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Soundbars are an affordable way to bring professional sound to your living room by compensating for the thin speakers found in slim modern TVs. Theyre compact and there are good quality models available at affordable prices - so what's the best soundbar for you?
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The first question to ask is whether a soundbar will work in your entertainment space. Each bar has a range of speakers inside it that project audio on different channels to increase clarity and to simulate high fidelity surround (though the number of speakers and channels is not always the same). Theyll be less effective at doing this in a large, wide space, and are best suited to smaller, enclosed rooms. The size of your actual soundbar is mainly an aesthetic concern.
Next, you should consider ports and connectivity. Only buy a unit that has enough ports for your home entertainment system might have, such as the TV itself, a DVD player, or maybe a record player. Some soundbars are connectable via built-in Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Google Chromecast, Amazon Alexa or Apple Airplay functionality. You can filter for this information, as well as the number of HDMI/USB ports and included cabling, via the panel on the left.
Channels
Knowing what soundbar numbers mean (such as 5.1) is important to find the right unit for you. The first number is how many channels it has, and more channels mean a greater surround sound effect. Satellite speakers are included in this first number, and are able to be positioned around the room to enhance the audio. The second number is whether or not it has a subwoofer, which is responsible for deep bass sounds (like in action scenes or music). The third number tells you if it has any upward-firing speakers (or Atmos speakers) to simulate sound from above. So, 2.0 means two channels and no subwoofer. 7.1.2 means there are seven channels, one subwoofer, and two upward firing speakers.
The higher the soundbar number, the better it will be at simulating high fidelity surround sound. How many channels is right for you, and the value of a subwoofer, depends on your budget and what you want from your unit. For watching movies, it's generally recommended to have a soundbar with at least 3.1 channels as the 3rd middle channel can make dialogue clearer. Real audio buffs will be encouraged to go for a 5.1 or higher system, but these require a bigger budget and may also require the placement of two satellite speakers for the full surround sound experience, which might not suit every living room. If you want to go as high as 7 channels, you should make sure that whatever you want to watch actually supports 7.1 surround sound - Netflix for example, currently only supports up to 5.1 surround sound.
Surround Sound
Some surround models come equipped with Dolby Atmos, which is renowned for its clarity, richness, and depth in creating a sense of height, and DTS-X provides a similar, surround sound sphere. These both are designed for sound to appear from above through up-firing or satellite speakers. DTS Virtual:X is designed to simulate this effect without the use of satellite or up-firing speakers.
12 listings
Panasonic SC-HTB7000
Latest review: Bought this sound bar to go with the Panasonic tv that I bought and they compliment each other. I am very happy with all the features and build quality of it. The sound is amazing when playing movies
Price (RRP) A$899.00
- Review Summary
- Specifications
- Voice / Dialogue5.0 (1)
- Bass5.0 (1)
- Music5.0 (1)
- FeaturesDTS:X and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth, HDMI and USB
- Number of HDMI Ports2
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions78 x 1050 x 128 mm
- Power376 W
- Weight9.9 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
Samsung HW-R650
Latest review: This soundbar is compact. It improves the movie watching experience a lot. It is not a high-end product, but it is good enough for a small living room. Your ear can hear the difference. It's not
- Review Summary
- Specifications
- Voice / Dialogue4.5 (2)
- Bass4.5 (2)
- Music4.5 (2)
- FeaturesDTS:X and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity Options3.5mm Jack (AUX), Bluetooth and Optical Port
- Number of HDMI Ports0
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions59 x 1060 x 87.5 mm
- Power340 W
- Weight2.9 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
Is part of...
Samsung Series 6 Soundbars · includes 4 listings
Samsung HW-Q70R
Latest review: No led display, poor base and remote doesn't work. Samsung tried to send me to an authorised repairer instead of back to the store (below) Red hot Samsung!!! Your nearest repairer is: SIBNET
- Review Summary
- Specifications
- Voice / Dialogue4.7 (3)
- Bass3.3 (3)
- Music4.0 (3)
- FeaturesDolby Atmos Surround Sound, DTS:X and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth, HDMI and Wi-Fi
- Number of HDMI Ports1
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions1100 x 59 x 100 mm
- Power330 W
- Weight16.3 kg
- Channels3.1.2
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers2
Is part of...
Samsung Series 7 Soundbars · includes 2 listings
Philips HTL2193B/79
Latest review: This is a great sound bar and significantly improves the sound over the TV's built in speakers. The bass and different equaliser settings are very good, ensuring that you can easily hear lots of
Price (RRP) A$299.00
- Review Summary
- Specifications
- Voice / Dialogue3.3 (3)
- Bass5.0 (2)
- Music5.0 (2)
- FeaturesWall Mountable
- Connectivity Options3.5mm Jack (AUX), Bluetooth, HDMI ARC, Optical Port and USB
- Number of HDMI Ports1
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions51 x 650 x 69 mm
- Power150 W
- Weight1.62 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
Samsung HW-N550
Latest review: Those wanting to crank up the volume and raise the roof tiles (I didn't) this device is definitely NOT for you. You will be most disappointed. I guess all this soundbar is good for is bringing
Price (RRP) A$699.00
- Review Summary
- Specifications
- Voice / Dialogue2.0 (1)
- Bass2.0 (1)
- Music1.0 (1)
- FeaturesDolby Atmos Surround Sound, DTS:X and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth, HDMI, MicroUSB, Optical Port, USB and Wi-Fi
- Number of HDMI Ports1
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions1060.0 x 59.0 x 87.5 mm
- Power340 W
- Weight13.1 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
Panasonic SC-HTB900
Price (RRP) A$1,349.00
- Specifications
- FeaturesChromecast built-in, Dolby Atmos Surround Sound, DTS Virtual:X, DTS:X, Google Assistant and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth, HDMI and Optical Port
- Number of HDMI Ports3
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions78 x 1050 x 128 mm
- Power505 W
- Weight6 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
Panasonic SC-HTB688
Price (RRP) A$449.00
- Specifications
- FeaturesWall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth, HDMI ARC and Optical Port
- Number of HDMI Ports1
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions60 x 853 x 90 mm
- Power300 W
- Weight2.3 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
- Specifications
- FeaturesChromecast built-in, DTS Virtual:X, Google Assistant and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth, HDMI, HDMI ARC, Optical Port, USB and Wi-Fi
- Number of HDMI Ports2
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions57 x 1060 x 85 mm
- Power420 W
- Weight3.5 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
Is part of...
LG SL Series · includes 6 listings
Philips HTL3160B/12
Price (RRP) A$399.00
- Specifications
- FeaturesDolby Atmos Surround Sound and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth and HDMI
- Number of HDMI Ports1
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions51 x 950 x 69 mm
- Power323 W
- Weight1.7 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
LG SL8YG
- Specifications
- FeaturesChromecast built-in, Dolby Atmos Surround Sound, DTS:X, Google Assistant and Wall Mountable
- Connectivity OptionsBluetooth, HDMI, Optical Port, USB and Wi-Fi
- Number of HDMI Ports2
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions58 x 1061 x 119 mm
- Power440 W
- Weight4.4 kg
- Channels3.1.2
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers2
Is part of...
LG SL Series · includes 6 listings
Panasonic SC-ALL70T
Price (RRP) A$699.00
- Specifications
- FeaturesWall Mountable
- Connectivity Options3.5mm Jack (AUX), Bluetooth, Ethernet, HDMI, HDMI ARC, Optical Port, USB and Wi-Fi
- Number of HDMI Ports2
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions55 x 950 x 120 mm
- Power350 W
- Weight2.6 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0
Philips HTL5160B/12
Price (RRP) A$549.00
- Specifications
- FeaturesSpotify Connect
- Connectivity Options3.5mm Jack (AUX), Bluetooth, Ethernet, HDMI, Optical Port and USB
- Number of HDMI Ports2
- Colour / Finish Black
- Soundbar Dimensions51 x 1100 x 69 mm
- Power320 W
- Weight2.2 kg
- Channels3.1
- Subwoofer TypeWireless
- Satellite Speakers0
- Up-Firing Speakers0