Which? Don't Buy soundbars
Thuddy bass, unclear dialogue, shrill high notes and tricky controls can ruin
your TV viewing experience. Read our Don't Buy soundbar reviews to avoid buying
a clanger.
Get the wrong soundbar and you may as well not have got one at all - there's no guarantee it'll sound any better than your TV on its own. You'll be wincing at the painfully distorted sound, and straining to hear the dialogue in your favourite films and TV dramas. Our rigorous soundbar testing will help you eliminate the risk of an expensive mistake and make sure that you know what to go for.
Join Which? to find out which soundbars we've named as Don't Buys.
What makes a Don't Buy soundbar?
There's a huge choice of soundbars, from temptingly cheap brands only available online to the big guns such as Sonos, Samsung and LG, and it's possible to get a great one for a decent price. But impressive-sounding features can sometimes mask those that are tricky to use or fall short of actually achieving the superb sound they promise.
Which? Don't Buy soundbars are those models that have failed to deliver even average sound quality in our testing. Our expert tests help you avoid paying extra for a dud soundbar that offers absolutely no improvement over your TV's built-in speakers.
Unique soundbar testing by Which?
Our sound quality experts listen to 14 audio tracks, from TV dramas and films to music of a variety of genres. Each soundbar is tested in an environment that reflects a real-life living room setup. We check how loud it'll go before distortion kicks in and ease-of-use tests reveal which are a pain to setup, and if controls and extras like Bluetooth music streaming are straightforward.
- We test soundbars on over 50 unique criteria - from sound quality and ease of use, to the number of connection options and even power consumption - to ensure that we don't miss a trick.
- Those ratings combine to create a total test score out of 100 so that you can easily see which models are worth your money.
- We don't take price into account either. Every soundbar is judged on its own merits, and we've uncovered some fantastic value models - simply select a great-scoring model to match your budget.
