Best Soundbar for 2022 - CNET

Best soundbar under $350. Easily supplanting our previous favorite, the JBL Bar 2.1 Deep Bass, the Klipsch Cinema 400 adds great design and ... 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Reviewsethicsstatement Tech HomeEntertainment BestSoundbarfor2022 AsoundbarcanmakeabigimprovementtoyourTVwatching,andit'smoreconvenientandaffordablethanasurround-soundsystem.Theseareourfavorites. TyPendlebury June3,20223:00a.m.PT TyPendlebury Editor TyPendleburyisajournalismgraduateofRMITMelbourne,andhasworkedatCNETsince2006.HelivesinNewYorkCitywherehewritesaboutstreamingandhomeaudio. Seefullbio 7minread CreativeStage Bestsoundbarunder$100 $80atAmazon VizioV21 Bestsoundbarforthemoney,bestunder$200 $190atTarget SonosRay Bestmusicstreamingonabudget $279atSonos KlipschCinema400 Bestsoundbarunder$350 $329atCrutchfield VizioM512a-H6 Bestsoundbarunder$500 $450atAmazon VizioElevate Bestsoundbarunder$1,000 $918atAmazon SennheiserAmbeoSoundbar Bestsoundbarifmoney'snoobject $2,200atCrutchfield PolkSignaS3 Greatformusiclistening $279atAmazon SonosArc Bestall-in-onesoundbarunder$1,000 $899atCrutchfield RokuStreambar Bestsoundbarwithstreamingvideo $130atTarget ZvoxSB500 Bestbasswithoutasubwoofer $400atAmazon YamahaYAS-209 Bestsoundbarunder$400 $350atCrutchfield ShowMore(7items) ModernTVsfeatureverysmallspeakerswhicharedesignedtobouncesoundoffyourTVstand,andtheycansounddistantandtinnyasaresult.Thesolution?Addasoundbarandtransformyour TV intoa hometheater.Whiletheresultscanbedramatic,findingthebestsoundbarforTVdoesn'thavetobreakthebank.Thesedays,soundbarsareconsiderablymorepopularthanlargerhometheaterspeakersand AVreceivers fortheiraffordabilityandeaseofuse.Ingeneral,soundbarsofferclearsoundwithoutthehighpricetag,andcanofferEQmodesespeciallydesignedto improvespeech.Fromsolidbare-bones'barstosmartAlexa-poweredand Atmosspeakers,thisisCNET'slineupofthebestsoundbarsavailable,startingaround$100andup.Thislistisupdatedperiodicallyaswetestnewmodels. SarahTew/CNET CreativeStage Bestsoundbarunder$100 Ifyourpricerangeislimited,forlessthanaC-note,theCreativeStageDolbyAtmossoundbaroffersabunchofpreviouslyunheard-offeatures,includingHDMIconnectivitywithHDMIARCportandasubwoofer.Butwhat'sevenmoreremarkableisthatthisaffordablesoundbarsoundsbetterthanmostofitsultrabudgetcompetition,withawiredsubwooferthatfillstheroomwithgreatbass.Ithasavarietyofaudiomodes,makingthissoundbarspeakerespeciallysuitedtomusic,concertsandgaming.Excellentsoundqualityforgamersandmoviefansalike. ReadourCreativeStagereview.   $80atAmazon TyPendlebury/CNET VizioV21 Bestsoundbarforthemoney,bestunder$200 Ifyou'relookingtoditchyourTVspeaker,thisiswherewesuggestyoustart.Thesubwoofermaybesmallerthanusualforthebrand,butthisaudiobarstillsoundsgreat,aswellasofferingHDMIconnectivitywithARCandamucheasier-to-understandinputdisplay.TheVizioV-Series2.1isthebestsoundbarvaluewehavetestedinthelastfewyears. ReadourVizioV21review.   $190atTarget$148atAmazon Sonos SonosRay Bestmusicstreamingonabudget Sonoshasanewentry-level soundbar featuringthe company'sexcellentmultiroommusicsystem onboard.Atwo-channelsoundbarwithDolbyDigitaldecoding,it'sroughlytwo-thirdsthesizeofthe SonosBeam butdeliversasurprisinglywidesoundstagethroughtheuseofproprietarywaveguides.Whileitdoesn'tsupport DolbyAtmos surroundsoundorhavean HDMIport toconnecttoyourTV(youconnectittoyourTVwithanincludedopticalcable),wewereimpressedwiththesoundqualityformusicandmovies.YoucanpairitwithacoupleofotherSonosspeakersliketheIkeaSymfonisktocreateasurroundsoundsystem. $279atSonos TyPendlebury/CNET KlipschCinema400 Bestsoundbarunder$350 Easilysupplantingourpreviousfavorite,theJBLBar2.1DeepBass,theKlipschCinema400addsgreatdesignandanevenbiggerwirelesssubwoofer.Soundqualityisstillking,though,witharealsenseofdynamicsandexcellentmusicreplay.IfyouwanttomakeyourTVthenextbestthingtoamovietheater,thisisoneofthemostaffordablewaystodoit. ReadourKlipschCinema400review.   $329atCrutchfield$280atAmazon$298atBestBuy TyPendlebury/CNET VizioM512a-H6 Bestsoundbarunder$500 Atruestep-upfromtheprecedingsoundbars,theVizioM512a-H6isthemostcost-effectivewaytogettrueDolbyAtmosplayback.Thissurroundsystemincludesthemainsoundbarwithupfiringheightspeakersbuiltin,a6-inchsubwooferandtwowiredrearspeakers.That'salotofparts,buttheywereeasytosetupandwewereimpressedwiththeoverallbuildquality.Mostimportantly,itoffersexcellentperformancewithmovies,includingrealAtmoseffectswecouldhear,aswellasmusic.TheM512a-H6slacksChromecastandAirPlaystreaming,butstillearnsourheartyrecommendationbothforhomecinemafansandforpeoplelookingtolistentotheirfavoritealbum(whetherinAtmosornot). $450atAmazon$500atBestBuy TyPendlebury/CNET VizioElevate Bestsoundbarunder$1,000 TheVizioElevate'smaindrawmaybeitsmotorized-heightspeakers,butonceyougetovertheirnoveltyyou'llfindthatthespeakersystemalsosoundsgreat.Theseparatesubandheight-enabledrearspeakersreallyhelppullthisViziosoundbaraheadoftheSonosArcsonically.WithDolbyAtmos,DTS:XandChromecastbuiltin,multipleHDMIinputsandBluetooth,theonlythingtheViziodoesn'tprovideisAppleAirPlaysupport. ReadourVizioElevateP514A-H6review.   $918atAmazon$1,000atBestBuy SarahTew/CNET SennheiserAmbeoSoundbar Bestsoundbarifmoney'snoobject IfyousimplymusthavethefewestnumberofboxesandremotesinyourlivingspaceandyetdemandthebestAtmosqualitysoundperformanceyoucanget,thisSennheiserspeakerisyourbaby.It'sasingleunit,withoutasubwoofer,butit'sabletoconjureupthemostrealisticoverheadandtruesurround-soundeffectswe'veeverheard.It'salsocontrolledentirelyviaremotecontrol.It'snotacheappieceofsoundequipmentbutit'scomparableinpricetoafullsetofsurroundspeakerswithoutthebulkandwith85%ofthegreatsoundandperformance. ReadourSennheiserAmbeoSoundbarreview.   $2,200atCrutchfield$2,200atBestBuy TyPendlebury/CNET PolkSignaS3 Greatformusiclistening Ifyou'relookingforaspeakerthatcandomusicaswellasplaythelatestepisodeofTedLasso,thenthePolkAudioSignaS3hasalottooffer.It'sgreatforstreaming,asithasChromecastbuiltininadditiontoBluetoothandanHDMIinput. ReadourPolkSignaS3review.   $279atAmazon$280atBestBuy TyPendlebury/CNET SonosArc Bestall-in-onesoundbarunder$1,000 Ifyou'reinterestedinsettingupamultiroomsoundsystem,aSonossoundbarsystemisstillthebestoption.TheSonosArcisthecompany'sbestsoundbarandincludesDolbyAtmosplayback,aclass-leadingmusicecosystemandGoogleAssistantandAmazonAlexabuiltintothebaritself.Thesoundbarsystemsoundsgoodwithmusicandmovies,andaddingapairof IkeaSymphoniskbookshelves shouldreallyboostyourhometheatersoundexperience.TheArcsoundsalotbiggerthanthecheaperBeamTVsound,whichneedsthe$700subwooferontoptomakeitcomparableintermsofsound. ReadourSonosArcreview.   $899atCrutchfield$899atSonos,Inc.$899atTarget SarahTew/CNET RokuStreambar Bestsoundbarwithstreamingvideo WhilewereallyliketheRoku StreambarPro,theRokuStreambardoesessentiallythesamejobfor$50less.Withafull-fledged4KHDRRokustreamerbuiltinandasinglevoiceremotecontrollingeverything,thisbargivesyouaudioandvideoinonesimplebar.TheRokusoundbarsetupisabreeze;justaddtoaTVwithasimpleHDMIportconnection.Thisaffordablesoundbarhassoundqualitythat'sacceptableforthesizeandprice,andyoucanadda$129wirelesssubwooferformorepunch. ReadourRokuStreambarreview.   $130atTarget$99atAmazon$100atBestBuy SarahTew/CNET ZvoxSB500 Bestbasswithoutasubwoofer Ifyou'relookingforasingleaudiobarthat'sevencheaperthantheSonosArc,theZvoxSB500isagreatoptionforpeoplewhostillprizesoundquality.Thisspeakeroffersmultiplesoundmodeoptions,tighterbassandbettersoundthanmostothersingle-speakeroptions.WhileitmaylacktheSonos'Wi-Fistreaming,theZvoxstillincludesBluetoothconnectivityforstreamingaudiofromyourphoneortablet. ReadourZvoxSB500review.   $400atAmazon SarahTew/CNET YamahaYAS-209 Bestsoundbarunder$400 Dec2020 TheYamahaYAS-209offersexcellentsoundqualityinacompactsoundbar.Built-inAmazonAlexavoicecontrolisuseful,allowingthissmartsoundbartostreammusic,andthemicsworkwellinloudenvironments.Thesoundbar'simplementationofDTSVirtual:Xvirtualsurroundsoundoffersaricheffectreminiscentofsurroundspeakersound.TwoHDMIconnectionsareincluded,onewithHDMIARC.Thissmartsoundbar'swirelesssubwooferismorearticulateandoffersmoreheadroomthanthecompeting,andalsoexcellent,PolkCommandBar.However,theYamahasoundbarYAS-209doesn'tusethecompany'sMusicCastsystem,soitwon'tsyncupwithotherYamahaspeakers. ReadourYamahaYAS-209review.   $350atCrutchfield$350atTarget$350atAmazon HowdoesCNETtestsoundbars?CNETfollowsarigorous,unbiasedevaluationprocessforallofoursoundbartesting.WetestsoundbarsrangingfromsimplestereospeakersallthewaythroughtoDolbyAtmossystems.OuraudiolabincludesaSamsungQLEDtelevision(withHDMIeARC),an AppleTV4Kstreamer, a MicrosoftXboxOneXandanOppoUDP-2054KBlu-rayplayer.Similarsoundbarsarecomparedsidebysidewithdifferentcontent,includingmovies,music,TVshowsandgames.Wegradethesoundqualityofeachbyevaluatingspeechclarity,dynamics,bassresponseandmusicalplayback.SoundbarFAQs HowdoIchooseasoundbar? Themostimportantconsiderationwhenchoosingasoundbarishowmuchyouwanttospend.Therearegreatsoundbarsateverypricelevel,from$100andup,thoughifyou'repayingover$500itmaybemoreworthwhiletosaveforanAVreceiverandspeakers.Single-barsystemsaregreatforsmallerTVswhileasoundbar-and-subwoofercomboisgreatforalivingroom.Readmoreinour soundbarbuyingguide. HowdoIconnectasoundbartomyTV? DependingontheageofyourTV,therearethreemainwaystooutputtoasoundbar:analog(3.5mmheadphoneorRCA),digitalopticalandHDMI.BeforeyoubuyasoundbarmakesureitacceptsthesameconnectionspresentonyourTV.ThemostcommoninputonsoundbarsisnowHDMI,andifyourTVislessthan5yearsolditshouldbecompatible,butit'sworthdouble-checking. WheredoIplacemysoundbar? SoundbarsaredesignedtobeplacedinfrontoftheTVonaTVstandorotherfurniture.Mostarelessthan2inchestallsothattheywon'tblockeitheryourtelevision'sinfraredremoteportorthescreenitself.Somesoundbarscanalsobewall-mountedandcomewithbracketsinthebox.Third-partykitsforwall-mountingsoundbarsarealsoavailable. CanyouuseanysoundbarwithanyTV? WithonlyahandfulofexceptionsyoucanuseanysoundbarwithanyTV,thoughitdoessometimeshelptomatchTVandsoundbarbrands.ManynewsoundbarsuseHDMIARCtochanneltheaudiofromyourTVthroughthesoundbar,soifbothdeviceshaveoneoftheseportsthat'sallyouneed.SomeoldersoundbarsuseanopticalconnectionandmostTVsoffertheseaswell.Theexception?RokuTVWirelessSpeakersandSamsungSoundConnect.Theformerusesaproprietarywirelessconnection,andlacksanHDMIport,soyouneedaRokuTV(andnotaRokustreamer)touseit.ThesecondisalsoproprietarybetweenSamsungsoundbarsandTVs,thoughthesoundbarusuallyoffersHDMIforconnectiontootherbrands. Aresoundbarsreallyworthit? ComparedwiththesoundthatcomesoutofyourTV,yes,theyareworthit.Spendingaslittleas$100onasoundbarcanimproveyourTV-watchingexperiencetenfold.TVspeakersfacedownwardsoalotofdetailislost,andadedicatedsoundbarcanmakespeechmoreunderstandable. Canyouuseasoundbartoplaymusic? MusicplayedthroughyourTValmostalwayssoundsbetterwhenyouhaveasoundbarconnected.ManysoundbarshaveBluetooth,meaningyoudon'tneedtheTVontolistentoyourtunes.Ingeneralasoundbarwithawirelesssubwooferisbestformusicasitwillhelpreproducedynamicsaswellasdeepbass. MorehometheaterbuyingguidesBestSpeakersfor2022BestHomeTheaterSystemsfor2022BestGiftstoUpgradeaHomeTheaterBestSonosSpeakersStartingat$100BestBluetoothWirelessSpeakerfor2022BestSoundbarsfor2022Under$200BestSoundbarsWithAmazonAlexafor2022Best32-InchTVfor2022Best75-InchTVfor2022:TCL,SamsungandLGComparedBest65-InchTVfor2022:SamsungTV,LG,TCLandMoreBestTurntablesfor2022BestOver-EarHeadphonesfor2022BestPCSpeakersfor2022 GettheCNETTVs,StreamingandAudionewsletter Addyouremailaddress Becomeahomeentertainmentexpertwithourhandpickedtips,reviewsanddeals.DeliveredWednesdays.