11 Best Soundbars in 2023 – Top Picks

Does the TV you have purchased not have great quality audio? Don’t worry: soundbars are devices that serve to have excellent audio quality without having a thousand accessories or having to use cables and wires.

What are the best TV soundbars? Here is a complete guide to choosing the most suitable for your needs, with particular attention to the best economic soundbars and those with the integrated subwoofer.

SaleRANK NO. 1
VIZIO V-Series 2.0 Compact Home Theater Sound Bar...
  • America's #1 Sound Bar* - VIZIO has been filling homes with truly immersive audio for over 10 years, and our sound bars just keep getting better. We are proud to provide our customers with top-tier audio products that bring movies, shows, podcasts, music, and more to life like never before. (*#1 Sound Bar Brand in 1H 2022 Source: The NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service, U.S., based on units, Jan. - June 2022 combined.).Waterproof : No
  • Compact, versatile design – Sleek, rounded all-black finish with easy-to-clean textured surface, optimized for small-med rooms.
  • DTS Virtual:X – Sound Enhancement for room-filling, floor-to-ceiling virtualized sound
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SAMSUNG HW-B650 3.1ch Soundbar w/Dolby 5.1 DTS...
  • DOLBY DIGITAL 5.1 DTS VIRTUAL:X: Multi directional sound draws you into the action with Dolby Digital 5.1 capable and DTS Virtual X.Waterproof : No
  • BASS BOOST: Boost the bass with a touch of a button.
  • BUILT IN CENTER SPEAKER: The built in center speaker delivers enhanced dialogue so you won't miss a word.
SaleRANK NO. 3
Bose TV Speaker - Soundbar for TV with Bluetooth...
  • Hear your TV better: Designed with simplicity in mind, the Bose TV Speaker is a small soundbar that clarifies speech and is a simple fix for better TV sound.
  • Wide, natural sound: 2 angled full-range drivers deliver a more realistic, spatial audio experience for overall better TV sound from a small soundbar.
  • Enhanced dialogue: This TV speaker is designed to specifically focus on clarifying and elevating vocals and pronunciation.
SaleRANK NO. 4
Sonos Playbar - The Mountable Sound Bar for TV,...
  • The mountable soundbar for TV, movies, music, and more
  • Enjoy crisp dialogue and impressive bass from wall to wall with Playbar. Control it with the Sonos app, your remote, and more
  • Whether you mount it on the wall or place it below your TV on a stand or console, Playbar automatically tunes itself for the best possible sound
SaleRANK NO. 5
SAMSUNG HW-S60B 3.1ch Soundbar w/Dolby Atmos, DTS...
  • DOLBY ATMOS / DTS Virtual:X: Elevate your favorite content; Dolby Atmos creates realistic 3D sound by projecting it from all around you, including from above, while DTS Virtual: X expands your listening experience without having to add extra speakers*
  • TRUE 3.1ch SOUND: Enjoy a cinematic audio experience, with 3 channels, 1 subwoofer and 2 up-firing channels combined to put you at the center of the action
  • Q-SYMPHONY: Perfectly synchronized, fully immersive audio floods your room all at once, using every speaker in compatible Samsung TV and soundbars**
SaleRANK NO. 6
Sony S100F 2.0ch Soundbar with Bass Reflex...
  • Straight from the theater to your home: easy set-up, built-in tweeter, 2-ch speaker with simple Bluetooth connection
  • Deep sound with Bass Reflex speaker
  • High power with a slim design that matches any room and is perfect for small living spaces
SaleRANK NO. 7
SAMSUNG HW-Q60C 3.1ch Soundbar w/Dolby Audio,...
  • Q-SYMPHONY: Amp up your audio with the greatest duo of all time—Samsung TVs paired with Samsung soundbars; With Q-Symphony, your TV speakers paired with Q-Series soundbars operate as one*
  • 3.1 CH DOLBY ATMOS SOUND: When you make the jump to three channels, your audio comes alive; Experience captivating sound and hear more during your favorite shows, songs, and movies with 3.1ch Dolby Atmos sound
  • ADAPTIVE SOUND LITE: Enjoy all your favorite video content with dynamically optimized audio and enhanced voice clarity so you can follow along with action-packed games and blockbuster films
SaleRANK NO. 8
VIZIO 2.0 Home Theater Sound Bar with DTS...
  • America's #1 Sound Bar* - VIZIO has been filling homes with truly immersive audio for over 10 years, and our sound bars just keep getting better. We are proud to provide our customers with top-tier audio products that bring movies, shows, podcasts, music, and more to life like never before. (*#1 Sound Bar Brand in 1H 2022 Source: The NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service, U.S., based on units, Jan. - June 2022 combined.)
  • Ultra-Compact 2.0 Design - Experience the performance of larger, more complex home theater systems in a simple, ultra-compact solution designed fit anywhere and blend seamlessly into any environment.
  • Bold Performance - Experience rich, clear sound with up to 91dB of total SPL output for performance that belies its size.
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MZEIBO Sound Bars for TV, Bluetooth Soundbar for...
  • 🍀Premium 360° Stereo Sound TV Sound Bar: Unleash powerful 50W dynamic audio, 4 drivers for crystal-clear sound reproduction, experience the thrill of cinema at home. Feel the action, drama, and suspense as if you're right there.
  • 🍀Unmatched DSP Technology: Indulge in a captivating audio-visual journey with our top-notch DSP technology. Experience every note and beat with our advanced sound technology, meticulously designed to replicate each sound accurately, ensuring minimal distortion.
  • 🍀lnnovative Design Sound Bar: Soundbar boasts aninnovative detachable design that that can be easily transformed into two compact tower speakers.offering you the flexibility to your audio setup.Place the two tower speakers on either side ofyour TV to create a dynamic and immersive surround soundeffect that puts you right in the middle of the action.
SaleRANK NO. 10
VIZIO M-Series 2.1 Immersive Sound Bar with 5...
  • America's #1 Sound Bar* - VIZIO has been filling homes with truly immersive audio for over 10 years, and our sound bars just keep getting better. We are proud to provide our customers with top-tier audio products that bring movies, shows, podcasts, music, and more to life like never before. (*#1 Sound Bar Brand in 1H 2022 Source: The NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service, U.S., based on units, Jan. - June 2022 combined.)
  • Immersive sound, brought to you by people who love sound - Dolby Atmos and DTS:X audio technologies captivate your senses with realistic sounds above and behind you for performance that completely immerses you in the world of your entertainment.
  • It’s psychoacoustics, but you can call it magic - An optical illusion for your ears, DTS Virtual:X technology delivers the sensation of speakers placed throughout your room, above and behind you, for a sonic landscape that’s remarkably lifelike.
SaleRANK NO. 11
Polk Audio Signa S2 Ultra-Slim TV Sound Bar, Works...
  • A PREMIUM ULTRA-SLIM SOUND BAR WITH INCLUDED WIRELESS SUBWOOFER – 5 powerful full-range drivers deliver BEAUTFUL RICH SOUND WITH DEEP BASS. POLK’S EXCLUSIVE VOICE ADJUST TECHNOLOGY & Dolby Digital Decoding maximizes sound clarity & reduces voice delays.Mounting Type: Tv Sound Bar,Bar Mount.Frequency Response : 45Hz-20Khz.
  • EXCELLENT SOUND AND VALUE on par with any mid- to high-range sound bars available in the market. At just over 2" tall, it fits most spaces — easily wall-mount it or place in front of your TV. It won’t block your TV’s bottom edge or IR remote sensor
  • UPGRADE YOUR HOME THEATER EXPERIENCE – Watch your favorite shows on your 4K HD Smart TV with exceptional picture quality & crystal clear sound. With numerous connection possibilities, plug in any audio source via HDMI ARC, optical input & AUX

Things to Consider Before Buying Soundbars

When buying a new TV, the sound doesn’t always sound satisfactory. This is why soundbars have spread on the market, small speakers that connect to the TV and allow you to create wireless surround systems.

Say goodbye to the tangled cables in the living room and enjoy a fantastic sound experience.

How a Soundbar Works?

Very often, those who have to choose an audio system to combine with their TV try to understand the substantial difference between the soundbar and a complete home-theatre system, for this reason, one wonders how a soundbar works and what the term ” virtual surround ” means.

Skilled engineering work has enabled the best technology companies to insert around seven speakers into the soundbars.

The term ” virtual surround ” was born from the psycho-acoustic effect that deceives our ears and our brain, making us believe that the sound arrives behind us. The acoustic effect reproduced by the soundbars is similar to an optical illusion.

Technically, the sound “bounces” between the walls of a room, reaching the back or side of our ear. Most likely, audiophiles can distinguish the difference between a real and a virtual surround system.

But let us remember that the soundbars are a product accessible to anyone, both in terms of price range and assembly. In choosing the best soundbar, the economic factor is what will probably influence the purchase of the device.

There are all the prices but, regardless of the cost, the factors to be evaluated are manifold. It is important to take into consideration the audio quality, the design, the connectivity, the audio technology that is supported, and, of course, the power.

Audio Quality

Judging the sound quality of a soundbar is very complicated. Also, because, especially as regards the medium / high market segments, we are now talking about devices capable of guaranteeing a sound rendering that, until some time ago, was truly unimaginable in such compact devices.

However, that of audio quality is one of the factors in which a very subjective evaluation comes into play, that is based on the specific tastes of each user and, above all, on his needs.

The objective audio performance is influenced not only by the quality of the speakers and integrated amplifiers but also by the positioning of the soundbar, by the size of the environment in which it will be mounted and by the type of use that will be made of it.

Audio Technologies

In any case, it is very important to be able to understand which audio technologies are supported by the soundbar you are about to purchase. To obtain a satisfactory sound performance.

It is very important that, before purchasing, make sure that the model chosen supports the aptX, Dolby Atmos and DTS audio technologies.

Design

Design is the first factor to consider when approaching any soundbar model. Cheap soundbars generally consist of a single unit, while others include the possibility of using other external speakers and subwoofers.

There are, in fact, active soundbars, with an integrated subwoofer, or passive soundbars that therefore need power and other external speakers.

Connectivity

Connectivity is probably one of the most important factors to consider. A factor that varies greatly depending on the type of device to which it will be connected.

Some soundbars connect via the digital optical cable, others connect to the TV via an HDMI cable that uses ARC technology, others have different analog inputs and even NFC.

It is also very important to consider the presence of Bluetooth, to easily connect the smartphone, NFC or WiFi, if you want to use services such as Spotify, Apple Music and the like, without the need to necessarily use the smartphone.

Power

It is an important factor, but very simple to evaluate. The power of a soundbar depends on the number of speakers it integrates and the power in watts of each of them.

From these values, ​​you can understand the maximum volume that each model can reach. Still, it is very important to consider an important thing: a powerful soundbar is not always necessary, especially in environments that are not too large.

Functionality

Assuming that soundbars are not only hardware but above all management by software, it is easy to understand that one of the most important factors (capable of guaranteeing good audio performance) depends precisely on the hardware management system.

Also, some of the best soundbars also integrate Google Assistant or Alexa, are compatible with all music streaming services, and also have the ability to support Apple’s AirPlay 2 and Google Cast.

What Are the Channels and Which to Choose?

The channel corresponds to the number of speakers, which in the case of a soundbar, are virtually represented. Read more: Multichannel audio on Wikipedia.

This simple list can help you:

  1. 2-channel soundbar: 2 speakers: left and right;
  2. 3-channel soundbar: 3 speakers: center, left and right;
  3. 5-channel soundbar: 5 speakers: center, left, right and two rear (this is the standard of the home theatre);
  4. 7-channel soundbar: 5 speakers as above, but two more in the rear;
  5. Dolby Soundbar: Dolby is a proprietary standard of multichannel audio, so to speak, it is the standard used in cinemas.

What Connections or Ports Do I Need?

Current soundbars are available in a wide range of connectivity options; the market is indeed full of Wireless soundbars, rather than Bluetooth and so on. Before buying I recommend, you keep an eye on:

HDMI: Simply connect the soundbar to the TV’s audio return channel (ARC) input, and you’re done. It tends to be the most chosen link.

Wireless Connectivity

Are you looking for a device that can play audio directly from your phone or tablet? Here are the features you should check:

  • Bluetooth: To date, many soundbars are equipped with Bluetooth technology, so that they can play audio from computers, smartphones, and tablets;
  • WiFi: Wireless soundbars connect to a home’s internet and can transmit anything in any place (Spotify, TIDAL, etc.).
    Optical port
  • The optical port provides the best connection between soundbar and TV: simple, reliable, and always available. It has one flaw: it does not transmit the 5.1 signal

USB

As a rule, the USB inputs are integrated into each device to facilitate firmware updates. To date, all users update the software of their device via WiFi, so unless you need to play music from a USB stick, you can also not consider this point.

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