Looking to break out of that plastic sound that your television is giving you? Soundbars are a great way to do that, and we’ve got a merry list here of the best new soundbars for you.

This list is piping with affordable and premium soundbars – but they all pack a powerful sound. What is a movie without killer sound? Explosions, drama, music, gunshots… none of them are done justice with television speakers.

The best soundbars for tv are all here and waiting for you. Are you ready for the sound of the cinema to come home to you?

Sony HT-A7000 – £1,199

I’m sure we don’t need to tell you this, but Sony has a reputation for making quality soundbars. The HT-A7000 features two up-firing speakers, two beam tweeters, five front-facing drivers, and a built-in dual subwoofer – in a single chassis. The Sony HT-A700 brings a big soundstage with its combination of driver placement and psychoacoustic techniques. This soundbar offers an immersive sound experience whatever you’re watching.

The width of the soundstage and its forward projection will compel you to stay in your seat and pay strict attention to your TV, or it’ll have to convert your living room into a dance floor where you’re the number one performer as the tunes bang out of the Sony HT-A7000.

The A7000 includes Spotify Connect, Apple AirPlay 2, Google Chromecast are all part of the package, as well as Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, and Google Home all supported by the soundbar.

Supported audio formats include Dolby Atmos (both Digital+ and TrueHD formats), DTS:X, LPCM, hi-res wireless audio, and Sony 360 Reality Audio.

Alongside two HDMI 2.1 pass-through sockets capable of handling 8K@60Hz, 4K@120Hz, and Dolby Vision HDR, there are ports for eARC, analog and optical audio inputs, and USB type-A. Not only these but there’s an analog output for Sony’s Acoustic Center Sync, which allows a compatible Bravia TV to become part of the soundbar’s center channel when the two are connected using the supplied cable.

Sonos Arc – £899

Sonos prevail at surround sound, and one of their latest ideas is Arc – the soundbar that could. 

The Arc soundbar may not be bringing two of each animal across the seas, but it is packing a huge surround sound and delivering just that to homes everywhere. Sonos is trying to simplify surround sound, at least from a customer’s perspective, and doesn’t seem to be relenting on that.

The Sonos Arc makes use of Dolby’s latest TrueHD and Dolby Digital Plus sound codecs to bring us the best quality lossless audio that’s found on Blu-ray disks, as well as some of the streaming services we know and love. The Sonos Arc plays with psychoacoustic techniques with Dolby Atmos and enhances the 3D soundscape by bouncing certain sounds off of the walls around it to make you feel like the sound is coming at you from all angles.

The setup of the Sonos Arc only involves a couple of steps on its smartphone app. The minimalist cable connections and all-in-one system construction add to this no-fuss feeling and streamlined aesthetic – making it the best Dolby Atmos soundbar you can buy in 2022.

Samsung HW-Q950A – £1,199

The Samsung HW-Q950A is another fantastic unit and one of the best soundbars you can buy today.

The Samsung HW-Q950A features an Auto EQ room correction that optimizes audio reproduction so it’s honed for your room’s acoustics specifically – and it does all of this itself. With this on, the sound is neutral and balanced, and it’s suitable for listening to a variety of different audio.

The Samsung HW-Q950A has two discrete satellite speakers that aid in creating a compelling listening experience for you with surround sound. With Atmos sound, up-firing drivers are built into the bar (like with the Sony HT-A7000) and satellite speakers to bounce sound off of the ceiling and back down to you – creating the illusion of height. Also included with the Samsung HQ-Q950A is a selection of sound enhancement features like a graphic EQ and presets to fully customize the sound.

The soundstage of this soundbar is awesome, but it isn’t perceived to be as wide as some of the soundbars on our list. It doesn’t reproduce as much bass as you may like with no sound customization, but that’s what the added sound enhancement features are for, I guess.

JBL Bar Studio – Best Budget Soundbar – £89

JBL has proven that fine soundbars don’t need to b expensive ones. With a solid and punchy sound and plentiful bass, and at a price of £296.28, the JBL Bar Studio is a mighty fine soundbar for smaller budgets. Connectivity includes a single ARC-enable HDMI output, an optical digital input, and Bluetooth.

Not only is the sound great, but the build quality is also good too. JBL products are always of usual high standards in terms of aesthetics, and the JBL Bar Studio is no different. With a small size of 60cm in length and 6cm in height, the JBL’s sound is restricted, of course, but it still brings a bold sound packed with detail, clear dialogue, and punchy bass.

JBL Surround Sound, which is designed to replicate the wrap-around sound of a 5.1 system, also comes in this package.

Sony HT-X8500 – £299

Sony’s HT-X8500 is yet another affordable soundbar at just £299. It’s certainly the best soundbar with Dolby Atmos that isn’t going to drain your bank account of all its worth.

Compared to other Atmos soundbars we’ve discussed, connectivity and features have been compromised for the sake of cost-saving. However, how great the HT-X8500 sounds for its price tag is amazing. 

Sony’s proprietary Vertical Sound Engine is at the heart of HT-X8500’s great performance. In collaboration with Dolby Atmos and DTS:X content, it creates a convincing illusion of wraparound sound that allows Dolby Atmos movies to play with height and width.

Yet again, the build quality and design of the soundbar are set to fit into any home, and its audio has clarity and spatial detail. 

Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar – £2199

A large build with a balanced and impressive sound, the Ambeo Soundbar is Sennheiser’s first speaker made for consumers.

The Ambeo Soundbar is a premium speaker, as all other Sennheiser products are, which is full of features such as Dolby Atmos and DTS:X support, 4K HDR pass-through.

Auto-calibration and four HDMI inputs, Bluetooth, and support for Chromecast all come housed in this one speaker. 

With a width of 127cm and height of 14cm, the build is big. But the Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar packs a sound big enough that a subwoofer is not needed. Really. It has clear dialogue and detail, not to mention how it stretches the sound around you to create great atmospheres to immerse you in whatever it si you’re watching or listening to.

If you’re looking for a 3D sound without the surround speakers, this is the soundbar for you. It certainly has a premium price tag, but the sound it gives you is a bang for your buck.

Yamaha YAS-207 – £299

To finish our list of soundbars off, we’ve got the Yamaha YAS-207. Yet another budget soundbar that delivers a crisp sound for a low price.

Making use of YSP (Yamaha Sound Projection) technology to emulate surround sound, The YAS-207 creates an immersive ‘virtual’ sound. As far as ‘virtual’ surround-sound experiences from a single enclosure go, it’s hugely effective.

The Yamaha YAS-207 also comes with a wireless external subwoofer and plenty of features, including Bluetooth, an app to choose between its surround sound modes, as well as an HDMI socket that enables 4K HDR passthrough too. 

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