What do soundbar numbers mean?
Andrew Ramirez
Published Mar 29, 2026
What do soundbar numbers mean?
The first number tells you how many channels a soundbar has: 2 channels mean two drivers, left and right, 3 means left, right, and center; 5 adds channels for rear or surround sound speakers. The second number (1) tells you there’s a sub-woofer or (0) that it does not. If there’s a third number — i.e. 5.1.
What do you need to know about sound bar?
A sound bar is a simple and effective means of revitalizing dull sounds on the television. In this article, we will provide information on how one can test soundbar, as well as the considerations to make when locating an effective sound bar. 1 How Do You Test Soundbar? 2 Which Products Are Used For Testing?
Which is the Best Sound bar for DTS?
The best and one of the cheapest DTS: X compatible soundbars is the Nakamichi Shockwafe Pro 7.1ch DTS: X Soundbar (on Amazon). This is one of my personal favorites! Investing in an active soundbar lets you cut out the middleman – the receiver! Using a receiver with a soundbar can severely complicate the setup.
What should I do if my sound bar is not working?
Try and keep the cable clear of other connectors, especially power, in the tangle of wires behind your TV. Simply moving the 3.5mm cable can sometimes solve this issue. If this doesn’t solve the problem, make sure your TV volume is turned all the way up so you can adjust the sound bar’s volume directly.
Can a sound bar be connected to a TV?
However, some sound bars are more sensitive than others and some will power down even when there’s audio being played at a quiet volume. Some cheaper sound bars may only offer a 3.5mm audio input. We’d only ever recommend using this connection if your TV or sound bar has no digital alternatives such as digital optical (Toslink), coaxial or HDMI.
What do the numbers mean on a sound bar?
If the number is a “2”, this means your soundbar includes a left and right channel. If the first number is a “3”, however, this means the soundbar has a left, right, and center channel. Soundbars that include “5” channels will support either “mimicked” or actual surround sound speakers as well.
What should I expect from a sound bar?
For a sound bar at this price point and coming from a big-name brand in audio, you’d expect immaculate performance. This high-end model looks the part and isn’t short on features, including Dialogue Mode, but our listening experts were underwhelmed by its ability to enhance speech clarity.
What are the channels on a sound bar?
Small to medium-sized home theaters or entertainment centers will benefit from the use of a 3.1 channel soundbar. A 5.1 channel soundbar added surround sound capabilities instead of merely mimicking them. For some soundbars, this means two more speakers are built into the bar design.
What to do when your sound bar is not working?
If there is still no audio, try connecting a different device to the Sound Bar. After you connect the other device, you may need to press and hold the input button to perform the ‘Auto Input Search’ described in step 3. If the second device plays audio, we know the sound bar is working.