How to choose a Soundbar? Guide 2020

Bread Pitt

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Welcome to the buying guide devoted to Her bars. This guide explains how to make your choice and all the selection criteria that you must take into account. More discreet and more practical than a home theater, many parameters are to be analyzed such as design , audio technology , brands ...

What are the best soundbar brands?
  • Samsung , the brand being one of the first manufacturers of television , it is logical that it manufactures its sound bars. They offer powerful and complete models as well as the widest range of sound bars . The Wireless Audio System will allow you to control your bar via your smartphone.
  • Sony, known for the quality of its devices in the audio field , the brand with the particularity of offering reduced models of very good omens at a very attractive price like the Sony HT-RT3 bar for a total power of more than 600 Watts .
  • Panasonic , the flagship brand of high-end in the field of electronics, offers powerful and compact models whose particularity is to offer a wide connection to connect several of your devices.
  • LG offers mid-range and high-end models and incorporates for certain sound bars the " Meridian " technology offering deep bass and crystalline treble .
  • Bose : specialized in the sound field and very well known in recent years for its various successful models ( headphones, wireless and computer speakers ), the brand has released its high-end Sound Bar models , intended for an audience young and appreciated for the quality of its bass and sound. We recommend the Soundbar 500 bar reproducing a powerful, deep and undistorted sound.
  • Bowser and Wilkins, a high end sound brand, offers sophisticated design and natural elegance sound bars and speakers . It relies more on the quality of its audio rather than its power to deliver crystal clear sound .
  • Yamaha brand renowned for the quality of its products often at the forefront of technology and their reliability. They now include the Airplay function which offers a format suitable for smartphones and tablets, so as not to suffer from musical loss due to the quality of the transmitting source.

What type of connection on sound bars?

HDMI Arc : allows the sound to pass between 2 devices without them being connected to each other. The sound from your home console will pass through the sound bar, without being connected between them by a cable.
HDMI CEC : you can control all of your devices with the same remote control provided your devices are compatible.
Bluetooth : technology used to connect 2 devices together without cable.
Ethernet socket : to connect your soundbar to the internet with an RJ45 cable without using the wifi network.
Optical or co-axial : you will have the possibility to choose between these 2 digital audio inputs / outputs . Most sound bars are equipped with 2 technologies, but the link provided by optical signals is preferred . The optical cable is made of optical fiber and offers a better quality rendering.

What are audio technologies?
  • DTS Virtual X : latest sound technology. It makes it possible to optimize the sound rendering thanks to reinforced bass, clearer dialogues ( more deaf dialogue effect like with television ).
  • DTS Digital Surround : it offers 5.1-channel encoding, it compresses the signal less and digitizes the sound on 20 bits instead of 16 . This results in a better reproduction of the audio quality.
  • DTS Atmos : standard found on many Blue-Ray, it offers a three-dimensional sound to reinforce the feeling of immersion.
  • DTS true HD : this format makes it possible to reproduce an exact reproduction of the sound they will have to play without loss of quality.
  • DTS digital surround : offers a 6-channel sound rendering , it compresses the sound less and improves the audio quality.

HI-Res technology offers files encoded at 24 bits to avoid excessive sound distortion and to translate, when listening, quality sound.
What sound powers for sound bars?
  • Power less than 100 W : is to be preferred in small spaces, less than 20m² for a correct sound power, which provides quality sound.
  • Power between 100 and 300 W : for a room between 20 and 40 m² .
  • Power greater than 300 W : beyond this measurement, you can take advantage of a sound bar offering 360 ° sound spatialization in spaces between 40 and 80m² . You can also take the opportunity to animate a small evening with friends ( 15-20 people maximum ).

What design for my soundbar?

The soundbar although more discreet and compact than the home theater often has more worked lines . They incorporate (for some) a high-quality integrated subwoofer for high-end models but are also often accompanied by a subwoofer for mid-range models .
Prefer a high-end and long sound bar (more than 1 meter) if you have a television of more than 120 cm diagonal and a sound bar with a subwoofer for more reduced models. They exist in multi-colors for the Bose brand and a design with clean lines for the Bowers and Wilkins brand with variations in beige.
 
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