The most effective soundbars to spice up your TV audio in 2024

Let’s be sincere — most built-in TV audio system simply don’t minimize it. They’re usually unable to supply the immersive expertise you’re on the lookout for, leaving a lot to be desired. That’s the place a soundbar is available in, giving your setup a critical audio improve with out the effort (or price ticket) of a full surround-sound system. In order for you a extra cinematic expertise at dwelling, a soundbar is the right middle-ground answer.

There are completely different soundbars to go well with every kind of setups and budgets. A number of the greatest Dolby Atmos soundbars ship next-level immersion with audio that feels prefer it’s coming from all instructions. Others include a devoted subwoofer, excellent for listening to each rumble and bass drop. Even price range fashions nonetheless handle to make previous films really feel contemporary, including readability to dialogue and depth to soundtracks.

And for those who love codecs like Dolby Digital or need the comfort of wi-fi connectivity, there’s a soundbar on the market for you. Whether or not you’re after a budget-friendly choice or a premium decide, we’ve received you lined with one of the best soundbars to deliver your leisure to life.

What to search for in a soundbar

Options

On the subject of options, the extra you pay the extra you are going to get in your new audio system. Most inexpensive choices ($150 or much less) will enhance your tv’s audio high quality, however that is about it. Step into the $300 to $400 vary and you will find a wise soundbar with issues like built-in voice management, wi-fi connectivity, Google Chromecast, AirPlay 2 and even Android TV. They’re all useful if you wish to keep away from on the lookout for the distant management, however one of the best sound high quality is normally solely within the high tier and the codecs these premium soundbar programs help. I’m speaking about issues like Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and different high-resolution audio requirements. These are important if you need actually cinematic sound to your living-room setup. And never all Atmos soundbars are equal, so you will want to take a look at the finer particulars fastidiously earlier than you break into the financial savings account. Should you’re on the lookout for probably the greatest Dolby Atmos soundbars, dimension, channels and subwoofer choices will likely be vital components to think about. Some fashions even embody a devoted subwoofer to boost bass efficiency, bringing an additional punch to motion scenes and soundtracks.

Ports

Sony HT-A7000 soundbar, SA-SW5 subwoofer, SA-SW3 subwoofer and SA-RS3S speakers. — Sony

It is a massive one. A number of the extra inexpensive soundbars are restricted on the subject of connectivity choices. They both supply an optical port or one HDMI jack and, for those who’re fortunate, each. Issues get barely higher within the mid-range part, however that is not at all times the case. The Sonos Beam, for instance, is $449, however solely has a single HDMI port. Even on the higher-end, the $899 Sonos Arc nonetheless solely has one HDMI port. Should you plan to attach a number of units like a set-top field, gaming laptop computer or console on to your soundbar for one of the best audio expertise, you’ll need an choice with not less than two HDMI (eARC) inputs. HDMI connections are important for supporting Dolby Atmos and Dolby Digital audio codecs, in addition to high-res passthrough for HDR and 8K/4K content material.

Channels

One other massive factor you’ll wish to take note of when on the lookout for one of the best soundbar is channels. That’s the two.1, 7.1.2 or different decimal quantity that corporations embody in product descriptions. The primary determine corresponds to the variety of channels. A two would simply be left and proper whereas a extra strong Atmos system, particularly one with rear {surround} audio system, could possibly be 5 or seven (left, proper, heart and upward). The second quantity refers back to the devoted subwoofer, so in case your new soundbar comes with one or has them in-built, you’ll see one right here. The third numeral is up-firing audio system, vital for the immersive impact of Dolby Atmos. Not all Atmos-enabled items have them, but when they do, the third quantity will inform you what number of are in play and the way they contribute to the general soundstage.

Wi-fi

Most soundbars today supply both Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or each. On the subject of Wi-Fi, that connectivity affords you luxuries like voice management (both built-in or with a separate machine), Chromecast, Spotify Join and AirPlay 2. Relying in your preferences, you would possibly have the ability to reside with out a few of these. For me, AirPlay 2 and Chromecast are necessities, however the remainder I can reside with out. These two give me the power to beam music and podcasts from my go-to apps with out having to accept — or battle with — a Bluetooth connection. As an illustration, Sonos audio system usually supply seamless integration with iOS units, making it simple to attach and stream music wirelessly. Should you’re on the lookout for a wi-fi speaker that may improve your TV setup whereas additionally providing flexibility for audio all through the home, it is value contemplating a multi-room system.

Measurement

This one may appear apparent however humor me for a minute. Nothing is extra soul-crushing than getting an expensive soundbar in your front room solely to find it’s important to rearrange the whole lot to discover a spot for it. This was my plight when the Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar arrived at my door. Sure, that speaker is absurdly massive (and heavy), and most soundbars aren’t almost as massive. I realized a priceless lesson: Ensure the area the place you wish to put a soundbar will accommodate the factor you are about to spend lots of (if not hundreds) of {dollars} on.

Principally, all of it comes all the way down to the TV you’ve gotten (or are planning to get) and what the first objective is to your living-room audio. Is it ease of use? Would you like the absolute best sound from a single speaker or speaker/sub combo? Do you simply need to have the ability to truly hear your TV higher? Or do you wish to flip your front room into an immersive dwelling theater system with {surround} sound?

By being attentive to every of these areas, you must have a good suggestion of what to search for in a soundbar, soundbar/subwoofer combo, Dolby Digital system or a extra strong setup. With that stated, we have put quite a few merchandise by way of their paces at Engadget and have a couple of favorites for greatest soundbar at varied value factors to get you began.

The most effective soundbars for 2024

Photograph by Billy Steele / Engadget

Peak: 2.95 inches | Width: 46.38 inches | Depth: 4.35 inches | Ports: 1 x HDMI Out, 1 x Ethernet | Channels: 9.1.4

Learn our full Sonos Arc Ultra review

At $999, the Arc Ultra is an expensive addition to your front room, and enlargement solely will get dearer from right here. Nonetheless, Sonos gives vital upgrades over the Arc in a couple of key areas. First, because of new Sound Movement tech, the Arc Extremely has much more low-end tone through elevated bass efficiency. Added bass makes this a greater speaker for music if you’re not watching TV. That improve additionally allowed the corporate to reconfigure its mid-range drivers and tweeters, increasing the soundbar’s dimensional sound and immersive skills.

The on-board controls have been relocated and up to date, which can also be an enchancment – as is the addition of Bluetooth connectivity. The expanded speech enhancement characteristic comes with a level of customization and there are actually two choices for room calibration. Plus, you’ll get the whole lot that’s nice about Sonos merchandise: multiroom setups and crisp, clear audio high quality.

Execs

Improved bass efficiency
Crisp, clear and immersive sound
Expanded Speech Enhancement
Appropriate with Ace headphones

Cons

Nonetheless only a single HDMI port
Enlargement stays dear
Giant footprint

$999 at Sonos

Sony

Sony has a protracted observe file of wonderful high-end soundbars and its latest is one other great-sounding product. The A7000 is a sturdy Dolby Atmos soundbar, able to immersive 7.1.2 audio because of Sony’s 360 Sound Mapping, Sound Area Optimization, vertical {surround} expertise and S-Pressure Professional entrance {surround}. There’s plenty of tech at work right here, and I haven’t even talked about 360 Actuality Audio or DSEE Excessive upscaling, each useful on the subject of listening to music. Talking of audio, you’ll have the choice of utilizing Chromecast, Spotify Join or Apple AirPlay 2 to ship your tunes to the A7000. The general soundstage is immersive, with glorious readability for each TV reveals and music.

Two HDMI eARC inputs imply you may hook up a number of streaming containers or gaming consoles. And because of HDMI 2.1 help, you may anticipate 8K and 4K/120 passthrough to your tv, so the A7000 is a superb choice for players. This soundbar is pricey at $1,198 and it doesn’t include a separate subwoofer (although it does have one in-built). Nonetheless, Sony does offer you a number of choices for each a sub and rear satellite tv for pc audio system. The SA-SW3 sub is $298 whereas the SA-SW5 is $699. For rear audio system, the SA-RS3S is $350 whereas the actually wi-fi speaker (and a lot better wanting) SA-RS5 set is $598. Should you’re wanting to avoid wasting cash on the soundbar itself, Sony gives the HT-A5000 for $999 (though we’ve seen it on sale for $798 lately). It packs nearly all of the same bells and whistles because the A7000, solely in a 5.1.2-channel configuration.

Execs

Dolby Atmos help and 360 Sound Mapping
Works with AirPlay 2
Consists of two HDMI eARC ports

Cons

Costly
Would not embody a separate subwoofer

$998 at Amazon

Sennheiser Client Audio

Learn our full Sennheiser Ambeo Mini review

Whereas that is essentially the most compact of Sennheiser’s Ambeo soundbars, the Mini stays within the premium class for 2 causes. First, you’ll have so as to add a subwoofer to maximise its potential, which provides one other $600. Secondly, the Mini is already $700, so an entire package deal places you at a comparable place to flagship items from the competitors. After getting each although, the Ambeo Mini is really spectacular for a small soundbar.

The principle characteristic is Sennheiser’s spatial Ambeo expertise that first debuted on the large Ambeo Soundbar Max in 2019. With it, the corporate offers extra immersive sound with a mixture of driver placement and 3D virtualization. On the Mini, the audio profile is extra reliant on virtualization than the larger Ambeo soundbars due fewer audio system inside. Nonetheless, you’ll nonetheless get a virtualized 7.1.4-channel speaker setup that works effectively for films and music. That’s, as long as you splurge for the Ambeo Sub too.

Execs

Compact design
Glorious readability
Nice bass
Simple setup

Cons

Costly
No bundled sub
Ambeo impact is restricted
One HDMI port

$700 at World Wide Stereo

Engadget

Learn our full Sonos Beam review

Strong sound high quality? Verify. Dolby Atmos? Yep. Compact and straightforward to arrange? Uh huh. Appropriate with different Sonos audio system for a extra strong system? You betcha. The primary-gen Sonos Beam has been one among our favorites since it arrived in 2018, however there was one factor it didn’t have: Dolby Atmos. That was the massive addition to the 2021 model, although it’s a bit restricted because the Beam doesn’t have any upward-firing audio system. Sonos manages to make issues appear extra directional by tweaking audio timing and frequency as an alternative of including extra drivers. The new Beam nonetheless solely has the one HDMI port which implies you received’t be connecting a gaming console or set-top field on to this. It additionally implies that in case you have an older TV with an optical jack, you’ll want an adapter.

Execs

Comparatively compact design
Good sound for its dimension
Helps Dolby Atmos

Cons

One contains one HDMI port

$449 at Sonos

Engadget

Peak: 3.66 inches | Width: 21.93 inches | Depth: 2.76 inches | Ports: 1 x Optical, 1 x Ethernet | Channels: 2.0 (non-surround), 5.1 ({surround}) | Voice assistant: None | Max wattage: 10W

Learn our full Sonos Ray review

Sonos’ newest bid for greatest soundbar could also be its most inexpensive up to now, however at $279, it’s not precisely a price range decide. Particularly when you think about there are cheaper choices that include a subwoofer. Nonetheless, the compact design doesn’t command plenty of area in entrance of your TV or in your TV stand, making it an amazing choice for smaller residing areas. The Ray is straightforward to arrange and offers nice sound high quality for each TV and music, and it pairs seamlessly with iOS units. There are some trade-offs on the subject of the immersive nature of the audio, but it surely’s choice for upgrading your TV sound with minimal fuss.

Execs

Superb sound high quality for each TV and music Good bass efficiency for such a small speaker
Compact, unobtrusive design
Simple setup
Affordable value

Cons

Sound isn’t as immersive as you get from bigger fashions
Folks with massive residing rooms would possibly desire a louder speaker
No voice controls

$279 at Sonos

VIZIO

Should you’re on the lookout for a manner to enhance your TV sound on a price range, Vizio has some high-quality options. With the V21t-J8, you get a 2.1-channel setup in a compact soundbar and 4.5-inch wi-fi sub combo for $160. This is able to be an amazing alternative for those who don’t need your add-on TV speaker to take up plenty of area. There’s no Wi-Fi connectivity, however that’s actually the one sacrifice on the subject of the fundamentals. HDMI ARC/eARC and optical connections hyperlink to your tv whereas a 3.5mm aux jack and Bluetooth mean you can play music out of your cellphone or one other machine. DTS Digital:X compatibility gives a number of the impact of {surround} sound with no greater unit or further audio system.

Execs

Compact design
Consists of wi-fi subwoofer

$159 at Amazon

Different soundbars we examined

Sonos Arc

There’s little question that the Arc is Sonos’ best-sounding soundbar, but it surely’s additionally the corporate’s most costly. With a brand new mannequin based mostly on the Arc rumored to be on the way, it’s troublesome to advocate this product over the likes of Samsung and Sony. The Arc works effectively as each a soundbar and a speaker, and the machine will slot in properly with different Sonos gear you would possibly have already got for a multiroom setup. It solely has one HDMI port although, the place a lot of the competitors permits you to join streaming and gaming units on to their soundbars.

Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar Plus

I don’t suppose Sennheiser’s medium-sized model gives sufficient to face out from the extra highly effective Ambeo Soundbar Max or the Ambeo Soundbar Mini. The Mini is extra inexpensive and does a strong job with immersive audio in its personal proper. Like the remainder of the Ambeo lineup, there’s no choice for satellite tv for pc audio system as you may solely add a subwoofer to the soundbars. Nonetheless, the Ambeo Soundbar Plus does have RCA enter, so you should utilize it with a turntable for those who’re into vinyl.

Soundbar FAQs

Is a soundbar higher than audio system?

It actually depends upon what you’re after. A soundbar is certainly a less complicated, extra compact answer in comparison with a full speaker setup. In order for you higher sound than your TV’s built-in setup however don’t wish to take care of a number of audio system and wires in every single place, a soundbar might be the way in which to go. Some soundbars may even ship spectacular {surround} sound results, because of options like Dolby Atmos and digital audio expertise.

Nonetheless, for those who’re an audiophile or need true {surround} sound for an at-home theater expertise, a multi-speaker setup with a receiver, {surround} audio system and subwoofer gives you a richer soundstage and extra management over your expertise.

What connection do I want for a soundbar?

Most fashionable soundbars hook up with your TV through HDMI ARC or eARC, which is the best and best choice for reaching high-quality audio. In case your TV helps this, all you want is an HDMI cable, and also you’ll get not solely nice sound but in addition some additional options like controlling the soundbar together with your TV distant.

If HDMI ARC isn’t an choice in your TV, you should utilize an optical cable, which additionally delivers strong audio high quality. Some soundbars even supply Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connections for streaming music, and some nonetheless have a 3.5mm aux jack for connecting to older units.

Do all soundbars include subwoofers?

Not all soundbars include subwoofers, however many do or not less than supply one as an elective add-on that you may buy individually. A subwoofer is what provides you that deep, booming bass, so for those who like motion films or desire a fuller sound for music, having one could make a giant distinction. Some soundbars have a built-in subwoofer, however these typically don’t present the identical punch as a separate one.

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