The Sundarban
Revealed Apr 25, 2026, 2:30 PM EDT
Rich Hein is a veteran technology journalist with more than two decades preserving developer, individual and undertaking subject matters. Rich’s career has been dedicated to service journalism, connecting readers to sigh material that informs and delights.
Beforehand, Rich was vp and editor-in-chief for More practical Media Crew, director of audience vogue for IDG and editor/writer for sites fancy CIO.com, ComputerWorld, CodeGuru and other tech-centric publications. He is acquired a lot of accolades, together with the IDG Summit and Azbee awards and has been lined by Medium for his work in audience vogue.
When now not at his desk, Rich lives in Daytona Beach with his wife and three canine. He enjoys playing guitar, surfing and staying abreast of the latest in tech.
I’ve owned a few soundbars over the years, most with a subwoofer, and they always felt fancy the apt alternative. They peek clean, save space, and sound decent ample at first. However after going through three assorted setups, I realized I did now not actually fancy how they sounded. No matter the brand, they all felt a little thin and, at times, slow. I tried swapping in better subs to repair it, however it never really obtained me where I wanted.
So I went in a fully assorted direction. I discovered a stale stereo setup on Facebook Marketplace that included a Sony receiver, two Polk Audio tower speakers, and a subwoofer for $150. After atmosphere it up, the contrast was immediate. The sound was bigger, fuller, and powerful nearer to what I may perhaps been missing all the time.
Why my soundbars always felt thin
Everything came from one place, and it never stuffed the room
Justin Duino / Overview Geek
I contain now not mediate soundbars are bad, however they always felt fancy they have been combating their very gain fabricate. You’re cramming a number of channels into a single bar beneath your TV, and there is most attention-grabbing so powerful separation and depth you can get from that. Even with a subwoofer handling the low halt, everything else is calm coming from basically the same place. As a musician, sound matters to me, and this always felt a little off.
That’s what kept bugging me. Dialogue was clear ample, and bass was handsome once I added a decent sub, however overall the sound was flat. There wasn’t powerful sense of space or walk, especially in movies. Everything blended together instead of spreading out, and once I realized it, I may now not unhear it.
What soundbars get apt, and why I calm moved on
They’re handy, however convenience most attention-grabbing goes so far
Credit: Bose
I get why soundbars are so popular. They’re easy to place up, contain now not take over your lounge, and sound a lot better than your TV’s built-in speakers. For many of us, that’s more than ample, especially in a smaller space. You race one in, pair the sub, and you’re performed. No receiver, no speaker wire, no tweaking.
JBL Bar 700: 5.1-Channel Soundbar and Sub
Maintain watch over Approach
Distant
Brand
JBL
Turning in Dolby Atmos Encompass Sound and appropriate customization, the JBL Bar 700 sequence is an all-in-one sound answer. Place the subwoofer and detach the ends for surround sound, or withhold the satellites attached for room-filling noise from an prolonged soundbar.
That said, I eventually hit a level where convenience wasn’t ample to make up for the sound. Even the larger ones I tried never gave me that sense of space or fullness I was searching for, especially when I compared them to the studio monitors and sub in my studio. They sounded appropriate for what they are, however I kept feeling fancy I was compromising. Once I came to phrases with that, it was hard to justify staying with something that fell wanting what I actually wanted.
Separate speakers made all the contrast
I wasn’t wanting to exhaust a lot of money on this; I apt wanted to take a look at out something assorted. That’s when I came across a stale setup on Facebook Marketplace: a Sony stereo receiver, two Polk Audio tower speakers, and a subwoofer for $150. At that phrase, it felt fancy a no-brainer. When I picked it up, everything was in great shape, so even though it wasn’t supreme, it was value taking a shot.
Related
After atmosphere it up, the contrast was evident. The sound did now not apt get louder; it actually stuffed the room. With the speakers spaced apart, everything had more separation and depth, and it finally felt fancy audio was coming from around the TV instead of instantly beneath it. The tower speakers also have a number of drivers, so that they’re handling a wider range of sound than a single soundbar ever may perhaps. Music sounded more alive, and movies sounded bigger than any of my outdated soundbars. It wasn’t subtle; it was the fashion of upgrade you glance apt away.
Marantz Stereo 70s
The Marantz Stereo 70s is supreme for the listening room that doubles as a supreme space to watch music movies, dwell performance movies, and anything else you want to sound great. With prime-notch audio parts and masses of analog and digital connectivity, it’s obtained your stereo playback needs lined.
The downsides, and how I fixed them for cheap
More gear and wires, however easy workarounds
This setup is now not as clean or compact as a soundbar. I had to clear off some shelf space beneath my TV for the receiver, and the tower speakers definitely take up more space on the bottom. It’s now not a enormous deal, however it’s something you glance apt away whenever you’re stale to the simplicity of a single bar beneath your TV otherwise you’re working with a smaller space.
