Question Why are there no truly wireless surround sound systems

[Robert3012]

Years ago Logitech made a Z series speaker system that the two rear speakers were wireless, the two front, center and Bass were wired. The system worked well but suffered from quality issues with the electronics. They would last about two years and the crater. Went through two of them. Why do they want us to run wires to speakers in this day of everything wireless. Stupid!

 

[Zoid]

There are lots of wireless surround sound systems on the market, from cheap soundbars with wireless surrounds to popular (and usually overpriced) whole-home wireless audio systems like Sonos.

The reason you'll hear audiophiles espousing wired systems over wireless is because even with modern bluetooth and wireless technology, a physical wire is still going to give you the best sound quality. There's also the issue of powering all of the individual speakers. They all have to power themselves since they can't draw power over a wire, so they either all have to be plugged into the wall individually or they have to run on batteries.

 

[Robert3012]

There are lots of wireless surround sound systems on the market, from cheap soundbars with wireless surrounds to popular (and usually overpriced) whole-home wireless audio systems like Sonos.

The reason you'll hear audiophiles espousing wired systems over wireless is because even with modern bluetooth and wireless technology, a physical wire is still going to give you the best sound quality. There's also the issue of powering all of the individual speakers. They all have to power themselves since they can't draw power over a wire, so they either all have to be plugged into the wall individually or they have to run on batteries.

I understand the difference in 'quality' of the sound between wired and wireless but as I am primarily talking about gaming on my computer, the difference is really not an issue. Yes it would be great to have a 15hz to 25khz with richness of a great old vacum tube amp connected to high end speakers but just not needed. Most rooms have 110 volt plugs all around the room so power isn't usually an issue but running speaker wires around the room and keeping them out of the way and or sight can be a huge or impossible chore. I would think that in this day in age they could use wifi or blue tooth or another part of the radio spectrum with a lossless compression algorithm that is decoded by circuitry in the speaker.

 

[Zoid]

I understand the difference in 'quality' of the sound between wired and wireless but as I am primarily talking about gaming on my computer, the difference is really not an issue. Yes it would be great to have a 15hz to 25khz with richness of a great old vacum tube amp connected to high end speakers but just not needed. Most rooms have 110 volt plugs all around the room so power isn't usually an issue but running speaker wires around the room and keeping them out of the way and or sight can be a huge or impossible chore. I would think that in this day in age they could use wifi or blue tooth or another part of the radio spectrum with a lossless compression algorithm that is decoded by circuitry in the speaker.

For some folks the convenience of wireless speakers definitely outweighs any loss in quality, which is why there are wireless surround sound systems on the market like the JBL Bar 5.1, or the Polk MagniFi MAX SR, or the Klipsch Reference Wireless series.