If you ask me in this day and age a soundbar is a must and today we are looking for the best sound bar under $300. At this price point, we are starting to creep up a bit in terms of quality. To be honest with you guys, if you are dropping 300 bucks on a soundbar it better be pretty damn awesome. You can get a 4K TV for not much more than this these days so you want to make sure that if you are spending this much money, you are getting something great. That is why today we are looking at a handful of soundbars in the $200 to $300 range that will make your home entertainment so much better.
Do I Really Need A Soundbar?
There are many people who buy a new TV and are cool with the sound quality of the built-in speakers. God bless those people and more power to them. However, I would wager that those who feel that their TV speakers are fine, once they have heard the sound of their favorite movie, TV show, or video game coming through a soundbar would not be able to go back. In the quest to make TVs thinner and lighter, the speakers are what have taken a real hit.
Do I Need A Subwoofer?
Sometimes you can get a deal where you get the soundbar and a subwoofer as a package deal and this is great. For the average Joe, a subwoofer and rear speakers is probably a bit of overkill in all honesty with you. However, if you can get one without spending more money, by all means, do it. Some soundbars even have a subwoofer built into them.
Are Soundbars Hard To Setup?
Many soundbars these days offer Bluetooth connectivity. This depends on the soundbar and also the TV you have. Most of them have various hookups such as HDMI, optical, and so on. No matter if you are using some kind of cable or if it is wireless, I do not think you will have any trouble setting it up at all. All of the ones we are looking at today have various sound preset settings, but you can also tweak stuff like the bass and treble if you want to get really specific about the sound.
The 6 Best Sound Bars Under $300 Reviews
Here are a few different soundbars under $300 that I think are pretty damn awesome. I have tested a few of these myself, but the rest I just got good vibes from them when I was checking them out online.
- SAMSUNG HW-T550 2.1ch Soundbar
- Sony HT-S200F 2.1 Channel Soundbar
- LG SL5Y 2.1 Channel High Resolution Sound Bar
- Yamaha YAS-109 Sound Bar
- Niles CSF55A 55″ Active Soundbar
- Bose Solo 5 Sound System
1. SAMSUNG HW-T550 2.1ch Soundbar
Pros:
- The sound quality is great
- Very impressive vocal clarity
- It is simple to setup
- I love the design of it
Cons:
- It does not come with any cables
- Some people do not like the subwoofer!
I am a huge fan of Samsung and I love this SAMSUNG HW-T550 2.1ch Soundbar. I have used this quite a bit and feel that the roughly 230 bucks asking price is a great deal. This has that Samsung look to it so it is sleek (33 inches long) and pretty badass looking. It is designed with connecting to your TV with Bluetooth in mind, but it does also have an optical input as well for wired connectivity. This also comes with a damn fine subwoofer which is great considering the price.
I watched the first two Transformers movies back-to-back with this thing and the 3D Audio really shined. Video games as well sound great through this thanks to the dedicated game mode. It is a soundbar that will knock your socks off during intense action scenes, but the vocal clarity is also fantastic for more low-key stuff like dramas.
What Other People Are Saying
This has 86 percent positive reviews which is amazing considering there are over 8 thousand reviews for this thing! “the sound is excellent for movies and TV watching” it does not get much more straightforward than that does it. Most of the negative comments are about the subwoofer, but I just see that as an added bonus.
I love this and feel it has to be considered as the best sound bar under $300. To start with it is well under that 300 bucks mark. Yet it is the sound quality of this soundbar that makes me rate it so high. The fact it looks great sitting under your TV is just a very nice bonus!
2. Sony HT-S200F 2.1 Channel Soundbar
Pros:
- It costs very close to 200 bucks
- I love the sound quality
- The built-in subwoofer has way more power than you would think
- It has a very sleek and cool design
Cons:
- It may be a tad on the chunky side for some people
- I do not think it would look that great on the wall
It is pretty amazing that this Sony HT-S200F 2.1 Channel Soundbar costs only 220 bucks. I am a huge fan of Sony and have been since the 80s. This soundbar has a very elegant and classy look to it. It is only around 25 inches long so it does not take up much room at all, but it may be a tad on the chunky side for some people. This does have Bluetooth connectivity, but HDMI and ARC are also supported. A nice bonus is that mounting brackets are included in the box.
The sound quality that this produces is great. This is one of those soundbars that is going for a “surround sound” kind of thing and it pretty much does it in my opinion. The wife and I watched The Greatest Showman through this over the weekend and it sounded better than I had ever heard it before. It has a subwoofer built in (which explains the chunkiness) and it offers far more kick than you would think. I would happily have this as the soundbar in my theatre room and that is why it has made our list for the best sound bar under $300.
What Other People Are Saying
There are not actually many reviews for this on Amazon, however, everyone who has watched a movie with me via this has loved it. Also, check out this video review which gives a very fair and honest opinion about it which may help you make up your own mind about this.
I was blown away by this Sony HT-S200F 2.1 Channel Soundbar. How they are able to sell this at just over 200 bucks is beyond me! It has that Sony quality you would expect and I hand on heart could not see anyone being disappointed by what this has to offer.
3. LG SL5Y 2.1 Channel High Resolution Sound Bar
Pros:
- I think the asking price is a steal for this
- It is very easy to connect to your TV
- The sound this offers is great for movies, games, and TV
- The included subwoofer gives the sound that extra bit of kick
Cons:
- The subwoofer may take up a tad too much space
- This can drop in price quite regularly which is annoying if you pay full price
Next up in our quest to find the best sound bar under $200 we have this LG SL5Y 2.1 Channel High Resolution Sound Bar. LG tends to make great stuff, I actually had an LG Plasma TV that I bought back in 2007 which lasted over a decade, hell my sister still has it in her conservatory and it still works. This was the first LG soundbar I had the pleasure to check out and I like it. It costs $235 as of writing and it does come with a subwoofer. You can connect via Bluetooth, HDMI, or optical so all modern TVs are covered with this. It is 35 inches long, but I liked how it has a rather slim profile.
I got this thing hooked up really quickly and my son and his friends were using the TV to play Mario Kart so that was my first experience with this and it was great. It has a “smart audio” thing going on where it will make sure what you are listening to sounds just right, so commercials will no longer bust your ear drums. It has a lot of power to it and with the subwoofer, it is great for all kinds of movies.
What Other People Are Saying
As I write this there are 552 customer reviews over at Amazon for this. 88 percent of these are positive reviews so like most other LG products people who have used this are very happy with it. “I like the streamlined look and the sound quality is awesome.” Is what one reviewer had to say and this echoes the way I feel about this.
I have to admit I knew as soon as I opened up the box and before I connected this to my TV that I was going to like it. The LG SL5Y 2.1 Channel High Resolution Sound Bar is a fantastic soundbar and if you like LG products you are going to like this. It does what it does very well and sounds a million times better than any TV speakers!
4. Yamaha YAS-109 Sound Bar
Pros:
- That design is very eye-catching
- It is being sold for a very reasonable price
- It has Alexa functionality built in
- Very easy to set up and use
Cons:
- I am sure some will hate that “fabric” design
- Do you really care about Alexa?
As I was lurking around on Amazon I came across this Yamaha YAS-109 Sound Bar. I may not have gotten my grubby little hands on this, but it caught my attention right away. It has a more fabric than plastic look to it which I feel will either be just what you are looking or gross you out pretty bad! It has a 220 bucks asking price which seems pretty fair to me. It is 35 minutes long which is about average at this price point. While it does offer Bluetooth connectivity, you can also use HDMI or optical if you prefer.
I have had a real good look at this thing and it does sound very promising. I like the way they specifically mention clear voice which offers enhanced dialogue clarity. This is great as speaking is something many TV speakers do far too quietly. The remote looks great as it has a number of different presets on it. I am sure this thing has some nice deep bass thanks to the two subwoofers that it says it has!
What Other People Are Saying
With over 1000 customer reviews and 80 percent of them being highly positive, people seem to be pretty happy with this soundbar. “Sound quality is on point and easily fills the room, even at 1/3 volume which I usually keep it at” is what one very happy customer had to say about this.
I like Yamaha I really do and I think they have a very solid-looking product here. I get that the design might not be to everyone’s taste, but I do like it. From what I have read in regards to the specs and what customers have had to say, I am sure the sound is going to be great. I also like how the remote offers six different presets for you to play around with.
5. Niles CSF55A 55″ Active Soundbar
Pros:
- Great if you want a soundbar to go into the wall!
- It has eight speakers
- This thing is pretty massive
- The couple reviews I read were very positive
Cons:
- Only useful if you want a subwoofer to go into the wall
- This is not something that will be useable for the majority of people
Next up we have this very interesting looking Niles CSF55A 55″ Active Soundbar. This is currently priced at just under 300 bucks so it is very close to our price limit. However, at 55 inches this monster is the biggest soundbar on our best sound bar under $300 list. The idea of putting a soundbar directly into your wall may sound crazy, but I am sure some people will love it.
I am sure that this has some serious kick to it, but there is so little information about what this has going on inside it! It looks like it has eight speakers inside of it so I am sure the sound is fantastic and very close to offering you that 3D kind of audio. I do wonder about bass though so you may want to think about getting a subwoofer to go along with this.
What Other People Are Saying
There is very little information about this online, but on Amazon, it has two reviews and they are both for five stars. “This soundbar is a great solution for those that want a plug and play solution to upgrading the poor sound quality that most TVs produce” This certainly makes this sound very promising.
As I have not personally used this and there is so little information given on the sales page, it is pretty hard for me to give an educated opinion on this thing. I do think the idea of putting a soundbar in the wall is pretty interesting, however, I am sure this is something only a very small number of people would want to do.
6. Bose Solo 5 Sound System
We are ending our search for the best sound bar under $300 with this Bose Solo 5 Sound System. Bose makes amazing audio equipment so I was very happy to have them on this list. This is priced at 223 bucks, but it does come with the wall mount should you want it on the wall. This thing looks great, I like how thick it is and the length of it is only a little over 20 inches so it could be ideal for those of you without a lot of space. It comes with a great remote and it even comes packaged with an optical cable. This does NOT have Bluetooth connectivity so keep that in mind.
I have never used a Bose product and been disappointed with it and this one I am sure would be the same if I had it in hand to check out. I like how Bose specifically mentions that they have enhanced dialogue with this along with deep bass and an overall richer sound. Bose knows what they are doing when it comes to audio so I am sure your ears will be taken care of if you have this.
What Other People Are Saying
I found this fantastic video review where the guy is pretty blown away by the quality of this soundbar when it comes to movies. Also on Amazon, there are a phenomenal nearly 18 thousand reviews for this thing and 87 percent of these are for 4 and 5 stars so the reception to this online is overwhelmingly positive.
Out of the three soundbars that I have not personally tested, this Bose Solo 5 Sound System to me seems like it would be the best of the bunch. Bose just makes great stuff and I see this one being no different. If you want kick-ass sound for your movie nights, you may want to take a closer look at this one.
Pros:
- I love the style of this thing
- It has thousands and thousands of good reviews
- Bose always make great products
- The price is very reasonable
Cons:
- It may be a bit “thick” in the design
- No Bluetooth connectivity
What Is The Best Sound Bar Under $300?
Ok folks, so I have to be honest with you and say I am going to be a bit of a coward here and call this thing mainly a tie. I keep flipping between the SAMSUNG HW-T550 2.1ch Soundbar and the Sony HT-S200F 2.1 Channel Soundbar. Both of these are truly fantastic and you cannot go wrong with either one in my opinion. If I had a gun to my head and had to pick just one, it would be the Sony, but only by like a quarter of a point, that is how close this one is, but that would be my pick for the best sound bar under $300.
