TCL - ALTO 7+ 2.1-Channel Soundbar System with Wireless Subwoofer - Black

This is my first soundbar, so I can't really compare it to others, but it has been great for shows and awesome for movie nights! The wireless subwoofer definitely adds that needed, but typically missing, low end. The setup was easy as we purchased it with a TCL TV at the same time, so they work together pretty seamlessly. I love that they include ALL of the required cords/cables. I did not need anything additional to hook it up to my TV. Good Job TCL! My only knock against it is the mounting setup is pretty limited; it is designed to hang on a wall with a couple of screws. It was not made to be mounted to the TV or TV brackets, right out of the box... I did buy sound bar extension brackets from Amazon.com to add to my existing TV mount, and luckily, it came supplied with "studs" that attach to the sound bar wall-mount holes... Again, not the end of the world but seeing as though the TV is mounted on a brick wall, I really did not want to drill more mounting holes into the brick. All that to say, I am thoroughly enjoying my new sound bar!

With Hamilton coming to home TV July 3, it was time to break down and get a sound bar to fully enjoy it. Settled on this one after reading many reviews and comparing cost for value. Very happy with my purchase - even I could install it on my older TV, no issues. Sounds GREAT to me, and I am glad I sprang for the subwoofer version, makes a big difference. Shipped super fast, then arrived a day early - nice surprise. Cost the same as a ticket to Hamilton, so we did not throw away our shot and are ready for our viewing party. Also enjoy streaming radio and itunes through the bar from my iphone. Great product.

So i will start this review with 2 small points that may or may not apply to you. 1, I bought this strictly for my bedroom so earth shaking surround sound was not the goal. And 2, after all discounts I only paid $40 out of pocket. Pros: The vocal peformance is the definition of crispy clear, like a fresh fried potato chip. Its almost too crispy, I would have taken a hair off the highest frequency (more on that later). Sound seperation is excelent, within the confines of 4 small speakers directly in front of you anyway. When watching Avengers endgame for instance, the vocals are nicely seperated from all the ear candy going on in the background of this type of movie, while handling said ear candy equally as well. Bass is very good, again its in my decent sized (but still smaller than a living room) master bedroom. The opening scenes of the aforementioned Avengers shook the windows (jusssst a little) Finally, the hookup is very simple as the box includes every cable needed. Also there is a paper template for mounting. I was done in less than 30 min Cons: Remember the crispy clear vocals, yup, if they are too cripy for you your out of luck. There are only 3 preset eq settings, movie (best), voice for news/podcast, and music. Movie is the only one worth using but in addition to not having at least a 3 band eq, there is no way to adjust the sub seperatly, this may be an issue at night. There is no volume indicator. The light blinks on the front but does not tell you the level. Not a deal breaker but still a little annoying. The unit reacts to my spectrum cable remote, and not in a good way. I dont know if this is the fault of one or the other but when i page down on my guide the unit turns down, annoying. Overall i think if you are using this unit in a bedroom or a smaller living room or similar sized area you will be very pleased, just know it quirks and limitations. It is most definetly a giant leap ahead of tv speakers for clarity and loudness, and will give a decent low end boost. Soundbars that have "great" performance are very overpriced to me because once you get past the 250-300 dollar mark, you can build, at the very least, a decent 2.1\3.1 component system and get much more functionality out of it. In the end It was a worthy purchase though (i guess i could have just said that in the beginning ;\