Televisions often only deliver weak sound because their built-in speakers offer low volume due to their flat design. A soundbar can help here. It takes up less space and connects quickly, but produces full and dynamic sound for an immersive home theater experience.
Along with the Fire TV soundbar, Amazon now also offers its own TV speaker, which extends the sound range of the Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED (test report) or the Fire TV Stick 4K Max (test report). While top models from well-known manufacturers often cost more than 500 euros, Amazon’s soundbar impresses with its low price 140 Euros.But is the sound and handling good? That’s what our test report says.
design
The Fire TV soundbar is a typical representative of its guild and comes to buyers in the famous cuboid design. The casing is made entirely of plastic and doesn’t look particularly high quality, but that shouldn’t surprise anyone considering the price. However, the workmanship is neat and there are no sharp edges as the corners are firmly rounded. There’s nothing wrong here.
The speakers themselves are covered in fabric. There are three LED lights at the back. These glow white when the soundbar is powered on. When playing with Dolby Digital, one LED lights up green, when connected to Bluetooth it lights up blue, and if an incompatible device is connected via USB, it lights up red.
At the top center are the buttons for on/off, volume, Bluetooth and sound source. The connections and power connections are at the back. There are also two openings at the back to attach the soundbar to the wall with dowels if there is no space on the sideboard in front of the television.
The soundbar weighs about 1.8 kg and has dimensions of 610 × 90 × 65 mm. This makes it one of the more compact models, even if there are still smaller models. We tried it with a Samsung television; the soundbar protruded more than a finger’s width into the picture due to the lower base of the TV. The height is therefore not optimal and could have been leveled a little.
equipment
The available connections are USB-A, HDMI eARC (Advanced Audio Return Channel) and an optical input. An HDMI and power cable and a remote control are included in the scope of delivery, but an optical cable is not. The 2-0 speaker also offers Bluetooth. Dolby Digital and DTS Virtual:X are available as audio decoders. But there is no Dolby Atmos. The maximum power is 40 watts. You cannot connect a subwoofer.
The soundbar turns on automatically when you use the eARC input on the television, if available. This is practical as you don’t have to go through the hassle of selecting the sound source in the TV settings. In our test setting with an older Samsung television and the Fire TV Stick 4K Max (test report), we were also able to use the TV Stick’s remote control. However, the input here responds with a delay. You can hear the device too quiet or loud instantly if you turn the volume up or down, and if you’re not careful.
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sound
The same is true of cheap soundbars: you shouldn’t place too many demands on the sound. It’s no different with the Fire TV soundbar. The pleasant warm and clear sound is better than most speakers integrated into the television. However, after turning it on for the first time at a low level, you’re not entirely sure whether the sound is coming from the sound bar or the television. It’s only when you turn it on that you notice the positive difference. Voices can be heard clearly, action scenes appear noticeably more powerful and the mids and highs are well defined.
The Fire TV soundbar is effective during movies, series or sporting events. However, it falls quite short when it comes to music; the overall sound is very dull, nasal and indistinguishable. Adjustments to the equalizer are possible via the remote control. If you press the bass button on the remote control twice, you get a little more oomph. You don’t get full 3D sound, as advertised by Amazon. But the Fire TV soundbar offers solid surround sound when the source allows it.
technical data
Price and options
The Fire TV soundbar is currently priced at $15 on Amazon 140 Euros.This is a fair price for the features offered.
conclusion
Amazon Fire TV is for soundbars 140 Euros Definitely a bargain and offers solid sound as an upgrade to the normal TV sound. Operation and setup with eARC is child’s play, just plug it in and get started – done. The soundbar is quite compact, but in our opinion it could be flatter. During our testing, the soundbar bulged a bit in the picture. Alternatively, you can also mount it on the wall.
For the price, the sound is good and clear without any distortion. However, the sound does seem a little muffled, which is especially noticeable with music. A certain spatial sound is offered, but it doesn’t come close to surround systems. If you’re looking to upgrade the sound of a cheap television without spending a lot of money, you can’t do anything wrong with the Fire TV soundbar. However, you shouldn’t expect a heavy-duty home cinema.
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