Best soundbar for TV in 2023 – our top picks

Get yourself the best soundbar for TV to elevate your audio experience. It’s not unusual to find the sound quality from your TV unsatisfactory. People tend to think of home cinema set-ups when it comes to soundbars, but they can be great for a gaming set-up too.

Granted they won’t offer you the same competitive advantage in first-person shooters that the best PS5 gaming headset does, but for immersion, they are almost unrivaled. It’s also ideal if you plan to play co-op games around the same screen meaning that everyone can enjoy high-quality audio/

We’ll cover the following things – how a soundbar works, features to look out for, who makes the best soundbar, and how to choose the best soundbar. Expect to see trusted brands like Sony, Sonos and Bose, who continue to lead the way in sound tech.

So, let’s jump to it, here are the best soundbars for TV.

Best soundbar for Samsung TV – Samsung Q800C soundbar

This Samsung Q800C delivers impeccable audio quality thanks to Q-Symphony sound, and came to the market in 2023.

Thanks to Wireless Dolby Atmos sound, you don’t need to worry about tangled HDMI 2.1 cables, and can instead enjoy a sleek audio setup to compliment your Samsung TV.

The Q800C is a great choice for those looking to maximise the potential of their Samsung TV. With True Dolby Atmos sound combined with Q-Symphony, Samsung has designed its soundbar to pair with existing TV speakers meaning nothing is going to waste.

We’re also a big fan of the wireless design, ensuring your set-up is sleek and modern looking.

Of course, this soundbar has the usual features like 3D audio, and adaptive sound and is layered with deep 5.1.2ch. This soundbar especially excels at ensuring the audio output is crystal clear, partly thanks to Adaptive Sound.

Finally, this soundbar is an excellent choice for gamers thanks to its strong woofers and 3D-optimized sound. We also like how the soundbar automatically activates the Game Modew in sync with your TV, allowing for a largely faff free experience.

Best soundbar for TV – Sonos Arc

The Sonos Arc launched in 2020 – and the soundbar is packed full of great features and technology. With absolutely phenomenal audio quality, this speaker stands up not only as the best smart soundbar, but the best overall one too.

Powered by the immersive Dolby Atmos codec, you’ll struggle to find better audio quality on a soundbar. We’ve selected this soundbar in our best picks not only for the superior sound, but also the smart capabilities of the device. Alexa and Google Assistant can run on the internal computer – which is powered by 1GB SDRAM and 4GB Non Volatile, and a quad core 1.4GHz A-53 CPU.

In terms of connectivity, the Sonos Arc has WiFi, Ethernet, HDMI eARC, and Apple Airplay 2. This means you can pretty much connect any device you can think of, so a lack of Bluetooth isn’t a problem unless you’re connecting a device from the early 2000s.

With eleven amplifiers, three silk-dome tweeters, and eight elliptical woofers, you’ll be hearing a really vibrant and spatial range of vocals, dialogue, bass, and acoustics. Alongside that, an adjustable EQ via the Sonos app allows you to adjust bass, treble, and volume, and this increases the level of modularity on the soundbar to a really professional and fine-tuned level.

You can check the price of the Sonos Arc here.

Best budget soundbar for TV – Creative Stage V2

Released in 2021, the Creative Stage V2 is a phenomenal budget soundbar with a great range of connectivity and audio features.

Perhaps the best feature of the Creative Stage V2 is the range of sound modes – which only makes the soundbar’s great price point even more attractive. Clear Dialog and Surround allow you to alternate audio modes to best suit the content you’re consuming, which is really rare at the price you’ll pay for the CS V2. While the Surround audio mode doesn’t really compare to what Dolby Atmos or a DTS Virtual:X technology might offer, it still offers a good level of 3D sound quality.

The small form factor also pushes the soundbar forward in the leader-boards, as it will likely fit nicely beneath any TVs.

Best mid-range soundbar for TV – Klipsch Cinema 400

With a great ratio of cost to performance, the Klipsch Cinema 400 is a great mid-range soundbar for your TV set-up, whether you use it for gaming, home cinema, or casual media use.

Fully equipped with a powerful subwoofer, this soundbar offers a really deep range of bass and acoustics despite the lack of Dolby Atmos support, so listening to bass-heavy music and watching films is no problem for the Klipsch Cinema 400.

You’ll be hearing crisp dialog and a beautiful dynamic range of acoustics, mids, lows, and highs, though the Surround Support is lacking – which means that you won’t be hearing full 3D audio. This isn’t a huge problem though, especially when the sound quality is as refined as this.

Best smart soundbar for TV – Bose Smart Soundbar 900

The Bose Smart Soundbar goes toe-to-toe with the Sonos Arc – vying for the top spot as the best soundbar for TV. Both are in a similar price range, though the superior sound quality of the Sonos Arc edges out its competition.

That said, the Bose Smart Soundbar is still a great product and is miles ahead of any other competition. The Bose Smart Soundbar trespasses the border of the speaker or soundbar, which is another great feature driving us to recommend it.

Its huge range of connectivity features really encourages it to stand out boldly. But, if you’re needing to watch TV quietly, pair a set of headphones with the soundbar so audio is then redirected from your TV to the headphones. This is a sneaky, underrated feature that more sound systems might think about incorporating after following Bose’s example.

Read More: Best headphones for Nintendo Switch

Bose also has its own app to pair your phone to apps includign Spotify, Deezer, Amazon Music, Tune In, etc. Useful, right?

The lack of Dolby Atmos is the key missing feature that narrowly undercuts this soundbar’s competitive performance. However, when paired with Bose’s Bass Module 700 and Rear Surround Speakers you can easily replicate the Surround Sound audio experience.

Best Dolby Atmos soundbar for TV – Sony HT-A7000

By far the most expensive soundbar on this list, this soundbar offers the most immersive Dolby Atmos listening experience.

You’ll be utterly lost in a sublime audio realm with Dolby Atmos and DTS: X. These technologies offer optional 360 Spatial Sound speakers and more, all adding to an impressive sounding experience.

This 7.1.2 speaker offers great bass, near unparalleled by any other soundbar. It’s particularly impressive as this is achieved without a dedicated subwoofer.

Sony 360 Reality Audio helps reaffirm the spatial audio design. Expect all rooms to be immersed in the movie or game you are enjoying.

Who makes the best soundbar?

There are a few audio engineering companies an octave above the rest:

• Bose
• Bang and Olufsen
• Sennheiser
• Harmon Kardon
• Sony
• Samsung

How does a soundbar work?

A soundbar is a long speaker composed of small, omni-directional audio devices inside. The speaker then functions by firing audio channels into several different directions so that you are hearing composite audio from multiple directions. 

This sound atmosphere is usually designed with the Dolby Atmos codec in mind – which essentially splits up audio into separate channels so that it can then be heard from multiple directions.

Essentially, a soundbar creates the impression that the audio you’re hearing from a single source, is coming from the surrounding environment around you. When sound is fired from the individual speakers in the soundbar, it bounces off the walls so the false sense of dynamic and real sound is created. 

A soundbar will function perfectly without a subwoofer, however we think that you might still want to think about grabbing one. While you will be able to hear everything perfectly fine from the soundbar, the difference in quality is purely aesthetic. It will add depth and a more refined human quality to speech, and it will build out the bass and add volume to explosions, music, and action scenes. 

Features to look out for in a soundbar

It can be quite difficult to gauge the quality of the best soundbar for your TV, especially when you’re shopping online. Reading specs and descriptions of audio devices can often seem quite futile, especially when those specifications are just jargon buzz-words and figures.

To help you out, we’re going to create a guide so that you can best evaluate what makes a soundbar good before you begin to buy. 

Dolby Atmos

As mentioned above, Dolby Atmos is the codec responsible for configuring audio into separate channels so that it can be output into multiple directions. It’s the same experience as the cinema, in which sound is fired from each direction to immerse you into the movie. 

Channels

Sometimes, when you’re listening to music with headphones you might hear one part of the audio output into the left ear – and another part to the right ear. This is done as some songs are mixed into two channels. The same happens for movie, game, and TV audio, which might be split into 5 – 7 channels. When audio is played through a soundbar or surround sound system, the several audio channels can be output into multiple directions. Essentially, more channels create a more realistic and immersive audio experience.

Connectivity

Especially if you’re shopping for a soundbar for TV, you’re going to want to confirm that the connectivity of both devices matches up. For example, you’ll want to be looking for a soundbar which has HDMI 2.1 so it can act as passthrough for the TV and device, such as your games console, to connect without losing any data quality. Alternatives to HDMI 2.1 are digital optical, however this will need to be connected directly from your output device to your soundbar, which means you’ll have to switch it over whenever you plug in a new console or device.

Final word – best soundbar for TV

If price was no object, we’d definitely pick the Sony HT-A7000 because of its incredible surround sound audio design.

However, you should choose Bose’s Smart Soundbar if you’re after versatility and an impressive range of connectivity ports.

Best soundbar for TV FAQs

When it comes to soundbars there are a few questions that come up time and time again. To help you out we’ve answered a chunk of them here.

Why get a soundbar for your TV?

A soundbar has a high quality speaker with a tiny footprint that produces boisterous and immersive sound. 

It’s likely that your TV has really unsatisfactory speakers. It’s not just cost effective for manufacturers to invest in producing high quality audio devices when most consumers will just upgrade to better speakers.

Soundbar vs Speaker?

Speakers are often huge, expensive, and consume a lot of space. A soundbar on the other hand is small and can be cost effective. They are designed to produce immersive, multi-directional audio, whereas speakers will often just fire sound in the direction they’re facing. Speakers might offer more refined audio, whereas a soundbar offers a well-rounded listening experience.

Who makes the best soundbar?

This is a hard question with no definitive answer. A few brands we know to make excellent soundbars include Bose, Sonos, Sony, and Klipsch.

Is a soundbar worth it?

Yes – soundbars are hugely popular for home entertainment thanks to their affordability, brilliant sound quality and easy set up.

Is there a big difference between 2.1 and 3.1 soundbar?

The simple difference between a 2.1 and 3.1 soundbar is that the 3.1 soundbar has an extra channel of sound, meaning it fills left, centre and right channels (known as LCR).

Is it worth buying a Dolby Atmos soundbar?

If you’re an avid movie watcher or game, then a Dolby Atmos is worth buying. The technology uses 3D sound to provide a full experience of lifelike sound overhead and around you, meaning games and movies could get even more immersive.

Do soundbars overheat?

Soundbars can overheat if they’re left on for long periods of time. To minimise this risk, keep any objects away from the soundbar to ensure proper ventilation.

Can you use any soundbar on any TV?

So long as you have the right cable, then you can probably connect any soundbar to any TV. The most common cable is HDMI Arc, and you’ll need to make sure that it’s long enough to reach both TV an soundbar.

Should I get a new soundbar?

Soundbars can last anywhere between 6 and 15 years, though newer soundbars have the advantage of the latest 7.1 Dolby Atmos which significantly improves the overall sound quality.

Is Dolby Atmos important in a soundbar?

Yes – Dolby Atmos will provide an immersive sound experience that makes owning a soundbar truly worth it.