Our picks of the best soundbars for LG TVs are chosen with the specific options of LG TVs in mind – because while any soundbar will work with any TV, some combinations are better than others.
For example, when looking for the best soundbars for LG TVs on sale now (those with the a9 Gen4 picture processing engine), there are some options that are only available when using an appropriate LG soundbar with the TV.
‘AI Sound Pro’ is the most obvious and useful of these features. This allows the soundbar to detect the type of content the TV is displaying and automatically optimise its sound mode automatically. And if you team a 2021 LG TV with a 2021 LG soundbar, ‘TV Sound Mode Share’ (which lets the soundbar access the TV’s superior processing power to deliver more consistent and convincing sound) is available too.
This doesn’t mean an LG soundbar is the only sensible choice for owners of LG TVs far from it. Our list of the best soundbars of all kinds is full of juicy alternatives, many of which you'll see here. It just means that if you have one of the best LG TVs then an LG soundbar might represent better value than it would if you had a TV from a different brand.
Superior sound is what we’re after here, of course. And if your budget is on the more generous side, you should expect to see a bit of Dolby Atmos capability too. Fundamentally, we’re shooting for great performance, a bit of aesthetic harmony and a price that you find acceptable.
What is the best soundbar for LG TVs?
The best soundbar for LG TVs for most people is the Sonos Beam (2nd Gen). It's a great mid-range price, and produces detailed, rich and punchy sound – and in a compact body that's suitable for TVs from 32 inches up to 55 inches. It even offers Dolby Atmos support, and acts as a smart speaker – and is great with music as well as movies!
For a more elite and movie theatre-like experience, the LG SN11RG is our pick. It features a true upfiring Dolby Atmos arrangement, and features wireless rear speakers and subwoofer in addition to the soundbar, so powerful sound comes from all directions, including above you.
The best soundbar for LG TVs: the list
Sonos has replaced what was its best product (the original Beam soundbar) with what is now its best product (this Beam Gen 2). It’s a soundbar, it can be part of a true multichannel surround-sound system, it can be part of a multiroom set-up. And in any scenario, it sounds great.
Like the original Beam, the Gen 2 has a single tweeter, four ‘racetrack’ mid/bass drivers and a trio of passive radiators for low-end reinforcement – they’re driven by five blocks of Class D amplification. Sonos is predictably coy about the amount of power on tap here, but we can safely say it’s ‘ample’. Unlike the speaker it replaces, though, Beam Gen 2 has powerful on-board processing that wants to deliver height, as well as width, to the sound, and includes Dolby Atmos processing to that effect. It also improves low-end heft and clarity at the same time.
The Beam also features eARC-enabled HDMI (good) but still lacks HDMI passthrough (less good, depending on your TV and plug needs). Music streaming is possible via Apple AirPlay 2, and the Sonos control app (which remains the gold standard) can connect to streaming services, which makes Beam an ideal multiroom option. Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa are both built in, too, which only adds to the convenience – this is one of the best smart speakers, as well as a top soundbar.
Best of all, the Beam leaves the unassisted sound of your TV looking weedy. It’s punchy, distinct, direct and very spacious – and even if it struggles to make good on its promises of Dolby Atmos height compared to something like the LG SN11RG below, it’s still the best-sounding soundbar at this sort of money, as our full Sonos Beam 2nd Gen review explains.
It's pretty small, so will work with TVs from 32 inches to 55 inches ideally. The only downside is that it doesn't have a subwoofer, and Sonos' wireless sub is very expensive – but there are plenty of options here that do add that bass impact, if you want it.
The LG SN11RG is both soundbar and entire surround sound system in one. It packs a huge amount of power into its four boxes, and as long as you have the space (and a TV big enough that it won’t be dwarfed by the soundbar), it’s a brilliantly effective solution.
The soundbar features centre, left and right channels, plus drivers to offer width and a couple of upward-firing drivers for Dolby Atmos, too. The wireless rear speakers each have a forward-facing and an upward-firing driver too, and the wireless subwoofer is fitted with a 7in driver to deliver the ‘shock and awe’ elements of a multichannel soundtrack.
As far as movies are concerned, it all works brilliantly. There’s subtlety and fine detail aplenty, as well as a wide-open soundstage and the dynamic potency to really kick off when the soundtrack demands it. And the Dolby Atmos effect might be the most convincing we’ve ever heard from a speaker set-up like this.
Despite the involvement of British hi-fi savant Meridian, the LG isn’t quite as adept with music as we’d like – the subwoofer, in particular, sounds quite a bit less expressive with music than it is with music. But as far as its primary purpose is concerned, the LG SN11RG is an unarguable success.
Want a great soundbar but don’t want to break the bank? Or to have your room dominated by a big cabinet? Don’t look any further – Yamaha has you covered.
For the money, the SR-C20A sound straightforwardly great. Compared to your unadorned LG TV, the performance is deeper, wider and taller – and the Yamaha achieves that without even pretending to be a Dolby Atmos speaker. It has poise and balance, decent dexterity and more than a little low-end presence. And it will fit happily below titchy little 32-inch TVs, and is portable enough to be carried off and put beneath a games monitor or something. Where it will be every bit as effective.
Setup is simple, and as well as the more usual connections there’s also a 3.5mm analogue input for additional flexibility. Sure, the remote control looks cheaper and feels even cheaper – but there’s a great Yamaha control app available, so that’s not too much of an issue. And let’s not forget: the SR-C20A is affordable, versatile and sounds great.
As far as balancing decently compact dimensions (this is great for 48-inch TVs and bigger), competitive pricing and the sort of implacable low-frequency presence that’s utterly beyond the ability of a TV operating by itself, the Samsung HW-Q800A hits the bull’s-eye. We gave it a T3 Award and everything!
A Dolby Atmos soundbar with seven drivers, including two facing upwards, the Samsung is capable of generating a quite substantial wall of sound with decent height and width. And along with sheer scale, there’s plenty of detail, clarity and dynamic headroom – the wireless subwoofer integrates smoothly and offers worthwhile tonal variation. HDMI passthrough means it doesn’t hog one of your TV’s HDMI ports, while Bluetooth and Wi-Fi offer good music-streaming options.
It’s happy to accept additional wireless rear speakers if you decide to go the whole surround-sound hog – but in the meantime it’s nigh-on ideal. Big, burly audio quality, with enough dexterity to be an enjoyable speaker for music too, with minimal set-up effort required. Here's our full Samsung HW-Q800A review.
Thanks to a complement of 11 speaker drivers firing at various angles, the Sonos Arc gets closer than any other affordable single-unit soundbar at creating a sense of width and height to Dolby Atmos soundtracks. Which should be enough of a recommendation in and of itself, as long as you have a TV of 55 inches and up (it's a big boy). But there’s more to the Arc than simple audio trickery.
It’s just a deeply impressive and thoroughly well-balanced speaker, no matter what you choose to listen to. Tonality is even and convincing for both music and movies, and by the standards of subwoofer-less soundbars it develops deep and substantial low frequencies (though can't truly match a subwoofer). Because it’s a Sonos, it’s simplicity itself to set up, and can be integrated into a multichannel or multiroom system in moments. The control app remains the finest example of its type, anywhere.
Downsides are remarkably few, but not exactly insignificant. There’s only a single HDMI socket, and no passthrough, so you’ll lose one of your TV’s HDMI ports by connecting the Arc – and if your LG TV can’t decode or pass through Dolby Atmos then there’s no Dolby Atmos for you. It’s a frankly bizarre state of affairs, but this is only a problem for older LG TVs.
But the fact is this: the audio quality is impressive enough for us to recommend the Sonos strongly regardless. As long as your LG TV includes Dolby Atmos support, it’ll be a very happy marriage indeed. Don't forget to check out our full Sonos Arc review.
The Denon Home Sound Bar 550 is quite a direct competitor to the Sonos Beam at the top of this list, but it actually offers even more flexibility: it has two HDMI sockets allowing for 4K HDMI passthrough (meaning you won't lose the use of a port when it's connected – very useful if you have a more budget LG TV with fewer ports), optical and 3.5mm connectivity, plus Bluetooth support for music streaming. It also sounds great at average listening volumes, producing genuinely convincing width and height from a really small soundbar – it will even fit under 32-inch TVs.
So there must be a downside, right? The Denon's issue is that it can't handle having the volume ramped up loud – the audio profile changes, and it's nowhere near as pleasant to listen to. And while it supports multi-room audio from AirPlay 2 and Denon's own multi-room system, we rate Sonos as a better multi-room investment if that's your priority. And we also think the Sonos Beam is better looking, and this does matter in a soundbar.
But as our full Denon Home Sound Bar 550 review explains, we really rate this soundbar for those who won't want to crank to the volume up. For a lot of people, it will be a better choice than the Sonos Beam – it's just that a handful of small things push it further down the list.
When is a soundbar not a soundbar? When it’s a soundbar, a subwoofer and a pair of rear speakers with an all-in total of 22 drivers and over 600 watts of power, that’s when. At least the subwoofer and rear speakers are wireless, though, so the system’s not quite as ungainly as it might at first sound.
The soundbar delivers seven channels of sound (using angled drivers to create width and up-firing drivers for the height effect). Each rear speaker is responsible for two surround channels, which makes for precise effects positioning, and the subwoofer, well… it does that ideal subwoofer thing of delivering deep, taut bass without getting overconfident.
Working as a system, the Samsung combination manages to sound powerful and authoritative, yet detailed at the same time. The soundstage it creates is broad and, yes, tall, and there’s more than enough dynamic potency to bring movie soundtracks bounding to life.
Add in a great feature-set (including a pair of HDMI inputs, support for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, wireless connectivity via Bluetooth and AirPlay 2) and the Samsung stops looking quite expensive and instead seems like a bit of a bargain. If you can find the space for all the components, it’s a cracking choice, as our full Samsung HW-Q950A review really delves into.
Keep the price uppermost in your mind and the LG SN7CY headlines look good. Five drivers, including a couple of upward-firers to bring the Dolby Atmos height, the involvement of UK specialist Meridian in voicing, the ability to add wireless rear speakers should you fancy it… There’s a lot more here than this sort of money buys from pretty much any rival brand.
And in some ways, the LG is worth every penny. It’s got HDMI passthrough, for a start, which puts it ahead of both the Sonos soundbars on this list. And a USB socket, along with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity, meaning your options for music playback are extensive. And, at the risk of sounding shallow, it’s quite a nice-looking device too.
Sound is a bit of a mixed bag, though. On the plus side, the LG is a detailed, revealing and quite insightful listen – if there are subtleties in your audio content, the SN7CY will reveal them. And it does very acceptable work in creating that sense of height that’s the whole point of Dolby Atmos.
But unless you wind the volume northwards, the LG’s passive radiators don’t really deliver meaningful bass… and if you do wind the volume northwards, treble response can veer dangerously towards ‘hard’. Taken as a whole, though, there’s lots to enjoy here, as our full LG SN7CY review details.
A tiny soundbar – made to look even tinier by its accompanying (and regular-sized) subwoofer – that wants to serve up some Dolby Atmos sound, and that looks a bit like an eclair (we suppose, if you squint). Too good to be true, surely?
Well, yes and no. If you want the smallest soundbar around but don’t want to compromise deeply on specification, the QP5 is definitely the way forward. It goes without network capability or streaming functionality, but it still squeezes a Dolby Atmos setup into that tiny frame.
When it comes to audio quality, it’s safe to say that other soundbars on this list will make more of a Dolby Atmos soundtrack where simple height and width are concerned. But where scale, presence and outright attack are concerned, it’s streets ahead of what your TV can manage by itself. So while this sort of money will undoubtedly buy a more capable soundbar, it won’t buy anything even remotely as diminutive. Which, for some LG TV owners, will seal the deal.
How to choose the best soundbar for your LG TV
There are, of course, some practical considerations when it comes to picking a new soundbar to partner your LG television.
First off, you need to set a realistic budget (and then stick to it). You can buy a perfectly serviceable soundbar for a couple hundred, and if you’re so inclined you can pay several thousand – we’ve included a spread of prices in our list, and every recommendation represents strong value for money. But don’t forget that deals pop up all the time, especially at this time of year.
You also need to think about the design of your new soundbar. LG TVs tend to be sleek and minimal in appearance, and you don’t want your soundbar ruining your decor. If your LG TV is wall-mounted, for instance, it’s probably worth giving special consideration to soundbars that can be wall-mounted too, which is comming these days.
If your TV stands on its feet, though, and the soundbar is going to sit below the screen, make sure there is enough clearance to prevent the soundbar obscuring the bottom of the screen (or even just fouling the receiver for the TV’s remote control). And it’s important to consider the width of the soundbar, too – you don’t want it to be wider than the screen it’s serving.
Do you want a standalone soundbar or one with a subwoofer for additional wallop? Many subs are wireless (which makes them quite convenient) but can tend to be quite large (which doesn’t).
Make sure your soundbar has the connections you need, too. HDMI is the easiest way to attach your soundbar to your LG TV – and your TV is almost certain to be HDMI-ARC enabled, meaning audio can travel in both directions along the HDMI cable. And because LG is very keen on the Dolby Atmos audio format, its screens tend to have the eARC specification necessary to shift all that complex audio information from the TV to the soundbar too.
It’s also worth checking to see if your favoured soundbar has Bluetooth and/or Wi-Fi connectivity. After all, you might want to stream music to it every now and then…
