Roku Streambar Pro review

Our Verdict

The Roku Streambar Pro, which combines a soundbar and Roku streaming device, is easy to set up up and has good sound — but it's sluggish as a streamer.

For

• Uncomplicated to set up and apply
• Decent bass without a subwoofer
• Wide sound

Confronting

• No Dolby Atmos support
• Sometimes sluggish streaming functioning

Tom's Guide Verdict

The Roku Streambar Pro, which combines a soundbar and Roku streaming device, is easy to set and has proficient sound — just information technology's sluggish as a streamer.

Pros

• +

  Simple to ready and use

• +

  Decent bass without a subwoofer

• +

  Wide sound

Cons

• -

  No Dolby Atmos support

• -

  Sometimes sluggish streaming operation

If you're looking to streamline your abode theater setup, the Roku Streambar Pro is as simple as you lot can get. Information technology's an all-in-one soundbar with a 4K Roku streaming player congenital in. You connect an HDMI cable between the soundbar and your TV and you're pretty much done.

The Streambar Pro follows the Roku Streambar, one of our all-time soundbar picks, and replaces the Roku Smart Soundbar in the visitor's sound lineup. The Streambar Pro comes with  a ameliorate remote than the latter, and also supports virtual surround audio out of the box. Information technology produces good, not dandy, sound, and information technology'southward slow to launch apps when y'all want to watch something. But, as our total Roku Streambar Pro review will explicate, simplicity can be worth a lot.

• Our picks of the best inexpensive soundbars
• Want a more advanced setup? Check out the all-time AV receivers
• Bank check out our Roku Ultra LT review

Roku Streambar Pro: Price and Availability

• Out at present for $179
• Bachelor from a range of retailers

 The Roku Streambar Pro launched in May 2021. You tin can purchase information technology for $179 directly from Roku, or pick it up from Amazon and B&H for the same cost.

Alternatively you tin can choice up the cheaper, but too less-powerful Roku Streambar for $79 in Amazon'southward Black Friday sale

Roku Streambar Pro review: Design

• Unassuming style
• HDMI ARC back up
• Improved remote, though no onboard controls

The 32.ii 10 3.9 x ii.8-inch Streambar Pro takes its visual cues from Roku's streaming box line — information technology tries not to attract too much attention and fades in with its surroundings. The blackness, rectangular soundbar includes 4 2.five-inch drivers. Information technology doesn't come with a subwoofer or surroundings speakers, but you can add together those to brand a truthful 5.1 system.

(Epitome credit: Future)

On the front, the only adornment is a white calorie-free that shows it'due south powered on; the lite changes to red when you activate the microphone for voice control. On the dorsum, you lot'll find an HDMI ARC input for connecting to your Tv set. There's besides an optical digital audio connectedness and a USB port.

Taking simplicity to the max, the Streambar Pro has no buttons or controls on the unit. You need the remote control or the Roku app to plow it on, adjust volume or change settings.

The remote is the biggest upgrade over the Smart Soundbar. It looks and feels like the Roku remote many of usa know and honey. It's uncomplicated and well constructed, and feels solid in your hand. The version with the Streambar Pro includes a push button for voice search and headphone jack for private listening. It has quick launch buttons for Netflix, Disney+, Apple tree TV+ and Hulu. It besides has two buttons that y'all can program to shop a vocalization command. Recollect, however, that this remote is not the same equally Roku's new Vox Remote Pro, which is rechargeable and supports hands-free phonation control.

Roku Streambar Pro review: Sound quality

• Bass is decent merely could be stronger
• Clean and clear loftier-end

The Streambar Pro delivers solid, though non keen, all-around sound. Voices, for instance, are piece of cake to hear. Virtual surround creates a fairly wide sound, though other soundbars can simulate environment audio better, and the Streambar Pro lacks whatsoever kind of Dolby Atmos support. Information technology has good bass for an all-in-i soundbar, but information technology definitely could benefit from a subwoofer.

Kate Winslet'due south New England accent was easy to understand in Mare of Easttown, with the bass adding some resonance to the dialog. When Sam rescues the soldier in the opening scene of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, explosions had accent thank you to the bass, though they didn't rattle the floor equally a unit with a subwoofer would. The soundtrack of Tenet lacked the pulsing, throbbing chemical element that a system with more than low-terminate would provide.

(Image credit: Futurity)

When listening to music, the aforementioned strengths and weaknesses showed. The Weeknd's vocals on "Blinding Lights" were articulate above the bass, but the snare sounded a chip harsh. The guitar on Billie Eilish'southward "Your Power" was crisp and her phonation was loftier in the mix, and the subtle bass was evident though not overpowering. The Streambar Pro too handled the layers of audio on St. Vincent's "Pay Your Manner in Pain" well, though the song lacked the deep bass that better speakers produce.

The Streambar Pro has decent power, and should get loud enough to fill most rooms. Information technology measured about xc decibels at full volume, which isn't impressive compared to beefier soundbars, but information technology'due south enough. Ane nice characteristic is that the volume goes from 1 to 100, which allows yous a lot of fine tuning to discover the right volume for you.

Roku Streambar Pro review: Streaming performance

• Wide app selection
• Sluggish functioning harms the feel

(Prototype credit: Time to come)

Every bit a streaming device, the Streambar Pro is a flake of a permit down. It has all the great features you expect from a Roku device — easy navigation, almost every app — but menus and apps were irksome to load. Information technology would often take five to 10 seconds after launching an app before I was able to commencement playing a moving-picture show. I always felt like I was waiting for the device to catch up. By comparison, when using a Roku Ultra or the smart OSes on an LG TV or Samsung TV those apps launch in a few seconds.

Roku says the operation issues were related to compatibility issues with my LG C9 OLED Television. When I used the Streambar Pro with a Hisense U8G Telly, menus and apps loaded faster, though non equally fast as the Goggle box'southward native Android Tv set Os.

The Roku's voice search was always quick, though. When I asked it to find Mare of Easttown, it showed me the results almost instantly. You can as well apply voice control to plow off the Tv set and alter the volume.

Roku Streambar Pro review: Setup

• Easy, even with streaming and virtual surround features
• Handful of sound customization options

The Roku Streambar Pro is one of the simplest soundbars to prepare that yous'll find. Connect it to your Television's HDMI ARC port and follow the onscreen setup guide. About of the work involves installing apps for the streaming device in the soundbar. It doesn't get any easier than that.

(Image credit: Future)

One time yous've finished setting up, yous can brand a few adjustments to the sound, but not many. Under Settings, get to Audio. You can change the sound way — bass off, bass boost, normal or reduce bass. I like that Roku uses these labels instead of Movie, Sports, Music or other labels that you oftentimes run into on soundbars. There'southward no incertitude what each sound mode does. You can engage book leveling and night mode, which keep loud sounds from getting too loud. You tin can too boost the dialog by cranking up spoken communication clarity.

Virtual surround audio is a new addition to Roku'due south soundbars; it's been added to the Smart Soundbar via an update, but comes with the Streambar Pro as standard. It's switched on by default, just you can turn information technology off if you don't like it.

Roku Streambar Pro review: Verdict

If you lot're looking for a quick solution to provide better sound than your Television receiver speakers and brand it easy to stream content, the Roku Streambar Pro is as unproblematic as it gets. With one device for audio and streaming, the integration betwixt audio and vision is smooth. You don't need whatsoever extra speakers to get that Roku surround sound issue either. It's a good soundbar and a respectable streamer, fifty-fifty if that slow performance takes the smoothen off.

If you lot have a Roku Smart Soundbar, however, in that location's little reason to upgrade. The Smart Soundbar tin can as well go the virtual surround sound characteristic, and while the Streambar Pro'due south remote is better, yous can buy one separately if you desire private listening and voice control — or y'all can get those features through the Roku app.

You can get better overall performance with a cheap soundbar and a Roku Ultra for nigh the same price. Only you'll surrender the simplicity of the Streambar Pro's all-in-one organisation, and a streamlined life may be worth the trade off.

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Michael Gowan covers soundbars, TVs, portable speakers and other sound- and video-related topics for Tom's Guide. He's written most music and engineering science for more than 20 years for a raft of publications including Wired, Men's Periodical, PC World and Macworld. When he's not reviewing speakers, he'southward probably listening to one anyway.

Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/reviews/roku-streambar-pro

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