All of the expected surround modes are available, including Dolby Digital, Dolby ProLogic II, and DTS, but there are none of those fancy DSP modes of questionable value with names like Stadium or Jazz Club. (Remember what I said about no sizzle, only steak?) To generate a convincing surround effect, the SurroundWorks speaker uses a trio of wide-range drivers, one facing directly forward for the center channel, and a pair facing out the sides for the main left and right channels. The incoming five-channel signal is manipulated using something called Binaura Audio Surround Processing to get a convincing sense of envelopment for the surround channel signals, which are then delivered using a calculated combination of all three drivers. For the processing to work properly, the speaker should be positioned just above or below the TV, in a place that allows the side-mounted drivers to fire into the room without obstruction. I sat the speaker on top of my direct-view TV. Flat-panel users will find that the SurroundWorks is squat enough to sit in front of a tabletop screen without blocking the picture, and an included wall mounting bracket provides further options. With all of the sound except for the deep bass coming from a single point in the room, many of the normally required setup adjustments for things like channel balance and delay simply don’t apply here, and the only setting that needs to be tweaked is the subwoofer level. A switch on the top of the speaker is provided to control the surround modes when using components other than the AVS600, but these settings are controlled automatically when you use the complete package.
 

Cambridge’s SoundWorks 200 system uses a single enclosure with three wide-range drivers coupled to a separate subwoofer. One driver faces forward for center channel effects, while left and right channel sounds are directed outward.

I connected the video from my HD DVR through one of the Soundworks’ wideband component video inputs and sent the DVR’s audio to one of the 200’s two digital audio inputs. After the visual performance passed a few video torture tests with no significant problems, I loaded up The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and was struck by how this little system remains loud and clear even when you crank the wick up a good way. Dialog was particularly clear and smooth, with no evidence of the bright and screechy sound you sometimes get when a system is trying to sound bigger than it is.
 
While the surround effect lacks much of the specificity and directional cues you get with a 5.1 rig, it does give a credible sense of envelopment, without that phasey, out-of-your-head effect you sometimes hear from other virtual surround systems. Rounding out the sound is the little baby-sized subwoofer, and like most babies, this one can crank out a whole lot of sound. Tuned more for impact than for floorboard rattling extension, the sub mated beautifully with the main speaker, providing the kind of blend that’s difficult to achieve with a mix-and-match combination of components.

Playing a selection of music CDs provides the same sort of smooth and non-fatiguing sound that I get from movies, although here I found myself missing some of the discrete separation and spatial abilities of a conventional system a little bit more acutely. The sound is certainly pleasant and easy to listen to over a long period, but I feel that it is just a little harder to sit down and get truly drawn into the music the way you can with a good stereo rig.

Whether it’s due to the spouse, the decorator, or simply the room layout, installing a conventional 5.1 surround-sound system just isn’t in the cards for many people. That fact, however, shouldn’t confine you to a life listening to the lousy built-in speakers on your TV.

The SurroundWorks 200 can turn any regular TV set into a complete home entertainment system, while taking up a minimal amount of space in the room. Even if your idea of the perfect movie snack is a bag of those fat-free potato chips, the SurroundWorks can deliver a good helping of the seemingly impossible.