Not Sonos, not Samsung: It’s Consumer Reports’ highest-rated budget soundbar

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When it comes to getting the best sound possible from your TV, it’s hard to beat the boost that a high-quality soundbar can give you. These devices can provide better sound than your TV alone, whether you’re listening to dialogue, music, or the gentle din of your favorite games. You may be familiar with soundbars from brands such as Yamaha, Samsung and LG. They all offer soundbars at various price points, but there’s one company that might produce the highest-rated budget soundbar of the bunch, at least according to Consumer Reports.

There are plenty of soundbars to consider pairing with your TV, but CR has listed some of the ones it considers best for people on a tight budget. Of the handful of soundbars tested on the site, only a few cost less than $500. After careful review, CR chose the LG S70TY as the best among all models tried. The LG S70TY ticks all the boxes when it comes to sound quality, audio immersion, versatility and ease of use, and is considered, according to CR, to be the best value for money. (Of course, you’re also free to consider more expensive options, like the 5 Best Soundbars for Audiophiles.)

One of the next best value soundbars is the Yamaha TRUE X BAR. With almost the same ratings for sound quality and ease of use, it only slightly underperformed the LG model when it came to audio immersion. Immersive audio is designed to better put you at the center of the sound experience, and CR says the LG S70TY does a better job on that front. Let’s take a closer look at these two premium budget soundbars.

The LG S70TY is a powerful little soundbar that also comes with Dolby Atmos and a wireless subwoofer. It doesn’t appear to include any subwoofers inside the soundbar itself, which may mean you get less bass sound with the standalone model, but the included subwoofer should fill that gap. There are seven speakers in total inside the soundbar, providing a richer sound experience when watching your favorite shows or movies.

The LG soundbar has a few other pros and cons, one of the pros being that it includes Wi-Fi for wireless music streaming. The soundbar also has Bluetooth, allowing it to pair with additional speakers or connect wirelessly to a TV. If you have an LG TV, you can use WOW Orchestra to combine sound from the soundbar speakers with the TV speakers for an enhanced audio experience. The downside is that some Amazon users say the remote isn’t the most user-friendly to use.

Another plus, however, is its price of around $350, which places it among the least expensive soundbars CR reviewed. Given its high ratings, this one seems likely to be worth the money you shell out, especially if you follow a few soundbar tips and tricks to get the most out of it.

The Yamaha True X Bar is a series of soundbars built and manufactured by Yamaha. It features Dolby Atmos speakers that provide a more cinematic experience when watching movies, shows, or playing games. It even comes with a wireless subwoofer for even better bass. It’s a slim soundbar, making it more likely to fit under or above your TV or place it on a console.

With Wi-Fi and Bluetooth included, the True X Bar lets you pair even more speakers to create surround sound for your living room or home studio. The soundbar itself is capable of connecting to Bluetooth devices, such as a smartphone, and has Alexa voice control and can connect to additional smart devices to control them.

All you need to connect this soundbar to a TV is an HDMI cable or optical connectors. The Yamaha True Amazon users say the True X Bar also offers great value for money and delivers excellent overall sound quality. However, as with all CR models reviewed, you should take some time to decide whether a soundbar is truly a better investment than a surround sound system if you want to improve your listening experience.