Bose SoundLink Color Bluetooth speaker II - Soft black

https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-SP-SB23W-Andrew-Soundbar-System/dp/B00EHBPF6W/ref=as_sl_pc_tf_til?tag=damian03-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=78ec782e74590b0f73e0c9304e6b60dc&creativeASIN=B00EHBPF6W

• StevO

  4.0 out of 5 starsOne of the best sounding bar with minor inconveniences

  October 29, 2013

  At current price, this sound bar is one of the best sounding bar in the $250 - $400 range. The sound is full, rich, well balanced and a pleasure to listen to. I haven't A/B compared with brands like Klipsch, B&W, Yamaha or Onkyo sound bars but in comparison with other electronics manufacturers' brands such as Sony, Samsung, LG, Panasonic or Sharp's sound bars in similar price range, Pioneer trumps them all in sonic quality. It doesn't matter what feature the sound bar claims to have (like 3D sound processing, multi-channel virtual surround, sound enhancing processing gimmicks) unless the speaker actually has good drivers to begin with. Listening to music with this sound bar was the closest thing to listening to a regular pair of speaker - wide, balanced and full. The small subwoofer that comes with the sound bar delivers clean and powerful bass without distorting or muddying mid/high tones. If you are shopping to get the best sound as the top priority, this should do the job. If connectivity and DSP gimmicks are more important, you should look elsewhere.
  
  What I like:
  - Sound quality (5/5). It is closest thing to real speakers that is pleasing to listen for both music or watching movies and TV programs. Most sound bars that I tested amplified voice/mid frequency too much to a point that made it annoying when listening to music or sounded tinny/boxy.
  - Wireless compact subwoofer delivers clean and tight bass
  - Bluetooth is now fixed but the range is short and sensitive to blockage (iphone sync performed better than macbook pro -12+ft vs. 3-4ft.)
  - Remote learning capability
  - Enough power to fill an apartment living room or small to medium sized living room
  - The power adapter (the square plastic box on power cord found on most laptops/monitors/sound bars) is inside the sound bar so less clutter
  
  What I wish Pioneer had or what's missing:
  - LCD screen to show current volume, source, EQ setting
  - Auto Volume Leveler (Since current volume cannot be seen due to lack of a display, different sources with varying volume can either be too loud or too weak)
  - Dialogue mode turns off the subwoofer. Instead, it should change the EQ to increase mid frequency.
  - Manual subwoofer turn on/off option. The only way is to unplug it or use the dialogue mode which would also modify the sound EQ.
  - I wish they included a Night mode that lowers the subwoofer volume without turning it off.
  - Lower profile design dimensions. For current TVs using stands (not wall mounted), 4.1" height blocks the IR port or part of the screen.
  - HDMI with ARC capability
  - No wired connection option to the sub-woofer or no sub-out option in the back of the sound bar for those of us looking to upgrade the subwoofer.
  - Better quality remote control that doesn't use those annoying flat circular batteries. Standard AA or AAA would make life easier.
  
  I think most people would shop to add a sound bar to enhance the overall sound quality more than the looks or artificial sound processing. No sound bar in this price point is expected to deliver true surround experience. However, if you are looking to buy a sound bar that handles both music and movies with gusto, look no further.

• 5.0 out of 5 starsBest so far

  ByJ. Joneson February 18, 2014

  Verified Purchase

  I have been searching for a soundbar for my main TV for over 2 years. Yes this has been a costly experience. The biggest problem with virtually every soundbar type system is the lack of control over the bass and treble. I do have a full blown Denon surround system with Boston Acoustic speakers which is perfect for watching movies but too much for standard TV viewing.
  
  Boston Acoustics TV 10 was a very good bar, easy to hook up but really didn't have the sound field when watching a movie. It was great for news and voice.
  
  Bose Solo. It had very good sound if all you did was watch movies but the bass was just too much on most programming.
  
  Yamaha S401 was very good but it's lack of compatibility with the Comcast cable remote control was the deal breaker for my wife.
  
  Next try was the Panasonic 770 system which was the best sounding by far because it had a great deal of control over the sound field because of the center channel. This would have been the one but 3 days in and the system locked up requiring removing power from the control box for 30 seconds and plugging back in. Did this once and a day later the same thing happened. Searched the web only to find they had a design flaw in the system which caused the frequent lock-ups.
  
  Searching thru some reviews at CNET, this Pioneer unit had a very good review for sound quality even though it lacked some of the features some would consider important on a soundbar. I figured I would give it a try. Amazon was great again with free Prime 2 day shipping and hook up was easy because you don't have to worry about HDMI switching as the primary input to the bar is a toslink optical digital. Programming my Comcast remotes was fairly simple and the most important feature of the system is the 3 selections for sound fields, Voice is for watch standard TV shows when you want to hear the dialog and in this mode the sub woofer is off. There is a Music selection for listening to music. And their is a movie mode which creates a simulated surround sound field (this works so well I have not used my full Denon system very often even for movies). The other important control they put in this system is a +/- control for sub woofer level.
  
  One thing I forgot to mention, the sound quality is excellent which I believe is a result of the multi-speaker bar and the fact the bar is made from a veneered composite material instead of plastic like all the other bars I purchased in the past.
  
  The wireless sub woofer is very small and I was very surprised how good it performed.
  
  Save yourself the frustration of dealing with all the other wiz-bang features you don't need and may never use. This product is a basic sound bar that delivers on sound quality.

• 5.0 out of 5 starsGreat set up for no-nonsense, balanced sound.

  ByJeff Bon April 24, 2016

  Verified Purchase

  This sounds surprisingly natural to me, considering there are not any proper woofers here. When you listen to it next to some other setups, it might sound a little flat in comparison, but in this case I think "flat" is just "more accurate and balanced". Sizzle and Boom are cheap ways to make things sound impressive on the sales floor.
  
  There are not many adjustments. The only tone setting is the sub-woofer level, but it blends so well, and the bass is so well balanced that it really works fine as a bass level adjuster. With a lot of subs, you have to get the balance just right, or the low end is screwed up. Not the case with this set up. It is well engineered and just works. It is also not that picky about placement. I have my TV, soundbar and components on a rolling stand and the sub just sits strapped to the base of the stand and still works great.
  
  There are just three preset sound options: Music, Movie, and Dialogue. The dialog just turns off the sub (I think). It is perfect for late night use if you have neighbors in the building. I usually use the Music setting for music and most movies and moderate or louder volumes. I think the idea of the Movie setting is to boost the ultra-low frequencies for sound effects (the ones you feel more than hear) and I think there is some boosting in the upper-mids (for dialogue?). In practice I just use the Movie setting when listening at low volumes (movies and music) which is not that often. I actually seldom use this for music.
  
  I do not miss any of the gimmicky sound processing some of the other soundbars offer. I think fake surround sounds neat at first listen, but IMO it gets old quick.With this you are paying for a good, accurate, no-frills but well engineered speaker set.
  
  This is NOT the best sound you can get (especially for music) for the $380 it cost me, or even the $280 I see it going for now. For that, get proper bookshelf speakers. But for a soundbar it is really good.
  
  The one area I fault this in are the actual controls. The remote is laid out terribly, and even after owning this for many months I still have to look carefully when I go for the volume. for some reason they put the sub controls in the prime real estate instead of the volume. And the minimal display takes a but of learning to interpret.
  
  Luckily, it is easy to train the unit to respond to other controllers, so I can use the volume controls on the TV remote instead.
  
  Another design gripe is that the sub stays powered on with a very bright light blinking even when you turn the unit off. I think that light could be a tenth as bright and not blink. or better yet put a power switch on it so I can kill it when not in use.