The 5 Best Budget Soundbars - Fall 2019
Reviews

The best cheap soundbar we've tested so far is the Sony HT-S100F. This stereo soundbar performs decently, especially considering its price, and is versatile enough for most casual uses at home. It's a good option for those who watch mostly TV shows or some movies from time to time, and has quite a few different connectivity options for compatibility with different home theatre setups.

This Sony soundbar has a pretty neutral sound profile and can get quite loud without compressing audio very much, which is good for a cheaper product. It also has a dialog enhancement feature so that you can still hear dialog well in action movies without having to turn the volume way up, which is nice if you like to watch your favorite films later in the evening. It also supports Dolby Digital content over HDMI ARC, so even though it downmixes to 2.0, you'll still be able to decode any DD Blu-rays you might have.

While the soundbar on its own is decent for the price, it doesn't come with a subwoofer. The slightly more expensive Sony HT-S200F has an integrated sub so it can produce deeper bass, but it sounds darker since it doesn't reproduce frequencies in the treble range very well. It's not the flashiest soundbar we've tested, but if you're looking for something cheap that'll do the job, the S100F is the best budget soundbar.

The best budget soundbar under $200 we've tested so far is the TCL Alto 7+. This soundbar set up comes with a dedicated subwoofer for deeper bass, so it's a better choice for movies than some of the cheaper models we've reviewed. It feels surprisingly well-built for a budget soundbar, with a durable plastic and metal build. It also comes with lots of cables and accessories, like a wall-mounting kit, which is quite nice at this price point.

It has a fairly neutral stereo frequency response like the Sony HT-S100F,  but its treble range is further extended, so dialog sounds brighter and more present. It has a couple of EQ presets for movies, music or news, and supports Dolby Digital over HDMI ARC with downmixing to 2.0.

While this soundbar can get very loud, it doesn't perform as well at max volume. It tends to create pumping and compression artifacts, notably in the bass range, but thankfully doesn't distort too much. Most people also don't tend to listen to music or watch movies at max volume either, so it shouldn't be much of an issue. All things considered, it's one of the best soundbars for the money; it's an alright soundbar for most people thanks to its numerous connectivity options, good build quality, and decent sound.

The best soundbar under $300 we've tested so far is the Yamaha YAS-207. It's a versatile soundbar that comes with lots of different connectivity options and even has a companion app you can download if you prefer using your smartphone instead of its remote. It comes with a separate subwoofer, sounds decent and provides pretty good value for the price overall.

This Yamaha soundbar has a surprisingly well-balanced sound that's bright enough to make dialog present and understandable while still delivering more bass than most of the budget options we've reviewed. It can get pretty loud without too much distortion, but does compress a bit at max volume. This shouldn't be a problem if you're just watching your favorite shows though, and you can even enhance dialog to be clearer at lower volumes, which is nice.

Although the soundbar feels fairly well-built overall, it's covered with a mesh-like fabric that gets dirty rather easily and is prone to tearing, which could be a problem if you have pets around the house. It also doesn't produce as much bass as some of the more premium soundbar setups we've reviewed, but this is to be expected at this price point. All things considered, it's the best value soundbar and is likely to please those who want a reasonably well-performing soundbar for casual use at home without breaking the bank.