JBL Soundbar Lineup | Bar Series 2023
Experience an immersive audio journey with JBL's latest soundbar series, featuring an impressive lineup that includes the JBL Bar 1300X, JBL Bar 1000, JBL Bar 700, and JBL Bar 500. Elevating the audio experience to a new level, the JBL Bar Series brings the cinematic sound of Dolby Atmos to your living room. With an array of options to choose from, entertainment enthusiasts can customize their audio experience with features such as up-firing drivers, DTS:X 3D surround sound, detachable wireless surround speakers, and subwoofers. The JBL Bar Series offers a range of exciting options that are sure to enhance your entertainment experience. In this article, we will explore the shared features of each soundbar and delve into what sets them apart to help you determine which one is the perfect match for your needs.
Shared Features & Technology
Dolby Atmos®, DTS:X, and MultiBeam™ Surround Sound
At Audio Advice, we are firm believers that the optimal way to enjoy the full potential of Dolby Atmos or DTS:X sound is through dedicated in-ceiling or on-wall speakers, strategically placed within the Dolby specifications. However, achieving this requires cutting holes in your ceiling, running wires through your walls, and correctly setting up your equipment to achieve the best possible audio experience. If you're a beginner or have limited space, this can be a daunting and complex process. That's where our Home Theater Design Tool comes in - it provides you with a glimpse of what this process entails and the level of complexity involved.
The next best way to experience one of these immersive formats is with up-firing speakers. This is the exact technology used in the Bar 1300X and Bar 1000, and it works by shooting sound up at an angle to your ceiling and then bouncing back down to your listening area. Now for this to be effective, you’ll need an 8 to 12-foot ceiling with nothing blocking the way of the soundwaves. In addition, these are the only two in the lineup that will decode DTS:X content.
The Bar 500 and Bar 700 employ “height virtualization” to reproduce the Dolby Atmos sound placement and movement above and around you. This technology uses carefully designed filters to simulate sounds arriving overhead and all around you. The advantage to using height virtualization Dolby Atmos soundbars is that it offers a bit more flexibility in the placement, and you don’t have to rely on the ceiling reflections to deliver your height sounds. However, in our experience, this tech is cool and will work in certain situations, but it is no match compared to dedicated up-firing speakers in terms of how immersive it is.
JBL also includes its proprietary MultiBeam technology, which is a signal processing technique that uses digital algorithms to widen the soundstage and create a more immersive listening experience. It works by analyzing the incoming audio signal and intelligently distributing the sound to different drivers in the speaker, creating a more spacious and realistic soundstage. This technology is designed to enhance the listening experience, especially when watching movies, TV shows, or listening to music, by creating a 3D surround sound effect.
JBL One App with Room Calibration
With the JBL One app, you can conveniently customize EQ and manage all your compatible speakers from a single platform. The app allows for easy setup of the soundbar, personalization of settings, room calibration, seamless browsing of integrated music services to discover new favorite songs and more.
Alexa, Google Assistant, & Siri
Many individuals tend to position their soundbars in various settings, such as living rooms, bonus rooms, offices, or even bedrooms. It's noteworthy that the soundbar works with all preferred voice assistants, enabling you to effortlessly request those voice assistant devices you may have to play your favorite tunes on your JBL soundbar.
PureVoice Dialogue Enhancement Technology
This technology utilizes advanced algorithms to enhance the clarity, richness, and depth of voices in real-time, ensuring that every word is delivered with stunning precision and accuracy. Whether you're listening to music, watching a movie, or participating in a conference call, JBL PureVoice Enhancement Technology guarantees that you'll hear every detail with unmatched clarity and fidelity. With this technology, JBL has set a new standard for audio quality and performance, making it a must-have for anyone who has difficulty hearing characters' voices in movies, even when the surround sound effects are at their peak.
Wireless Subwoofer
By adding a subwoofer to your soundbar setup, you can enjoy a much more dynamic and balanced sound. The subwoofer can handle the low-frequency sounds, freeing up the soundbar to focus on delivering effortless, clear mids and highs. The Bar 500, Bar 700, and Bar 1000 all come with JBL’s powerful 10” subwoofer while the Bar 1300X will come with the larger 12” subwoofer.
The best part of all of these subwoofers? They’re wireless! You only need a nearby outlet, which means that you won't have to deal with the hassle of running wires from your soundbar to your subwoofer. However, even though placing the subwoofer on the floor next to the soundbar is an option, we highly recommend going one step further if you can. There are several methods available for determining the ideal placement for your subwoofer, which may differ depending on the dimensions of your room.
To learn more about subwoofer placement and calibration, check out our in-depth guides here:
Wi-Fi with AirPlay, Alexa Multi-Room Music, and Chromecast
You can access more than 300 online music streaming services via AirPlay, Alexa MRM, and Chromecast built-in™. With these features, you can enjoy your preferred audio content, Internet radio, and podcasts in high definition. Additionally, the device's Wi-Fi connectivity ensures that you receive automatic software updates, ensuring that you always have access to the latest features.
Design & Build Quality
Each soundbar in the new Bar Series boasts a sleek and impressive design that is certain to complement any contemporary living area. These soundbars are crafted from premium materials, providing a robust and long-lasting feel. Overall, the build quality and design of these soundbars reflect their price tag and premium nature.
Performance
JBL Bar 500
The JBL Bar 500 boasts 590 watts of power and shares all the great features as the rest of the lineup that we’ve discussed already in this article. This soundbar is nearly identical to the cheapest model, the JBL Bar 300, but with the added 10” subwoofer. After our testing, we truly believe you need the subwoofer to get sound quality that is worthy of the price. That is why we’ve placed the JBL Bar 500 as the best budget bar in this lineup and chose to keep the Bar 300 off the list for now.
The JBL Bar 5.1 was released in 2020 and has been extremely popular as it’s one of our best sellers for a lower-budget soundbar option. This new JBL Bar 500 has set out to replace that model with a few key upgrades. Below you can review the relevant differences between the two models.
A few that stand out to us as to why you would definitely want the new JBL Bar 500 is the addition of eARC instead of ARC, allowing you to get uncompressed Dolby Atmos. In addition, you get Bluetooth 5.0, a wall mounting kit, and access to the JBL One App to calibrate the soundbar to your room. All of these features alone make this sound bar well worth the upgrade over the older Bar 5.1.
| JBL Bar 5.1 | JBL Bar 500 | |
|---|---|---|
| Channels | 5.1 | 5.1 |
| Power output | 550W | 590W |
| Dolby Atmos® | No | Yes |
| DTS:X 3D surround sound | No | Yes |
| MultiBeamTM | Yes | Yes |
| Subwoofer | 10” Wireless | 10” Wireless |
| Wall Mount Kit | No | Yes |
| Frequency Response | 40Hz - 20kHz | 35Hz - 20kHz |
| Inputs/Outputs | 1 optical, USB, HDMI, HDMI ARC | 1 optical, USB, HDMI, HDMI eARC |
| HDMI HDCP Version | 2.2 | 2.3 |
| Bluetooth Version | 4.2 | 5 |
| JBL One App | No | Yes |
| Built-in WiFi | Yes, with Chromecast & Airplay 2 | Yes, with Chromecast, Airplay 2, Alexa, & MRM |
| Drivers/Tweeters | 5x racetrack drivers, 2x 1.25” side-firing tweeters | 4x racetrack drivers, 3x 0.75” tweeters |
We tested this soundbar in a fairly large bedroom that is about 14’ by 18’ along with the other soundbars in the lineup. This soundbar is the perfect beginner bar that will get you into the world of immersive home theater sound that won’t break the bank. During our movie dialogue tests, voices were rich and stood out much more than your standard TV speakers. The subwoofer was the star of the show, as it really outputs a ton of bass that makes you feel like you’re right in the middle of the action.
The Dolby Atmos feature is pretty neat, as getting into the world of 3D immersive formats and having it sound convincing can be quite costly. We found it plays sound effects above and around fairly well for the height virtualization technology that it uses, but we’d much prefer to have dedicated up-firing speakers. Still, for the entry price for this soundbar, it’s a great way to start your journey into Atmos.
The Bar 500 has four (46x90)mm racetrack drivers located on the front and three 0.75” tweeters, one on each end and one dead center.
We’d recommend this soundbar to someone who doesn’t have an 8-10’ ceiling or has lights and fans in the way where dedicated up-firing drivers will not work for the Dolby Atmos height effects. In addition, due to its compact size, this sound bar will perform well in a small room where you simply cannot fit anything larger. It’s perfect for a small bedroom or office, around 10x10”. Overall, this soundbar is quite impressive for its price tag, and we highly recommend it over its predecessor, the Bar 5.1.
JBL Bar 700 5.1 Channel Soundbar
The JBL Bar 700 is very similar to the Bar 500. However, it includes detachable rear speakers to place behind you for a more immersive surround sound experience. The Bar 700 has 3x (46x90)mm racetrack drivers on the main bar in the middle, left, and right and 2x full-range racetrack drivers on the left and right detachable surrounds. There are 3x 0.75” tweeters on the main bar in the middle and one on the left and right angled slightly to act as surround channels. Like the Bar 500, there are no up-firing drivers, so the Bar 700 relies on height virtualization tech to fill your room with Dolby Atmos.
In our testing, the Bar 700 had a very similar sound signature to the Bar 500 when the detachable surround speakers were on the main bar.
When the surround speakers are attached, you do have 2 extra drivers that help provide a slightly more full sound, but it is minimal. If your room is an ideal size with flat walls on your left and right, you may get a slightly more immersive surround sound effect due to the slightly angled tweeters in the Bar 700, which the Bar 500 lacks.
What mainly sets the Bar 700 above the Bar 500 is the detachable surround speakers that you can easily charge up and then remove and place behind you for a true surround sound experience. With dedicated speakers strategically placed behind you and using the room calibration in the JBL One App, it brings your home theater sound to another level. The Bar 700 is for someone who has a small room but wants a more immersive sound and has room to place detachable surround speakers behind you. These surround speakers proved to make our favorite Dolby Atmos movies so much more fun to watch.
JBL Bar 1000 7.1.4 Channel Soundbar
The Bar 1000 steps into a more serious category of soundbars. It keeps the same 10” subwoofer as the Bar 500 and 700. However, it has something the Bar 500 and Bar 700 do not. Up-firing drivers to create pinpoint Dolby Atmos height effects. Boasting 880 watts of power, the main soundbar itself has five racetrack drivers, 3x 0.75” tweeters, all on the front, and 2x 2.75” up-firing full-range drivers.
When you place the surrounds behind you, their up-firing drivers, along with the ones in the bar itself, really build a 360-degree bubble around you with sound. While testing The Adam Project on Netflix, this was the first bar on the list that was a noticeable difference in Atmos sound. This isn’t surprising due to the actual up-firing drivers.
We recommend the Bar 1000 to anyone with a medium to large-sized room with 8-12’ ceilings with nothing in the way to block the sound from bouncing back down to you. If that fits you, you’ll be happy with how much power this will bring to your room with its stellar height effects.
JBL Bar 1300X 11.1.4 Channel Soundbar
When you’re ready to step up to the best of the best, JBL’s flagship Bar 1300X is sure to impress your friends and family with powerful, room-filling sound. Each surround speaker features one racetrack driver and ¾ inch tweeter facing forward, a 2.75” full-range driver and a passive radiator on the top, and another passive radiator on the bottom. This 11.1.4 soundbar boasts 1170 watts of total power which is enough to produce a powerful surround sound experience and really pull you into your movie. The soundbar itself, without the detachable speakers, has six racetrack drivers on the front, two as the left channel, two as the right channel, and two in the middle as the center channel. Five ¾ inch tweeters on the ends act as the wide left and right, two on the front left and right act as the surround left and right, and one dead center for the center channel. Finally, four 2.75” full-range drivers are on the left and right on the top of the soundbar, both angled slightly differently to help disperse the height sound effects.
One standout feature that sets these speakers apart from their predecessors is the ability to charge them via USB-C, freeing you from the need to connect them back to your soundbar. Further adding to their convenience, each speaker has its own power button and can even be paired together without the soundbar. In fact, during our testing, we were able to take the surrounds outside, connect them together, and use Bluetooth to create a stunning stereo setup without needing the soundbar at all! This feature is undeniably cool as you essentially get a pair of wireless stereo speakers that you can take with you on the go or out to the backyard while you grill up some dinner. Alternatively, you can use only one and enjoy its impressive sound quality as a powerful portable Bluetooth speaker. And, if you wish to watch a movie on your laptop on the go, these speakers are Bluetooth 5.2 compatible, ensuring you don't have to worry about any audio syncing issues. This is in contrast to the soundbar itself, which is only Bluetooth 5.0 capable. Therefore, we recommend sticking with music only if you want to stream to the soundbar itself or using another streaming option for other content.
We eagerly tested the sound quality of our system by playing two reliable movies, The Irishman and Captain Phillips. In The Irishman, the voices of four characters conversing in a car displayed remarkable depth and naturalness. In contrast, Captain Phillips' chaotic ship attack scene often resulted in Tom Hanks' voice being drowned out by the low-end sounds, but JBL's 12-inch subwoofer managed to handle the bass expertly, making Hanks' dialog easy to understand. While the soundbar's PureVoice technology was impressive, it lacked any adjustment options, leaving us to assume it was working correctly. We wished there was a way to turn it on or off or tweak its settings to our liking.
Next, we watched The Adams Project, which features a thrilling fight sequence with immersive height and surround sound effects. With the detachable rears behind us, we were completely absorbed in the scene, as if the atmos effects were bouncing off the ceiling and enveloping the entire listening area. We were particularly impressed by the passing ship's sound, which we could hear approaching even before it appeared on screen. The bass was powerful, fast, and tight, causing the room to rumble. Overall, we were thoroughly impressed with the system's performance during action movies.
Overall, we are happy to place the Bar 1300X on our recommended list as one of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars available today. The surround sound feature and versatility set it apart from its competitors. We recommend it to anyone looking to upgrade their home theater experience that may not have the perfect room and needs the flexibility of detachable surrounds.
Overall Recommendation
While not quite the same immersion as a full home theater installation with separate speakers all around the room, Atmos-enabled soundbars with upward-firing speakers built in & a wireless subwoofer is a fantastic way to experience Dolby Atmos in a living room or any bedroom. A full surround sound installation requires careful planning for the layout of all your speakers for the best sound. Our Home Theater Speaker Layout Options will guide you, but If you want to play around with some options, check out our free Home Theater Design Tool. You can also chat with us to explore all of your options.
We spend hours in our lab testing many soundbars, and we are confident that you will be impressed with any of these new soundbars from JBL so long as you choose the right one for you. If you’re still unsure after reading this, reach out to our team of experts!
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