The 5 Best 5.1 Soundbars - Fall 2023 Reviews

The best 5.1 soundbar we've tested is the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 with Speakers + Bass Module. It's a premium Dolby Atmos soundbar that's a great choice for surround sound. While it's not currently available as a package deal, you can still buy the bar, the sub, and the satellites from the manufacturer separately and pair them together for a truly immersive sound. Like most premium bars, it has a room correction feature to optimize audio reproduction based on your room's unique acoustics, which Bose calls ADAPTiQ. With it on, its sound profile is very neutral, resulting in a clear and accurate reproduction of voices and instruments. Thanks to its sub, the bass has plenty of rumble, providing a cinematic feel for action-packed scenes and intense movie scores.

This bar supports lots of different audio formats. If you watch many movies on streaming platforms, you've likely come across 5.1 surround sound formats like Dolby Digital and object-based formats like Dolby Atmos, and the bar plays back both with ease. That said, it doesn't support DTS content. This format is rare on its own, but it's often the fallback for higher quality DTS-HD MA formatted Blu-rays.

If you watch a lot of Blu-rays or already have a Sonos ecosystem in your home, the Sonos Arc with Sub + One SL Speakers is a good alternative. Its soundstage performance isn't quite as good as the Bose, but it still does a good job overall. Also, there are some options on the market with more than five channels that offer an even more immersive experience. They're a bit more expensive, though, so if you're sticking with a 5.1 setup, the Bose is the best of the best.

The Vizio Elevate is another versatile soundbar available at a more affordable price. It's a premium 5.1.4 bar with a unique design, as the sides rotate upwards when you watch Dolby Atmos or DTS:X content, which helps create a wider, more immersive soundstage. You can also turn this feature on when you watch 5.1 content, like Dolby Digital or DTS. Thanks to its two discrete satellites, it offers a clear and real representation of surround sound, and the action seems like it's happening all around you, with sound effects coming from distinct locations. Unfortunately, you have to wire these satellites to the bar to get them to work, which can clutter your living space.

With its dedicated subwoofer, this soundbar has no trouble reproducing the deep thump and rumble in action-heavy scenes or powerful movie scores. There's a little extra boom in the bass, though it doesn't overpower voices and other instruments in the mix. You have some customization tools, too, but not as many as the most premium setups, like the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 with Speakers + Bass Module. Without room correction, for example, it sounds a bit different depending on the acoustics of your space, so you'll have to manually make up for this with its bass and treble adjustments. Still, it's a versatile pick that's more affordable than the top-of-the-line models.

The Vizio M Series M512a-H6 is the best 5.1 soundbar we've tested in the mid-range. This 5.1.2 Dolby Atmos soundbar is a great option for more budget-conscious shoppers, with a versatile performance that's great for listening to lots of audio content. Out-of-the-box, its balanced and even sound means that voices and lead instruments reproduce with clarity and accuracy. It's easy to follow along with dialogue in your favorite movies and TV shows, and the sub brings plenty of rumble to shake the floor in action-packed scenes.

This soundbar is good for listening to immersive audio formats like Dolby Digital and Dolby Atmos. Its satellites bring a clear and real feel to sound effects in the mix. However, compared to the Vizio Elevate, this model's satellites don't have up-firing drivers in addition to their front-firing drivers, so you don't get the same sense of height in the space behind you. The bar's sides don't rotate, so its soundstage isn't quite as immersive or wide. Still, it does quite a good job for the price, so it's definitely worth a look.

For a more affordable 5.1 soundbar, consider the Vizio M Series M51ax-J6. Compared to other bars at this price point, this soundbar shines thanks to its included satellites, which bring a more life-like feel to immersive audio formats like Dolby Atmos and Dolby Digital. You can position these satellites around you and feel like sound effects are taking place in the space around you. This soundbar even comes with many of the same customization features as more premium models from the manufacturer, so you can adjust its bass and treble levels to get the best possible sound for you.

Out of the box, this soundbar's even and balanced sound makes it suitable for many different types of audio content. Dialogue is clear and easy to follow, and there's plenty of rumble in the bass for genres like EDM and hip-hop. That said, given the price difference, there are some differences between this bar and the more premium Vizio M Series M512a-H6. Notably, this bar's fabric coverings seem more prone to ripping or tearing over time, giving it a less sleek feel. Its soundstage performance isn't as good, so you don't get the same sense of sound stretching around your room. Still, it's worth a look if you're on a tighter budget.

The best budget 5.1 soundbar we've tested is the Vizio V Series V51-H6. It's one of the few 5.1 soundbars available at this price point and offers a great price-to-performance ratio overall. The included satellite speakers are a real draw compared to similarly-priced models since they greatly improve the surround sound experience. Plug them in to enjoy a more clear and real feel with sound effects so you feel like you're in the middle of the action on screen. You have to wire them into the subwoofer to get them to work, which is inconvenient, depending on your setup, but not a huge deal, given the wallet-friendly price.

Compared to the Vizio M Series M51ax-J6, this soundbar offers many of the same sound enhancement features. Its bass and treble are adjustable, so you have some control over how the bar sounds. The main difference between these two setups is Dolby Atmos support—while the M Series can playback height content, the V Series can't. Atmos is becoming common on both streaming platforms and Blu-rays, so if you want to take advantage of this immersive audio format, you'll want to opt for the M Series. However, if you aren't an Atmos fan, you may find that the V Series is the better value pick overall.