Samsung - QS730D

The best option for the Samsung TV specifically would be either the Q600C or the Q730D. They both use Q-Symphony (uses soundbar and tv speakers for fuller sound), and they can both be controlled through one remote/app (Samsung Smart things).

Hw-qs730d (used, search internet) + 9500 rears (used) from bestbuy. Definitely will fit under your budget and even allow you to add stands for the rears.

Qs730d (used/renewed) or 800d (used/renewed). I wouldn't pair this level of a TV with 600c even though it's a decent soundbar and even if it were new.

I was in the same exact position. I ordered a Samsung TV and HW-Q600C soundbar "for fun" in the beginning of this month. Liked the concept so much but returned both to get better models.  What I can say based on my countless hours of research: as of now, the best "budget" but decent quality system is hw-q600c especially if you can get some used version on Amazon or eBay.  The next best system for money is a used / renewed HW-QS730D. This is basically an improved version of the q600c with a better subwoofer, Wi-Fi and FLAC/ALAC support, as well as AirPlay 2 and others. I've realized how important wifi is for loseless streaming. You can't just do it on BT, have to use HDMI.  If you want to know what I ended up with: I've found an HW-Q800D for $370 on eBay from a reputable seller. It's used, but turned out to be like new. I guess enthusiasts here would say it's a steal. I am impressed with the quality of this tech.  Good luck! Added: I see you're concerned about design. Look up hw-s800b and related. Used of course if you want to save up a noticeable amount! 

So I just snagged an open box of this from best by over the weekend for $335. I was going between that and the HW-S800D, but it looked to me like the difference was the 800D is super slim and may have one more speaker in it? Couldn't find a whole lot about the 730D online, so I hope I made the right choice. Should be here tomorrow.

Nice...yeah, I have an older 2016 model Samsung curved TV and the speakers suck. Hate turning it up to 35 just to hear things. I know I don't have the latest tech with the TV, but it does have an arc port so that alone should be an improvement over the optical cable in our current soundbar. Using the 730D to replace an old JVC soundbar that has a lot of distortion even at low levels and the bass in the bar just blows things out, especially with music or explosion scenes in action movies. Super excited to have something newer than can improve both regular TV and movies and not ruin the show. Didn't pick up the surround speakers as our current living room setup isn't great for that, but maybe I'll catch a good deal on those sometime! I was thinking the same thing on the reviews with it being newer. I don't know...kinda felt like I was taking a stab in the dark. From what I saw, total watts in the 730D were only 10 or 20w less than the 800D, so I'm hoping they should be pretty comparable.

When debating the two, there was $100 difference on the open box excellent pricing and I was thinking one extra speaker in the soundbar and a super slim design wasn't worth it, as the 730D appeared to have pretty much identical technology and, I presumed more normal sized speakers since the unit wasn't as slimmed down.

So the way you get “5.1” without what’s called discrete speakers, the ones in the back and 3 upfront, is something called “psycho acoustics”. Which is a process of directing sound to bounce of walls to simulate sound coming from that direction. It’s been around for a while however there is a lot and I mean a lot of snake oil peddling in the $100-$300 price range especially without discrete speakers. I’m probably a month into my research of soundbars. It’s a lot to sift through. Samsung makes the best overall soundbar in the Q990 but unless you’re getting the EPP discount they are north of $1000. The budget version in their line would be the QS730D at $300-$450 on Amazon. Does a pretty good job with 3 speakers simulating surround with 2 height speakers to provide Atmos effects. Sonos Beam and Bose 600 are the midrange no subwoofer options around $500. Great clarity and do a good job of simulating surround. Height effects aren’t that great on either model. Budgeting lower than these is Vizio M512-H6 and JBL Bar 5.1/500. Both I think are good units that won’t leave you feeling you’ve been duped.

I bought a Samsung qs730d which is 3.1.2. it does sound really good, however Samsung makes a q800d which seems to be the same as the qs730d except it's 5.1.2.. The sub and design look identical Is a 200$ price difference between the 2. I have an option to return the 730d if I wanted but I don't want too unless there's a noticable different in sound between the 2 and I'm Leary because it's just a soundbar. I have no rear speakers and don't want any so idk... Help me out.

Well with your budget you can get the q600c ($275), q700c ($439), qs730d ($348), the S800d, s801d (white) for $278 with an Amazon business account which anyone can make. If you don’t got a lot of space the s800d would look better. Not sure about the comparison between the qs730d and s800d. I went with the qs730d and bought an open box rear speakers from Best Buy for $80 to keep me within my $500 budget.

I just bought a Samsung QS730D & paired it with a 65” S90C oled. I’m no audiophile but it exceeded my expectations by far. I watched Napoleon last night & it was like I was in a movie theater. I found it brand new on Amazon for $397. I think they’re back up to almost $600 now. You can roll the dice on a Used-like new open box for $349 on Amazon but CHECK YOUR SERIAL NUMBERS. I ordered 2 & returned them. Someone had swapped out a new Q700C in one & some Q series that was a Costco only special in the other.

I'd highly recommend looking at the QS730 over those all day long if bass is important to you. I'm pretty sure the subwoofer is the same or extremely close to what comes with the Q800's. A lot close to the 800's subwoofer than the Q60C subwoofer. I know the QS730 is a bit more than the others you're looking at, but I promise you the subwoofer alone is worth the extra money.

If you can spend a tad more, get the QS730D! 100% worth it. Million times better subwoofer than the B750, & much better quality than the S800D. I had the S800D & it was a really rough experience, especially considering it was Samsung. Voices on the bar sounded distorted a lot of the time & honestly sounded like the bar had a rattle to it in a way, but simply due to poor build quality imo. 110% spend the extra for the QS730D. I wouldn't recommend any of the Samsung bars lower than this one.

If you can spend the extra to get the QS730D, definitely do it. The subwoofer is a lot better and will make a night and day difference!

I can share what I recently got that I think was a goos combo for the value. The Samsung HW-QS730D is able to connect with the Samsung SWA-9500S rear speakers that are atmos and have up firing speakers. Woot has this soundbar for $377, I was able to pick up a pair of open box 9500s for under $100 but was prepared to wait till some came up. I am very happy with my setup. I came from a Vizio 5.1.2 system

Samsung HW-QS730D (open box) Then down the line you can get the Samsung 9500S Rearspeakers

Same as me! I like it, so much better than tv speakers. I got the rear speakers to go with it too. But you’re right can’t find anything on it about reviews and such. Not sure why. Maybe because it’s newer??

Personally I dont thing anyone could tell a difference from having less that 10 or 20w. Maybe an audiophile, but the layperson wont be able to tell a difference. I think youll be happy. Its a big improvement. You wont need subtitles. Speech will be much clearer

Oh! This is really important. Because its best buy open box they probably have it specially programmed. Mine was, it kept switching between channels on its own. I was about to send it back and spent an hour or so troubleshooting and looking for a fix. So here it is: Power it off, hold down the Vol. Down button on the bar until the display reads "INI" (Something like that.). This will clear it to factory, and it should update once once you get it connected to your wifi. Download the "Samsung smart things" app. Follow the set up to connect to the wifi (then update should happen). Anyway, I know it sounds simple but I had to dig a bit, most help said to hold down the vol up and down at the same time...etc. Not even their support knew what to do!

Yes, maybe the q730 will be better then. But neither the Q600c or Qs730 have the Active voice amplifier, tho you can still put up the volume of the center Chanel on both of them, to hear the voices clearer. If you can find an old/used Q800b or C it would be much better. but if not go with the Qs730

I have a Samsung 3.1.2 soundbar. I have a fairly long, narrow room with a 65in Sony Bravia. It has a lot of preset modes, music, TV, voice emphasis, cinema, etc. It works with eArc, so I plug all my devices into the TV, use the eArc output from the one HDMI to the soundbar, and for my TV, I've gone into setup and can use any of the various remotes (sony br player, roku, cable box etc) for volume of the soundbar. It recognizes the devices. If the issue is budget, space, or both, and buying a 2.1 with receiver or integrated amplifier, and a sub... is out of the question, then a soundbar of this caliber is a great value. It's leaps ahead of soundbars you may have heard 3-4 or more years ago. The bass pleasingly rumbles for movies. The voice emphasis is well pronounced (in that mode, but does well in other modes too). Music seems to envelop the space (in small to medium spaces). I can add on a set of L/R bookshelf speakers and a dedicated sub to this soundbar and essentially have a 5.1, but I believe they are specific Samsung products/models that only work with this soundbar model. I don't know why someone would spend the additional money in L/R and sub with a soundbar, but it's an option. A soundbar is clean, space saving, easy to setup and easy to use. Could you do better with a receiver or integrated amp, L/R/C/Sub... you bet. But it costs you a lot more. There's a lot to consider going the receiver or integrated amp route. The Int amps commonly don't have hdmi, but they do usually have optical and sometimes USB, Bluetooth, and sometimes Phono. Emotiva TA1, or Rotel A12 (or A12 MKII) are feature rich, in example. The newerish receivers will often have 4 HDMI inputs, one with arc or eArc, HDCP 2.2 or 2.3, optical, sometimes usb, phono, network, wifi, and Bluetooth. The Marantz NR1510 is one to look at. The of course you add speakers and a sub. Looking at the used market, you could build a budget friendly 2.1 for say $400 conservatively, but it probably won't have all. the bells and whistles of a soundbar. It's worth jotting down every feature you think you'd want before shopping. And with older receivers, you could hook up a wifi/Bluetooth streamer to it to gain those functions either thru optical or HDMI.

Grab a samsung 3.1.2 there around 300$ open box Canadian usa prob like 199$ I forget the model

The Samsung tv will help with center channel with the Q symphony I believe. Prob will not notice much if at all. Samsung as others had said is def a far better bang for your buck. I don’t consider myself an audio expect but I had what I thought was a nice lg 5.1.2 soundbar and the Samsung blows it away. Voice clarity is what shocked me the most. All ranges of sounds are more defined and crisp even when only steaming. 4k Blu-ray Discs up the level another few notches. There are a bunch of posts on this subreddit explaining how to save a bunch of money ordering some Samsung directly if you choose to go with that soundbar

I found that Q-Symphony adds a nice touch of fill-in to the front soundstage. Not life changing, but definitely worth it.

I’ve had the sennheiser ambeo, Bose smart ultra, and the Samsung q800, in that order. First two were returned for connectivity issues with my newish Samsung tv. The q800 has been great (the ambeo probably had the best surround but only if it connected). Q symphony is amazing. With the first two bars, you could clearly tell the sound was coming from below the TV… q symphony fixes that completely. And the subwoofer is amazing.