[Closed] Soundbar recommendation

Budget would be handy I expect.

Sonos Beam, I’m about to add two Play 1s to mine to act as rears.

Poor sound quality is not necessarily due to the telly. In desperation I purchased a Samsung soundbar with sub and whilst there was some improvement it will depend on how programmes have actually been produced.

Edit: just to add that the boy has a pair of floor speakers, probably a metre or so tall and a program he was watching last night necessitated turning the volume up and down all the way through. It went from deafening to almost silent!

Ah, Cougar - that’s part of the reason for asking - I know you could spend a fortune if you wanted but if the telly was about 600, would around £200 for the soundbar sound reasonable ?

Canton seem to make good ones. Richer Sounds sometimes have deals on.

I have a Denon DMT that’s a few years old now but I still really rate the sound output compared the standard tv speakers.

Edit, mines a DHT T100. Still available it appears and cheepish.

https://www.richersounds.com/canton-dm55-blk.html

I paid £250 for a Samsung soundbar with sub that lasted all of 20 months before it stopped working. Got some great advice on here and persisted with a complaint to Samsung after being given a list of repairers. Their customer service was woeful (overseas centre) but eventually it was collected, repaired at no charge and returned. Whatever you decide buy from JL for their 2 year warranty.

Thanks, Rockhopper - thst looks a good option and bang on budget too - will check them out tomorrow

Thanks

http://homeavdirect.co.uk/denon-dht-110?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsozqjMDA3wIV6L3tCh0WgQ9nEAQYASABEgJhQPD_BwE

Mine....

Thanks, CG too - want to use a high street shop if possible so I can hear what they sound like before I buy, and unfortunately we don’t have a JL over here yet

What do you listen to music on?

johnny63 - ah, that's a shame.

Lol - given our current position over here in lovely NI, no JL is way down the list -:)

Woppit - usually just through a Sondstrem Bluetooth speaker

Whatever you decide buy from JL for their 2 year warranty.

Or Richer sounds used to do a 5 year extended warranty. You have to pay for it, but if you don't need to use it and cancel before the 5 years is up they give you the money back.

https://www.richersounds.ie/t-six-year.aspx

6 years apparently

Poor sound quality is not necessarily due to the telly. In desperation I purchased a Samsung soundbar with sub and whilst there was some improvement it will depend on how programmes have actually been produced.

Whilst there's an element of that, modern TV speakers are rubbish due to the increasing arms race towards ever-thinner TV sets.

Edit: just to add that the boy has a pair of floor speakers, probably a metre or so tall and a program he was watching last night necessitated turning the volume up and down all the way through. It went from deafening to almost silent!

User error. Shouldn't happen if he sets it up properly. If he's got a pair of stereo speakers running off a 5.1 amp with no centre speaker then that'd do it, for instance. All the vocals are being pushed to a non-existent speaker.

6 years apparently

5+1?

I bought one from Majority a couple of months ago, an older model reduced from £120 to £35. It's pretty good.
A quick look shows they arent selling any cheaper ones at the moment, though there are loads on Amazon if you want to search.
https://majorityonline.co.uk/category/soundbars/

Really rate our Q Acoustics M2. It's a base instead of a bar (i.e. goes under the TV) but we have it on a shelf in our TV unit.

https://www.richersounds.com/q-acoustics-m2-blk.html

Jamze, that’s one that my BiL recommended too - so will have a look at it when I’m down in Richer Sounds

Thanks

Alani - want to see it work first, so sticking to high street outlets

Really pleased with our sonos beam. Really good app and works with Alexa too

Has a really neat function to let you turn down the lower sound effects but still hear voices ok

Bought in the current offer that available now. Also easily able to add other sonos stuff to it

...that’s one that my BiL recommended too – so will have a look at it when I’m down in Richer Sounds...

Check out the M3 also if they have it, that's a soundbar, also gets decent reviews.

My parents have 2 yamaha bars. They weren't overly expensive and seem really good.

I use a set of Logitech PC speakers with a sub plugged into the headphone jack. Not pretty but cheap and very good.

Just a thought but if you're just using a Bluetooth speaker for music, and fancy getting something a bit better for music too, what about getting a stereo amp and a pair of bookshelf speakers?

We did this a few years ago (for my girlfriend's flat before we lived together). Went in to RS for a soundbar for her, came away with an open box Denon amp and a pair of speakers for not much more than a sound bar.

SONOS Beam for me hear, replaced an Onkyo 2.1 setup and is ace. Doesn't quite go as low but with no sub footprint and less wires knocking about I'll cope with that and add a wireless sub if I have to in the future.

They're in the sales as well.

phil5556. ^

Two upgrades for the price of one. 😉😁

I've got a Samsung soundbar and the matching wireless subwoofer ( https://www.samsung.com/au/audio-video/hw-ms650/ )

Very pleased with it actually. It was ok without the sub, but adding the sub has actually made it pretty decent.

It's more expensive than a separates system - and not as good. BUT: if you've got a Samsung telly, it integrates really excellently. Ours in the lounge, so has to pass the wife/grandparents test in terms of "user experience"..... which it does with flying colours. We now only have one simple remote (apple TV) that controls everything. One button switches everything on and off. No dicking about with selecting sources (including bluetooth), it does it all automatically. And absolutely no wires. You can also get a bracket that attaches to the back of your telly so that it "floats" underneath.

My first choice was one of the Q acoustics ones, but the lack of connection options and needing numerous remotes put me off.

User error. Shouldn’t happen if he sets it up properly. If he’s got a pair of stereo speakers running off a 5.1 amp with no centre speaker then that’d do it, for instance. All the vocals are being pushed to a non-existent speaker.

But how? I have to constantly ride the volume control because especially in films, the explosions, gunshots etc and music are too loud relative to speaking.

Raising centre speaker volume doesn't solve it because then it just doesn't sound right, DRC is already set to max, midnight mode already on.

Received a Bose Solo 5 for Christmas and paired it with a new LG 4K TV and various other devices.

Quality varies from decent enough to bloody impressive. Re the latter, PS4 Pro now sounds epic and has the looks to match, as do a few movies we’ve streamed.

Am hoping to ramp up the whole home AV thang this year and this is just the start. Would recommend demoing some kit in Richer Sounds or suchlike.

...My first choice was one of the Q acoustics ones, but the lack of connection options and needing numerous remotes put me off...

The Q Acoustics do have a remote, but same as the Samsung (my parents have that one), the QA integrates very well if you use HDMI CEC. Switches on when the TV is turned on, no source switching needed, the TV remote controls the QA volume. Auto-switches to aptX Bluetooth too, and then you control the volume from your phone. Foolproof.

We got a Roth one from Tesco for just under £100 a few years ago, not a top of the shop model but it's sooooo much better than the sound from the TV set.

I'm with phil here if you just need stereo then some edifier bookshelf speakers have all the connections you need and will upgrade your music too. They have a built in amp so work out good value

We have a Sony soundbase we got a year ago in the sales.

If you have the space under your TV it's a great option as it's a basier than most soundbars even if it's not as good as a proper separate sub, it's a lot less hassle.

We have Sony TV so synchs easily but you just need an HDMI arc on the TV so we get control over all the features.
Also does Bluetooth .

if you’ve got a Samsung telly, it integrates really excellently. Ours in the lounge, so has to pass the wife/grandparents test in terms of “user experience”….. which it does with flying colours. We now only have one simple remote (apple TV) that controls everything.

That's (probably) not a Samsung thing, it's a HDMI thing. HDMI-CEC pushes remote signals between devices. Pick up any of my remotes and they will control the amp volume if it's switched on and the TV volume when the amp's off, automagically. The amp is Yamaha and the TV Toshiba, you don't need to stick with one manufacturer for interoperability.

Manufacturers advertise Regza Link, Bravia Link, Viera Link, Anynet+ and a host of other names, but they're all just marketing guff for HDMI-CEC. It's the same technology in different pants.

you just need an HDMI arc on the TV so we get control over all the features.

That's CEC not ARC. ARC is what sends the TV audio back to the amp / soundbar.

Like this, Kimbers ?

https://www.richersounds.com/sony-soundbar-1.html?refSrc=2942&nosto=productpage-nosto-2

Nope mines the older version of this.... It's one unit but it's a flat box rather than a bar

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-HT-XT2-Wireless-Multi-Room-Bluetooth/dp/B01EAQVLH0

you don’t need to stick with one manufacturer for interoperability.

All I know is that when I go to my parents & they have 4 remotes it's a pita.

We've got one for everything via bravia !

QA integrates very well if you use HDMI CEC

That’s (probably) not a Samsung thing, it’s a HDMI thing. HDMI-CEC pushes remote signals between devices

Yeah....my telly has CEC but not ARC - I think we get some weird model in between both of those features being standard. I didn't really want to have to buy a new telly, so have to run it through optical - which means that you don't then get the benefit of CEC. If your TV has ARC and CEC, the world is your molusc.

The combination of remote (specifically IR) compatibility being a key feature, but also something that neither the manufacturer nor salespeople are very clear on, lead to a lot of deliberation when buying.