When I was looking for a new subwoofer for my home theater system, I knew I already had a subwoofer. I noticed that most soundbars come with subwoofers. So, I made a list of the best soundbars without a subwoofer I found based on a range of factors, and put together this helpful article with all the details.
So what is the best soundbar without a subwoofer? The Bose Solo 5 TV Soundbar has the most positive reviews and an average review rating of 4.3/5 stars. The next:
- Sonos Beam, the TCL Alto
- Unbranded soundbar sold by VMAI
- Yamaha YAS-108
- Asiyun 2 X 5W Mini Bluetooth Sound Bar
- Samsung 3.0 Sound+ Premium Soundbar HW-MS650/ZA
- TaoTronics 2.1 Channel TV Soundbar
Although, there are many options to choose from it can be confusing which one is the best and why. So, below I will offer why I think these soundbars have the best rating and summarise the key pros and cons of each.
List of the Best Soundbars Without a Subwoofer
I have ordered the list of the top 7 best soundbars without a subwoofer from best to worst, so you can find the best one for you, based on your specific needs.
I have rated them in descending order based on different criteria in the table below:
| Most reviews | Highest average rating | Cheapest | Smallest |
| Bose Solo 5 TV Soundbar đź‘Ť | Sonos Beam, the TCL Alto | Asiyun 2 X 5W Mini Bluetooth Sound Bar | Asiyun 2 X 5W Mini Bluetooth Sound Bar |
| Sonos Beam, the TCL Alto | Bose Solo 5 TV Soundbar đź‘Ť | Unbranded soundbar sold by VMAI | Bose Solo 5 TV Soundbar đź‘Ť |
| Unbranded soundbar sold by VMAI | Unbranded soundbar sold by VMAI | TaoTronics 2.1 Channel TV Soundbar | Sonos Beam, the TCL Alto |
| Yamaha YAS-108 | Samsung 3.0 Sound+ Premium Soundbar HW-MS650/ZA | Bose Solo 5 TV Soundbar đź‘Ť | Yamaha YAS-108 |
| Asiyun 2 X 5W Mini Bluetooth Sound Bar | Yamaha YAS-108 | Yamaha YAS-108 | Unbranded soundbar sold by VMAI |
| Samsung 3.0 Sound+ Premium Soundbar HW-MS650/ZA | Asiyun 2 X 5W Mini Bluetooth Sound Bar | Samsung 3.0 Sound+ Premium Soundbar HW-MS650/ZA | TaoTronics 2.1 Channel TV Soundbar |
| TaoTronics 2.1 Channel TV Soundbar | TaoTronics 2.1 Channel TV Soundbar | Sonos Beam, the TCL Alto | Samsung 3.0 Sound+ Premium Soundbar HW-MS650/ZA |
Overall comments
As you can see the Bose Solo 5 TV soundbar rates highest across the different rating criteria. The unbranded soundbar sold by VMAI comes in at second. But, for other reasons, we do not recommend this model.
The good:
- It has a dialogue mode, which improves the clarity of voices. This is particularly good for people with hearing issues.
- Has wireless Bluetooth connectivity.
- You can hear any show without having to max out the volume.
- It comes with a universal remote.
- Very easy to set up
- Works with most TVs.
The bad:
- You have to use a remote. If you lose the remote the soundbar is useless.
- There is no power button on the unit.
- If you have a larger room, you will need to use additional speakers.
- You need to use 2 x AA batteries to power it.
About the company:
Bose primarily sells speakers and other audio equipment. They are a US based company with a head office in Framingham, MA. They have over 9,000 employees, and have an average revenue of US$ 4.0 billion per year, according to Wikipedia.
Safe to say, a large company like this knows what they are doing. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), is the majority owner of this company, and a founder is a man named Amar Bose.
Average rating
It has over 5000 reviews, and has an average customer rating of a 4.3/5 on Amazon.
Technical nitty gritty
| Width | Height | Length | Weight | |
| Speaker | 21.6 inches (55 cm) | 2.6 inches (6.6 cm) | 3.4 inches length (8.6 cm) | 3.73 lbs (1.7 kg) |
| Remote | 1.6 inches (4 cm) | 4.1 inches (10 cm) | 0.4 inches (1 cm) | 5 oz (140 g) |
My comments
As previously mentioned, this soundbar is our highest recommendation for the best soundbar without a subwoofer. It has significantly more reviews than the other soundbars, and a solid average rating.
The drawbacks for this model is that it is powered by batteries, and that you have to use the remote are somewhat minor. Using rechargeable batteries reduces the cost issue of buying replacement batteries, but is a minor annoyance.
Our recommendation based on all our evaluation criteria is to go with this soundbar.
02) Sonos Beam – Smart TV Sound Bar with Amazon Alexa Built-in
The good:
- You can control it with your voice, remote, or the Sonos app.
- Comes with Amazon Alexa.
- Very easy to set up.
- Comes in white or black.
- It has a late night setting, which boosts dialogue and lowers loud noises.
- You can choose to not use it with Alexa.
- Has a touch screen where you can control basic features like turning the volume up and down.
The bad:
- It doesn’t work well with LG TVs.
- The user interface isn’t the most user friendly
- If you have issues with it, it can take a long time to fix.
- It isn’t supported by Alexa groups.
- Alexa is not fully featured.
- Some people say it is overpriced.
- Heavier than other similar models
About the company:
Sonos is a California based company that was founded in 2002. They have over 1400 employees, according to Wikipedia, with offices across the US. They have partnerships with over 100 companies including Spotify, Pandora, and Amazon Music.
Average rating
It has over 2000 reviews, and has an average customer rating of a 4.5/5 on Amazon.
Technical nitty gritty
| Width | Height | Length | Weight | |
| Speaker | 25.6 inches (65 cm) | 2.7 inches (6.5 cm) | 3.9 inches length (10 cm) | 6.2 lbs (2.8 kg) |
03) Unbranded soundbar sold by VMAI
The good:
- It is longer than other similar soundbars, which gives more sound.
- Bluetooth wireless connectivity.
- Multiple sound modes such as music, movies, news, etc.
- Compatible with many inputs: HDMI ARC, optical, USB (flash drive only), tablet, Blu-ray, gaming consoles.
- Small, it doesn’t block the sensor for the TV remote.
- Nice black matte finish
- The light on the LCD display goes off when using it, so it doesn’t distract you from what you are watching.
The bad:
- The remote has a delay from when you press something and when the soundbar responds.
- When you turn it on it reconnects to the Bluetooth which puts the volume back to maximum.
- Not much bass.
- The remote doesn’t work with all universal remotes.
- Doesn’t support Dolby or DTS.
About the company:
No information can be found of this company online. They have only an Amazon store, which doesn’t give any information regarding customer support, who they are, and what they do. Major red flag for me. Although, this soundbar is cheap, you should beware, and be fully aware of the return policy.
Average rating
It has over 1200 reviews, and has an average customer rating of a 4.3/5 on Amazon.
Technical nitty gritty
| Width | Height | Length | Weight | |
| Speaker | 36 inches (91.4 cm) | 2.5 inches (6.4 cm) | 3.7 inches length (9.4 cm) | 4 lbs (1.8 kg) |
04) Yamaha YAS-108
The good:
- Has a built in subwoofer.
- Bluetooth compatible.
- Has HDMI, optical, and AUX connections.
- Has multiple settings such as stereo/mono,clear voice, extended bass, surround and 3D surround, which work brilliantly.
- Has an always on Bluetooth setting.
The bad:
- It is not very user-friendly and controlling the settings takes some getting used to.
- Its settings need a bit of tweaking to get them right, people recommend turning bass extension off, and using surround mode with voice enhancement on.
- It doesn’t work with all TV models.
- Some people have said that it begins to malfunction after a few months.
About the company:
Yamaha is a household name, and they make cars and motorbikes, guitars, pianos and many others. Their headquarters is in Shizuoka, Japan.
They have over 28,000 employees, with a yearly revenue of about USD$ 56 million, according to Wikipedia. It was founded in 1887. Because this company has been around for such a long time, and is so large, that it’s credibility is securely established.
Average rating
It has over 900 reviews, and has an average customer rating of a 4.2/5 on Amazon.
Technical nitty gritty
| Width | Height | Length | Weight | |
| Speaker | 35 inches (89 cm) | 2.2 inches (5.6 cm) | 5.2 inches length (12.7 cm) | 7.1 lbs (3.2 kg) |
05) Asiyun 2 X 5W Mini Bluetooth Sound Bar
The good:
- Small and compact design.
- Bluetooth and a microphone.
- 12 month warranty.
- Remote is easy to use.
- Low price point.
- Doesn’t distort at the maximum sound setting.
- Easy to install.
The bad:
- Isn’t the loudest, so only ideal for smaller rooms.
- Doesn’t have holes for mounting it.
- The Bluetooth connected notification is a bit annoying.
- Output is mono only.
- Customer service team is hard to reach.
- Some people have reported receiving a refurb or a return when they ordered a new model.
About the company:
Similar to the unbranded model above, there is no information of the company available online, with no support available. This is the case of buyer beware, although, the reviews are good, make sure you are well aware of the return policy.
Average rating
It has over 500 reviews, and has an average customer rating of a 3.7/5 on Amazon. This seems a bit low, but converting to a score out of 10 it gets a 7.4/10 which is pretty good.
Technical nitty gritty
| Width | Height | Length | Weight | |
| Speaker | 15.7 inches (40 cm) | 2.1 inches (5.3 cm) | 2.25 inches length (5.7 cm) | 1.21 lbs (540 g) |
06) Samsung 3.0 Sound+ Premium Soundbar HW-MS650/ZA
The good:
- Has 9 separate speakers.
- Comes with Alexa voice control.
- Has distortion cancelling technology.
- Has wireless connectivity with Bluetooth or Wi-Fi
- Works seamlessly with other Samsung products.
- Very attractive design.
- Can be turned up very loud, good for large rooms.
- It automatically turns off when you pause what you are watching, and turns itself back on when you unpause.
- Has a good amount of bass without a subwoofer.
The bad:
- Setting it up with Alexa can be quite difficult.
- Some people have mentioned they have issues connecting it to Wi-Fi.
- The manual is hard to understand
- Some tech support people aren’t that helpful.
- It doesn’t have screw holes at the back to mount it.
- Some people have issues with it turning off when you pause it, although, other people have said they like this feature.
- It is quite heavy relative to other soundbars.
About the company:
Samsung is a well-known company that makes electronics including mobile phones, TVs, speakers, and appliances. They are a South Korean company with a headquarters in Seoul.
They have an average yearly revenue of US$ 208.5 billion, according to Wikipedia, and were founded in 1938. This company is well respected and liked by consumers the world over, and I have confidence in their products.
Average rating
It has over 440 reviews, and has an average customer rating of a 4.2/5 on Amazon.
Technical nitty gritty
| Width | Height | Length | Weight | |
| Speaker | 41.73 inches (106 cm) | 3.07 inches (7.8 cm) | 5.14 inches length (13 cm) | 13.67 lbs (6.2 kg) |
07) TaoTronics 2.1 Channel TV Soundbar
The good:
- Has deep bass.
- Has multiple sound modes for movies, news, and music.
- Works with the remote and the buttons on the device.
- Is powered by a cord, not batteries.
- Can be mounted to the wall.
- Easy to install.
- Has a modern design that goes with most decor.
- Works with an Apple TV.
- Very crisp audio.
- Is completely waterproof and can be used in the shower.
- Lasts for a long time on one charge.
The bad:
- Has a bright orange LED display that is always on.
- Some people have said that the sound quality degrades, but is fixed by turning it on and off a few times.
- The anchors to connect to the wall are too small to hold its weight.
About the company:
Taotronics is a brand of the Sunvalley Group. It has its headquarters in Shenzhen, China. But, they were founded in San Jose, California in 2007, according to Wikipedia.
Taotronics have sold over 10 million products, and have a strong presence in the USA, UK, Japan, and Germany.
Average rating
It has over 260 reviews, and has an average customer rating of a 3.7/5 on Amazon.
Technical nitty gritty
| Width | Height | Length | Weight | |
| Speaker | 37.8 inches (96 cm) | 4.8 inches (12.1 cm) | 6 inches length (16.25 cm) | 7.39 lbs (3.35 kg) |
Overall Comments
Some of the soundbars that don’t come with a subwoofer have a good number of reviews, and a good average review rating. But, the companies that make them aren’t reputable and have poor customer service.
In our reasoning this makes them a poor option, because you will have issues returning defective products, and getting help from the customer support team if you run into technical issues.
The sound bars come in different sizes and depending on your requirements you may want to go with a bigger or smaller soundbar.
Conclusion
The best soundbar without a subwoofer is the Bose Solo 5 TV Soundbar, because it has the most ratings, a solid average rating score, a compact design, and a reasonable price.
Although, there are some bad things about each soundbar, some of the issues such as not working with certain TVs, and having issues connecting them, can be the result of user error, and not because of any fault with the product.
So, they should be taken with a grain of salt. In general, if you do run into any of these issues you can return it. This is dependent on buying from a reputable company, however, and certain brands should be avoided.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Bose Corporation
- Wikipedia: Sonos
- Wikipedia: Yamaha Corporation
- Wikipedia: Samsung
- Wikipedia: Sunvalley Group
Related Soundbar Articles
Where Should I Place My Soundbar?
When it comes to listening to music, watching a movie with family, or even playing a video game, everybody wants the best quality of sound. Usually, people tend….
How Does a Wireless Soundbar Work?
The technical nitty-gritty is a mystery that sound experts and engineers can’t explain. But, is functionally understood by the sending….