3 Options for Outdoor Sound, from Simple to Amazing

If you follow our blog pages at all, you know that we love great audio, and we write about it often. We also think hi-fidelity sound is not exclusively an indoor thing; it can extend outside too. No, we're not talking about putting your beloved B&W tower speakers out on your covered patio – they wouldn't last long out there (but you know that). Outdoor sound has its challenges, not the least is that you need outdoor speakers that can take on the seasons of Georgia weather. 

The good news is that an outdoor sound system for your Alpharetta outside space need not be a complicated affair. It can be an extension of your current audio system, even if that setup is in just one room, like your family room. It can also be a very elaborate system with multiple zones and even tie in outdoor TVs. In this blog, we're going to take a look at some of these options, from the simple to the "wow all your friends" variety. Ready to learn more? Keep reading below. 

SEE ALSO: Discover Three Types of Speakers for Your Outdoor Sound System

Simple Single and Multizone Systems

A simple way to get your sound outdoors is to extend a sound system you already have in your living area. Many people have a receiver or amplifier, new or even a decade old or more, that they use for stereo or home theater sound (or both) in their living or family room. Most of these have options for extending the audio into a different place, which can be outside. In some cases, their amplifier allows for a second set of speakers, and many home theater receivers have a second or third zone they can power with their built-in amplifiers when they're not being used for full multichannel sound. 

In those setups, we can extend speaker wire to an outside space, like a covered patio, and install outdoor speakers in the patio ceilings, under an eave, or on a wall. Depending on your equipment, you can either listen to the same source indoors and out or even a different one outside.

While these capabilities have existed for years in audio receivers, many people haven't used them because they were sometimes confusing to operate. Fortunately, the latest audio equipment typically has internet capability. These receivers offer control apps that are far more intuitive than the remotes, letting you pick a sound source and direct it to your outside zone. And if you want something even more elegant and straightforward that controls other things like your outdoor lighting, GHT Group can set you up with a Control4 smart system that seamlessly manages your AV equipment and other smart home features. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves here.

Spreading Sound a Little More Outdoors

If all you need is a couple of pairs of speakers outside in the patio, you might be able to do it with your existing receiver or amp. If you don't need loud playback outdoors, and the speaker isn't a great distance away, you might be fine with that setup. However, if you want sound in the patio, garden, and pool, you'll need more speakers. Bear in mind that to get higher sound volume outdoors, you need more amplifier power. Outdoors, you don't have the reflective capabilities of walls and ceilings that amplify sound indoors.

You can still use a current audio receiver as your hub, but to drive additional speakers, you can take the unamplified signal from the preamp output for a second or third zone and feed it into an amplifier specifically for your outdoor speakers. There are various ways to do this, and that amplifier can reside in your indoor rack or cabinet, or we can even install it outside if warranted. How do you control the volume? There are various means of control, from using the app for your receiver to installed outdoor wall-mounted volume controls if that is something you might prefer. 

Going All the Way

If you want the best performance, ease of use, and audio quality – especially over a large outdoor area – the best approach would be to design and install a new system for your outdoor area. If you already had an indoor whole-home audio setup with multiple rooms and zones, it would make sense to tie the outdoor system into the same control capability as your indoor one. If you don't have an indoor one or are happy with what you have, you can go new with the outdoor system.

For your amazing new outdoor system, you can choose speakers from a variety of brands. In your covered patio, you can select from hi-fi brands such as Paradigm, Klipsch, and many others. For landscapes, gardens, and around pools, speakers from Coastal Source and Sonance can blanket your spaces with powerful, nuanced sound that includes subwoofers for unexpectedly strong bass outdoors. GHT Group would specify the right outdoor amplifier configuration to ensure that you can achieve the quality and sound levels you prefer outside. And we'll also configure a state-of-the-art control and source system, like one of the higher-end systems from Control4 that gives you effortless media control through touchscreens, keypads, and remotes, an array of source selections, and even high-resolution audio capability. 

Ready to explore the options for your dream outdoor sound system? To learn more, contact us here, visit our Marietta showroom, or click below to quickly connect with one of our outdoor AV experts. We look forward to working with you.