TV Sound bar

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Well I don't recommend Samsung sound bars. I've had two of them and they both went south both for different reasons and Samsung was of no help in getting repairs. Their support is frustrating at best.
YMMV

Smoky
 
Originally Posted By: Eddie
I need a sound bar to go with my 46 inch TV. Nothing extra special but a nice sounding unit to compliment my TV. Suggestions? Ed


Absolutely Eddie,

I suspect you will be MORE then HAPPY with this $39 sound bar from BEST BUY, if you are reading this in time, as it is on sale.
If not, pick ANY Insignia Brand Sound Bar from BEST BUY, you will be more then happy and if not, you can simply return it.
It will be a huge step up from the tiny speakers in any TV and I do understand that is all some people want.

Here is the current link and ad, keep in mind, its possible some sales person in Best buy may try to talk you into something expensive or more expensive, just say no and keep in mind you can always return it. You will find some of these Insignia bars sound just as good or better then more expensive brand name products.

Click Here-Current Insignia Sound Bars as of 11-9-17
 
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You will find a number of them around or under $100. Vizio is a popular choice. if you are in the mood for something a little better, I just got a Klipsch R10B for $250. (frequently sold for $600)
 
I may be too picky but I have had 3 sound bars. The last one was $699 from Best Buy and included a sub woofer. I have never been happy with any of them. I finally went and spent less that $1000 and got a receiver, 2 front speakers and a subwoofer. $25 / month payment at Best Buy. The difference in sound is amazing. Even my wife, who resisted the huge expense at first, says it was well worth it. I'm just saying to at least investigate a receiver package. I ended up selling my $699 sound bar system one year later for $250 after 3 months on Craigs list.
 
Originally Posted By: krismoriah72
I have a couple of year old Vizio 2.1 soundbar (soundbar plus subwoofer). I got for around $100 near christmas. I live privately with no neighbors and i can only bear it about half volume. The bass booms hard and the sound is incredible for the money.

I think this is the one i have but not sure on the model number.

https://www.amazon.com/VIZIO-SB3821-C6-3...vizio+sound+bar



+1. I have a similar Vizio setup with the rear speakers.
Is it as good as the setup that I had with a receiver? No.
However, it is a great value, and certainly is way beyond adequate.
After three receivers in five years, I got sick and tired of buying receivers.
Never again. Soundbars all the way.
Only gripe that I have had with mine, is that in the winter if not careful, the soundbar remote will turn of the infrared heater we use in the family room.
 
Originally Posted By: Gebo
I may be too picky but I have had 3 sound bars. The last one was $699 from Best Buy and included a sub woofer. I have never been happy with any of them. I finally went and spent less that $1000 and got a receiver, 2 front speakers and a subwoofer. $25 / month payment at Best Buy. The difference in sound is amazing. Even my wife, who resisted the huge expense at first, says it was well worth it. I'm just saying to at least investigate a receiver package. I ended up selling my $699 sound bar system one year later for $250 after 3 months on Craigs list.

The reason behind owning a soundbar is primarily aesthetic - you are trying to avoid wire clutter and save space, while hoping to improve on the sound that built-in TV speakers provide.

Like you, my experience is similar. We used to have a $600 Polk Audio soundbar and wireless sub setup in our bedroom in our old house. TV was wall-mounted and there was no room for full size speakers and a receiver, or it would just look cluttered and would be getting in the way. The sound was decent, but obviously not as good as from standalone dedicated components. I accepted the compromise because I had a nice home theater setup elsewhere in the house if I wanted to hear good audio.

This was the old bedroom setup... you can tell the TV's age by the size of the bezel.
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At our current place, the TV is sitting on a cart, so I was able to just use two small DefTech speakers, a basic home theater receiver, and a sub. The cost was also around $600, but the sound is much better, IMO.
 
If it's one of the newer TVs with the chicken feet instead of the stand, I'd try and find one that fits between them and under the TV. Makes for a nice, clean look.

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I had an Insignia TV and sound bar.
Hooking up the sound bar to the TV was easy.
Now I just got a brand new Samsung TV and I cant get the Insignia sound bar to work with the Samsung.
And I have tried everything, changed the settings tried optical and blue ray, it just wont sync.
The set recognizes the sound bar but the TV speakers wont shut off and every time I turn it off I have to reset it.
So just a heads up matching Insignia with Samsung.
 
Originally Posted By: Eddie
Lots of good info here so I will head for BB and see if they have any setups. Ed


Good luck, Just an FYI, been into good budget audio all my life, sort of, going back to the old days, brands like Akai (not even sure how to spell it anymore), NAD, Boston, Onkyo, Pioneer Elite, Paridigm so I certainly have nothing against more expensive sound bars then the Insignia that I have mentioned. Heck, I took out a 2 decade old set of speakers not used in the last 10 years, hooked them into the main channels of our Yamaha surround system and was blown away - 1. that they still work perfect and 2. how awesome they sound, still.

My reply was based on just getting superior sound over the tiny little speakers in the flat panel TVs and with sale prices on the Insignia Bars starting at $39, it cant be beat.

To put things in perspective,
This Black Friday of 2017, Walmart has a Sharp 4K 55" (55 inch!) TV on its front page for $298.00. If one is watching what they spend, you can buy two of these Best Buy sounds bars and one TV and still save some money!
I dont know how good the Sharp sets are but nothing to lose at that price, one thing for sure, they are "sharp" looking TVs.
Lower priced to mid priced TVs come from the same factories in China no matter what brand.
 
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I have a ZVOX Soundbase. It has 5 drivers and 2 subs built in. The only way you can do better is with a full surround set up.
 
I installed a Klipsch RSB-11 in my son's apartment. It sounds pretty good; I think that the sub helps a great deal.
That said, for less than $300 you can get a good surround speaker system like the Energy 5.1 Take Classic speaker system. Add a good budget AVR like the $229 Denon AVRS530BT and you will have a really nice sounding system for an extremely good price.
I have the same speakers in my basement HTS and I have been amazed at how nice they sound.
 
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