A soundbar offers better audio quality than the speakers that come standard with modern TVs. Because of recent advancements in soundbar technology, a stand alone soundbar can be used on its own without the need for a complete home theatre system.
Soundbars also save space, relative to the 5+ speakers that come with a 5.1 home theatre system.
As a result, I have evaluated the top soundbars that are the best value for money, and put together a list of the top 3.
So, what soundbars are the best for the money? The best soundbars for the money are the:
- VIZIO SB2920-C6 29-Inch 2.0 Channel Sound Bar, Black
- Soundbar, TaoTronics Three Equalizer Mode Audio Speaker for TV
- TCL Alto 7+ 2.1 Channel Home Theater Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer – TS7010, 36″, Black.
Read on to discover what makes them so good.
How Did I Select the Best Soundbars for the Money?
The evaluation criteria I used are:
- The number of reviews
- The average review rating
- How widely supported they are by the major TV brands
- Wireless compatibility
- The sound quality
- How easy they are to set up and use
- How the price compares to other soundbars
The number of reviews
The amount of reviews is an indication of how many units have sold of this product. This indicates that the company has a sound marketing plan, excuse the pun. To drive sales, companies need to market well, and market effectively.
A company that does this is successful and intelligent which indicates other good things about their operations.
According to an employee that used to work at Amazon.com. About 15% of customers leave reviews on Amazon.
But, that is because Amazon is proactive about soliciting them. The average number of people that leave reviews is closer to under 5%, according to anecdotal evidence from many people.
If you know of any specific studies about the percentage of people who leave reviews, please let me know by sending me an email.
The average review rating
The average review rating is a key indicator of the quality of a soundbar. But, some people will leave reviews immediately upon getting the product. As a result, the review may not necessarily be about the actual soundbar. But, about the delivery, and packaging.
Although, delivery times, and packaging are important. I assume people reading this are more interested in the quality of the sound that comes from the soundbar, how easy it is to set up, and other factors.
So, this specific selection criteria should be taken with a grain of salt.
Whether the soundbar is compatible with common TV brands
In the world of soundbars, whether a soundbar is compatible with the TV brand you own is a key deciding factor. Because soundbars and other home theatre speakers are notorious for only working with components that are the same brand.
Quality soundbars are made to work with a wide range of TV and speaker brands. Whether you use them with or without a receiver.
This is a key question you should ask when deciding on a soundbar to use for your TV or computer. Soundbars are not generally used for a stand alone sound system used for only playing music.
Because of all these factors, it is one of my key selection criteria.
Wireless compatibility
Various wireless technologies provide more options for connecting devices. You can also play media from your friends and families phones, and laptops when they come over.
Devices such as phones, laptops, and computers are not always the easiest to connect with wires, and often don’t work at all.
So, when your soundbar has the ability to connect wireless over Bluetooth and Wi-fi, it makes it more versatile. That gives you better value for money. As a result, it is one of the factors I looked at when coming up with a list of the best soundbars for the money.
The sound quality
Although sound quality is subjective. You can tell how well a soundbar performs relative to previous soundbars you have used, and the speakers that come stock standard with your TV.
The sound quality a soundbar produces can be improved. It is done by experimenting with the speaker placement relative to each other, and where in your room they are located.
So, people’s comments about the speaker quality aren’t 100% accurate. But, when compared to what others say about similar soundbars it starts to form a clear picture about which soundbar is the best.
As a result, I have included it in my evaluation criteria.
Whether a soundbar is easy to set up and use
Some soundbars have displays that:
- Don’t dim when not in use
- Are not user friendly
- Don’t have a display at all
As well as, other model specific issues.
On top of that, many soundbars are just plain difficult to set up, due to a poor design. Therefore, I have combed through over a hundred reviews of candidates for the best soundbars. In order to identify whether they are easy to set up and use.
I have thus disregarded many models that didn’t make the cut. As well as, identifying how easy they are to set up, out of the box. Together, with the quality of their LED displays.
How the price compares to other soundbars
Soundbars have a range of prices. You can find soundbars anywhere from US$20 all the way up to US$1000+. But, most soundbars that perform optimally range from $200 to $600.
So, comparing how much they cost with the features they have is one of the factors I used in finding the best soundbar for the money.
How Do the Best Soundbars Compare with Others on the Market?
I will give a full in-depth review of the top three models I have selected, using my evaluation criteria below. Read on to get the full rundown of each.
01) – VIZIO SB2920-C6 29-Inch 2.0 Channel Sound Bar, Black
The number of reviews and average review rating
This soundbar has over 4,400 reviews -as of August, 2020- with an average rating of 4.3/5 on Amazon.com.
If I take the number of 15% of buyers leaving reviews. That this unit has sold over 30,000 units on Amazon alone.
| How widely supported they are by the major TV brands? | According to the answered questions on the Amazon listing for this product, it works with all TVs. |
| Wireless compatibility | It has Bluetooth compatibility. But doesn’t connect to Wi-fi. So, you can pair it to Bluetooth devices like smartphones and tablets. |
| Sound quality | The sound quality is rated at 4.1/5, by customers who have purchased it on Amazon. This is an A rating. But, without acoustic studies compared to other soundbars, it can’t be determined objectively. It gives a lot of credibility to the claims of Vizio that it has excellent sound quality. An 8/10 is definitely excellent. So, it is very good in this department. |
| How easy they are to set up and use? | It was rated as a 4.1 out of 5 stars for ease of installation, according to customers who have purchased it on Amazon. According to Vizio, you only need to turn it on, pair it with Bluetooth, and it works. But, connecting the cables can be a little bit tricky, especially if you haven’t done it before. Besides that, it is significantly above average in the ease of installation category. |
What does it come with in the box
It comes with:
- Remote control and 2x AAA Batteries
- A quickstart guide in English, Spanish, and French
- A power adapter (to plug it into the wall)
- A coaxial audio cable
- A stereo RCA to 3.5mm audio cable
- A digital optical cable
- 2x soundbar wall mount brackets
- 2x wall mount screws
- A wall-mount template
How the price compares to other soundbars
It is priced at US$78.99. Which is affordable. The low price brings into question it’s quality. But, based on the review rating it is a safe bet to buy this soundbar.
Summary for the Vizio SB2920
Overall, the Vizio SB2920-C6 is an excellent quality soundbar, that is priced quite low. There does not appear, based on my research, to be any drawback to buying this soundbar.
02) – TaoTronics Three Equalizer Mode Audio Speaker for TV
The number of reviews and average review rating
This soundbar has over 2,700 reviews -as of August, 2020- with an average rating of 4.4/5 on Amazon.com.
With the estimate of 15% of buyers leaving reviews, it would mean that over 18,000 have purchased this soundbar.
| How widely supported they are by the major TV brands? | It has all the connections and cables that come with it. So, it will work with any TV that has the connection points that are compatible with it. You should check the connection ports your TV has, to see if the corresponding cables work with this soundbar. I will list all the cables that come with it below. |
| Wireless compatibility | It has Bluetooth compatibility. So, you can connect it to a tablet or smartphone. From my research, it does not appear to be compatible with Wi-Fi. |
| Sound quality | The sound quality is rated at 4.3/5, by customers who have purchased it on Amazon. This is an A rating. It gives a lot of credibility to the claims that this soundbar has excellent sound quality. An 8.6/10 is an excellent rating score. So, you can rest assured the sound quality is very good on this soundbar. |
| How easy they are to set up and use? | There is no rating for how easy this soundbar is to install. But, based on customer reviews, people have stated that some parts of setting it up aren’t intuitive. A top comment on Amazon has said to: 1) Remove the plastic optical cable covers (they look like part of the cable) 2) Set PCM audio format on your TV (default is bitstream) 3) Set PCM on your Digital Output (default is Dolby) If you are experienced in setting up soundbars, then you should be ok setting this soundbar up. But, if you are new you might need to contact support and look around online to get it working. |
What does it come with in the box
It comes with:
- Remote Control
- Power cord
- An optical Cable
- A 3.5mm to RCA cable
- 2x wall mount kits
- A user guide
How the price compares to other soundbars
It is priced at US$79.99. Which is on the low end for sound bars.
Summary for the Taotronics soundbar
Overall, the Taotronics soundbar has good sound quality and is a fairly cheap price. People have reported that setting it up is a bit involved. However, once you get it set up it works great.
03) – TCL Alto 7+ 2.1 Channel Home Theater Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer – TS7010, 36″, Black
The number of reviews and average review rating
This soundbar has over 2,400 reviews -as of August 2020- with an average rating of 4.3/5 on Amazon.com.
Doing a quick calculation this unit has sold over 16,000 units on Amazon alone.
| How widely supported they are by the major TV brands? | The answered questions section for this soundbar on Amazon has said that it has all the cables necessary to connect it to any type of TV. |
| Wireless compatibility | It has Bluetooth compatibility. But doesn’t connect to Wi-fi. This means you can pair it to a Bluetooth device (such as a mobile phone, or laptop). |
| Sound quality | The sound quality is rated at 4.0/5. As rated by people who have purchased it on Amazon. This is a high rating, but not as good as the two soundbars on this list. |
| How easy they are to set up and use? | So far, it has been rated as a 4.1 out of 5, according to people who have purchased it on Amazon. So it is fairly easy to install, which is a big plus. |
What does it come with in the box
It comes with:
- Soundbar power cord
- Soundbar subwoofer
- Optical cable
- 3.5mm cable
- IR pass-through cable
- Wall mount kit
- Remote control
- 2x AAA batteries
- HDMI cable
- A subwoofer
The fact that it comes with a subwoofer is a big plus. The other sound bars on this list don’t come with a subwoofer. A subwoofer puts less strain on your soundbar, that makes it last longer. It also gives more depth of sound, and enhances it’s 3d immersive experience.
How the price compares to other soundbars
It is priced at US$129.99. It’s the most expensive of the soundbars on this list, but still relatively cheap compared with the sound bar market.
Summary for the TCL Alto 7+ 2.1 Channel Home Theater Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer
Overall, this soundbar is one of the best on the market. Because of how many reviews, and the review rating. The fact that it comes with a subwoofer is a big bonus. But, you end up spending a little bit more for it, than the other two soundbars on this list.
Conclusion
The criteria used to determine the best soundbar for the money are:
- The number of reviews
- The average review rating
- How widely supported they are by the major TV brands
- Wireless compatibility
- The sound quality
- How easy they are to set up and use
- How the price compares to other soundbars.
Based on my research the best soundbars for the money are the
VIZIO SB2920-C6 29-Inch 2.0 Channel Sound Bar, Black
Soundbar, TaoTronics Three Equalizer Mode Audio Speaker for TV
, TCL Alto 7+ 2.1 Channel Home Theater Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer – TS7010, 36″, Black.
So, definitely purchase one of these.
Sources
- Amazon.com: VIZIO SB2920-C6 29-Inch 2.0 Channel Sound Bar, Black
- Amazon.com: Soundbar, TaoTronics Three Equalizer Mode Audio Speaker for TV, 32-Inch Wired & Wireless Bluetooth 5.0 Stereo Soundbar, Optical/Aux/RCA Connection, Wall Mountable, Remote Control
- Amazon.com: TCL Alto 7+ 2.1 Channel Home Theater Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer – TS7010, 36″, Black
- Wikipedia: Receiver