The Roku Streambar Pro is a budget-friendly 2.0 setup that's the next generation of the Roku Smart Soundbar. It's similar to its predecessor in design and performance but with a few extra features available over its voice remote. The included headphones are great for private listening, either through the Roku app on your mobile device or through the remote that lets you watch on your TV. The bar also gives you access to Roku media's streamer, a neat tool that organizes all your channels and streaming platforms like Netflix and Hulu into one place for easy access. The manufacturer also sells a compatible subwoofer and satellites that you can add to the bar if you want to improve its bass reproduction and surround sound, respectively.
Our Verdict
The Roku Streambar Pro is okay for mixed usage. This 2.0 bar has a simple design that makes it ideal for listening to stereo content, which includes most music and dialogue-centric TV shows. With its balanced mids, voices and lead instruments are clear and detailed in the mix, and you even have some sound enhancement tools to customize its sound to your liking. Its surround sound performance isn't very impressive, and there's no support for more immersive formats like Dolby Atmos. You can add a sub and satellites to improve its performance, but it'll cost a little more.
- Subwoofer add-on available.
- Satellites available as separate add-on.
- Roku media streamer included.
- Lacks low-bass.
- Some compression at max volume.
- No Dolby Atmos support.
The Roku Streambar Pro is decent for dialogue-heavy content like TV shows and podcasts. It's a 2.0 setup, so there's no discrete center channel to improve vocal reproduction. That said, you won't have trouble following the action on screen, as its balanced mids keep voices clear and detailed in the mix. The dialogue enhancement feature, called Voice Clarity, is adjustable, meaning you can choose between 'Off', 'Low', and 'High' modes. If you're watching TV at night, the Volume Mode tool is handy since it balances the volume level to keep dialogue audible without waking up those around you with louder effects in the mix.
- Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Apple AirPlay compatibility.
- Roku media streamer included.
- No Chromecast support.
- Some compression at max volume.
The Roku Streambar Pro is fair for music. Out-of-the-box, it offers a balanced sound, especially in the mids, where most voices and lead instruments reproduce. As a result, those instruments sound clear and detailed in the mix, making the soundbar suitable for listening to most genres. Fans of bass-heavy music like hip-hop and EDM will be disappointed, though, as the bar struggles to bring the thump in the bass range on its own. You have some customization tools on hand, but if you want a rumbling low bass, you'll need to add a separate sub from the manufacturer.
- Subwoofer add-on available.
- Roku media streamer included.
- Lacks low-bass.
- Some compression at max volume.
The Roku Streambar Pro is middling for movies. You won't have trouble following the action in your favorite films, and the bar can playback the most commonly-used surround sound format, Dolby Digital. However, since it's a 2.0 setup, it has to downmix Dolby Digital into stereo to play it, which doesn't sound quite as clear or real. There's no support for more immersive object-based formats like Dolby Atmos, which is also common on lots of streaming platforms. The manufacturer sells separate satellites if you want to improve its surround sound, which is nice.
- Satellites available as separate add-on.
- Roku media streamer included.
- Lacks low-bass.
- Some compression at max volume.
- No Dolby Atmos support.
Changelog
- Updated Oct 11, 2024: The Wireless Playback section has been updated to mention the Roku Streambar SE.
- Updated Mar 01, 2023: Added cable lengths to In The Box.
- Updated Mar 01, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.1. With this update, we've added a Mounting test and added information aboutSubwoofer Output, Spotify Connect, and Microphone Mute.
- Updated Aug 11, 2022: Review published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Roku Streambar Pro is available in 'Black'. You can see the label for the model we tested here.
If you come across another version, let us know in the discussions, and we'll update our review.
Popular Soundbar Comparisons
The Roku Streambar Pro is a 2.0 bar that's the next generation of the Roku Smart Soundbar. The bars have a similar design and a similar performance with sound. However, the Pro adds some extra features, including a private listening mode that lets you enjoy content on your TV without bothering those around you via the included headphones that connect to the remote. Compared to other budget-friendly models, there's also access to Roku's media streamer, a platform that organizes different apps and services into one place.
See also our recommendations for the best budget soundbars, the best all-in-one soundbars, and the best soundbars under $200.
The Roku Streambar is a smaller alternative to the Roku Streambar Pro. It offers a more compact design, which is great if you're low on space. Because of its small size, it doesn't reproduce as much bass as the Pro, which is especially noticeable with bass-heavy music like EDM. The Pro's remote adds a private listening tool thanks to the headphone jack on the remote, and it has two programmable controls so you can access common voice controls with the press of a button. Otherwise, there isn't much of a difference in their performance.
The Roku Streambar Pro is the next generation of the Roku Smart Soundbar. That said, there isn't much of a difference between these bars when it comes to design and sound quality. Instead, the Pro offers a newly-designed remote with a headphone jack so you can enjoy private listening from your TV. Also, its two programmable controls make it easy to access your favorite voice controls with a button press.
The Roku Streambar Pro is a better variant of the Roku Streambar SE with more specifications. Both soundbars come with a similar suite of wireless connectivity options, including Wi-Fi and Airplay connectivity, as well as easy access to streaming apps. The two also share a similar sound profile; one that lacks bass and high-end sheen. However, the Pro variant has some improvements in its performance, most notably when it comes to dynamics, and it supports the popular Dolby digital format. It also offers voice assistant support and headphone monitoring via its remote.
The Sonos Beam is a better standalone bar than the Roku Streambar Pro. The Sonos is a 3.0 bar with a discrete center channel to improve its vocal reproduction. It has a better soundstage, and you notice more bass in the mix right out of the box. Unlike the Roku soundbar, it supports DTS content and has a room correction feature.
The Sony HT-S200F and the Roku Streambar Pro are both budget-friendly standalone bars. The Roku gives you access to Roku's media streamer, a platform that organizes all your channels in one place. It has a better soundstage and more sound enhancement features to help you control its sound. It supports more wireless playback options, too. The Roku's frequency response is more balanced, though the Sony brings a little more bass to the mix.
Test Results
The Roku Streambar Pro has a very similar design to the Roku Smart Soundbar. It's mostly made of plastic, and there's a tight fabric covering the front and sides of the bar.
There's no subwoofer included, but you can buy one from the manufacturer separately.
The Roku Streambar Pro has the same dimensions as the Roku Smart Soundbar. It's wider than the Roku Streambar, but it still fits between the legs of most 55" TV stands. It's not very tall, either, so it doesn't block your TV screen.
The Roku Streambar Pro has a decent build quality. Its plastic build feels solid and sturdy, and the tight fabric doesn't seem like it would rip easily. That said, if you grip the bar too tight in the middle, the front cover comes off the body slightly since it's glued onto the plastic body. If you handle it carefully, you shouldn't have any issues.
- Manuals
- Headphones with 3x sets of tips (4.0 ft / 1.2m)
- Remote with 2x AA batteries
- Power cable (5.7 ft / 1.7m)
- HDMI cable (4.9 ft / 1.5m)
- Optical cable (5.9 ft / 1.8m)
The Roku Streambar Pro has a fair stereo frequency response. Its sound profile is quite balanced, especially in the mid-range, where most voices and lead instruments reproduce. As a result, dialogue is clear and present in your favorite TV shows, and most music genres are accurate and detailed. As with most standalone bars, though, there's a real lack of bass that's noticeable with bass-heavy genres like hip-hop and EDM. It's not an issue with content that doesn't have a lot of bass mixed in, like vocal-heavy TV shows, but fans of certain music genres may want to add on a separate sub to improve its bass reproduction.
The Roku Streambar Pro comes with bass and treble adjustments, as well as EQ presets to customize its sound. We suggest using its default settings if you prefer a more balanced sound.
The Roku Streambar Pro has an alright soundstage. It's perceived to be about a touch wider than the bar itself, but it doesn't have any tricks to make it seem larger. Focus is decent but not great. Sound effects seem like they come from more general areas around you, as opposed to accurate, pinpoint locations that match the action on screen.
The Roku Streambar Pro has decent stereo dynamics. The bar gets loud enough to fill most rooms with sound, though it's not ideal for larger living spaces. There's some compression at max volume, too, meaning that audio reproduction isn't as pure at louder volumes.
The Roku Streambar Pro has a very good stereo THD performance. At a normal listening volume, distortion falls within good limits, so audio reproduction remains clean and accurate. There's a small jump in THD at max volume, which is typical for most soundbars. It's important to remember that distortion is hard to hear with most real-life content, so more casual listeners aren't likely to notice much difference.
The Roku Streambar Pro has an okay center channel performance. It's a 2.0 bar, meaning it has to use its left and right stereo channels to simulate a phantom center. Without a discrete center channel, vocal reproduction isn't quite as clear and real. That said, you don't have any issues following the action on screen, as its frequency response remains quite balanced in the mids, which is where most voices are reproduced.
The Roku Streambar Pro is a 2.0 bar, and it has to downmix 5.1 surround sound formats like Dolby Digital into stereo to play them. The resulting sound isn't very clear or real, and it seems like audio is coming from a speaker placed in front of you rather than speakers placed all around you. If you want a better surround sound, you can always add separate rears from the manufacturer.
The Roku Streambar Pro has a few sound enhancement features. You have some control over its sound thanks to its bass and treble adjustments as well as its presets: 'Standard', 'Dialogue', 'Movie', 'Music', and 'Night'. In the app, you find an adjustable Speech Clarity tool to enhance dialogue, as well as a Volume Mode to balance the volume level between programs. You can also use the bar's menu on the TV to turn on the virtual surround feature, which widens the soundstage for a more immersive sound. Of course, you don't get as many features as more premium models, but it's still a decent offering for the price.
You can connect the Roku Streambar Pro to your TV over an Optical or HDMI ARC connection. Some older TVs lack HDMI ARC, and in that case, you can use an HDMI cable along with an Optical cable to get sound from the bar. Both cables are included in the box, and you can also plug in a USB drive to listen to files from the device.
The Roku Streambar Pro can playback Dolby Digital over an HDMI ARC connection. It's the most common surround sound format, so you find it on lots of different streaming platforms. However, there's no support for lossless or object-based formats like Dolby Atmos.
The Roku Streambar Pro supports Dolby Digital over Optical. Since it's a 2.0 bar, though, it has to downmix it into stereo to play it.
The Roku Streambar Pro has fairly low latency. The audio you hear is mostly in sync with the video you see, so you shouldn't have any lip-synching issues. Some apps and TVs compensate for latency differently, meaning that your real-world experience can vary.
The Roku Streambar Pro lets you wirelessly stream audio from your mobile devices to the bar over various platforms. It also gives you access to Roku's media streamer, so you can stream content from services like Netflix and Apple TV. If you're primarily interested in media streaming capabilities and are looking for a cheaper all-in-one solution, it's worth checking out the Roku Streambar SE instead.
There's no HDMI In port, so the bar doesn't support high-quality passthrough.
The Roku Streambar Pro doesn't have a display, so there's no way to see the volume level or the input you're on. Instead, there's a light in the front of the bar that flashes different colors based on your settings. For example, it slowly pulses when on mute.
Compared to the Roku Smart Soundbar, the remote looks a bit different. While it still lets you control the bar's basic features and access streaming platforms with a single click, there are some additional features included. For example, the headphone jack lets you listen privately with the included earphones. Also, there are two programmable commands, so you can save and trigger any voice command automatically.
The Roku Streambar Pro has its own voice assistant built into the bar. You can trigger it using the app or the remote to control the bar with your voice. You can also pair the bar with third-party devices to use popular voice assistants like Apple's Siri, Amazon Alexa, and Google Assistant.