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One of the most popular and oft-requested features among CNET’s readers is Dolby Atmos audio. Like DTS:X, Dolby Atmos builds on standard surround sound by adding height to both your music and movies for a more dynamic and immersive sound. The best Dolby Atmos soundbars are able to deliver exceptional audio quality that can fill your room.
Dolby Atmos soundbars are now more affordable than ever, especially compared with a traditional Atmos receiver and surround-sound speakers. These soundbars are also more compact and easier to set up than a home theater system, with the trade-off being they can’t provide the same level of performance.
The Vizio M512a is my favorite Dolby Atmos soundbar for under $500 — it offers both dedicated height channels and surround speakers, and quality sound into the bargain. Competitors such as the Sonos Beam Gen 2 can offer only simulated height speakers, and you can hear the difference that the dedicated height speakers of the Bose Smart Soundbar 600 make.
Though you can easily stop at the $500 mark, the more expensive models do offer benefits, including improved sound quality, music streaming, and voice assistants like Google Assistant and Amazon’s Alexa. For example, the $900 Sonos Arc is an all-in-one soundbar that offers great sound, exquisite build quality and excellent multiroom capabilities.
If you want a soundbar with Dolby Atmos audio, read on. These are my favorite Atmos soundbar options from $400 and up. This list is periodically updated as I review new products.
Best Dolby Atmos soundbar for the money
Vizio M512a
The Vizio M512a improves on its predecessor in almost every way: it looks better, it sounds better, and it’s easier to use. While it keeps Bluetooth capability it does lose the ability to stream over Wi-Fi. If you’re looking for the most cost-effective way to add Dolby Atmos to your television this is the one.
The Vizio M512a improves on its predecessor in almost every way: it looks better, it sounds better, and it’s easier to use. While it keeps Bluetooth capability it does lose the ability to stream over Wi-Fi. If you’re looking for the most cost-effective way to add Dolby Atmos to your television this is the one.
Best Dolby Atmos soundbar for the money
Vizio M512a
The Vizio M512a improves on its predecessor in almost every way: it looks better, it sounds better, and it’s easier to use. While it keeps Bluetooth capability it does lose the ability to stream over Wi-Fi. If you’re looking for the most cost-effective way to add Dolby Atmos to your television this is the one.
Best Atmos under $400
Polk Signa S4
The Polk Signa S4 is the cheapest soundbar with Dolby Atmos on board yet, but it doesn’t sacrifice performance to get that price down. This is a 3.1.2 channel soundbar with a host of useful sound modes and Bluetooth streaming. The wireless soundbar and dedicated heights help it belt out Atmos soundtracks, and it sounds great with music too.
The Polk Signa S4 is the cheapest soundbar with Dolby Atmos on board yet, but it doesn’t sacrifice performance to get that price down. This is a 3.1.2 channel soundbar with a host of useful sound modes and Bluetooth streaming. The wireless soundbar and dedicated heights help it belt out Atmos soundtracks, and it sounds great with music too.
Best Atmos under $400
Polk Signa S4
The Polk Signa S4 is the cheapest soundbar with Dolby Atmos on board yet, but it doesn’t sacrifice performance to get that price down. This is a 3.1.2 channel soundbar with a host of useful sound modes and Bluetooth streaming. The wireless soundbar and dedicated heights help it belt out Atmos soundtracks, and it sounds great with music too.
Best soundbar under $1,000
Vizio Elevate
If you like a bit of “high tech” in your tech then look to the Vizio Elevate. This is a 5.1.4 soundbar system which uses motorized drivers to switch between Atmos and normal surround sound. It’s not just a gimmick — it also sounds good! In addition, the Elevate includes everything else you want from a modern soundbar, including multiple HDMI inputs and Wi-Fi music streaming.
- Motorized speakers work well.
- Excellent sound for movies and music.
- Plenty of connections
- Includes rears and wireless sub.
- Not as easy to use as Sonos Arc
- No Apple AirPlay support
- Somewhat short surround cables
If you like a bit of “high tech” in your tech then look to the Vizio Elevate. This is a 5.1.4 soundbar system which uses motorized drivers to switch between Atmos and normal surround sound. It’s not just a gimmick — it also sounds good! In addition, the Elevate includes everything else you want from a modern soundbar, including multiple HDMI inputs and Wi-Fi music streaming.
Best soundbar under $1,000
Vizio Elevate
- Motorized speakers work well.
- Excellent sound for movies and music.
- Plenty of connections
- Includes rears and wireless sub.
- Not as easy to use as Sonos Arc
- No Apple AirPlay support
- Somewhat short surround cables
If you like a bit of “high tech” in your tech then look to the Vizio Elevate. This is a 5.1.4 soundbar system which uses motorized drivers to switch between Atmos and normal surround sound. It’s not just a gimmick — it also sounds good! In addition, the Elevate includes everything else you want from a modern soundbar, including multiple HDMI inputs and Wi-Fi music streaming.
Best Atmos in a compact package
Bose Smart Soundbar 600
Many companies have tried making a compact, affordable soundbar that can also play Atmos, but arguably only one company has so far succeeded. The Bose Smart Soundbar 600 offers dedicated height speakers in a modest-sized cabinet, and its sound quality is top notch. The speaker also adds in multiroom music and the Alexa voice assistant as well.
Many companies have tried making a compact, affordable soundbar that can also play Atmos, but arguably only one company has so far succeeded. The Bose Smart Soundbar 600 offers dedicated height speakers in a modest-sized cabinet, and its sound quality is top notch. The speaker also adds in multiroom music and the Alexa voice assistant as well.
Best Atmos in a compact package
Bose Smart Soundbar 600
Many companies have tried making a compact, affordable soundbar that can also play Atmos, but arguably only one company has so far succeeded. The Bose Smart Soundbar 600 offers dedicated height speakers in a modest-sized cabinet, and its sound quality is top notch. The speaker also adds in multiroom music and the Alexa voice assistant as well.
Best all-in-one model
Sonos Arc
If you want the best Dolby Atmos sound from a single bar but balk at paying $1,000 or more, the Sonos Arc is for you. This soundbar is a bit quirky, as you’ll need a 2019 or newer 4K TV (with HDMI 2.1) to make the most of it, and yet it still performs better than most. The Arc offers a bunch of great features too, including a choice of voice assistant and Sonos’ excellent streaming architecture.
- Excellent sound
- Doesn’t need a subwoofer
- Feature-packed
- Single HDMI eARC port
- More expensive than competitors
- No Bluetooth
If you want the best Dolby Atmos sound from a single bar but balk at paying $1,000 or more, the Sonos Arc is for you. This soundbar is a bit quirky, as you’ll need a 2019 or newer 4K TV (with HDMI 2.1) to make the most of it, and yet it still performs better than most. The Arc offers a bunch of great features too, including a choice of voice assistant and Sonos’ excellent streaming architecture.
Best all-in-one model
Sonos Arc
- Excellent sound
- Doesn’t need a subwoofer
- Feature-packed
- Single HDMI eARC port
- More expensive than competitors
- No Bluetooth
If you want the best Dolby Atmos sound from a single bar but balk at paying $1,000 or more, the Sonos Arc is for you. This soundbar is a bit quirky, as you’ll need a 2019 or newer 4K TV (with HDMI 2.1) to make the most of it, and yet it still performs better than most. The Arc offers a bunch of great features too, including a choice of voice assistant and Sonos’ excellent streaming architecture.
Best high-end soundbar
Sennheiser Ambeo Max Soundbar
Want the ultimate Atmos audio home theater sound system experience with just a single box? It may be a grand more than the Sony but the Sennheiser Ambeo Max standalone soundbar offers the best immersive sound we’ve ever heard. It includes both Google Chromecast built-in and Bluetooth for streaming connectivity. The Ambeo is able to sound full without a subwoofer and this should be especially attractive to apartment dwellers.
- Best-sounding Atmos speaker
- Great connectivity with HDMI eARC and Wi-Fi
- Same price as receiver and speakers, but more compact
- Expensive
- No sub included
- Not great with music
- Huge
Want the ultimate Atmos audio home theater sound system experience with just a single box? It may be a grand more than the Sony but the Sennheiser Ambeo Max standalone soundbar offers the best immersive sound we’ve ever heard. It includes both Google Chromecast built-in and Bluetooth for streaming connectivity. The Ambeo is able to sound full without a subwoofer and this should be especially attractive to apartment dwellers.
Best high-end soundbar
Sennheiser Ambeo Max Soundbar
- Best-sounding Atmos speaker
- Great connectivity with HDMI eARC and Wi-Fi
- Same price as receiver and speakers, but more compact
- Expensive
- No sub included
- Not great with music
- Huge
Want the ultimate Atmos audio home theater sound system experience with just a single box? It may be a grand more than the Sony but the Sennheiser Ambeo Max standalone soundbar offers the best immersive sound we’ve ever heard. It includes both Google Chromecast built-in and Bluetooth for streaming connectivity. The Ambeo is able to sound full without a subwoofer and this should be especially attractive to apartment dwellers.
How I test
At CNET I test audio equipment from compact soundbars though to surround sound speakers systems, but regardless of the device my methodology is largely the same. I always compare products against one or more reference devices which offer the best performance at a similar price.
When it comes to soundbars I want to see how well a system performs with music as well as with movies, as most people will want to do both. I watch from a handful of test scenes from 4K Blu-ray or streamed from a 4K streaming service (Vudu, for example) and evaluate aspects such as bass performance and dialog clarity. I also use a number of test music tracks and evaluate any streaming features such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. It’s systems that can perform well with both types of entertainment that inevitably score the highest.
Other soundbars I’ve tested
I have tested the following soundbars in the CNET audio lab against models of a similar price. Each if these soundbars are worthy in their own way, but aren’t quite as recommendable as our main picks.
- Sonos Beam Gen 2 ($499) The Beam may only offer simulated height speakers, but it’s the best simulated Atmos I’ve heard yet. The Sonos Beam also offers a lot of features, while the Bose Soundbar 600 and Vizio M512a-H6 deliver even better Atmos performance for the same money. Read CNET’s review of the Sonos Beam Gen 2.
- Bose Smart Soundbar 900 ($899): This is a great Bose soundbar, and it pairs well with the company’s QuietComfort headphones for late-night listening, but it’s simply not as robust as the Sonos Arc. Read CNET’s review of the Bose Smart Soundbar 600
- Bowers & Wilkins Panorama 3 ($999): An excellent soundbar with HDMI connectivity and multiroom music streaming. While music is where this soundbar shines, the system does cost more than the Arc and the peripherals are expensive.
- Sennheiser Ambeo Plus ($1,500): A cut-down version of the $2,500 Sennheiser Ambeo Max which offers many of the same features including Chromecast built-in and voice assistance. I found the sound was enveloping and music to be more nuanced than some of the cheaper ‘bars. Yet, at its retail price of $1,500 it’s not quite $600 better than the Sonos Arc, nor is surround sound as convincing as the Max. Read CNET’s first take of the Sennheiser Ambeo Plus.
Check out my soundbar buying guide for more about the features and things you should consider when looking for a new system.
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