JBL - Bar 500MK2

JBL Bar 500mk2 is pretty damn good.

So I purchased my first soundbar recently due to me being tied of just TV speaker audio when I am so used to studio monitors and good quality headphones for consuming and listening to content. I did some research on the best soundbars I could find at about $500 USD or less. My needs were simple. I wanted a soundbar to not disrupt my roommates but that can produce a decently balanced and enjoyable sound. I stumbled across a few good options and this recent Best Buy sale happened to put me even more options within my budget. I’ve noticed a lack of people comparing these two soundbars after a lot of me trying to compare the JBL BAR500MK2 and the Sonos Beam Gen 2, so I took the plunge and got the Sonos. I tested it briefly at my mom’s and at Best Buy beforehand, so I had an idea on what to expect. It just sounded fine but I liked how it could be upgraded with extra speakers if I did enjoy the sound. I purchased the soundbar, got home, set it up, and did multiple TruePlay calibrations to get it to best fit the room. It was just okay. I found the low end to be relatively slow and boxy, lower mids to be inflated, upper mids to be a bit shouty, and the treble to be straight up fatiguing. Maybe I was being too critical and had to let my ears to adjust to a bar of sound vs speakers. But it was fine enough. I’ve never used a sub for my studio monitors and felt satisfied so I figured this could do good enough and the low end it could produce was impressive. The stereo imaging seemed good for what it was and the soundstage felt slightly wider than I expected. Then I booted up Metroid Prime 4 for the first time to test it out with a friend. I’ve never heard the score or audio design of this game beforehand but I could tell what it needed to sound like and it just didn’t sound right. I had the EQ at bass -2 and treble to +3 to balance things out along with enabling and disabling other settings. But I just wasn’t happy after a few hours of playing. This is when I tapped out. So off to Best Buy I went and tested the following systems: Sony Bravia Theater Bar 6, Klipsch Flexus Core 200, Samsung HW-S700D, JBL BAR500MK2, and the Sonos Beam again for good measure. The JBL was best by a landslide to my ears followed by the Sony and it wasn’t even close. The huge removed 10” downfiring subwoofer was a concern to me but it really did free up the other frequencies to not get overburdened and to really shine. It even worked well on reflective tile flooring. Sure I could have spent $500 for a Sonos sub mini, doubling my budget, to pair with the Beam. But if I’m not happy with the Beam on its own, then what’s the point? To my ears, everything about the JBL is better from an audio standpoint. The soundstage is substantially wider, the sound feels more balanced with just a mild need for a bass reduction in the EQ, and it feels more full and lively. But the bass is tight, full, and punchy. It really has the same characteristics I love about my JBL LSR305 monitors. I didn’t expect much from a consumer grade piece of audio hardware from JBL but it really is good. And yes, it has a proper EQ with 7 bands vs just bass and treble on the Sonos to really fine tune your sound. Plus the room correction tool maybe 10-15 seconds and was perfect on the first try. I will say, the button Konami code type combinations for the remote kinda such to enable things like Night Mode that isn’t visible in the app and the Sonos app generally felt more refined and was enjoyable to use on iPad, unlike JBL One. But I prioritize the sound over this and the sound is far better in the JBL for me. If you have a Beam 2, and like it, I’m thrilled for you. But if you’re disappointed, maybe JBL or Sony could be a better route for the price.

The MK2 I’ve heard has a much tighter and faster low end response. I don’t have any personal experience but as a snobby person, I do like the 500 Mk2 a lot for what it’s trying to do

I’ve only tested the 200 and I found the 500 Mk2 to be substantially better. Plus the EQ to tune the 500 was nice but I do think it’s still worth testing them out if you can. Though your room can substantially affect the final results. The 210 could be killer for all I know though

I’ve read about the infamous update they pushed out and I decided to pull the trigger regardless while knowing I can return it. I haven’t had any issues with the app personally, but I read somewhere that someone compared Sonos to Bose and it clicked for me. It’s all features first and sound second with the sound being more muddy than I expected. I just couldn’t see the Beam sounding more worth it than $200-300 but I’m glad it did, since that led me to try other options. I’ve always looked down upon soundbars but this JBL really changed my mind. I’m curious how the Bar 300 stacks against Sonos for future recommendations. I will say, Sonos’ ecosystem seems impressive and the ability to add and mix so many speaker options is pretty cool. Even their IKEA partnership to build speakers into (less than attractive) lamps is pretty cool. I just wish their products sounded better.

Bose Smart 600 + BM700. The subwoofer is just madly powerful and honestly sits alone in my opinion. It plays very deep, possibly deeper than any other soundbar subwoofer right now, and has absolutely plenty of power so having enough bass shouldn't possibly be an issue. And the bar although small, is incredibly clean and detailed at any volume like you wouldn't believe. It's got a good amount of power in it too so it most likely won't seem like it's falling behind the subwoofer, unless of course you want it to, then just turn up the subwoofer, or buy a 2nd subwoofer if you're a true bass head. The new MK2 JBL soundbars might be a good one to look into as well. Different subwoofer than previously so hopefully they made improvements. JBL will provide you a lot of bass for the price, good but not excellent soundbar quality. But the subwoofer might not sound incredible either. The first generation JBL Bar 3.1 had a loud & clean subwoofer. The JBL Bar 500 I tried had a slightly different subwoofer that I somehow ended up thinking sounded noticeably worse than the Bar 3.1. Hopefully they improved the subwoofer this time.

Yes I looked it up and that has the "oval" shape I'm referring to. My bar 500 had that subwoofer design and I absolutely hated how it sounded. Somehow felt like they made the subwoofer worse than the previous design.

1000% the Bose setup. I had the Q800B myself before (not quite the 990 but it's the same subwoofer design), it was pretty good. I had the Bose Smart 600 + BM700 later, the BM700 absolutely blows the Samsung subwoofer away. It plays a little deeper than the Samsung, I bet it's louder at max volume too. And you can always add a 2nd subwoofer if you want to later on which you can't do with Samsung or JBL. As for the JBL, it's definitely a strong and loud ass subwoofer, but i guarantee it doesn't play as deep as the BM700. I've had many soundbar setups ranging from the JBL Bar 3.1, Bar 500, Sonos Arc + Sub Mini, Samsung Q800B, Sony S2000 + SW5 (garbage), & a few others. My 2 favorite subwoofers were definitely the BM700 & the Sonos Sub Mini, followed by the Samsung but pretty far behind. If you're after bass, I think Bose is quite possibly king, but there's one I do think could be a contender for that title too, but it's a little more expensive... The Sennheiser Ambeo Plus is a fantastic sounding system, I've only heard demos in stores but the demos are madly impressive. I have read about the Ambeo having a few minor bugs though so maybe consider trying it out with a way to return it easily. But the reason I bring them up is that they let you pair up to 4 Ambeo 8" subwoofers!! Yes FOUR subwoofers! I'd be putting one in each corner of the room if that was my setup. It's a really tough call for me to decide if the 4 Ambeo subwoofers can be louder than the 2 BM700's, but I kinda lean towards the 4 Ambeo subwoofers cause it's more cone area (32" with 4 Ambeo's vs 20" with 2 BM700"s). 2 BM700's will play a little deeper, but I think 4 Ambeo subs will be a little louder. But it's a tough choice for me cause it's also 2 ported subs vs 4 sealed subs..... Either way you'll have ridiculous amounts of bass!

I'd say grab the JBL Bar 500 MK2. From what I've seen these new MK2 soundbars are the real deal this time. NeverEnoughTech on YouTube actually gave the 1300X MK2 the win over the Samsung 990F in his comparison. I'll leave a link, I think you should watch it. Obviously the 1300X will have a ton more power and better bass than the 500, however the sound signature in the bar should be very similar. I'd even tell you to grab the JBL Bar 500 MK2 over the Samsung Q800F which is $750. https://youtu.be/lPXz9X-5LIc?si=A4lOPwOXwvmT1Bqm

I'd definitely pick the JBL Bar 500 MK2. From what I've heard these MK2 systems are a legit step up from before. So much even I'm considering JBL one more try, which is something I never thought I'd say, but the fact that NeverEnoughTech actually picks the 1300X MK2 over the Samsung Q990F was shocking to me and a madly impressive feature for JBL to be proud of. And I'm no stranger to JBL, had 3 myself. I still have the old Bar 3.1 for the last almost 8+ years now. I thought the Bar 500 MK1 was okay, nothing spectacular but it did have some stuff that stood out to me like it's soundstage being incredibly wide sounding, and I think the EQ settings worked quite well, and I think I saw an improved EQ on these new MK2's which is another bonus. I didn't like the MK1 subwoofer at all but these MK2 subwoofers look closer to the original 10" sub design so there's high hope for a good subwoofer. I say it's a no brainer here, get the Bar 500 MK2.

The jbl bar 500 mk2 was on black friday sale for 400€. 10/10

I’ve had one for a while. It is paired with a 55in LG C4 that I bought last year around the same time. For watching TV and movies, it’s….OK….and I do mean just OK… Forget listening to music on it. As many have mentioned, and I saw even before I bought it, there were mentions of underwhelming low end/bass performance. Well, they were all correct. It does well with highs and mids, but bass performance is severely lacking. Also, for reference, I am using this setup in a 12x12 BEDROOM. When I listen to music, I use portable bluetooth speakers that all sound better than this soundbar system and are a fraction of the size. If I had it to do all over again, I would have done more research and got something better. I may still even look into replacing it the next time I get a super profitable business month. I hear really good things about Sonos.

Well for anyone still following along, today I found my missing bass… JBL Bar 500MK2 has replaced the S80TR… losing the rear satellites with this setup but doesn’t really make a difference for me…again, it’s a 12x12 bedroom, and for me it’s worth it to be able to play music through this setup versus having to use portable Bluetooth speakers. So, win for me. Consequently, anyone want to buy a used S80TR? 🤣🤷🏻‍♂️

I have an LG S80TR that I am working on selling. Replaced with a JBL Bar 500MK2. The LG’s are severely lacking in bass and low end. The hardware is capable, but LG has crippled the sub with bad firmware/programming. I’ve tried to reach out to LG to discuss this, but, they don’t care at all.

Is the older friend tech savvy? If not, I'd stay away from the Sonos app. I'm not a fan of it at all. Plus, the Sonos Beam 2 without a sub will be completely underwhelming in a large room. And adding the Sonos mini sub itself is $500, the Gen 3 sub at $600 or the Gen 4 sub at $900. My 3 recommendations for the $500-$600 price point with a subwoofer are: * (1) JBL 500MK2-5.1 (currently at $550) https://us.amazon.com/JBL-500MK2-5-1-MultiBeamTM-Calibration-Assistant-Enabled/dp/B0FHBVS6GC * (2) Klipsch Flexus w/ 10" sub ($599) https://us.amazon.com/Klipsch-Flexus-Sound-System-Subwoofer/dp/B0D1SKD9CJ/ * (3) Samsung Q800F (this is an open-box option for $514) https://us.amazon.com/Samsung-Subwoofer-Q-Symphony-Integration-HW-Q800F/dp/B0DY1XXYT7/ I actually have the Samsung Q800F but if you like something with more bass I would choose the JBL or Klipsch option because they both come with a 10" subwoofer, vs the Samsung's smaller 6.5" subwoofer.. i'm not impressed with it at all as it's too small a sub for the system. All 3 soundbars offer a wireless subwoofer that can be placed anywhere in the room.

> I'd even tell you to grab the JBL Bar 500 MK2 over the Samsung Q800F which is $750. I 100% agree. I returned my Samsung Q800F. It was so underwhelming and thin sounding with almost no bass response due to the tiny sub. I just noticed the JBL Bar 500 MK2 is on sale right now for only $450. IMO, you won't find a better soundbar + sub combo at that price point. https://www.amazon.com/JBL-500MK2-5-1-MultiBeamTM-Calibration-Assistant-Enabled/dp/B0FHBVS6GC

I've listened to the new 500 MK2's many times now and it seems like an improvement. Of course this is at numerous different box stores where there are many different factors impacting the sound. I had an old JBL Bar 3.1 system for almost the last 10 yrs and it was decent for what it was. I got it super cheap so my expectations weren't much. Their soundbar has significantly improved from that era. I'm kinda torn on rTings. I am a paying subscriber and their glowing reviews of the 800F swayed me into buying it, lol. I ended up finding a great deal on a Sonos Ultra Arc and Costco Gen 2 sub. After listening to just about every soundbar and sub combo, I kept coming back to the Sonos system for the overall music, movies, TV dialogue sound. Very happy with it.

If you like bass, I highly recommend the JBL Bar 500MK2. It's on sale for only $450 right now. I think it has some of the best all-around audio for a soundbar + sub at that price point. The JBL has a 10" subwoofer that sounds pretty good. The Samsung subs at that price level are just pathetic and are only 6.5" and really lack any kind of bass.

You might find an open box jbl bar 500mk2 for $500 or less. It'll smoke any Samsung or LG sound bar in the same price range. JBL is an actual audio/speaker company, you know, not an "everything" company.

I have the jbl 5.1 sound bar. I was so impressed I bought 2 more so I have 3 total in my house. Now here’s the catch: I paid 200-250$ for each one vs the 5-600 they normally sell for. I don’t think it’s worth that much. The replacement for the 5.1 is the jbl 500, same basic design newer speaker packaging which looks better and you can find it factory refurbished for the 300$ range. I got this sound bar because the sound stream technology that reflects off the walls to give you a 5.1 experience actually works really well. Is it ever going to replace a real Atmos system? No. I’m in the process of selling my house that had an in ceiling 5.2 system, so using the network I’d play music on the main denon receiver and then the 3 sound bars… 2 in a bedroom, one of them in the loft upstairs and the whole entire house was filled with rich, clear sounding music So when I downsized, I obviously couldn’t take my inceiling system with me but for a smaller room/apartment like I live in right now that JBL sound bar… it’s amazing.

I have the jbl 5.1 sound bar. I was so impressed I bought 2 more so I have 3 total in my house. Now here’s the catch: I paid 200-250$ for each one vs the 5-600 they normally sell for. I don’t think it’s worth that much. The replacement for the 5.1 is the jbl 500, same basic design newer speaker packaging which looks better and you can find it factory refurbished for the 300$ range. I got this sound bar because the sound stream technology that reflects off the walls to give you a 5.1 experience actually works really well. Is it ever going to replace a real Atmos system? No. I’m in the process of selling my house that had an in ceiling 5.2 system, so using the network I’d play music on the main denon receiver and then the 3 sound bars… 2 in a bedroom, one of them in the loft upstairs and the whole entire house was filled with rich, clear sounding music So when I downsized, I obviously couldn’t take my inceiling system with me but for a smaller room/apartment like I live in right now that JBL sound bar… it’s amazing.

Don't get the JBL Bar 500, dialogue sux. Back to subtitles..

I have the JBL 500 with the 10 inch subwoofer...It's awesome, only thing missing is support for DTS X surround sound..The Dolby Atmos is good at creating sound with no up firing speakers..I got it for a steal for $300!!