The JBL Bar 500 is a 5.1 setup released in 2023. It comes with the manufacturer's signature Smart Mode sound enhancement tool designed to bring a wider and more immersive feel to your audio content. It's turned on by default, so you hear it right out of the box, as well as any time you reboot the soundbar, which isn't ideal if you don't like the way it sounds. Still, you can always turn Smart Mode off if you prefer. As the bar's name suggests, though, it doesn't come with as many features as more premium models from the manufacturer, like the JBL Bar 1000 or the JBL Bar 1300X.
Our Verdict
The JBL Bar 500 is good for mixed usage. This versatile soundbar brings a clean, clear sound ideal for everything from dialogue-heavy sitcoms to bass-centric music like EDM. With a room correction tool on hand, its sound is optimized to the unique acoustic characteristics of your living room. It also supports most common audio formats, though it has to downmix height content like Dolby Atmos.
- Extended low-bass.
- Clear dialogue reproduction.
- Room correction tool.
- Downmixes Atmos content.
The JBL Bar 500 is great for dialogue-centric podcasts and TV shows. With its discrete center channel, this soundbar can improve the overall vocal clarity in the mix. Its PureVoice dialogue enhancement feature ensures you never miss a conversation on screen. While this bar has latency across all formats and connections, you can use the app to manually adjust for delay.
- Clear dialogue reproduction.
- Dialogue enhancement tool.
- No bass and treble adjustments.
The JBL Bar 500 is good for music. The even and balanced sound profile ensures that voices and lead instruments are reproduced clearly and accurately. The sub also brings the rumble in the bass, which is great for genres like EDM and hip-hop. You can use the room correction tool to automatically optimize its sound based on your room's unique acoustics or manually adjust its sound with its 3-band graphic EQ. Its soundstage isn't quite as wide as more premium models on the market, though, and turning on its Smart Mode feature with stereo content like music brings a fake and forced feel.
- Extended low-bass.
- Room correction tool.
- No bass and treble adjustments.
The JBL Bar 500 is decent for movies. Dialogue is clear and easy to follow, and the bar brings all the thump and rumble in action-packed scenes. With support for common audio formats like Dolby Digital, you can enjoy many movies on different streaming services and Blu-rays. However, it doesn't truly support Dolby Atmos content since it has to downmix it into stereo to play it back, which takes away from the overall immersive feel.
- Extended low-bass.
- Clear dialogue reproduction.
- Downmixes Atmos content.
Changelog
-
Updated Feb 26, 2026:
We've updated the Height (Atmos) box to clarify that this bar doesn't downmix Atmos content to stereo; instead, it outputs Atmos audio from the front and side-firing drivers.
-
Updated Feb 11, 2026:
We've updated the Stereo Frequency Response box to mention the JBL Bar 500MK2.
-
Updated Aug 28, 2025:
The Stereo Dynamics box has been updated to mention the Samsung HW-B750F.
- Updated Jun 04, 2024: Updated text in Stereo Dynamics, Audio Latency: ARC, Audio Latency: HDMI In, and Audio Latency: Optical boxes with new methodology from TBU 1.3. Some updates to the usages as well.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The JBL Bar 500 soundbar is available in Black. You can see the label for our tested model here.
That said, if you come across another version of this soundbar, don't hesitate to let us know in the forums so we can update this review.
Popular Soundbar Comparisons
This soundbar is a less-premium cousin to the JBL Bar 1000. This simple 5.1 setup lacks satellite speakers and doesn't have up-firing drivers for Dolby Atmos content. Still, it may be a good option for users who don't have room in their setup for satellites. It boasts the company's signature Smart Mode tool for a wider and more immersive sound, which you may or may not like, depending on your listening preferences.
You can also check out our recommendations for the best soundbars, the best soundbars for movies, and the best soundbars with a subwoofer.
The JBL Bar 500 is better than the JBL Bar 5.1 Surround. The 500 is a newer model that offers better sound quality, with a better stereo soundstage and better stereo dynamics. It can playback Dolby Atmos content, though it has to downmix it into stereo to do so. It offers more sound enhancement features as well.
The JBL Bar 500 and JBL Bar 500MK2 are extremely similar soundbars. The MK2 is the follow-up to the Bar 500, and retains the 5.1-channel configuration with a dedicated sub. Still, the MK2 has significant upgrades: the increased total system wattage boosts the subwoofer performance and gives the bar a warmer tone overall. Plus, the MK2 gets louder overall. The successor also significantly improves audio latency across HDMI In and eARC. Still, the original Bar 500 has an advantage in video passthrough, supporting 4k @ 120Hz, while the MK2 caps out at 4k @ 60Hz.
The JBL Bar 1000 is better than the JBL Bar 500. Both setups have similar features, such as the manufacturer's Smart Mode sound enhancement feature. However, the 1000 has satellite speakers, offering better surround sound. Plus, it has up-firing drivers for true Dolby Atmos support.
The JBL Bar 500 is better than the JBL Bar 5.0 MultiBeam. The MultiBeam is a standalone soundbar that doesn't come with a dedicated subwoofer, and it can't reproduce as much bass as the 500. Plus, it doesn't have as many sound enhancement features, and it has some implementation issues with certain audio formats, like Dolby Digital, which takes away from the life-like experience intended by those who mix content in this format.
Test Results
