JBL Bar 3.1 Home Theater Starter System

Here's what you need to know: I'm an audiophile basshead. I have two home theaters, one of which is worth about 6-7,000$ and the other is worth about $2500. I have powered them through thick, 18 gauge wire, top of the line equipment, and have had it professionally installed. I have had six subwoofers in one room because I love low end. I've heard Klipsch speakers, Polks, Sony, JBL, and probably ten more companies. I've heard speakers that are in the thousands for one tower. I'm leaving them for this beautiful little soundbar. Yeah. It's THAT amazing. I read the reviews and I thought, "nah, no way it'll beat out a real surround sound setup." I was planning to have it off in a side room somewhere. Ladies and gentlemen, I was wrong. It's phenomenal. I'm literally putting my surround sound setup in another room and using this little fella as my main setup. Why? Here's why: The sound bar itself is startlingly small, but it puts out whopping sound. Currently, as I'm writing this, I'm feeling my desk vibrate from it and it isn't even on the desk I'm using. But, as any audiophile will tell you, there's a huge difference in being loud verses putting sound you actually want to hear. This thing retains amazing quality, even at higher volumes. Don't worry-- even though it's shaking this room currently, I don't have neighbors in the sense that they can't hear it. If you're in an apartment or even close to other people, you might not want to turn it all the way up, but I'm more than satisfied with it at 28 volume. I tested it by seeing how far I can walk away before I can no longer hear it. I left my house with it at 28, walked about 60 meters, and still could make out the sound. So, never ye fear. This thing can get plenty loud for anything you could ever need, and I didn't even turn it up. The sub: I was mightily suspicious that this sub could put out sufficient bass, seeing as it was one ten inch and I had six in the room before. Hear me, and hear me well! This sub puts out some seriously good low end, the kind you feel in your chest from the room over. I cranked it to max volume, and even at high volumes, it remains tight and clean. There's no distortion. It's a downfiring sub, and powered with a considerable amount of power, it does it's job, and it does it remarkably. Best of all, it's discrete and you can hide it anywhere because it's wireless. I have a concrete house, so burrowing wires wasn't a great option, meaning this opens me up to put it anywhere. I tried, out of curiosity, what happens if you remove the sub. Without it, the soundbar still sounds really good, but it doesn't have that low, beautiful thump, so if bass is important to you, keep it somewhere near. I have mine about six feet away. Also, since it's downfiring, you can't really tell where the bass is coming from, which more sensitive listeners will appreciate. My sister hates the sound of bass because she always feels like it's overpowering, but she finds this nice since it's more of a tactile feeling from the down-firing instead of the front-firing sending the sound pummeling into your face. My monitor is literally shaking as I'm writing this. Just wanna throw that out there. As far as surround sound goes, I mean, c'mon. It's a sound bar. It's not a real surround sound setup, so although they can throw a cheap "surround sound" gimmick on it, doesn't mean that it's really going to do surround sound, right? Wrong! I'd say it sounds about 80-90% as good as my actual surround sound. There have been multiple occasions where I've heard voices and sounds from shows behind me while the soundbar and sub were in front of me. It won't completely simulate perfectly, but with some planning, it can get remarkably close. One thing I feel like I should mention is that you're going to need a way to clean it. The perforated plastic is a dust magnet, so keep a duster or microfiber to keep it clean. It's mostly aesthetic. I'm using it on a smart TV. Setup was quick and easy and took probably five minutes. Literally plug and play. I used an optical cable, and I couldn't be more pleased with the results. I haven't tried bluetooth, so I can't speak for the quality of it, but as far as wired connections go, it's stellar. It's smooth. I thought it would look bad and I was wondering about having to hide the sub because i feared it would look low-quality, but it stands out and looks quite professional. Whether you're living in a high-end place or camping, this thing won't look out of place. I've owned some speakers that looked cheap, which is frustrating, because you never fully trust them to hold together. This feels like it could bring my house down before it broke. As far as sound, here's what I've tested and liked. I tried to get a good variety in here for anyone who might care. Old Rock and Roll (ie, Back in Black)-- I noticed that the bass was less noticeable, but strong. Guitar was top notch. Felt like we were really there. Was one the better versions I've heard. Spanish Music (El Canelo)-- lovely, lovely sound. Smooth guitar, soothing bass, and relaxed me. Emphasis on feeling so smooth and clean. Unusual Sound (M. Ivan from the Grand Budapest Hotel, and the rest of the soundtrack)-- solid. Again, clean and tight. Classical (1812 Overture Finale, the one with real cannons)-- felt grand. It didn't feel quite like the real thing, but I mean, c'mon, trying to simulate an entire orchestra out of like three feet of tech is hard to do. That being said, I felt like I was at a fourth of July parade with a quality orchestra, and the cannons BOOMED. Disco (Funkytown, etc)-- less bass than anticipated, but felt true to the original song, and I quite liked it. Vintage (Butcher Pete, Part 1)-- as with most all old songs, lack of bass, but it didn't sound tinny like I feared. performed quite well. I dunno what genre it would technically fall into (Can't Hold Us)-- beautiful. It did wonderfully in one my favorite songs. Thick, full low end. Paul Simon-- better than the concert I actually attended in terms of low end, but about 95% of his voice. Very nice. Rap God-- hilarious as always, and sounded great. Brought out parts I'd not caught before. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy-- ha, fun song, but sounded good. Little Bitty-- good. Clean, his voice sounded especially nice. I am a Man of Constant Sorrow-- interestingly, a little quieter than normal, but very good. Easily fixed by turning up. One Piece at a Time-- Johnny Cash's voice was stellar. It felt like I was in the same room with him. Paradise City-- sounded different from other versions. I liked this one better than other sound systems. II barbiere di Sivgilia (opera)-- for the finer listeners, fear not. This will deliver in spades. Poxnectbo XSpnctobo, Ahren Npuneten (Russian)-- so cheery and nice! Yuve Yuve Yu (Mongolian Metal/Rock, recommend checking it out)-- gave me goosebumps. Incredible low end. I recommend this song as a starter to see what your sound bar can do. Indecision (Yo-yo-ma, legendary cellist)-- wonderful. Felt like I was there. Okay, gang, here's what I'm going to do, since I have no idea if anyone will actually read this and I'm kind of out of things to say, but here's the CONCLUSION-- this is a 10/10 sound system. I've tested everything you can imagine, from Russian Folk songs to Mongolian Metal Music to vintage Alice in Wonderland songs, to Rap songs, to Country, to Classical, to Opera, to musicals, to everything else I could think of. It performed excellently in all of them. Music and movies sounded much better, and the low end is dynamite. I hope someone found some use out of this lengthy monologue, and if you have any clarifying questions, feel free to drop them below, as I'll try to check this review every now and then to see if I can help anyone make the right decision. In a word-- BUY IT. IT'S WORTH IT, AND YOU WON'T REGRET IT, UNLESS YOU HAPPEN TO HAVE A CRIPPLING FEAR OF GREAT SOUND.