Amazon Basics 2.1 Channel Bluetooth Sound Bar with Built-In Subwoofer

Do not buy this product if you plan on using it for anything other than casual TV or movie viewing.Let me begin by saying that by no means am I an audio equipment expert. That being said, I've had a lot of exposure to good, affordable, audio equipment through my own side projects since I'm both a dancer and a DJ.I'm writing this review as a straight out of the box review and a few hours of use, and will update it next week when I have used it more.I'm disappointed overall with how the AmazonBasics Bluetooth Sound Bar with Built-In Subwoofer performs, even given that it costs only $100.Let's start with the Bluetooth mode. Speaking from a strictly utilitarian point of view, yes the bluetooth works and it works well. I'm sure the technology for connectivity is fine, so from a hardware point of view, putting in the bluetooth is a great idea especially given that many devices are coming out that have bluetooth options. However, speaking from a common sense point of view, and thinking about what devices the average user will own that utilize bluetooth, reveals that including this functionality is pretty much moot.I personally bought this bar not just for use with my TV, but to also use with my cell phone's bluetooth and also my newly bought Amazon Echo Dot. Both of these devices, though they have other functionality, are primarily used for music purposes (either via the Spotify Alexa skill or Amazon Music for the Dot, or any amount of various music apps that I have on my phone) in my house. The Soundbar is, unfortunately, not good for music. For testing purposes I used the song Starlite by KOAN Sound and Asa. This song specifically has a fantastic blend of low, mid, and high tones that easily point out the strengths and flaws of any sound equipment, and I've used it numerous times for the many headphones and speakers I've purchased.Let's start with where the bar shines. The soundbar has three built in sound EQs, labelled as Regular, News, and Movie. Of the EQ options the bar has, movie mode is definitely the warmest, most full sounding EQ. This mode stresses both the mids and bass tones. Because of this however, 'regular' mode just sounds empty, perhaps because the mids aren't as emphasized; and 'news' mode seems to cut out the bass. Hence, we can reasonably conclude that 'movie' mode is going to be the preferred EQ for people using this bar for music listening purposes. The mid tones, and lower high tones, on the AmazonBasics soundbar are definitely where it excels. Relatively high pitched string instruments will come through warm and full sounding, piano will sound great, etc. In terms of bass, I wasn't expecting much (after all you only spend $30 extra for that subwoofer) but on movie mode the bass is surprisingly full sounding, considering the size of the woofer. By no means will you be "feeling" the bass unless you turn the volume way up, but you can certainly hear it when the soundbar is at a reasonable volume level, which is all you can really expect.Unfortunately where the soundbar falls short are the high tones, especially in terms of percussion. If you're an avid music listener, a good deal of the songs you play through this will sound like they're suddenly very low quality and that's because the bar doesn't seem to handle high tones well. When it comes to music, something a lot of people don't realize is that the 'clearness' of a song is almost totally dependent on whether the percussion sounds clear and crisp. The song I mentioned above is absolutely rife with the use of high hats and snares, and on the bar it sounds, in my friends words, "like you're listening to a youtube video that's in 240p." That is to say, it sounds muffled and regardless of the claims that the sound is "crystal clear", it just simply isn't.So since the bar doesn't handle music well, why include bluetooth functionality? Certainly no user will connect their TV to the bar via bluetooth (if bluetooth compatible TVs exist and the average user owns one) since it's not as high quality as using even just standard RCA cables. I personally wouldn't pay even $30 for the sound quality the bar provides; but if we were to assume that the average user would pay $50 for this sound quality (for $50-$60 you can find a non-bluetooth compatible 5.1 surround sound system here on amazon that has SIGNIFICANTLY better sound quality: for example the  Logitech Z506 Surround Sound Home Theater Speaker System, External TV Speakers  that I personally use for my computer) (I should also add you can buy a good quality audio equipment bluetooth adapter for $20-$30) that still leaves another $50 for an essentially useless bluetooth mode.So that being said, this leaves the soundbar with the sole functionality of being used as a TV speaker, which again even that isn't that great for the price you're paying (I would urge you all to look at non-bluetooth systems if you're planning on buying this just for TV purposes). The three modes do work well enough for what they're intended for and the sound is fine given that it's only a 2.1 system, but for the price it's simply not worth it.In summary:Bluetooth: 1/5 as it is mostly unnecessarySound Quality: 2/5 for music but 3/5 for non-music purposesCost Effectiveness: 3/5 as you can do much better for the same price.Total Rating: 2.5/5

I recently updated my PC setup and bought a couple new monitors. The monitors had built in speakers but they are just terrible. I was thinking of getting a PC speaker to set up but I have no use for 7.1 surround sound since my desk is in a small area and I wouldn't really benefit from 7.1 anyhow. Not to mention a simple 2.1 solution would just take too much room on my desk anyhow, mostly in the sense of cable management.So I got to thinking about an alternative. And thought about using a soundbar instead. They usually have a low clearance (PC speakers stand up), they are all inclusive (PC speakers come in several pieces and need to be wired all together) and a remote (not really needed but if I was pumping music for company and wanted to control the volume I could). Also the motherboard on my PC has a Toslink port anyhow so it made perfect sense to use it. The con I found was that most sound bars are north of $100. I usually would shop via NewEgg for computer stuff so when I was looking I mostly gave up the soundbar idea initially because I wasn't prepared to spend $150 on a soundbar for my PC when I could get the PC speakers for about half the price.So I checked Amazon and found this beauty. It had all the wants I on my list and it was under $100. Added to cart and waiting eagerly for it to show up. I was skeptical about the AmazonBasics branding, but I surmise that it's just private labeling of another brand (it feels like Samsung or LG but it could be a chinese knockoff too due to how audio equipment is made). A few days later it showed up! The box is unimaginative, it is one of the most bland packaging ever. It certainly does the job but boy you can tell that they cheaped out in the packaging. Not an issue at all, but obvious.This does everything and more than I hoped. I can play music loud and feel like I am right there, I can play games and feel right in the action. It pumps out sound just as how I would have hopped. Sure it's not a super movie theatre experience, but for sub $100 I'm not expecting that. It does exactly what I want it to do. It feels well built and the rubber grips for feet are perfect for my desk. I can hear all the little sounds that I would normally hear with my nice G933 headphones. And on top of that I have two wires, for Toslink and power. The Toslink cable that came with this is kind of short, great length for a TV but not for a PC setup. With my set up it just barely works but a slightly longer one isn't too expensive anyhow for anyone else doing the same thing.I plan on getting a second one. I have a 65" TV and primarily use an Apple TV with it. So I could easily put this sound bar anywhere in the room and connect it to the Apple TV via bluetooth.

I bought one of these a year and a half ago, and it sat unopened in the original packaging for about a year before I finally put it to use, so even though I've owned it for 18+ months, it's only been in use for about 6 of those. I've read a few reviews that hint at longer-term problems with this sound bar, so I suppose time will tell, but it has been working like a charm since I set it up.Let's start off by saying that my positive review is based largely on my expectations. I bought it to sit on my desk, underneath a 32" monitor that I mounted on the wall. So it's essentially being used as a computer speaker. For me that means it gets used as a speaker for video conferencing, streaming music, watching Netflix and Hulu while I am working, and for the occasional XBOX gaming session after I am done working for the day.As with most any sound bar, the form factor is great for this use, because it tucks neatly underneath the monitor, without taking up much usable desk space (which always seems to be limited).All in all, I think the sound quality is good. It's not great, but as I mentioned, this is an expectation play. With three "sound modes" to choose from (standard, news, movie) this sound bar accommodates all of my use cases nicely. I'd prefer something with fine-grained control over bass, treble, etc. but for me the simplicity of this sound bar isn't an issue.I generally have this set to "standard" mode for work-related stuff, and I switch it over the "movie" when I am streaming music, watching video, or playing games.It's been a while since I bought this, so there might be better sound bars out there in this price range, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy this again if was doing a similar set up to what I have now.

La barra provee un excelente sonido a un muy buen precio.Tiene tres modos de sonido pre-configurados, y puede ser conectado con cables RCA o Fibra óptica a un dispositivo. Del mismo modo, puede ser conectado por Bluetooth.Es una excelente opción.El único problema que tengo, y por el cual le quité dos estrellas, es que no existe un reemplazo para el control remoto. Se dañó el mío, y el personal de Amazon no pudo darme información acerca de cómo conseguir un reemplazo, o modelos de control compatibles con la barra de sonido. No hay un equipo de soporte técnico para productos AmazonBasics, y no hay tampoco un chat, número telefónico, o correo electrónico que pueda usar para pedir ayuda.Su única sugerencia fué la de comprar otra barra de sonido nueva.

After reading the reviews, I decided to buy this soundbar. It arrived a day early which was very nice. The bar was very easy to setup and install and looks very nice under the tv (50 inch). I can't give it a 5 star because the sound isn't as good as some of the reviews say it is, well at least for me. It does however sound better than the tv speakers which I guess is the point of having the bar. The sound is clear. I tried all 3 settings and since I'm a bass person, I left it on movies. If you're looking for bass, this is not the speaker for you.

Pretty decent sound from a compact unit. I am typically skeptical of an attached sub-woofer but this one packs a punch. The remote control is simple, albeit has odd labeling for the different audio modes. The three audio modes are "Normal", "News", and "Movie"; which really means "Balanced", "High Treble/Low Bass", and "High Bass/Low Treble". Unfortunately there is no indicator showing the volume level of the unit, so make sure you turn it down before you first use it, then slowly turn it up.

Appreciated quick delivery. Easy installation. Good clear sound. Happy with sound. Much better than sound from TV speakers. Volume control is not great - there is too big an increase in volume when you press + button for increase. Needs more gradual control. Other disappointing feature is the on/off red/green light located on top of sound bar so cannot see light when seated at TV - would like it to be on front of bar.

Buena opción, la compre en oferta (~1,500 pesos) para un monitor de gamer que no tiene sonido, el sonido que ocupo no es muy fuerte y este producto cumple perfectamente con las necesidades, lo recomiendo ampliamente.Lo que me gusto es:+ Tiene conectividad audio optico, lo cual te garantiza un excelente sonido desde el source, en mi caso un PS4+ Tiene control remoto+ Trae el cable optico y otros cables de audio, por lo que no ocupas gastar en cosas adicionales. También trae unas bases para colgarlo en la paredLo que puede mejorar:- El cable de audio optico es de super baja calidad, en cuanto a que esta muy corto y super delgado, sin embargo esto no interfiere con el funcionamiento, espero que no se me vaya a dañar- Opciones de configuración de sonido vienen muy limitadas, si ocupas para un alto performance este producto no es opción para tiEn general por el precio pagado y lo que he recibido estoy satisfecho, aunque creo que este producto no es para todos, vaya es una opción barata de muy buena calidad.Espero les sirva, saludos y gracias!