Yamaha YAS-209 vs Bose Soundbar 500 which is a better choice?

Check out these two excellent products: Yamaha YAS-209 and Bose soundbar 500. Do you find yourself in a situation where you need to pick one? Surely, the first thing that will run through your mind is selecting the best. Yea, this sounds rational. But the right question that requires an explicit answer is “how do I know the better one?”. You could relax because we’ve got you covered in this piece. This article will not only tell you the better choice but also unveil the particular areas that make one superior to the other.

The matchup of these two soundbars may appear strange.  But it is fascinating to me to put 209 against Bose Soundbar 500. And it’s a great way to know the best fit when setting up your studio. You know how you feel when you experience a fantastic jamming session because of the soundbar used. A soundbar is expected to bring life to your studio and enhance the overall experience.

Yamaha YAS-209

Yamaha yas-209 is an affordable and entry-level soundbar, featuring a 2.1 setup. It’s an advanced version of YAS-207 with a large, wireless subwoofer and eschews Dolby Atmos and eARC supporting DTS Virtual:X and standard ARC.

It’s an excellent soundbar with a superb sound profile. Yamaha yas-209 is a subwoofer designed to produce good low-frequency sound, especially bass. This makes the soundbar fit into numerous different uses.

Yamaha yas-209 has two channels (one on the right, the other on the left). The soundbar, therefore, may fail to project properly surround sound if there are no dedicated satellites speakers. Nevertheless, the product features a virtual surround sound setting which may be an effective solution to the problem.

The soundbar is designed with a built-in Alexa feature with fairly user-friendly controls. Also, it’s an advanced version of yas-207, with a sleeker design.

One crucial point about yas-209 is that it offers excellent performance.  It’s claimed that the product does not fail to uphold largely the fantastic reputation Yamaha has been building for itself with soundbars.

Unique Production 

Starting with the build quality of yas-209, the product is built in a very decent and portable way.  An improvement on the previous version (Yas-207) is the controls seen on the top of the soundbar. This makes it possible not to have any distracting control lights when it’s in use, especially when watching TV. The soundbar is covered by mesh-like fabric, but the back and the top for the inputs are plastic-made. Also, the mesh fabric covers the parts (the front and one side( made of melamine. In its box, you will see objects such as remote, soundbar power cable, subwoofer power cables, optical cable, wall-mounting template, and manual.

Yamaha yas-209 is not designed with any satellites. It features a fairly wide bar, which may depend on your TV. Nevertheless, it won’t cover your TV’s screen because it’s not too high. Also, the soundbar comes with two holes for universal mounts and two slots for inputs. Its back is not so different from the yas-207,  but plugging the power source is done in the back.

Sound Quality 

Yamaha yas-209  features an excellent stereo frequency response. A good low-frequency extension is created through the subwoofer, which every movie and music lover will enjoy. Its stereo soundstage is impressively decent. The soundbar sounds highly focused, making it easy to tell that its sound is coming from a specific location and not a general area like that of Bose Soundbar 500, with more diffused sounds.

The stereo dynamics of the soundbar are also very decent. Although it’s not as loud as some soundbars, it can still offer needed satisfaction. Also, it’s great that the max volume has not much compression. The stereo harmonic distortion performance is excellent.  The THD falls within normal limits, and there won’t be any obvious jump under heavier loads. This implies that listeners will still enjoy the clear and pure sound, even at max volume.

Moreover, the soundbar’s center channel performance is decent. It may offer a more diffused and less clear reproduction of center noises because the bar doesn’t feature a dedicated center channel but makes use of stereo channels to form a phantom-localized center. The soundbar produces a fairly well-balanced sound on the upside. It is conspicuously quieter compared to other soundbars.

Yas-209’s surround performance is poor due to its 2..1 configuration. Also, it doesn’t support Atmos content for those looking for it. However, it comes with sound enhancement features and six different EQ presets designed for several content types. Besides, an immersive surround mode and DTS-X 3D virtual surround setting are parts of its features.

Connections

Yamaha yas-209 features have common inputs such as Optical Audio In, HDMI ARC, and Full HDMI In ports to connect a gaming console or Blu-Ray. The soundbar has a USB slot (for updates) and an Ethernet port.

Yas-209 supports DTS and Dolby Digital over the HDMI ARC port, making it possible to receive 5.1 surround sound on content that supports it. But it doesn’t support object-based or lossless formats.

The soundbar features WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity. It also comes with a built-in Alexa feature. You can easily play music from your apps by connecting to your phone. However, yas-209 doesn’t support Apple AirPlay and Google Chromecast. It only supports HDR10 pass-throughs, 4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4, 4k @ 60Hz @ 10 bit, and 4k @ 60Hz.

Why should you Buy Yamaha Yas-209?

You may want to consider choosing Yamaha yas-209 because of its unique features, including a well-balanced sound profile, decent build quality, and excellent stereo performance.

 

Bose Soundbar 500

Bose soundbar 500 is a popular soundbar ideal when used without the separate sub and back satellites. Although it’s not as loud as their soundbars, Bose Soundbar 500 features an incredible sound profile that is fairly well-balanced and neutral sounding. Notwithstanding, some people think that this bar does not come with sub-bass. Besides, as the soundbar is unable to get very loud, it has an issue performing at maximum volume. It also compresses too much, particularly in the bass range.

Bose soundbar 500 has a 3.0 setup with L/R drivers. On the upside, these drivers will fall on the side of the bar, helping to widen the soundstage a bit.

Unique Production 

As for the overall build quality of Bose Soundbar 500, it is excellent. It’s mostly designed with high-quality plastic except for the metal grill at the sides and the front face. The total build is not too premium, though it feels robust. In the box, buyers will see a remote, manuals, small screwdriver  HDMI cable power cables (x4), satellite Brick (x2), brick to satellite cable (x2), bar power brick, and bose ADAPTiQ headset (for room calibration).

The soundbar comes with a fairly simple bar but not too wide. It’s not too tall, so it shouldn’t obstruct your view while watching TV. At the back, the bar features an opening in the middle and a port on the left for all the input connections. To wall-mount this soundbar, you will need to peel the big rubber feet off on the underside to see the mounting holes

Sound Quality 

Bose soundbar 5oo features a fairly high low-frequency extension, making the bar have issues reproducing the bass-heavy music genres and deep rumble and thump from movies. Although the overall sound profile lacks a bit of sub-bass, it is flat and well-balanced. The soundstage, stereo dynamics performance, and THD performance are outstanding.

More-so, the soundbar features excellent performance in the center channel. As a 3.0 setup, Boss 500 comes with a dedicated center channel, which offers a more accurate and clearer audio reproduction. Finally, the sound enhancement features of the soundbar are quite decent.

Connections

  For connectivity,  this soundbar 500 features a limited set of physical connections. Because it lacks a Full HDMI In, the soundbar can’t be put in between your TV and game console.

It supports eARC, but the formats must be re-encoded into Dolby Digital to play them.  Users won’t have a more immersive experience while using this bar because it doesn’t support object-based surround sound formats such as Dolby Atmos.

It features excellent wireless playback options such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. It supports Apple AirPlay but not Chromecast built-in.  

Why should you Buy Bose Soundbar 500?

You may want to consider choosing Bose Soundbar 500 because of its unique features, including its decency for music, fairly flat and well-balanced sound profile, room correction on the upside ( for better sound in your room),

 

Comparing the Yamaha YAS-209 with the Bose Soundbar 500: What is the best solution?

Both of the soundbars are wonderful.. But when it comes to mixed usage, the Yamaha yas-209 is better than Bose soundbar 500. Also, yas-209 has a better center channel performance and reproduces a more extended low-bass. Unlike the Bose soundbar 500, the Yamaha features EQ presets for sound customization and a Full HDMI In port. Nevertheless, Bose soundbar 500 is considered better built and comes with a room correction feature.  Besides, it supports Apple AirPlay connectivity.

The Verdict 

Do you need great soundbars that can fit your space and offer you a fantastic sound quality experience? Yamaha YAS-209 soundbar and the Bose soundbar 500 are excellent products for you. But the better one will be based on your preference.  For a better-built product and one with a  room correction feature, Bose soundbar 500 will be the ideal soundbar. But for a product with better-mixed usage and better center channel performance, Yamaha YAS-209 will be the better choice.

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