Bring epic cinema sound into your home with Polk and Denon at Peter Tyson

There comes a point when making the picture bigger just isn’t enough. You can have a vast OLED, immaculate 4K detail and enough streaming subs to fill every evening until Christmas… but if all that action is still coming through your TV’s built-in speakers, you’re only getting half the experience.

That’s where this Denon and Polk Audio pairing, available from Peter Tyson, comes in. Combining the Denon AVC-X3900H AV amplifier with Polk’s Signature Elite 5.1 speaker package, it delivers the scale, surround effects and low-end impact to make home cinema feel special.

The Polk Signature Elite 5.1 package is currently £1199 (including cables) and the Denon AVC-X3900H is £1299 – they’re also available as a bundle for £2199 from Peter Tyson.

Think of the Denon AVC-X3900H as mission control. Its nine channels of amplification deliver 105W each, while 11.4-channel processing gives you plenty of scope to expand beyond the 5.1 setup later. Dolby Atmos, DTS, Auro-3D and IMAX Enhanced are all supported, so soundtracks can stretch around and, with additional speakers, above your seating position.

Most importantly, there’s genuine substance behind the specification sheet. The Denon is designed to keep dialogue clear, effects controlled and big cinematic moments explosive without everything collapsing into noise when it’s turned up.

And because every living room is different, built-in Audyssey room correction helps tailor the system to your space. Those who really want to get their acoustic measuring tape out can also upgrade to Dirac Live for even more precise room optimisation.

Elite performance

Of course, an AV amp is only as entertaining as the speakers attached to it. Polk’s Signature Elite package brings five, plus a subwoofer.

Up front are a stereo pair of ES50 floorstanders, each using dual 5.25in mid/bass drivers alongside Polk’s high-resolution Terylene-dome tweeter. They’re built to deliver a broad, seamless soundstage, while Polk’s Power Port technology is designed to reduce turbulence and squeeze deeper, cleaner bass from the cabinet.

Between them sits the slim ES35 centre speaker. Its seven-driver array is tasked with one of the hardest jobs in home cinema: keeping voices locked to the screen and intelligible when the soundtrack gets busy. Its low-profile cabinet also means it can sit below most televisions without blocking the picture or remote sensor. It uses

a seven-driver array designed to keep dialogue focused and anchored to the action.

Next, two compact ES10 surrounds handle the action behind you. These can be wall-mounted, and help effects travel smoothly around the room in a unified 3D soundstage.

Finally there’s the ES10 Subwoofer, with Class D amplification and a 10in driver to take care of the stuff you don’t just hear but feel: explosions, engines, thunder, dinosaurs and those ominous Hollywood rumbles.

The name of the game

Film night isn’t the Denon amp’s only party trick. Six HDMI inputs and two outputs make it a useful hub for TVs, streamers and consoles, with support for 4K and 8K video. Gamers also get Variable Refresh Rate, Auto Low Latency Mode and AMD FreeSync.

When nobody’s watching anything, the system can easily switch roles. HEOS is built into the Denon, opening up wireless music streaming and multiroom playback, while the Polk speakers’ hi-res audio credentials mean they’re every bit as happy tackling albums as films.

The AVC-X3900H’s nine-channel output means height speakers, extra surrounds and additional subwoofers can all be added in time – but straight out of the boxes, this pairing already covers the important stuff: expansive front sound, crisp dialogue, genuine rear-channel effects and bass with enough authority to remind you why cinemas use more than a soundbar.

The Polk Signature Elite 5.1 package is currently £1199 (including cables) and the Denon AVC-X3900H is £1299 – they’re also available as a bundle for £2199 from Peter Tyson.

Home cinema tips

Read the room

A great home cinema isn’t just about what’s on screen. The easiest upgrade costs very little: control the light. Close curtains before a film starts and dim any overhead lighting. Soft furnishings absorb echoes that make rooms sound harsh, especially if you’ve got wooden floors

or lots of glass. And it goes without saying that sitting centrally in the room can make a huge difference.

Position matters

Even the best home cinema kit can be undermined by where you put it. Give the ES50 floorstanders some breathing room rather than squeezing them into corners, to create a clear, evenly spaced soundstage. The ES35 should sit as close to the television as possible, helping voices appear to come from the screen, while the ES10 surrounds work best placed to the side or behind your main listening position.