Our engineers have mated patented audio signal processing technology with SurroundWorks' unique multi-driver, multi-chamber main speaker. This combination creates the surround sound effect of a multi-speaker home theater set-up from just one main speaker - a home theater experience that is completely immersive. You'll "hear" sounds coming from a panoramic soundstage in front of you, from the sides of the room, even from behind you. Action will take place all around you and even the nuances of subtle ambient environmental cues, such as random outdoor noises, come across convincingly. With SurroundWorks you'll enjoy movies and music in breathtaking surround sound that is surprisingly close to a fine 5.1 setup. Consumer Digest magazine said, "SurroundWorks is home theater in a heartbeat...it has the necessary impact and ample bass to bring your blockbusters to life."

Other popular home theater speaker systems that employ signal processing to create the illusion of surround sound often employ two main (front) speakers - SurroundWorks has only one. While it's easy to be seduced by the thought that "more is better," in this particular case, it's not. The inherent shortcoming of the two main speaker approach is the inevitable "sweet spot" created by focusing the output of two separate speakers on a particular listening location, and the significant drop-off of the surround effect everywhere else in the room. Sit in the exact right place, the system sounds fine; sit anywhere else and the surround illusion evaporates.

Our SurroundWorks employs a single enclosure, multi-driver, multi-channel main speaker that is placed in the center of your home entertainment environment. Surround sound information is processed and delivered by the right and left speaker drivers, while center channel information - which is not processed in any way - is delivered by the center channel driver (see illustration). By combining the surround effect channels and the "direct" center channel in a single enclosure, SurroundWorks is able to create a broad and panoramic soundstage and a truly immersive surround field that are readily enjoyed by everyone in the room, regardless of where they're sitting.

When we said "Surround Sound. Simplified.", we weren't kidding. Hook-up of SurroundWorks couldn't be easier. Place the main speaker below (or above) your television and the subwoofer on the floor. Locate the Control Center in-between; probably in or on the same piece of furniture that supports your TV or other components. SurroundWorks is packaged with only two connecting cables with unique, color-coded connections at the end. Run one of the included cables from the powered subwoofer to the main speaker and the other cable from the Control Center to the powered sub and you're done! It's impossible to make a mistake. And, there are no speakers - or speaker wires - cluttering up the back of your room as in other, more elaborate, home theater setups..

But, "Simplified" does not mean "simple". Our AVS600 Control Center can act as "command central" for a robust home theater installation. It has enough inputs to accommodate your cable box, satellite dish and game console. Its progressive-scan DVD player assures top picture quality and the supplied programmable remote can control up to four additional components. With a total of 225 watts of power, SurroundWorks can fill all but the largest rooms and its Dolby Digital, Dolby ProLogic II and DTS decoding ability ensure a totally entertaining surround sound experience.

Our SurroundWorks Three Piece Home Theater system delivers the kind of movie and music performance that many

PCWorld Magazine: "The impressive Cambridge SurroundWorks 200 combines a DVD player/tuner, a subwoofer, and a three-speaker system in one box. Using acoustic virtualization, the system convincingly mimics a 5:1 home theater system. Installation is a snap; you can adjust the speaker to emphasize surround-sound, dialogue, or music; and when I cranked up the subwoofer, it rattled all the windows and scared the pets."

Consumer Digest: "Cambridge SoundWorks SurroundWorks 200 is home theater in a heartbeat."

Digital TV & Sound Magazine: "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."

Wired Magazine: "Cheap Thrill! Terrific immersive sound: Left and right channel speakers create illusion of sound from all sides. Room-rattling sub."

Family Circle: "If there's one thing we hate, it's speaker wire running across the family room carpet. This is why we love Cambridge SoundWorks' virtual home theater system."

CNET: "Cambridge's "surround sound, simplified" system, the $1,000 SurroundWorks 200, features an A/V-receiver/DVD-player combo, a single compact speaker, and a powered subwoofer. The company isn't kidding when it calls the SoundWorks simplified--hooking up the audio portion simply requires plugging in two color-coded wires. Best of all, the 200 provides sound comparable to that of some of the best virtual-surround systems we've tested here at CNET."

Sound & Vision: "But some rooms just don't allow for six speakers, and some users just aren't geared for setting up a true multichannel theater. In these cases, this two-speaker solution gets the job done, providing upstanding sound quality and a virtual surround sound field that represents a serious upgrade from any TV's built-in audio system."

Designtechnica: "The SurroundWorks 200 is designed for those who want a quick, easy and compact solution for music and video playback. It delivers all that with a few extras thrown in. Sound quality is terrific for a system of this type. This little system rocks."