Are Soundbars Worth the Money?

ElNino · Jan 29, 2018

ejoshua said:
We've had our sound bar for years, so well worth the 150 dollars on it. I want to upgrade to surround sound and get the whole kaboodle, but I absolutely detest wires and I haven't found a good wireless solution yet.

Depending on your speaker placement, there are ways to hide wires. My surrounds are flush mounted on the wall and I ran the speaker wire through our (unfinished) basement and then back up the wall cavity where the speakers are so there is no visible wires. For the fronts, the wires are hidden behind the TV setup so you can only see them if you get up close.

Socrates · Jan 29, 2018

I have a sound base rather than a sound bar, which the TV sits on. Obviously being larger it is capable of a deeper richer sound.
I really like it, it is a substantial upgrade over TV speakers. I can send audio via Bluetooth from my phone so it also doubles as a music speaker.

Ours is a Canton.

Alpende · Jan 29, 2018

I have one because I don't have room for a 5.1 or 7.1 setup. They are way better than TV speakers and I can play music on it via Bluetooth. I'm happy with it.

Socrates · Jan 29, 2018

I should add, the benefit over surround sound is that they are much less obtrusive, and no faff in setting up.

If you don't own your own place, I think they would be much easier to move with as well.

Deleted member 11002 · Jan 29, 2018

Big step up over TV speakers as others have said.

Not the same as true 5.1/7.1 surround sound, but much easier to set-up and manage. I recently moved and having to re-run all of my speaker wires for my 5.1 setup was a biiiitch

freakybj · Jan 29, 2018

Yes, they're worth it. They are a good solution for upgrading over TV speakers without having to wire your room for 5.1 surround sound. I recommend the ZVOX soundbase. I purchased one almost 10 years ago and it's still going strong.

CyborgNumberBlue · Jan 29, 2018

I got the Sonos Playbar, Sub, and two Play 1s at employee discount (some free), and they sound pretty good. I am not an audiophile by any stretch of the imagination, but they do the trick fine for me.

Deleted member 18347 · Jan 29, 2018

Yeah if you don't want to pay much but still want to feel a signifcant improvement, get a Vizio soundbar.

Arih · Jan 29, 2018

I got the LG SJ8 for my 55C7 TV and it's awesome. Plus bluetooth for random music streaming. Never used a soundbar before, loving it.

JustinH · Jan 29, 2018

Weebos said:
It connects to the TV right? I don't have to connect it to my consoles individually? Or does it depend on the sound bar?

Depends on the sound bar. My Sony one has multiple HDMI inputs and I plug all my stuff into the subwoofer and an HDMI output that goes to the television as well as optical in and stereo RCA options. My last one though, a Samsung with a wireless subwoofer, connected via optical cable.

TheWooniestWoona · Jan 29, 2018

I've got a 2.0 Vizo soundbar that I've been pretty happy with. Sure it's not the same as a proper surround setup, but it's a heck of a lot better than the speakers in my TV. When I move to someplace where I don't share walls with people, then I'll probably get something better, but for now this works well.

Darknight · Jan 29, 2018

saltybeagle said:
I would think that most 7.1 setups are louder than soundbars for two reasons: A 7.1 receiver most likely delivers more power than a soundbar's amplifier,

That would be pushing the audio level to what it's capable of, but that doesn't make it louder in every day usage.

and the number and size of the speakers in a 7.1 setup are most likely larger than those in a soundbar. The physical limitations of a soundbar would be the restricting factor vs. a surround setup.

Sure it's bigger than a soundbar, but that doesn't make it louder.

Saying one is louder than the other in usage is just wrong and a misconception. One can maybe go louder than the other but that doesn't mean you have to play it that loud. Heck, I'd even make a case that they can be quieter since you have more control over the different channels. Like you can boost the center channel for improved dialog while lowering the left, right and surround channels to reduce the volume on everything else.

deftones r cool · Jan 29, 2018

leng jai said:
The biggest mistake people make is thinking they need 5.1 or 7.1 when simply buying a good pair of stereo speakers would provide better performance for most people.

Came to post this. 2 bookshelf speakers, and a subwoofer, will give people more bang for their buck than a soundbar ever would.

ElNino · Jan 29, 2018

leng jai said:
The biggest mistake people make is thinking they need 5.1 or 7.1 when simply buying a good pair of stereo speakers would provide better performance for most people.

If you are by yourself or want to avoid bothering others, then this could be true. But if multiple people are watching, headphone won't do much good.

shockdude · Jan 29, 2018

Gifted said:
Also, don't listen to any nonsense about audio delay, almost every soundbar has settings to adjust audio and sync properly.

I had to do some googling around, and you might be right. This wasn't the case when I picked up a soundbar barely 2 years ago.

The fact that they don't advertise the lowest audio latency still makes me hesitant. A guy on an earlier page measured his soundbar with minimum AV sync at 25ms, which while good enough for most TVs is about 10ms higher than I would personally prefer.

Edit: Inserting quote.

TI92 said:
25ms is the lowest delay

TI92 , 25ms is pretty good. Thanks for measuring.

Fiery Phoenix · Jan 29, 2018

Appreciate all the feedback. So far I've decided on this one, though I'm not running out to buy it just yet.

I should have thought about purchasing a soundbar much sooner. Today's TVs really need a supplemental audio solution.

Redmond Barry · Jan 29, 2018

I got myself a cheap soundbar, something like $70-$80, and yet even that was giant, mind-boggling leap in quality. No longer do I have to constantly fiddle with the volume because something is either too loud or too quiet. No longer do I have to leave on subtitles or wonder what the hell is being said at times. My only complaint is that the power-saving solution is annoying, powering down after only what seems like a few minutes of silence, but it's still worth it.

Timu · Jan 29, 2018

leng jai said:
The biggest mistake people make is thinking they need 5.1 or 7.1 when simply buying a good pair of stereo speakers would provide better performance for most people.

Ok, this is true. Though 5.1/7.1 is better for games and movies as well that supports it.

AdropOFvenom · Jan 29, 2018

The soundbar's audio is much better then any TV speakers on the market, and not quite as good as a proper 7.1 surround sound system. But the latter can be quite expensive and usually requires running wires everywhere, which many people don't really want to do in their homes. Given where Soundbar prices are (regularly under $200 for a decent one), I think that's a worthwhile tradeoff.

Like the hat? · Jan 29, 2018

Would one be useful over tv speakers for a retro CRT setup? Most recent thing played on that tv is a GameCube.

Gifted · Jan 29, 2018

Minx said:
I just don't get it. How do people consistently fall for the marketing bullshit. Bose and Sonos are so overpriced its not even funny. You spend $1400 on a soundbar and a sub that couldn't outperform a $300 one. An HSU Hybrid 2 - 5.1 system is only $1300 and is likely 50x the performance.

To each their own, I've been a fan of Sonos for years and enjoy the connectivity of the rest of the platform and think the sound is great. I've had this setup for several years, before there were other options. I have a few friends with traditional set ups - one with a Definitive technology set with a pioneer receiver and another with some Martin Logan's with a Denon or a Marantz which are pretty crazy.

If I owned a house I'd possibly do something crazier but I'm happy with my purchase. I'd say the sound is my favorite compared to what I own - I enjoy audio but I wouldn't necessarily say I'm an audiophile by any means.

I have a few grand put into my car audio, have a few pairs of high end headphones - Sennheiser, Pioneer, AKG, Sony. Some Yamaha speakers from when I used to DJ as well as some Studio monitors I can't think of right now.

shockdude said:
I had to do some googling around, and you might be right. This wasn't the case when I picked up a soundbar barely 2 years ago.

The fact that they don't advertise the lowest audio latency still makes me hesitant. A guy on an earlier page measured his soundbar with minimum AV sync at 25ms, which while good enough for most TVs is about 10ms higher than I would personally prefer.

Edit: Inserting quote.

TI92 , 25ms is pretty good. Thanks for measuring.

I shouldn't be 100% dismissive of audio delay especially if you have a TV with super low input latency, glad someone measured!

CurseVox · Jan 29, 2018

I recently bought a Vizio Soundbar (Black Friday sale. It's the 45" one with the thin wireless Subwoofer and rear speakers.) This was to replace a pretty solid 5.1 setup. My reasoning was mostly because A. I simply don't use my setup like I did in the past and the wires/speakers/receiver/Sub take up too much real-estate. B. I was upgrading my entertainment stand and I had a lot more options available if I didn't have to jam a massive receiver into it.

Results: Now I won't say that it sounds as good or better than my old system because that would be a lie. My old setup sounded incredible. HOWEVER. The sound quality, especially the bass, really blew me away for what it is. If you are looking for a great audio alternative to a full on 5.1/7.1 setup, I can't recommend a soundbar enough. Do your research and get something halfway decent and you will be surprised at how well they hold up in the entertainment room. Soundbars have come a LONG way.

edit:
This is the model I have and I can confirm that it is damn good:

https://www.vizio.com/audio/home-theater/sb4551d5.html
(I paid around $289 for it on Black Friday)

Kayo Police · Jan 29, 2018

Sorry for thread hijacking but those of you who use headphones on your ps4, how do you get around the low volume?

Even at max volume, according to my ps4, my audio technica 700s are just audible. I can hear everything but it's at that volume where it's loud enough to hear but low enough that it's kinda unsatisfying at the same time.

I want to crank that stuff up.

Septimus Prime · Jan 29, 2018

Yes, they are worth it. It's a great compromise between audio quality and ease of setup/use.

Nyx · Jan 29, 2018

I have a Yamaha soundbar hooked up to my PS4 which I use for Blu-Rays, Netflix and gaming, and it's a great upgrade over my tv speakers.

Diarrhea Day-Lewis · Jan 29, 2018

Got a sound bar for my tv and yeah it's a huge difference e

Groof · Jan 29, 2018

if your flat is small a soundbar is great and cheap option. mine is fully bluetooth, only wires are the power cables from the bar and subwoofer. they connect to each other and to the TV wirelessly. also means i can just BT my phone to it whenever i just wanna listen to music. no need for a separate BT speaker

galv · Jan 29, 2018

A 2.0 setup with a Bluetooth enabled AVR is generally going to give you far more sound quality than a soundbar and isn't too much of a hassle to setup. But this could start at around $450-550 just to get a decent setup.

So a soundbar is okay if you don't have the space or the money for something better. The downside being you can't upgrade easily, but hey, as long as you aren't spending $200+ on one of them, I guess it's not too big a deal.

FromAshesRise · Jan 29, 2018

Pankratous said:
Nah. I find headphones give far superior audio. But maubm I've always had sub-par sound bars.

Maybe when compared to sound bars- but headphones will always suck compared to actual speakers.

leng jai · Jan 29, 2018

FromAshesRise said:
Maybe when compared to sound bars- but headphones will always suck compared to actual speakers.

Apples and oranges. Speakers have much better sound strange and bass impact. Headphones resolve detail better in general. The thing is if you spend $1500 on a headphone setup you will get vastly superior performance compared to an equivalently priced speaker rig.

inner-G · Jan 29, 2018

I vouch for this thing for general purposes: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/jbl-3-...gital-amplifier-black/6099919.p?skuId=6099919

The bass 'beats' the pants off of similarly-priced ones I've seen. I like it - looks like it's on sale for $399 right now

Amiibola · Jan 29, 2018

Are soundbars prepared for virtual surround? If so, does it work?

Arkaign · Jan 29, 2018

I've got a pretty nice 'mutt' 700W HDMI 4k 5.1 setup in the living room, I run dual subs with it, each with a slightly separate Hz focus (12" Polk focused on super lows, 10" Kenwood on slightly higher lows), a mix of huge speakers, I actually have towers for rears right now, which isn't ideal probably, but it sounds fantastic. I can't stress enough how important the center channel speaker is though, with any TV or movie encoded for surround, if your center channel sucks, it will be incredibly difficult to properly hear dialogue without going to Stereo 5/7 mode.

Otoh, have a Samsung 2.1 soundbar with little wireless sub in the bedroom. It was silly overpriced at $249, but works okay I guess.

If you apartment, go SB and/or good headphones. If house, build out a legit 5.1 or more. Have fun with it!

ChoppedNScrewed · Jan 29, 2018

Fiery Phoenix said:
Appreciate all the feedback. So far I've decided on this one, though I'm not running out to buy it just yet.

I should have thought about purchasing a soundbar much sooner. Today's TVs really need a supplemental audio solution.

That's the one I got. It sounds great and the audio hits really hard. Looks like you can get a great deal on it from Best Buy right now too.

Negatives - No numerical representation of subwoofer level, so you have to adjust it by ear. Also, the speakers aren't covered/protected so make sure no one presses down on them.

Other than that, the sound quality is great and listening to music on it is a real treat. The only downside to the sound is that the neighbors might complain.

Bumrush · Jan 29, 2018

Can anyone recommend a soundbar in the $300 range that is great at correcting loud / quiet noises? Basically, when my kids are sleeping, I don't want to hold the remote during a movie for the inevitable INCREDIBLY LOUD war, explosion, etc. scene.

leng jai · Jan 29, 2018

ElNino said:
If you are by yourself or want to avoid bothering others, then this could be true. But if multiple people are watching, headphone won't do much good.

Stereo speakers not headphones.

99Luffy · Jan 29, 2018

marcinaldo said:
I have Yamaha YAS-207 soundbar which was not super expensive but still had nice opinions in the internet. I did not have high hopes, the idea was to have something a bit better than TV speakers while not cluttering the room with full speaker setup.

Still, I am disappointed. It is indeed just a really minor upgrade from TV. Sometimes it is even worse when e.g. part of dialogues come from subwoofer and part from the soundbar. I learnt that this is because the speakers in soundbar are too small. This is so distracting for me that I stopped using it and am considering selling it. I wonder how other cheap (or even a bit more expensive) soundbars would behave but this one had good reviews so I am not really interested in risking anymore. I may consider at some point a simple 2.1 setup.

Being able to put sound through bluetooth is nice though.

Thats really weird. Ive always felt that yamaha is king of the sub $200 soundbars. Samsung, LG, vizio, sony etc. All their entry level soundbars sound anemic in comparion.

shockdude · Jan 29, 2018

Fiery Phoenix said:
Appreciate all the feedback. So far I've decided on this one, though I'm not running out to buy it just yet.

I should have thought about purchasing a soundbar much sooner. Today's TVs really need a supplemental audio solution.

The LG SH3K does not have an AV Sync setting. Be wary of audio lag and/or audio desync.

MegaRockEXE · Jan 30, 2018

shockdude said:
I had to do some googling around, and you might be right. This wasn't the case when I picked up a soundbar barely 2 years ago.

The fact that they don't advertise the lowest audio latency still makes me hesitant. A guy on an earlier page measured his soundbar with minimum AV sync at 25ms, which while good enough for most TVs is about 10ms higher than I would personally prefer.

Edit: Inserting quote.

TI92 , 25ms is pretty good. Thanks for measuring.

Must be a new thing. I tried all the possible sync settings on my soundbar and TV and I couldn't get it right. It's a Vizio TV and Vizio sound bar.

TeeWhy · Jan 30, 2018

ShinUltramanJ said:
I've been thinking of buying a sound bar for the man cave.

My 7.1 setup is old. No HDMI inputs, fewer devices have optical, and the subwoofer doesn't work.

I guess I wouldn't mind getting rid of all the wires and clutter. A simple sound bar would be way more attractive.

This is what I did when I moved. I decided to just give up on the 5.1/7.1 runaround. I bought a nice 3.1 soundbar by Samsung and do not regret it at all.

I could add rear speakers and make it wireless, but it's not really worth it. What I like is the really good sound and the simplicity.

Will never do a receiver and array of speakers again. Sounded great, but always a headache. Expensive to upgrade, and tech is always changing.

Seriously, you will enjoy gaming and films just as much. Just don't skimp on the soundbar. You don't have to go Atmos crazy, but you want one that will push sound louder than you are comfortable.

MAX PAYMENT · Jan 30, 2018

I have a sound bar and struggle with dynamic audio. Whatever I do, the voices are too quiet and the action is too loud.

ElNino · Jan 30, 2018

leng jai said:
Stereo speakers not headphones.

My bad, I totally misread that. Not sure how I did that.

You are right though, that a pair of good stereo speakers and and an amp (possibly along with a subwoofer) would still be a big upgrade for most people.

Swimmer98000 · Jan 30, 2018

I use mine for game sound as well as my music. Absolutely adore it.

Foldedpencil · Jan 30, 2018

I had a 7.1 setup for years with a lot of bells and whistles. It was a pain to setup and make sure everything was sending the right signals on the right cords and it was a mess of cords all over the place. I recently packed it all up and bought a Samsung HW-MS650 with wireless speakers and a wireless sub and I really think it is the better option. While I have WAY less control over the fine tuning, it sounds great and it is much more classy than the full system. A good soundbar can will match mid grade consumer surround setup.

Septimus Prime · Jan 30, 2018

Foldedpencil said:
A good soundbar can will match mid grade consumer surround setup.

Yeah, I have the Sony HT-ST7, and the sound quality is phenomenal, even compared with other soundbars.

Fiery Phoenix · Jan 30, 2018

shockdude said:
The LG SH3K does not have an AV Sync setting. Be wary of audio lag and/or audio desync.

Thanks for the warning! Can you suggest an alternative that has AV sync? I don't mind if it's a bit more pricey.

marcinaldo · Jan 30, 2018

99Luffy said:
Thats really weird. Ive always felt that yamaha is king of the sub $200 soundbars. Samsung, LG, vizio, sony etc. All their entry level soundbars sound anemic in comparion.

Well, the user and professional reviews that I read were great. So I don't know if I have a faulty unit or my room setting does not work well with soundbars or maybe I expected a bit more. If other are even worse then maybe soundbar is not for me (or I should upgrade to a better one?). I'm not sure what to do really.

MAX PAYMENT said:
I have a sound bar and struggle with dynamic audio. Whatever I do, the voices are too quiet and the action is too loud.

That's been my experience as well. It makes it really difficult to e.g. watch films when using a normal volume.

shockdude · Jan 30, 2018

Fiery Phoenix said:
Thanks for the warning! Can you suggest an alternative that has AV sync? I don't mind if it's a bit more pricey.

Can't really help with specific soundbar recommendations, sorry. I only have experience with laggy soundbars lol.

marcinaldo said:
Well, the user and professional reviews that I read were great. So I don't know if I have a faulty unit or my room setting does not work well with soundbars or maybe I expected a bit more. If other are even worse then maybe soundbar is not for me (or I should upgrade to a better one?). I'm not sure what to do really.

That's been my experience as well. It makes it really difficult to e.g. watch films when using a normal volume.

As a baseline, disable all the soundbar effects. Virtual surround, voice enhancement, volume leveling, all of that off. Force your TV and devices to output PCM Stereo instead of surround/passthrough. Maybe adjust the equalizer/bass to taste but that's it.
If even pure stereo sounds bad, then yeah your soundbar isn't good, otherwise the soundbar just has poor effects which should be left off.
As for the volume difference between voices and sfx, that's what volume leveling is for, and iirc most soundbars have this feature in some form, but whether it works well or not is a different story.
My soundbar has all effects disabled and only plays stereo sources, and it sounds great. Other soundbars which I've configured for pure stereo sound great as well.

Edit: Your subwoofer playing dialogue means the crossover is too high (subwoofer crossover should be around 100Hz-150Hz for a soundbar) and/or the subwoofer volume is too loud.

NavNucST3 · Jan 30, 2018

Reading these posts I guess my soundbar falls into the "high-end" category (Definitive Technology Mythos SSA-50) although it's many years old now so maybe not (no HDMI for instance) but it retailed at $1500 I think I paid $700 back in 2010.

My original reason for purchasing the soundbar was to have a more aesthetically pleasing setup: D-ILA projector, Acoustically Transparent screen, and then the soundbar behind the screen and sub in corner.

Having moved I've since gone back to TVs but have kept the soundbar and sub for the same reasons as before more aesthetically pleasing for me. As an aside, I've not heard from anyone that has ever listened to my setup where they think the sound is mediocre, let alone bad; I've not heard a 2.0 or 2.1 bookshelf setup that I felt was better.

frank james · Jan 30, 2018

GHG said:
Better than TV speakers but nowhere near a proper 5.1/7.1 setup.

My advice: invest in a proper surround sound setup. Get the amp, sub and 2 speakers to start out if budget it tight and then build out from there over time. If you do it right you'all never need to replace anything other than the amp ever again. Soundbars are not worth the money from a long term perspective.

guess I'm different. i took my 7.1 system down and put a shockwave pro in. has legitimate 5.1 with rear speakers and I'm not going back. lot cleaner looking and really don't miss the rest.

Are Soundbars Worth the Money?

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