An unfortunate reality we all have to face is that TVs getting more beautiful, with thinner displays over the years, came at the expense of speaker quality. If you've tried watching an action movie with TV speakers recently, you know what I mean. You have to keep a finger firmly on the volume button because some scenes are way louder than others.
Soundbars offer a somewhat affordable solution and ideally fit right underneath your TV on your entertainment center, but they make for even more device clutter. After all, you might already have a streaming box and at least one game console plugged into the same TV. At some point, you can only accommodate so much hardware.
With that in mind, Roku's latest offering has a pretty easy elevator pitch: For $180, you can get a soundbar with Roku's most powerful streaming hardware tucked inside of it. It kills two birds with one HDMI port. If you want a bass boost, the company is also selling a wireless subwoofer for the same price.
I've had the chance to test out Roku's newest audio hardware at home, and I'm pleased to say it's pretty much exactly what it claims to be. If you're a serious streamer in the need of better home audio, there's plenty to like about the Smart Soundbar.
Respectable versatility
I'll keep it simple: As far as I can tell, Roku's Smart Soundbar is a Roku Ultra streaming player that lives inside a soundbar that's 2.8 inches high and 32.2-inches wide. In other words, this is an alternate form of Roku's highest-end streaming box that also provides a basic, though maybe not top-tier, home theater audio setup.
The easiest and I suspect most common way to get it working is to connect it via an HDMI ARC port. These are special HDMI ports that plenty of TVs have specifically for audio purposes. Before you take the plunge on a Roku soundbar, make sure your TV has one of these. It should be clearly labeled.
You can also use an optical port for audio and a regular HDMI port for video, if that's the best option for you. Regardless, setting up the Smart Soundbar is just as easy as setting up any Roku box. I had it working in minutes.
Ideally, you're using this as a 4K and HDR-enabled streaming box as well as a soundbar. It also has a USB port on the back to play other media and can even act as a Bluetooth speaker. With all of that in mind, one of the more impressive aspects of the Roku soundbar is how many different needs it can meet. Unless you already have a home theater setup you like, it's easy to recommend because of how many different uses you can get out of it.
Of course, none of that matters if it doesn't work.
Form loses out to function
The good news is, in my testing, I found plenty to like and nothing to complain about. Between streaming 4K movies, 60fps sports, and playing video games on other devices, I found that Roku's soundbar was generally up to the task of streaming content and delivering a much better sound than my TV speakers ever could.
I do most of my streaming on either a PlayStation 4 Pro or Xbox One X these days, and the Roku software within the soundbar did everything just as well, if not better. Everything is laid out cleanly, and finding shows or movies is a breeze, thanks to the voice search function built into the remote.
I should note that the $130 version of the soundbar being sold at Walmart doesn't include the voice remote. If you do end up buying that version, you'll still be fine, but it's a nice thing to have.
The four 2.5-inch drivers inside the soundbar deliver crisp audio that can boom at high volumes and still sound crystal clear when you want to keep things quiet. One clear upgrade over TV speakers is accurate directional audio, which helps immensely for gaming purposes. Situational awareness is important, people.
Given that this costs significantly less than some other soundbars out there, it's a safe bet that it isn't the best-sounding home theater system on the market. But in my time with it, I found the audio to be more than good enough, considering the price and everything else the device can do for you.
The only real, practical complaint I have is that the soundbar is a little bulky. I have a 43-inch TCL 4-Series on my entertainment center, and it's big enough to block the TV's IR sensor, which I still occasionally need to switch inputs. That's only a mild inconvenience since I can just raise the remote up a little bit, but still, it's something to know.
It's not the most attractive device in the world, but I'd be hard-pressed to really hold that against a speaker.
Because the night belongs to streamers
Back on the topic of living life with one finger on the volume button, the Roku soundbar has a couple of nice quality-of-life features to help reduce that tendency.
There are a handful of different sound modes for different situations, my favorite being "Night Mode." It makes loud scenes quiet and quiet scenes loud so you won't piss off your roommates or neighbors while you're watching John Wick Chapter 3 in the wee hours of the night like really cool people do.
That's an option that shouldn't be used any other time of day because it can make loud scenes sound a little muffled, but it gave me peace of mind during my testing period. There's also a nice "Voice Clarity" option that can raise the volume of dialogue at the expense of everything else, just in case you don't like the audio mix in whatever you're watching or playing.
These aren't exactly revolutionary, but they're super nice to have and do a lot to solve some of the most common problems people have with audio in home entertainment.
Bass down low
Of course, I can't talk about Roku's soundbar without addressing the other audio product Roku is launching alongside it. The Roku Wireless Subwoofer is, well, a wireless subwoofer that works with both the soundbar and the wireless TV speakers Roku released last year. For the same $180 price as the soundbar, you get a boost to your bass that can allegedly be placed anywhere within 30 feet of your TV.
I didn't have the space to test that particular limit, but when placed reasonably, the subwoofer works as you'd expect. Pairing it with the soundbar took about 30 seconds, and Roku's little sizzle reel that played afterward demonstrated the effect it had on the bass levels in my entertainment setup.
I spent some more time with it doing all the things I normally do and ... yeah, it works. The bass output was better with the subwoofer than it was without it. I'm a little torn on this because, at the same price as the soundbar, it feels like a luxury add-on that most people could probably live without. That said, $180 isn't a bad price for a standalone 10-inch, 250W subwoofer.
But then there are other soundbars that come bundled with subwoofers for less than the $360 total price Roku's products add up to. I can't directly compare Roku's product to those without using them, but on its own merits, the subwoofer is nice but definitely optional. More bass never hurts, but there's no shame in just getting the soundbar on its own.
Undeniable value, but consider your needs
Roku's soundbar is a pretty excellent value, considering it pulls double-duty as a provider of limitless streaming entertainment and a speaker to make that entertainment sound the way it's supposed to. Compared to other soundbars and even other streaming hardware, it kind of sells itself.
If you're living with just TV speakers and looking to upgrade to a 4K streaming box (or even if you're not), I'd call this a bit of a no-brainer. It more than adequately addresses both problems at once. But if you already have a high-end streaming device or decent audio equipment, I don't think this should be a replacement for either of those things.
Still, from concept to execution, Roku's Smart Soundbar is rock solid and could be a great gift this holiday season for anyone who needs it.
