Klipsch - 3.1-Channel 440W Soundbar System with 8" Subwoofer - Black
Model: 1066557 BAR 48” SOUND BAR
SKU: 6336544
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Customers are satisfied with the sound quality, subwoofer, easy setup, and design of the 3.1-Channel 440W Soundbar System with 8" Subwoofer. They appreciate the superb sound quality, wireless subwoofer, simple setup process, and stylish design. However, some customers have concerns about the connectivity, durability, and occasional defects.
was trying to save up for a dolby atmos system but since this is just for a bedroom this soundbar is way more then what I needed. first thing I want to say is how nice the soundbar looks it really has that premium wood quality unlike the plastic tin looking soundbars that are out there. anyone saying that this doesn't have a kick in bass they may need to do a firmware update its most likely the sub would disconnect make it seem like your soundbar had no bass when it was really just disconnected from sub. I had issues out of the box but once I performed the update it stop giving me issues and loosing the Arc connection this literally shakes my walls. hope to add the surrounds 3 to get that full discrete 5.1. the simulated surround just doesn't do it for me. I recommend this bar but if you can wait for a few more months just wait for the new 48 bar Bly Klipsch it should have a 2.1 HDMI and HDR passthrough something this bar is missing.
Posted by Nicodemus
Soundbars are sometimes the only option to improve the sound of a TV and in my living room, this is definitely the case. As much as I would love to put the same audio system I already have in a dedicated media room, my interior-design-minded wife would understandably veto it – and so we enter the world of the sound bar and paired sub woofer. This product from Klipsch comes in a large box but is very easy to unpack and fairly simple to set up. The bar itself is 4 feet long (hence "Bar 48"...as in inches) while the sub is also fairly substantial but tucks away neatly in a hidden corner of our living room, just off to the side of the sound bar. You can put it anywhere in the room and I think the range is around 30 feet. I replaced a much smaller sound bar (31 inches) with the Bar 48 and aesthetically, the new Klipsch looks far better. For a start, it is made to go under a big screen TV and I was probably pushing it a bit with a 31 inch sound bar under a 75-inch TV. The Klipsch fits the bill much better and also looks quite aggressive, with the unmasked Tractrix Horns at each end, yet still looks attractive in the overall layout of the room. I was glad the bar was not too thin. It seems to be the thing these days, as manufacturers "out thin" each other but I have a dedicated power outlet behind where the sound bar is installed and many that are too thin would not work in that spot, as you can see the outlet edges. Fortunately, the Klipsch falls into the sweet spot and covers this outlet completely. I also wonder if the sound does not suffer as you go thinner - a speaker still needs to meet a certain size for good sound so again, the Klipsch appears to strike a good balance between looks and sound. The sound bar comes with sticky pads you can put under it but I wall mounted mine with the two included brackets and my own wall anchors/screws. Klipsch thoughtfully supply a stencil you can line up on the wall and then use to mark your pilot/drill holes. The supplied power cord for the sound bar was a little long for me so I ended up swapping mine from the standard 6’ cord to a 1’ cord which worked better for my installation. For most people, especially if just placing on a surface, you would want the longer cable but for me, it goes back to the dedicated power outlet behind which had a small cutout for cord storage but not 6’ of power cord, plus HDMI, optical etc. Once it was all installed on the wall, cables connected and the sub was plugged in, I was happy to see that both sound bar and sub were already paired. It is then just a case of selecting the correct input and adjusting speaker settings on your TV (like turning them off as you don’t want sound from both sound bar and TV speakers at the same time.) I ended up having to use only optical at this point. The reason for this is that when I used HDMI, the CEC codes were locking up the sound bar so that when you turned it off, all appeared well but when you turned the TV back on, the sound bar would not come on and was not responsive via the remote or the on board power button. The only way to reset it in this state is to pull the power cable at the back of the sound bar and then plug in again. This would restore it back to working again but obviously doesn’t work for me at present. Klipsch assure me they are working on a firmware fix with my TV manufacturer which will hopefully be available soon. In the meantime, the optical connection gives me the same sound quality and I am only really missing being able to adjust the volume with the TV remote. Now to the sound. Watching standard TV channels (satellite receiver, set to Dolby Digital audio output), the sound is very clear and has a lot of detail. The 8” sub adds a considerable punch where needed although I found myself turning the bass down a little so as not to annoy my wife. Someone who likes a lot of bass might want to add a second sub (the sound bar has an output to wire a second sub which is a great feature) but I am satisfied with the supplied sub alone for my living room. I tested the sound bar with a Blu-ray disc and was happy with what I heard. Music was loud but detailed, the low frequency effects were handled well by the sub-woofer and dialog was very clear. The Bar 48 has a dedicated center channel speaker which definitely adds to the all-around quality of sound. Coming from a basic stereo sound bar, I definitely appreciated the additional channel. This means that the system can discretely process dialog to the center channel, rather than have it muddied or lost in the left and right channels. I have not boosted the volume too far in everyday use but just over the half-way point is plenty for comfortable listening in my living room. I will boost it up a click or two if I am working in my nearby kitchen but it does not distort or cause any audio issues and I can clearly hear all the dialog across the room (about 30 feet). I was easily able to connect my phone to the sound bar via Bluetooth and had no problem streaming music to it. The music sounded good (for compressed audio) but the additional bass from the sub was a welcome addition. This sound bar has another advantage which is that you can add optional wireless (except that each needs a power cable) surround sound speakers to make it 5.1 channel. There is a hidden compartment on the right side of the sound bar that will take a small transmitter that ships with the compatible Surround 3 speakers from Klipsch and then it is possible to pair the two surround speakers with the rest of the system. I did get this system with my sound bar but have reviewed it separately. Suffice to say, I was impressed with the 3.1 basic system but adding the two rear channels definitely added a noticeable level of immersion I enjoyed. You can toggle things like surround sound mode (simulated if you don’t have rear speakers) as well as dialog boost, if you can’t make out dialog among the other sounds. This can be done from the buttons on the top of the sound bar or the included, light-up remote which is a bit more convenient. You can also set whether you want to see the LEDs on the front and top of the sound bar as it has three options: bright, dim or off. That said, in my case where I have the LEDs set to always be “off”, I noticed that when you first turn on the TV and sound bar and it shows the volume level with lights, if you don’t change the volume from that setting, the lights stay on until you do. Just being on for a few seconds and then going off again would have been good but it’s not the end of the world. I don’t mind the LEDs but my wife does – they are a little bright for her, even on the dim setting. LEDs also show where the bass is set on the sub and there is a button on the remote to take it back to the mid-level point, in case it gets a bit heavy. Finally, the build of this sound bar and sub-woofer is to be commended. When most sound bars look and are plastic, the Bar 48 for the most part is made of wood and speaker grille cloth. It certainly looks the part as a reference audio device, which the branding on the bar and surround also states. All in all, this is a very nice looking sound bar with great features and impressive sound. I like how easy it was to install and other than the HDMI/ARC/CEC update that I am waiting on, it has been a perfect upgrade from an entry level sound bar.
Posted by Pilgrim007
Needed a good soundbar and subwoofer for our upstairs livingroom because we don’t have the room up there for big speakers and reciever. I knew I wanted a wireless subwoofer and I wanted to stick with the Klipsch brand because all of the speakers in my home theater downstairs are Klipsch. Boy was I glad I got this Bar 48! Sounds phenomenal! I also love the fact that I can add 2 more rear surrounds to it for 5.1 surround!
Posted by Billy
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