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  • Big Sound for a Great Price: Sonos Beam Feature Roundup

    Big Sound for a Great Price: Sonos Beam Feature Roundup

    If your ultra-thin panel TV had to cut some speaker power to have such thin bezels, you may be looking for a good sound system. The problem is, you got that ultra-thin TV so that it would take up less space in your living room! Those sound systems are huge, and really defeat the whole point of your aesthetic decisions. And there’s no way you’re wearing headphones to watch TV.  What are you to do? Thankfully, the Sonos Beam is here, and we’ve got a feature roundup for you. Who doesn’t love big sound from a little soundbar? 

    The Sound 

    The most important factor of any soundbar is, well, the sound. If it doesn’t sound great, then why even get it, right? Well, rest easy, the Sonos Beam sounds amazing. The bass is clear and wide, and its dual woofers reflect the sound off your walls. The vocal clarity is super high, and the detail is excellent. If you often play music through the TV, this is a great choice. The only complaint regarding the sound quality? The bass isn’t quite deep, just clear. As such, action and superhero movies sound a little flat on the bar. 

    Voice Control 

    The Sonos Beam launches with Alexa functionality built in, and that’s a huge plus. The mic array on the Beam is quite good, although you do occasionally have to yell to be heard over music. The included HDMI port allows you to power your TV on and off with your voice if you TV has HDMI power state matching. Some find voice functionality unimportant, but others love it. It won’t detract from your experience, but it will certainly please those who love voice commands.  

    Pricing 

    Another important facet of any soundbar is the price. The entire purpose of going with a soundbar is avoiding the size and price of full sound systems, so you don’t want to spend too much. Thankfully, the Beam is the best value of any Sonos bar yet. The Beam comes in at a $400 retail price, which is great. For the high-quality package, that price is quite reasonable. 

    Sonos Beam Botton Line 

    If you’re in the market for a solid, affordable soundbar to round out your living room, this is a great choice. Consider the Beam if you’re short on space but want big sound! If you’re an action-movie fan, or just want deeper bass, consider going with a more robust sound system, though. 

    Feature Image Credit: BGR 

  • Interested in a New Soundbar? Find Out Which One is the Best!

    Interested in a New Soundbar? Find Out Which One is the Best!

    As TV panels get more impressive and their cases get ever thinner, their speakers become less and less impressive. Most new 4K TV panels have pretty laughable sound quality. To remedy this, many turn to soundbars in order to help their shows and movies sound more impressive! If you’re looking to upgrade your living room sound experiences, look no further! We’ll tell you which soundbar is our favorite! 

    Philips Fidelio B5 

    If you really like the idea of having a surround sound system but really hate the idea of installing a surround sound system, this is the soundbar for you. The Fidelio B5 has detachable satellite speakers that can be pulled free of the main bar to quickly set up a surround sound experience. This combination of convenience and sound quality is the entire point of soundbars, so the Fidelio certainly gets its niche right. 

    This one will set you back about $700, though, so it’s definitely a consideration for audiophiles and movie buffs more than casual viewers. If you’re looking for great surround sound and convenient set up, though, you can’t go wrong with the Fidelio B5. 

    Sony HT-ST5000 Soundbar 

    Sony’s entry on this list is definitely priced and marketed as a premium product. One solid indicator of that is its support for Dolby Atmos, giving this soundbar way bigger sound that it looks like it could put out. This soundbar puts out some incredible spatial sound, consistently impressing in everything from movie audio to Spotify playlists over Chromecast.  

    The only thing holding this entry back from being our pick for favorite is its steep price. This one retails for around $1500 dollars, setting it firmly in the “premium item” price range. However, if that price isn’t an issue for you, this is absolutely the best soundbar on the market, no questions asked. 

    Our Favorite Soundbar: Samsung HW-MS650 Soundbar 

    While the Sony HT-ST5000 is the most impressive soundbar out there, it’s also impressively expensive. If you’re looking for audio that is nearly as good (and I mean nearly) for a third of the price, this one is for you. Samsung’s entry on this list is jaw-dropping. The balance and bass are also absolutely stunning considering how small the bar is.  

    This one is a steal: $500 gets you one of the very best soundbars out there. It also supports a ton of inputs and is super easy to set up. If you’re looking for a great soundbar and don’t want to break the bank with Sony, this Samsung is the right one for you. 

  • Bose SoundTouch 300 Delivers again.. for a Price

    Bose SoundTouch 300 Delivers again.. for a Price

    The Bose SoundTouch 300 is a soundbar for your televesion,  capable of a gorgeously wide sound field, which benefits both music and movies. The speaker is capable of reproducing both dialog and incidental effects with crystal clarity. The system offers easy-to-use music streaming via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

     

    The Great

    • Superior Sound
    • Easy Set Up
    • Expandable with wireless Bose speakers
    • Versatile connectivity

     

    The Not

    • treble EQ cant be modified
    • Needs remote to function

     

    The Conculsion

    Great ” larger then life” Sound,  If you have no intention of buying a sub woofer, though, don’t buy this sound bar. Sound fine on its own, but you’ll miss the deep ravid notes that the optional Acoustimass 300 sub can bring — for an extra $699.

     

     

    Bose knows how to delivering big sound from small packages. Once again they hit us with  the SoundTouch 300, a slim soundbar that produces plenty of bass depth and solid clarity in the highs. You can stream audio via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, features HDMI ARC and optical outputs. Its a baseline sound bar option that can be expanded to an all out theater sound experience.

    The Design

    The design is elegant and sharp as it looks looks graceful and stylish. Inside the beautiful exterior, the SoundTouch 300 uses four full-range drivers and a single centered tweeter, all front-facing, and bass ports on the rear panel, aided by a pair of “phase guides,” one on each end of the bar. There are 3 Icons across the front, one to show you are connected to your home network, one indicates when audio from the SoundTouch app is played, the last is when you have audio playing from a connected TV.

     

     

    Whats that on your Head?

     

    It uses AdaptIQ, that is the system Bose employs to adjust the soundbar’s output to your room’s dead areas, as well as reflective surfaces. You connect a adapter by connecting it to the speaker’s back panel and pressing the AdaptIQ button will start the measurement process. Then with this headband receptor on your head and sit in various places in your room. The system go through a series of 10 seconds of frequency sweeps in each spot while the headset measures the reflections from the sweeps.

     

    The Final Thought

     

    Through the SoundTouch 300, the audio is crisp and full of low-end, though the bass response sounds slightly thin with out the sub woofer. Its a great standalone sound bar but not for $699, Only purchase this if you are going to double down for the remote speakers and the sub woofer.