Question Soundbar recommendation - budget £500

jdevil

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Hello folks,
I've finally saved up and gone for a OLED 55" due to be delivered soon, I'm a big film goer so I would like to also accompany the tv with a set of good speakers.
There's a lot of soundbars in the market, each one has their pro's/con's but it seems hard to nail anything under £500. I would love to experience Dolby Atmos but understand this won't be possible in this budget and haven't been exposed to any sort of home cinema sound bar. For me the most impact feature is the sound quality, I'm not fussed about music streaming/alexa/siri as it'll be plugged in for TV usage 99% of the time.

Most forums and sites recommended the Sonos Beam which can be had for £300'ish but I'm also looking at the Sonos Playbase which can be had for under £500. I understand this is discontinued and cautious to throw £500 down the drain knowing the controversy around the Sonos 5 tear support.

So is the Sonos Beam really the best soundbar for under £500?
 
Actually I can rule out the Playbase, it doesn’t have HDMI (unbelievable).
 
Can’t necessarily rule ones in for you but wouldn’t recommend Sony ht-g700 from experience.

I’ve just got a beam and it is a little bit of a revelation for it’s size. Considering adding the IKEA speakers as rears which would be around your budget still too.
 
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You can’t really go wrong with the beam. Just a shame you missed the £299 deal from Sonos. You can still pick up the Playbar refurbished or second hand for a decent price but it‘s optical only.
 
Hello folks,
I've finally saved up and gone for a OLED 55" due to be delivered soon, I'm a big film goer so I would like to also accompany the tv with a set of good speakers.
There's a lot of soundbars in the market, each one has their pro's/con's but it seems hard to nail anything under £500. I would love to experience Dolby Atmos but understand this won't be possible in this budget and haven't been exposed to any sort of home cinema sound bar. For me the most impact feature is the sound quality, I'm not fussed about music streaming/alexa/siri as it'll be plugged in for TV usage 99% of the time.

Most forums and sites recommended the Sonos Beam which can be had for £300'ish but I'm also looking at the Sonos Playbase which can be had for under £500. I understand this is discontinued and cautious to throw £500 down the drain knowing the controversy around the Sonos 5 tear support.

So is the Sonos Beam really the best soundbar for under £500?
there is a sub 500 sharp and vizio atmos soundbars available reviewed on here so check them out but just be aware atmos is very room/content/hardware dependant.
 
Thanks for the comments, after reading a bit more into it. I might just go for the Beam when it's £299 again and invest on Ikea or Sono SL speakers over time.
 
Thanks for the comments, after reading a bit more into it. I might just go for the Beam when it's £299 again and invest on Ikea or Sono SL speakers over time.

Word of warning, you maybe waiting until late this year. Sonos typically only discounts around Christmas time unless I’m mistaken. If you know any healthcare workers though there is 15% off with Bluelight.
 
A70 is within budget
 
Is the Sonos Beam considered a step down from the Playbar?
some folks prefer the beam its a more modern design, had a playbar briefly,over rated in my opinion,
 
A70 is within budget
have a look on ebay brand new 99.00
 
Is there a general concenus as to the best bar around the 500 mark? Currently considering a HW q70t or JBL 5.1
 

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