Note 09/11/2020: Thanks to user input, we have verified the claim that this soundbar upmixes all content into 5.1.4 audio. If you're listening to a stereo file, it plays from the bar's front and top speakers as well as from the front and top of its satellites. Even files such as Dolby Digital play on all speakers, including its up-firing channels. That said, this verification doesn't impact our scoring.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is an impressive 5.1.4 setup. It has two detachable satellite speakers that can play your favorite audio wirelessly from anywhere in your room. Although we don't currently test for it, the satellites are advertised as having up to ten hours of continuous playback time and charge when reconnected to the bar or by micro-USB. There's also a subwoofer, which helps to give this bar a bit more thump and punch. The rest of the sound profile is very balanced, making it a good choice for any kind of content, from audiobooks to action flicks. It even has a full range of physical inputs so it supports Atmos and DTS, and there are several ways to connect to it wirelessly.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is great for mixed use. It has a balanced sound profile right out-of-the-box with just a touch of extra bass, thanks to its subwoofer. Its detachable satellites also help to create a more immersive listening experience, whether you're listening to music or movies. While it can get loud enough for a large or crowded room, there's some compression at max volume. Still, it can reproduce dialogue clearly and accurately, and you can stream podcasts or audiobooks directly to the bar via a variety of wireless connections.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is great for dialogue and TV shows. While it doesn't have a dialogue enhancement feature, it has a neutral sound profile capable of producing clear and accurate dialogue. It also has a lot of wireless connectivity options including Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Chromecast built-in, and Apple AirPlay, so you can stream your favorite podcasts directly to the bar.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is very good for music. It has a balanced sound profile that, thanks to its subwoofer, packs a bit of bass. While it has limited sound enhancement features and there's no specific music EQ preset, you can still adjust the subwoofer level. Still, this bar can get loud enough to fill a large room or a crowded environment like a house party, although there's some compression at max volume. There's also a room correction feature that can further improve audio reproduction to fit the room you're in.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is impressive for movies. It has a well-balanced sound profile with a touch of bass, so you're able to better feel each explosion in an action movie, and it can get loud enough to fill a large room. Its satellites also help to create a more immersive experience, especially for Atmos content, and it has excellent surround performance as well. That being said, this soundbar doesn't have many sound enhancement features like a graphic EQ, which some users may find limiting. There's also some compression at max volume.
The JBL Bar 9.1 True Wireless Surround with Dolby Atmos is a high-end 5.1.4 soundbar from JBL's 2020 lineup. This soundbar has a unique set of truly wireless satellites that use 4-pin connectors to connect into the bar's sides to charge, which isn't really like any of the bars we've tested so far. It also offers an immersive experience as it supports Atmos content. Its main competitors are the Samsung HW-Q90R, the Vizio SB4514-F6, and the JBL Bar 5.1 Surround.
The back of the JBL Bar 9.1 has one opening for the power cable and inputs. There are also universal holes on its underside if you want to wall-mount it. Luckily, JBL includes wall-mounting supplies like brackets, screws, and a template in-the-box, which is nice.
The JBL Bar 9.1 has a great build quality. Its top and front sides are made of metal, which helps to protect its speakers while giving it a sleek look. While the rear and bottom are made of plastic, it feels sturdy and durable. The subwoofer, in comparison, sits elevated on four plastic pegs, as the speaker is located on its underside. It's made from melamine, which feels durable. The satellites are made from the same material as the bar and have similar metal grill-type mesh on its top, front, and sides. Both satellites are truly wireless and you can easily charge them by connecting back to the sides of the bar, or by micro-USB. You can even use them while charging, which is a handy feature.
The JBL Bar 9.1's stereo frequency response is great. When set to 'Standard' mode and with room correction on, the bass is present and thumpy, which is well-suited for action movies or bass-heavy music. The rest of the response is very accurate and neutral. If you don't like the way it sounds, there's also a few EQ presets that you can use to find the best sound for your needs. There's also a room correction feature available, which can help improve audio reproduction to better fit your room.
Update 09/21/2020: We've discovered a value input bug that would cause the Dynamics box results to be slightly off. All soundbars reviewed since January 30th, 2020 have been updated.
The JBL Bar 9.1 has good stereo dynamics. It can get loud enough for a large room or a crowded environment like a house party. However, there's some thumping and compression artifacts present at max volume.
The JBL 9.1's THD performance is great. At a normal listening volume, there's a low amount of THD, resulting in clean and accurate sound. However, when pushed to max volume, there's a small jump in THD, particularly in the bass range. That being said, most people may not hear any harmonic distortion with real-life content.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is a 5.1.4 setup with an outstanding center channel performance. Thanks to its dedicated center speaker, dialogue and vocals in your favorite content sound clear and accurate. It gets pretty loud, which is nice as well.
Update 02/09/2021We changed the score for 7.1 Rears from "YES" to "NO" since it's a 5.1.4 setup. This soundbar has left and right surround speakers, but it doesn't have additional rear speakers.
The JBL Bar 9.1 True Wireless Surround with Dolby Atmos' surround performance is amazing. Thanks to its 5.1.4 setup, it has dedicated surround speakers that produce an accurate localization of objects in its soundstage.
The JBL Bar 9.1's Atmos performance is passable. It plays sound from the bar's top speakers as well as its satellite speakers, which helps to bounce sound off the ceiling and reflect it back to the listener to create a more immersive experience. However, it doesn't sound as real as discrete up-firing speakers like those in a dedicated home theatre setup.
Update 02/09/2021We changed the score for Rear Level Adjustment from "YES" to "NO". This 5.1.4 setup comes with surround speakers, but it doesn't have any additional rear speakers.
Update 10/22/2020: We originally reported that this soundbar had a bass adjustment feature. However, this feature is only for the subwoofer and not the bar. We have updated this review to reflect these changes.
The JBL Bar 9.1 has decent sound enhancement features. Unlike the Samsung HW-Q950T, it doesn't have a graphic EQ, and unlike the Vizio Elevate, it doesn't have a dialogue enhancement feature. However, it has three EQ presets: 'Smart Mode' for rich sound effects, 'Standard', and 'Night Mode'. While it doesn't have a dialogue enhancement feature, the manufacturer recommends using the 'Standard' EQ to help reduce sound effects. There's also a room correction feature, which can further improve audio reproduction, as well as rear and height levels. You can adjust the subwoofer level too.
The JBL Bar 9.1 has several physical inputs and you can even use it as a hub for multiple devices like a gaming system and your TV. However, while there's a USB port, USB playback is only available on the US version of this soundbar. All other regional versions can only use the USB for updating the soundbar's firmware.
Thanks to its HDMI ARC port, it can support all common formats. It also supports eARC, so it can play object-based surround signals and lossless formats.
Thanks to its Full HDMI In port, you can use the JBL Bar 9.1 as a hub between external devices like a Blu-ray disc player and your TV. It supports all common audio formats including Dolby Atmos and DTS content too, which is great for movie lovers.
The JBL Bar 9.1 soundbar supports Dolby Digital and DTS content via its optical port. This content is usually found on streaming content as well as Blu-ray discs.
The JBL Bar 9.1 has incredible wireless playback options. No matter how you like to wirelessly stream content, you can cast it to the soundbar without a problem.
The JBL Bar 9.1 can be used as a hub between your TV and another source like your PC to play 4k content at 60Hz. Text looks crisp and clear on a 4k TV.
The JBL Bar 9.1's satellites are completely wireless and don't require a power cable at all. They're advertised to last up to 10 hours before they need to be recharged, and they can be recharged by connecting them back to the bar or by micro-USB. They can also play audio while charging.
Update 10/23/2020: We originally reported that this soundbar uses Google Home as its companion app. While it can be used with this bar, we now don't consider this to be a companion app as it offers very limited functionality.
This soundbar doesn't have a dedicated app. You can pair it with the Google Home app, but it isn't specifically designed for this bar, and it doesn't really control much of the bar's features. You can control the volume level as well as cast audio files from your mobile device. Unfortunately, that's about it.
If the JBL Bar 9.1 is inactive for more than 10 minutes, the bar and subwoofer switch into standby mode. Ten minutes later, the detachable speakers also go into standby mode and its status indicator turns off as it's no longer connected to the bar wirelessly. Thanks to its HDMI CEC support, you can also control basic functions of the soundbar with your TV remote too, which is nice.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is an impressive 5.1.4 channel setup. It has two unique detachable satellites that are also truly wireless, so you can remove them from the sides of the soundbar and place them anywhere in the room. It also has a very balanced and neutral sound profile making it well-suited for a variety of audio content, and its surround performance rivals that of the Samsung HW-Q90R or the Vizio SB46514-F6. If you're looking for more soundbars, check out our recommendations for the best Dolby Atmos soundbars, the best soundbars 5.1, and the best soundbars for movies.
The JBL Bar 9.1 and the Samsung HW-Q950T are two well-performing but differently set up soundbars. The Samsung is a 9.1.4 setup with a more balanced sound profile. It can get louder with less thumping and compression artifacts and comes with a graphic EQ as well as a dialogue enhancement feature. However, the JBL is a 5.1.4 setup that has a better build quality. Unlike the Samsung, the JBL uses detachable wireless satellite speakers to create a more immersive audio experience. Its center, surrounds, and height performances are all significantly better.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is a better soundbar than the Vizio Elevate. The JBL has a better-balanced, more neutral sound profile, so it's suitable for lots of audio content. It also comes with a room correction feature and it's compatible with Apple AirPlay, unlike the Vizio. However, the Vizio has a dialogue enhancement feature, which the JBL lacks. The Vizio also has a unique design with left and right sides that rotate upwards to create a wider soundstage.
The Samsung HW-Q90R and the JBL Bar 9.1 are both similarly impressive soundbars. The Samsung is a 7.1.4 setup that has a bit better balanced sound profile, it can get louder with fewer compression artifacts, and its height performance is better too. It also has a graphic EQ as well as EQ presets, which some users may prefer. However, the JBL is a 5.1.4 setup has a much better stereo soundstage, its surround performance is significantly better, and it has an ethernet port too. It also has more wireless playback options. That being said, they're both well-built soundbars with balanced sound profiles, making them great choices.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is a better performing soundbar than the JBL Bar 5.1 Surround. The Bar 9.1 is a 5.1.4 setup with detachable wireless satellites and a more neutral and balanced sound profile. Its center and surround performances are much better too, and it supports Atmos as well as eARC. It also supports a wider array of audio formats over its physical inputs.
The Sonos Arc with Sub + One SL Speakers is a slightly better soundbar than the JBL Bar 9.1. The Sonos is better built, its height performance is better, and it has more sound enhancement features. However, the JBL has a better center channel performance. It also has more physical inputs as well as wireless playback options.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is a better soundbar for most uses than the LG SN10YG. The JBL has a better-balanced sound profile suitable for a variety of audio content. It uses unique detachable satellite speakers, and it has a significantly better surround performance. You can even wirelessly stream audio to it using Apple AirPlay. However, the LG offers more sound enhancement features as well as two Full HDMI In ports.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is a better 5.1.4 soundbar than the Sennheiser AMBEO Soundbar. The JBL is better built, it's smaller, and its satellite speakers are completely wireless, which means they can be placed virtually anywhere you have room. It also sounds significantly more balanced and neutral, while its surround and height performances are better. You can even wirelessly stream to it using Apple AirPlay too. However, the Sennheiser has three Full HDMI In ports, a parametric EQ, and it can get louder. It also has a companion app that you can use to control all the features of the soundbar. If you don't mind its bulky size, the Sennheiser is a good choice if you don't have the room for a full setup.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is a better 5.1.4 setup than the Vizio SB46514-F6. While both soundbars are well-built, the JBL is a bit more balanced. It also has a significantly better THD and surround performance. There are also more physical inputs so it supports more audio formats, and you can even stream music to it using Apple AirPlay. Some users may prefer the completely wireless satellite speakers too. However, the Vizio has a better height performance and its companion app can control all of the bar's features, which is nice.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is a significantly better soundbar than the Roku Streambar. The JBL is a 5.1.4 setup that has both a wireless subwoofer and satellites. It can produce a deeper bass, its sound profile is better-balanced, and it has room correction. Its center, surrounds, and height performances all perform better as well, and it even has a Full HDMI In port. However, although the Roku is a 2.0 setup, it's smaller and can be upgraded down the line with a separate subwoofer and satellites.
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Black Bar 9.1 |
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