The best soundbars for your TV in 2024: No more struggling to hear the dialogue!

Modern TVs are glorious, delivering vibrant color and razor-sharp images — a veritable feast for the eyes. But what about the ears? Not so much: Those built-in speakers tend to be small, low-powered and not even pointed in your direction. That's why a soundbar is an essential addition, as it'll not only improve the overall audio quality in your living room, but also make it easier to hear dialogue.

OK, so what's the best soundbar to improve volume, voice clarity and sound in general? How much do you need to spend? And are they difficult to use? Those are great questions, and I've got answers (many of which are below the reviews, so keep scrolling!).

Here are seven of my top soundbar picks, all of them tested and reviewed by yours truly. They're all reasonably easy to set up and operate, though in many cases you'll need to venture online — to the company's website — if you want a detailed instruction manual. (Printed documentation usually consists of little more than a quick-start guide.)

There's something here for every budget, from $150 for a simple setup to a $1,300 home-theater sound system splurge. I recommend investing a little more if you can, because quality speakers really do make a difference for clear dialogue and an overall great sound. Don't your ears deserve it?

Best soundbars for dialogue in 2024

VIZIO

Vizio V-Series V214x-K6 2.1 Home Theater Soundbar

Best value soundbar

Audio channels: 2.1 | HDMI port: No | Wireless: Bluetooth | Built-in voice assistant(s): No | Dolby Atmos: No

Vizio makes some of the top-rated soundbars in the biz, budget and fancy alike. This one falls squarely in the former category, with the lowest price tag in the group. Despite that, it's a solid pick, offering bright, nicely balanced sound and perks like a dialogue mode and virtual surround to boost dialogue clarity. Just be prepared for a few setup and usability challenges: the instructions aren't great, and the soundbar's LEDs are hard to interpret.

Pros

• Affordable price
• Dedicated dialogue mode
• Loud, nicely balanced sound

Cons

• Can be challenging to set up
• No HDMI input
• Confusing LEDs

$125 at Amazon

Roku

Roku Streambar Pro

Best soundbar for streamers

Audio channels: 4.1 | HDMI port: Yes | Wireless: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi | Built-in voice assistant(s): Roku | Dolby Atmos: No

A solid soundbar with a premium Roku streaming box built right in, the extras-laden Streambar Pro features Dolby Audio, a superb remote and more. This is an especially great setup for headphone fans: You can plug wired ones into the remote or pair Bluetooth headphones to the soundbar itself. The latter is light on bass, but you can add a wireless subwoofer (and wireless rear speakers) if you wish.

Pros

• Nicely balanced sound
• Adds a premium Roku experience to your TV
• Headphone jack on remote for private listening

Cons

• Light on bass
• Occasional streaming glitches

$172 at Amazon

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$180 at Kohl's$180 at Staples

Zvox

Zvox AccuVoice AV355 Dialogue Clarifying Soundbar

Best soundbar for those with hearing loss

Audio channels: 3 | HDMI port: No | Wireless: No | Built-in voice assistant(s): No | Dolby Atmos: No

Zvox's AccuVoice soundbars are utterly amazing at voice enhancement, such that you'll no longer have to crank the volume to maximum (thereby sending others fleeing the room) to hear what's being said. The AV355 in particular offers 12 distinct levels of voice adjust or "voice boost," which is probably an overkill number, but it's hard to argue with the results. Although it lacks a few features (most notably Bluetooth), no other soundbar is as good at making speech sound louder and more natural. For anyone with even a little hearing loss, it's the best choice.

Pros

• Multiple levels of voice enhancement
• Bright LCD shows volume and mode setting
• Very good remote

Cons

• Lacks Bluetooth
• Underpowered for large rooms
• Not much bass

$190 at Amazon

Bose

Bose Smart Soundbar 600

Best affordable Dolby Atmos soundbar

Audio channels: 5 | HDMI port: Yes | Wireless: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi | Built-in voice assistant(s): Alexa, Google | Dolby Atmos: Yes

Despite its compact size and relatively low price, the Bose 600 can really fill a room — and it's especially good at enhancing dialogue. It's packed with features and exceeds the close-rival Sonos Beam in a few key ways — not the least of which is actual up-firing speakers to achieve real-deal Dolby Atmos audio. Plus, it includes an actual remote, unlike the Beam.

Pros

• Room-filling audio in a compact form factor
• Dolby Atmos on the cheap
• Dialogue really pops

Cons

• Minimal printed instruction
• Barely visible volume LEDs
• Light on bass

$499 at Walmart

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$499 at Amazon$499 at QVC

Sonos

Sonos Arc Premium Smart Soundbar

Best smart soundbar

Audio channels: 11 | HDMI port: Yes | Wireless: Wi-Fi | Built-in voice assistant(s): Alexa, Google | Dolby Atmos: Yes

Hold onto your wallet: The Arc is one of the most expensive soundbars around. It's also one of the best, with good bass, amazing Dolby Atmos and your choice of Amazon Alexa or Google voice assistants. It comes without a remote control, however, and relies heavily on the Sonos app for setup and other functions. If you have a smaller room, consider the smaller, more affordable Sonos Beam, which is nearly as good.

Pros

• Huge sound field fills the room
• Easy app-based setup
• Impressive bass

Cons

• Expensive
• No remote
• Not great at dialogue enhancement

$832 at Amazon

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$899 at HSN$899 at B&H Photo

Polk Audio

Polk MagniFi Max AX SR 7.1.2-Channel Soundbar

Best surround soundbar

Audio channels: 7.1.2 | HDMI port: Yes | Wireless: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi | Built-in voice assistant(s): No | Dolby Atmos: Yes

Home theatre in a box? Polk's system includes not only a powerful soundbar, but also a massive subwoofer (make sure you've got space for it) and wireless surround speakers. Save for a few minor quirks, the MagniFi AX SR is absolutely superb. It's versatile and easy to use, and it can blow the doors off even a large home-theater space. If big bass, satellite speakers and Dolby Atmos are on your list of must-haves, this is the system to get.

Pros

• True surround sound
• Floor-shaking bass
• Easy to set up

Cons

• Huge subwoofer requires a lot of floor space
• No mounting hardware for satellite speakers

$899 at Amazon

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$899 at World Wide Stereo$900 at Best Buy

Samsung

Samsung HW-Q990B/ZA 11.1.4-Channel Soundbar with Wireless Dolby Atmos

Best money-is-no-object soundbar

Audio channels: 11.1.4 | HDMI port: Yes | Wireless: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi | Built-in voice assistant(s): Alexa | Dolby Atmos: Yes

Did you win the Powerball? Or score an inheritance from crazy old Uncle Leo? Then by all means splurge on Samsung's utterly spectacular Q990B soundbar setup. It's expensive and somewhat annoying to use, but also unrivaled at plunking you into a veritable dome of sound. This is how you home theater.

Pros

• Unrivaled sound quality
• Dolby Atmos
• Analyzes room noise specifically for dialogue boosting

Cons

• Very expensive
• Some setup and usability hassles
• Rear-speaker Dolby Atmos works only with Samsung TVs

$988 at Amazon

Soundbar FAQs

What the heck is a soundbar, exactly?

True to its name, a soundbar is basically a group of speakers contained in a long, low-profile cabinet. The advantage is that it can usually sit right in front of the TV, or below it if it's wall-mounted. There may be other speakers in the mix as well for a full speaker system, including a subwoofer combo (which is very nice to have, as it provides the bass needed for more well-rounded sound) and, in some cases, side and/or rear speakers (aka satellites) to create a surround sound experience.

Are soundbars worth it?

Oh my heavens, yes. There's a night-and-day difference with and without one. And there’s an option for every budget. As you learned above, the $150 Vizio V214x-K6 offers pretty amazing bang for the buck. So does the $179 Roku Streambar Pro.

Although I didn't cover super-low-end models here, it's possible to spend as little as $40-$45 on a soundbar and still get an improved TV listening experience. That said, I recommend investing a little more if you can, because quality speakers really do make a difference. Don't your ears deserve it?

Do I need a subwoofer with a soundbar?

Need? No. Nice to have? Definitely. A subwoofer brings the bass in a way that a soundbar can't all by itself, and that helps to round out the home-theater experience. These big square blocks are typically wireless (except for their power cord, of course) and don't need to sit right by the TV; you can put it in a corner or somewhere else off to the side.

Factors to consider when choosing a soundbar

The most important "feature" is the soundbar itself; everything else is just gravy. That said, if you have aging ears, some kind of dialogue- or voice-boosting capability can make a big difference. Luckily, nearly every product here offers that in one form or another.

• Audio channels: A 2.1-channel soundbar has two main speakers and one subwoofer. A 7.1.2-channel system has seven main speakers, one subwoofer and two rear speakers. As a general rule, more speakers equals bigger, broader sound.

• Size: Does size matter? As with most speakers, the larger the soundbar, the bigger and better the audio quality is likely to be — one exception being the Bose 600, which manages to wring big, quality sound sound from a smallish form-factor. From a décor standpoint, a compact soundbar might look a little awkward sitting in front of a big TV, and vice versa. But even if you're outfitting a smallish TV that lives in a smallish room, I'd opt for a large-ish soundbar, one that can stay with you if you decide on a TV upgrade someday.

• HDMI port: Next, it's not critical, but if your TV has an HDMI ARC or eARC port (most modern ones do), I recommend choosing a soundbar that has an HDMI port as well. Among other things, that pairing simplifies controlling the soundbar's volume using your TV's remote — an important usability consideration. (Juggling multiple remotes is not my idea of fun.) You may be able to do this via an optical connection as well, but the HDMI option also helps you hear soundbar audio from any other sources connected to the TV, like a game console, streamer or cable box. It's necessary for Dolby Atmos as well (see below).

• Wired or wireless: If you're looking for a fully wireless option, most modern soundbars support Bluetooth, though not all TVs do. My advice is to go wired, as you'll ensure the best audio quality and avoid possible audio-video synchronization issues. (You can still use the Bluetooth feature, and possibly Wi-Fi as well, to stream music from your phone or tablet.)

• Dolby Atmos: This rather magical technology adds "height channels" to the listening experience — basically another way to simulate 3D sound. The Sonos Arc, for example, accomplishes this via a pair of up-firing speakers, the idea being to bounce audio off the ceiling in addition to pointing it at your face. It's a nice feature to have, but it also adds cost and complexity. I'm not convinced it's a must-have for the average viewer.

• Voice assistants: Some soundbars have Amazon Alexa and/or Google Assistant onboard, the better to control not only the soundbar itself but also the TV and any other connected smart devices you might have.

Is a new soundbar hard to set up?

A standalone soundbar is usually quite easy to install: Just plug it into an AC outlet and then connect it to your TV. However, if you're not electronics-savvy, take note that many of the products here arrive with very basic setup guides and limited instructions. Often you'll be directed to online manuals and/or videos, which can be challenging if you're viewing them on your phone.

For example, although the Sonos Arc is fairly easy to install, it comes with barely any printed documentation. You'll have to install the Sonos app and create an account to complete the setup process, and any additional help must be found online.

In most installations, you'll need to adjust your TV speaker settings so the audio gets directed to just the soundbar. Some TVs will do that automatically when such speakers are detected, especially if there's an HDMI-eARC port. If not, it's usually pretty easy to find the necessary audio settings in the TV's menus.

Finally, there's often a step or two required to make your TV remote recognize the soundbar system. For this you may have to consult both the soundbar and TV instruction manuals — and remember that one or both may live online. If you tend to struggle with tech stuff, consider researching all this before you make your purchase, the better to avoid obstacles or surprises during setup.

Other soundbars we're evaluating

There are lots of other soundbars on the market beyond the seven listed here. For example, the Sony HT-A7000 looks to be a solid challenger to the Sonos Arc, offering Dolby Atmos and 360-degree spatial sound mapping. Meanwhile, Amazon recently jumped into the fray with its Fire TV Soundbar, a compact model with an attractive $120 price tag.

We'll continue to evaluate new models as they're released and update our story with new reviews.