Teams
Forum List
Toggle sidebar

Best soundbar?

clonedude

clonedude

Well-Known Member
Apr 16, 2006
30,338
25,354
113
I'm looking for the best sounding soundbar I can get for under about $300 for my TV, but also for listening to music via my phone (bluetooth). In fact, I'm more interested in the music sounding great than the TV, but would like it if both sounded great.

I've researched as much as I can on google and youtube, but was just looking for someone that actually has one that they really like around that price that might be able to suggest something. I'm leaning towards one that comes with a subwoofer because I'm concerned if it doesn't have a sub it won't have enough bass.

Any suggestions?
 
  • Like
Reactions: CloneGuy8
clonedude said:
Which Vizio? The V21 with the soundbar?

Just another sidenote... I'm not interested in adding rear speakers for surround sound either.
Click to expand...
I actually have the older version they're talking about in this article, but it sounds like the V21 is even better than mine. Its a 2.1 so its just the one bar and subwoofer.
 
dmclone said:
I’m sure I’m completely wrong but I find it hard to believe you can get a good soundbar/sub for under$300
Click to expand...

Probably depends on your definition of “good”, right?

To the OP, I also have an older Vizio sound bar like @CloneGuy8. I don’t see a lot of difference between the V21 and the Polk @stormchaser2014 has. The Vizio has a USB port the Polk doesn’t seem to have, but that’s it. That said…Polk is more recognized for audio than Vizio, so there’s that.
 
dmclone said:
I’m sure I’m completely wrong but I find it hard to believe you can get a good soundbar/sub for under$300
Click to expand...
You can get passable quality, but you're right, as with most AV stuff, the better the quality, the higher the price. We got a Yamaha YAS-209 for our kids media/study room and it's just fine for that config. Plenty loud for movies and videos games in a basement room. They can't hear me call them to clean up their messes, so I think they're satisfied with the job it's doing.
 
  • Funny
Reactions: NWICY
If I'm mostly interested in listening to music via bluetooth with my phone, is there a better option for sound quality for around the $300 range than a soundbar w/sub?
 
clonedude said:
Do you like that one? I did see a lot of good reviews for that one in my research.

I've also been eyeing this one.....

https://www.amazon.com/SAMSUNG-3-1ch-A650-Soundbar-Virtual/dp/B08WYXFVR2/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3117Y2ZEEY5XI&keywords=samsung+hw-a650&qid=1644280003&sprefix=samsung+hw,aps,97&sr=8-2&th=1
Click to expand...
I love it. My living room is 11x17, and it's on the long wall. When I first hooked it up and opened Netflix, the opening duh dun sound about blew me out of my chair. I've watched movies like Endgame, and Bond films, played music and games. Heard new sounds in games I've played multiple times.

Not going to say it was like watching in a theater, but it was pretty close. To be fair, I've never heard one that costs $300+, so I'm not able to give a comparison.
 
My Samsung sound bar with subwoofer has been fine for both tv use and pairing with my phone. I think it was around $200.
 
We’ve got a JBL 2.1 bar we bought a number of years ago and the sound quality is awesome, especially at higher volumes. It replaced our 5.1 Yamaha/Polk/Sony system and I don’t miss that setup at all with it. The Samsung 2.1 bar in our bedroom is pretty ****** compared to the JBL.

I would buy the JBL again for sure.
 
I would say fork over a couple extra hundred and get the Sonos Beam. Then you can buy a speaker at a time and put them around the house. I have a few and you can pretty much have whole home music that is wireless except they need an outlet. Or you can play different music in specific rooms.

I do have a vizio bar with sub and surround for our upstairs TV and it works fine. Not the easiest thing to switch back and forth to bluetooth. But it sounds OK and gets plenty loud.

The Sonos is just so user friendly and easy to use. Even people visiting can just download the app and play whatever they want if they're on your wifi. The speakers sound great, but they are maybe a little light on the bass if you really like to thump it. Unfortunately, the standalone sub costs like $700.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeremy
I’ve been looking to upgrade my tv and soundbar. I have been looking at the Black Friday deals and a couple sites have Samsung units $300-$500 off regular prices. Is there any reason to have a soundbar system more than about a 5.1? I’m guessing many, or all, tv providers don’t support more than about 5.1? The Samsung units I’m looking at is a 5.1.2, 9.1.2, or a 11.1.4 system- would the latter two systems be used most exclusively for blue ray feature film type sound?
 
cyinne said:
I’ve been looking to upgrade my tv and soundbar. I have been looking at the Black Friday deals and a couple sites have Samsung units $300-$500 off regular prices. Is there any reason to have a soundbar system more than about a 5.1? I’m guessing many, or all, tv providers don’t support more than about 5.1? The Samsung units I’m looking at is a 5.1.2, 9.1.2, or a 11.1.4 system- would the latter two systems be used most exclusively for blue ray feature film type sound?
Click to expand...
Most people aren’t going to hear much beyond a 5 channel. There may be some audiophiles that can, but most wouldn’t in a blind test.

If you want well supported codecs with good separation, you can’t beat Atmos. Personally I like the Sonos line and their Arc is great. It’s on the high end though with the Beam offering enough for probably 95% of people (it’s my favorite).

The Sonos app is constantly updated and the devices get updates every few weeks as well. Never had an issue with them going on 10 years and many models. I love the ability customize because my man cave is where I live and I turn up conversation clarity at night to keep volumes down.
 
AgronAlum said:
We’ve got a JBL 2.1 bar we bought a number of years ago and the sound quality is awesome, especially at higher volumes. It replaced our 5.1 Yamaha/Polk/Sony system and I don’t miss that setup at all with it. The Samsung 2.1 bar in our bedroom is pretty ****** compared to the JBL.

I would buy the JBL again for sure.
Click to expand...
We have the JBL 5.1 and it cranks out music. It’s awesome!
 
cyinne said:
I’ve been looking to upgrade my tv and soundbar. I have been looking at the Black Friday deals and a couple sites have Samsung units $300-$500 off regular prices. Is there any reason to have a soundbar system more than about a 5.1? I’m guessing many, or all, tv providers don’t support more than about 5.1? The Samsung units I’m looking at is a 5.1.2, 9.1.2, or a 11.1.4 system- would the latter two systems be used most exclusively for blue ray feature film type sound?
Click to expand...
Jeremy said:
Most people aren’t going to hear much beyond a 5 channel. There may be some audiophiles that can, but most wouldn’t in a blind test.

If you want well supported codecs with good separation, you can’t beat Atmos. Personally I like the Sonos line and their Arc is great. It’s on the high end though with the Beam offering enough for probably 95% of people (it’s my favorite).

The Sonos app is constantly updated and the devices get updates every few weeks as well. Never had an issue with them going on 10 years and many models. I love the ability customize because my man cave is where I live and I turn up conversation clarity at night to keep volumes down.
Click to expand...
I am deep into the Sonos system (arc, ones, and main sub in living room; beam and new mini sub in bedroom). I love their products:
Screenshot_20221110-212810_Sonos.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeremy
You must log in or register to reply here.

Help Support Us

Become a patron
Top Bottom