New to soundbars, would like one but no idea where to start

Samt1

Established Member
Joined
Mar 19, 2007
Messages
516
Reaction score
27
Points
129
Location
United Kingdom
Hi all, I'm hoping for some much needed advice.
I have an LG 55 4k TV which I am very happy with and have always thought about getting a sound bar but never known where to start. I watch a lot of Netflix, Sky Q and have a Nintendo Switch.
I have had a quick look and picked three that might be of interest.

Sky Soundbox, like the fact it integrates with Sky Q, seems a bit big to sit in front of the TV?
Sonos Beam: I have Alexa through the house controlling heating and lights so seems a good one, about the most I'd pay I think
Bose Solo 5: Always heard good things about Bose, seems a cheaper option but is that any good.

I'm wondering if people could help me and also add any others that ight be worth checking out?
Thanks
 
I sense maybe you don't want to break the bank which is fine so one option I'd suggest you look at is the Yamaha YAS-207 which is rated very highly by both reviewers and owners and can be had for about £250 at richersounds.

Unless you're invested in the Sonos ecosystem I'd avoid the Beam as it's overpriced while the Sky Box won't cut it for sound quality which leaves the Solo 5 which.......well I wouldn't bother with anything soundbar based from Bose.
 
Last edited:
I sense maybe you don't want to break the bank which is fine so one option I'd suggest you look at is the Yamaha YAS-207 which is rated very highly by both reviewers and owners and can be had for about £250 at richersounds.

Unless you're invested in the Sonos ecosystem I'd avoid the Beam as it's overpriced while the Sky Box won't cut it for sound quality which leaves the Solo 5 which.......well I wouldn't bother with anything soundbar based from Bose.

Thanks for your reply, I'm thinking £500 is about the max i would want to spend.
How about the Bose 500, I know you've said you would avoid Bose sounders, are they not very good?

This might sounds silly but I don't really want a separate sub woofer.
 
Thanks for your reply, I'm thinking £500 is about the max i would want to spend.
How about the Bose 500, I know you've said you would avoid Bose sounders, are they not very good?

This might sounds silly but I don't really want a separate sub woofer.

Bose soundbars are not good value for money it's as simple as that.

Why don't you want a sub? Is it s space issue? They're normally quite discreet and since they're wireless they can be slotted away in any corner of the room.
 
Bose soundbars are not good value for money it's as simple as that.

Why don't you want a sub? Is it s space issue? They're normally quite discreet and since they're wireless they can be slotted away in any corner of the room.

Ah ok, point taken on Bose.
I wasn't keen on a sub just for my OCD layout lol, I would have space so if there was a better option that included a sub then I would definitely look at it.
What would you suggest in the £400 - £500 range? It seems quite a few of them are quite high and would get in the way of the TV so would need to raise it a bit I think

I've attached a pic of my TV so there's plenty of room for a sub.
 

Attachments

  • TV.jpg
    TV.jpg
    200.5 KB · Views: 146
I'm not sure how much space you have on your stand....I was going to suggest the MS650 from Samsung as subless soundbar that's highly rated and well priced but it may sit too tall for your TV/stand.
 
I'm in the same boat as the original poster - I have an LG OLED55B7V, and am looking for soundbar options. My TV has the exact same curved stand as shown in the photo in this thread, which means I have no room in front of the TV for a soundbar on my TV stand.

I am a little confused about soundbars, as I would have expected some of them to have their own replacement TV stands so they can be bolted underneath the TV, but that seems not to be the case? Or are their third-party solutions? I don't mind taking the factory LG stand off and replacing it with a soundbar stand. LG themselves seemed to have had one soundbar model with this kind of in-built stand option, but I'm not sure it is still available, and it certainly wasn't a high-end soundbar.
 
I'm also looking for a new soundbar, again for my B7, I'm currently hanging on for the new 2019 LG bars to be released this month to see what they are like. Possibly the SL8Y or SL9Y.
I will be changing my curved stand to a standard 3rd party one at the same time.
 
I'm also looking for a new soundbar, again for my B7, I'm currently hanging on for the new 2019 LG bars to be released this month to see what they are like. Possibly the SL8Y or SL9Y.
I will be changing my curved stand to a standard 3rd party one at the same time.
Do you have any recommended third party TV stands? If I can just take the curved LG stand off and have some kind of flat one, that would give space.
 
— As an Amazon Associate, AVForums earns from qualifying purchases —
— As an Amazon Associate, AVForums earns from qualifying purchases —
Looks good! A soundbar would be okay sitting across that pedestal? I've never had a soundbar before, I don't know if they are supposed to be sitting flat on a surface, or whether lying across a pedestal would be okay.

Not 100% sure to be honest. May be worth seeing if there are any pics in the amazon reviews etc
 
I disagree about the Sonos Beam. I changed my Yamaha soundbar to a Beam and thoroughly recommend it. Its excellent. I have now added two play ones as surround and it is even better.
The Yamaha was good and was paired with the Yamaha Half size sub, but the Beam is better
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom