The Ultimate Soundbar Buying Guide In 2023
Do you love to watch movies and web series on your amazing 4K HDR TV? If so, you’ll need some next-level audio to elevate the effectiveness of your entertaining sessions. And there’s no better way to do that than a soundbar. They will take your TV watching experience to a whole new level, giving you an immersive experience. We know how the availability of so many soundbars can make it confusing to determine the best one. Take no worries as this soundbar buying guide will help you out.
What Is A Sound Bar?
From stereo to surround sound, the two or more speakers within the soundbar’s long cabinet take care of them all. So, when someone asks you “what is a soundbar?,” tell them it’s a worthwhile investment that fetches you with a stylish, bass-boosted, stereo home entertainment setup.
Features of Soundbar
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Soundbar Channel:
Consider the soundbar channels to be individual speakers or sound sources. All channels of a soundbar are contained in a single unit. - Drivers:
These round sound producing elements are often called actual speakers (though they’re not!). They come with a large surface area that moves back and forth to create the sound.
Drivers are often classified by the frequencies they produce such as the "woofers" (lower-frequency drivers) and "tweeters" (higher-frequency drivers); there are also mid-range drivers, subwoofers, super-tweeters, etc.
- Bluetooth:
Every sound bar has a Bluetooth connectivity feature. In fact, the best soundbars come with the latest Bluetooth V5.0 technology to ensure seamless connectivity. - Design:
Soundbars are sleeky, slender, and long home entertainment systems with elegant and visually appealing designs. The latest soundbars can easily fit into your cabinet, saving a lot of space. - Multiple connectivity options:
The best soundbars feature multiple connectivity options for seamless, uninterrupted audio streaming sessions. You can connect them via USB, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or HDMI cables.
Types of Soundbars
You may have heard, seen, or read about the various types of Bluetooth headphones. But do you know that different types of sound bars are also available? Let’s learn a bit about them.
Active Soundbar
The market is now full of active soundbars, and we all know why - the convenience. Active soundbars come with amplification, sound processors, speaker wiring, crossovers, and other elements like RF transmitters and Bluetooth receivers, all in a single system. They are easy to install and lightweight in design, making them an ideal choice for all homes.
Passive Soundbar
A passive soundbar shares one dissimilarity with the active soundbar - it doesn’t have any DSP or internal amplification. Like a traditional speaker setup, you’ll need a separate power amp/preamp, integrated amp, or an external receiver for a passive soundbar. This soundbar typically comprises a passive crossover, speaker inputs, and up to seven speaker drivers.
How to buy Soundbars
If you’re scouring the internet to find the perfect answer to “how to buy a soundbar,” your search ends here. Check these pointers for consideration when buying soundbars:
- Space Efficiency: When buying a soundbar, make sure it’s versatile and easy to set up in your drawing room or where you keep the TV. It should fit easily into your TV cabinet without consuming a lot of space as home theaters do. You would also like to consider your available space to understand where you can setup the speakers and how many speakers you would need to really get the immersive sound experience from a soundbar.
- Size: If you’re more into aesthetics, your soundbar shouldn’t be any wider than your TV. To get an even look, choose a soundbar of the same width as your TV.
- Channels: You’ll find soundbars available with 2,3,5, and 7 channels. The thing is - the more channels - the better and more immersive the audio listening experience.
- Connectivity: You must choose a soundbar that comes with multiple connectivity options. Pick the one that enables you to connect the soundbar with the TV via HDMI cable, USB cord, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth.
- Drivers: Drivers are the key elements responsible for the sound produced by the soundbar. The more and larger the driver size, the better the sound quality.
How To Connect Soundbar To TV
If you’re wondering how to connect the soundbar to the TV, there are two approaches to do that:
- Utilize the soundbar as your central hub and run numerous devices through it. Simply put, you’ll need only a single cable to run to the TV.
- Set up the soundbar as a home speaker and connect all other devices to the TV. Subsequently, connect the TV to your soundbar.
These approaches depend on your soundbar model and whether or not your TV is “HDMI Arc” compatible.
Soundbar Price
The price of a soundbar depends on its driver, channels, connectivity options, design, and the DSP chipset. The better these elements, the merrier. However, when it comes to the best quality soundbars at reasonable prices, there’s no brand better than GOVO.
From large drivers and signature-sound DSP chipset to 2.1 channels and multiple connectivities, GOVO brings all these amazing features at unbelievable prices. Here is a table of soundbar prices for GOVO that will make things more clear for you:
| Model | Channel | Output Power | Subwoofer | Price |
| GOVO GoSurround 410 | 2.0 Channel | 80 Watt | No | ₹3,499 |
| GOVO GoSurround 430 | 2.0 Channel | 80 Watt | No | ₹3,999 |
| GOVO GoSurround 610 | 2.1 Channel | 100 Watt | Wired | ₹5,999 |
| GOVO GoSurround 620 | 2.1 Channel | 100 Watt | Wired | ₹6,299 |
| GOVO GoSurround 900 | 2.1 Channel | 200 Watt | Wired | ₹6,599 |
| GOVO GoSurround 920 | 2.1 Channel | 200 Watt | Wireless | ₹7,599 |
So, we’d recommend that if you want a soundbar with the best-in-class features at affordable prices, go for GOVO!