Topic: Soundbars under $500 ?

[Chilly Brioschi]

Do not laugh
I just redid the living room to a "sleek clean look" and don't want the clutter from my old surround system.

Looking at the Sonos, Vizio, Yamaha, Sony...

Anything out there that will do better?

Trying for better sound on the few times that the TV isn't dumb ambiance when guests come over.

[The Other Chris]

I’ve got a middle of the road Klipsch sound bar and subwoofer that I think sound great.


https://www.amazon.com/s?k=klipsch+soundbar&ref=is_s

[goodcooker]

I have this one https://www.amazon.com/LG-Electronics-LAS454B-Soundbar-Model/dp/B012B7S4DE and it's really nice. Surprisingly musical - I use it for casual Bluetooth streaming from the tablet and it sounds great.

Has an optical input for my "smart" bluray player that I use to stream movies and such. The remote allows you to control the volume of the bar and the wireless subwoofer separately which is convenient. It does a great job of producing faux surround from a 2.1 system. One of the best purchases I've made. Got it when it was being replaced by a new model for $150 brand new. Discontinued but Amazon sellers still have them.

[Chilly Brioschi]

I stumbled on the Yamaha YAS-209
Subdued, pretty accurate, and super easy to configure. (I helped the sales guy plug it in... One Toslink + one HDMI-ARC.)

The Klipsch stuff that I listened to was capable of much higher volumes, but more "wowzah" in coloration.
I definitely am considering either the Yamaha or the Klipsch Bar40.

I keep thinking I could bracket out a stereo pair, but ...clutter...

[DigiGal]

Bumping this thread from last year, it looks like we'll be replacing a secondary HD television with a 4K HDR upgrade. 

The old set currently uses a soundbar by same manufacturer, we'll be switching to different manufacturer.  As a secondary set this space can only fit a 43" set, we had previously used a signature series by Pioneer Elite before it failed when we switched to one by the set manufacturer.  We do watch movies on this set and one thing that seems to be a problem with sound bars is that they surprisingly lack a center channel which is where the dialog primarily resides. 

Any sound bar recommendations in 2020 that would fit under a 43" set and include a center channel speaker so you can actually understand dialog from movies?

[dactylus]

Bumping this thread from last year, it looks like we'll be replacing a secondary HD television with a 4K HDR upgrade. 

The old set currently uses a soundbar by same manufacturer, we'll be switching to different manufacturer.  As a secondary set this space can only fit a 43" set, we had previously used a signature series by Pioneer Elite before it failed when we switched to one by the set manufacturer.  We do watch movies on this set and one thing that seems to be a problem with sound bars is that they surprisingly lack a center channel which is where the dialog primarily resides. 

Any sound bar recommendations in 2020 that would fit under a 43" set and include a center channel speaker so you can actually understand dialog from movies?

We're upgrading TV's too (55" Sony) and we were able to catch this soundbar by the same manufacturer on sale.  The soundbar has a center channel speaker which was a must for "watching the news" in addition to watching 4K programming.  We haven't actually used this soundbar yet but we were happy with the demo...

3.1ch Dolby Atmos®/ DTS:X™ Soundbar | HT-G700

https://www.sony.com/electronics/sound-bars/ht-g700

MAIN UNIT SIZE – BODY ONLY (W X H X D) - 38-5/8" x 2-5/8" x 4-3/8"

[DigiGal]

^ Thank you, I haven't looked furthur since posting and dolby atomos sound bars are inviting.  Every sound bar should include a center channel speaker where most dialog lives, seems like a no brainer but it is surprising so many don't.

[dactylus]

^
We ended up returning the Sony soundbar that I mentioned above and went with a Bose soundbar that we are pleased with.  The Sony soundbar was slightly wider than the available space that we had to work with without doing some cabinet carpentry work, so we went for a smaller soundbar.  The Bose soundbar we chose does have a center speaker and it is the perfect size for our space.  We had some store credit so we ended up paying ~ $500 for the Bose bar.  We chose not to add the separate subwoofer for the Bose bar. (there was a sub included with the Sony soundbar).

https://www.bose.com/en_us/products/speakers/home_theater/bose-soundbar-500.html


Speaker:  1.75" H x 31.5" W x 4.0" D  (7.0 lbs)  The

[guitard]

I went for a cheaper setup and bought a VIZIO M658-G1 M-Series Quantum 65” 4K HDR Smart TV and a VIZIO SB3621n-E8M 36" 2.1 Sound Bar System.  Total cost under $1K.  Basically, I get 85% of the quality of a setup that costs twice as much.  So I'm happy with that.

I just checked at Amazon, and this tv sells for $1,199; but I got the tv and soundbar at Best Buy last year during the holidays for several hundred less.  The soundbar was $129.