One of the drawbacks of soundbars is the narrow distance between the left and right speakers within - can be a good compromise in a small space where you have to keep the volume low anyway, but usually won't render the same soundstage that separate speakers further apart can. Of course there are different sizes, sometimes smaller "bookcase" speakers and a sub can be a more discrete alternative. Some factors to consider are room size and layout (where do you sit while listening or watching the tv), and most frequent use/type of content (movies? sports? rock music? jazz? classical/opera? Is this incidental music or the main event? More questions than answers but things to consider...

We love our bar and so do our neighbours with many Friday night fizzies. It opens up to our entertaining area, and doubles as a kids area during the day. For parties and impromptu gatherings we push the lounge back against the wall and open the folding doors and when its getting late the doors get closed and it is quite sound proof so the music can be cranked. It suits our busy lifestyle with most of our entertaining done at home and it is seperate but still part off the house.

currently the room is closed, and when door closed sound is not an issue, the walls are brick and glass, so cant make any insulation. We are thinking of opening the room a bit by cutting the walls on both side of the existing gas heater wall(the wall in the middle). once we cut the walls to open passage no point having the doors there, then it will all be a single open plane with a 2.5m wide wall in the middle of living and dining. living room currently is 4m x 6m, dining is 7m x 6m incl kitchen area. one side wall is full of glass with a good view as its a split house so this area is like a first floor of the house. the first picture shows the existing floor plan. second one shows the opened design. third one is just a copy of the same.

In the 3rd picture , we can see the potplants , the artwork and the exterior , and IMO it looks more pleasant than the other 2 pics , which look pretty styled and impersonal . The wall above the second unit ( the dining area ) needs an artwork to balance the TV on the other side , and maybe its just me , but I think the 2 units are a bit light in colour -- in the pictures , they almost look 'fake timber' , a bit lacking in warmth against the offwhite walls , and even against the dining table ( the dining table , even though its lighter , looks better IMO ) . Others may disagree , just my taste . I also don't think the 2 light styles quite gel -- I understand what you were trying to do , but it hasn't quite worked in my eyes . I love the dining table ones , the lounge one is a bit too meh for me .