Speaker 1: If you're looking to improve the audio quality of your television, the quickest and easiest way to do that is to buy a soundbar. Connection is simple, a single cable, and you don't even need to learn a new remote. Just use the one that came with the tv. Buying a soundbar doesn't have to be expensive either. Good models start at around a hundred dollars and they offer improved dialogue as well as better dynamics than your TV's tiny speaker. Today I'm gonna be looking at three different models priced between a hundred dollars and $500, [00:00:30] and which offer the best performance for the money. Whether you are interested in better sound quality alone or looking to add other features like music streaming or Dolby Atmos, there is something here for you
Speaker 1: On the three soundbars. In this roundup, the easiest to recommend is the Roku Stream bar. This is $130 soundbar, which sounds great, but it also comes with a secret. Yes, it sounds a lot better than your TV with excellent speech performance and it's easy to connect [00:01:00] via a single H to my cable. This speaker has a Trojan horse though in that it's also a 4K video streamer, so this is a great option for older or smaller TVs. The Roku system is frequently updated with the latest apps, unlike most televisions. If you see it for less than a hundred dollars, buy it straightaway.
Speaker 1: Sonos has been doing music streaming since the start of the century and has been doing Soundbars for half as long. The Sonos Ray is the most affordable soundbar in the range and [00:01:30] offers astounding value. It sounds great, pulling the wool out of your ears for some of the trickier to understand dialogue, and it's also a great sounding speaker for music with use of Sonos excellent streaming platform. I even bought one of these for my mom. The only thing the Ray doesn't have is a voice assistant, but all you need to do is connect an Echo dot or Nest device and you're all set.
Speaker 1: If you want the best Dolby Atmos performance for the least amount of money, then the VIO M five 12 A is the sound bar to get. This is a [00:02:00] full surround setup with a sub and surrounds plus two dedicated high channels. It's pretty big compared to the others, and the rears are wired to the sub, but it's still compact compared to a dedicated surround system and receiver. Sound quality is excellent with fine dialogue, reproduction, seamless surround steering, and plenty of slam from the subwoofer. The video doesn't have streaming like the other two though it does have a Bluetooth input. This is the closest you'll get to a cinema in your living room for $500. [00:02:30] This has been my top three soundbars for the money, so thank you so much for watching, like and subscribe to CNET for more of yous and recommendations.
