2 out of 2 found this review helpful.
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