Best Soundbar Deals: 2.1 Bars to Dolby Atmos Systems

A soundbar is described with a channel count. 2.0 means two channels and no subwoofer — better than the TV, but with limited bass. 2.1 adds a subwoofer, which is the configuration most people should buy. 3.1 puts a dedicated centre channel in the bar, which sharpens dialogue. 5.1 adds surround speakers behind you, usually wireless ones you plug into a wall. Numbers like 5.1.4 add upward-firing drivers that bounce sound off the ceiling for a height effect. The dot matters: a 3.1.2 bar has three front channels, one sub and two height drivers. More channels can mean a bigger bubble of sound, but only if the room and the source audio cooperate.

Two cables do most of the work. Optical carries audio one way and is on almost every TV; it is limited to compressed surround and cannot pass the highest-quality formats. HDMI eARC carries audio back from the TV to the bar and supports uncompressed formats and Dolby Atmos, so if your TV has an eARC port, use it. Bluetooth is for streaming music from a phone, not for the TV signal. A subwoofer that connects wirelessly saves you a cable across the floor, which is why almost every 2.1 and 5.1 bar here uses one.

1. A bar and sub for $53.64

is the cheapest full 2.1 setup here, with dual drivers and a wireless sub. At this price it is the low-risk first upgrade for a small TV.

2. A compact bar at $65

is a slim bar for a bedroom or secondary TV, where a subwoofer would be overkill. Keep it small and it does the one job of making dialogue audible.

3. An LG 5.1 bar at $119.99

supports Atmos and a wide channel count, but the listing says the bar only, so check whether the sub and rears are included. Buy it only if you already have the missing pieces.

4. A Hiwill Atmos bar at $128.68

bundles front speakers and a sub in a mainstream-price package. It is the value pick for someone who wants Atmos without a big-brand price.

5. An LG 4.1 system at $131

is the first listing here to include rear speakers, which is what creates a real surround effect. If movies matter more than music, the rears are worth having.

6. An LG NB3540 at $139.60

is an older LG package with Dolby and DTS decoding and a wireless sub. It is the kind of previous-generation bar that delivers a lot of sound for the money.

7. An LG 2.1 bar at $148.80

offers HDMI ARC, optical and Bluetooth inputs with 300W of power. It is the sensible mid-price 2.1 for a living room that does not need rear speakers.

8. A Bose TV Speaker at $152

is a certified refurbished all-in-one bar known for crisp, clear dialogue rather than earth-shaking bass. If your complaint is that you cannot hear speech, this is the targeted fix.

9. An LG SP7R at $159.99

quotes 580W and Meridian tuning with the rear speaker kit included. At this price it is a lot of channels for the money.

10. An LG S60TR at $233

is a 5.1 system with a wireless sub and rears, tested and functional. It sits in the comfortable middle of the wired-surround options.

11. An LG OLED bar at $275

pairs HDMI, Bluetooth and Dolby Atmos with a wireless sub, and is tuned to sit with LG's OLED televisions. It is the upgrade pick for an OLED owner.

12. A ULTIMEA 5.1.4 at $359.28

quotes 760W with two wireless surround speakers and an 8-inch sub, which is the point where a soundbar starts to rival a modest receiver setup.

13. An LG S6FTR at $619.99

is a current LG 5.1 system with the brand's TV-synergy features. It is for a buyer who wants a matching LG chain from TV to bar.

14. Flagship systems at $1,199 and up

is a 1570W, 11.1.4 system with detachable rear speakers, and the pairs Bose's top bar with a large sub. The tops the page at $2,199. These are dedicated home-cinema purchases, not living-room conveniences.

In a small room a 2.0 bar is often enough and a subwoofer can overwhelm the space with boom. In a typical living room a 2.1 bar with a wireless sub is the sweet spot: the bar handles dialogue and the sub handles the action. In a large or open-plan room, or one where you watch a lot of films, rear speakers turn a good bar into a genuine surround system. The sub itself deserves a mention because it takes up floor space and needs to sit away from a corner, where it will sound muddy. A wireless sub at least removes the cable run, but not the placement problem.

Buy a 2.1 bar with a wireless sub unless your TV is tiny or you already own a sub. Spend on HDMI eARC and a centre channel before you spend on channel counts, because clear dialogue is what people notice first. Rear speakers are the upgrade that makes movies feel like an event. For the headphone side of the same question, our comparison of Sony vs Beats vs Bose looks at what those same brands do for private listening.