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Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo
1 Level
453 Review
0 Karma

Review on πŸ”Š Immersive 5.1 Surround Sound System: VIZIO Sound Bar for TV with Wireless Subwoofer and Bluetooth by Andrea Lopez

Revainrating 1 out of 5

Amazing sound, HDMI connection learned doesn't transmit 4K - died after 42 days

Review edited below now. The soundbar is dead. Not a music lover, I bought another Vizio soundbar for many years back in 2013. I was really excited to use the HDMI inputs on the soundbar and try out the Dolby Atmos that my XBox keeps telling me about. Like my last one, installation is very easy. I don't even need to consult the instructions. It all makes sense, and the way the Vizio lines up the cable box is intuitive and beautifully lettered. I was amazed at how small everything is now. My old Vizio soundbar was blocking the small viewing area at the bottom of the TV due to its height. I now have an air gap between the bottom of the TV and the top of the new soundbar. The satellite speakers are so small and what my daughter called "cute". The subwoofer is also like a shoebox compared to the latter. Compared to the old Vizio soundbar, the sound is amazing. It's very clear and very clear in our faces when we sit 8 feet apart. To be honest, I really picked up sounds that I don't think I've heard before while playing our XBox. Not an audiophile again, to put it simply, it was like the previous soundbar was muted, like a blanket thrown over it. When the cover was removed, this sound became so evident. My cons for this new bar: The manual says nothing about why there is an internet connection (wired) on the back of the device or how to use it. I know it has smartcast by language on the box but I don't think the manual says anything about it at all. It's like Vizio forgot to include a chapter. I also have a Vizio TV with Smartcast, so out of curiosity I tried connecting to the soundbar using my Android app. It recognizes this, but for some reason the sync between the phone app and the soundbar keeps failing. I don't need the app and this soundbar, so I'll stop tinkering with this scab. I was sad to learn that the HDMI ARC port on the soundbar does not support 4k/UHD. Everything seems bigger so I assumed this would work with my Vizio 4K TV. It connects and displays 1080P, but last night while I was using my FireTV to start a UHD show (I love the Grand Tour!) I suddenly encountered an error on the screen saying my connection wasn't working Was UHD certified. So I dropped my popcorn, pulled out the HDMI connector, plugged it directly into the TV, and ran an optical cable to the soundbar. The Grand Tour is back in all its 4K glory. It also means I can't comment on Dolby Atmos, which also requires an HDMI connection. Overall, I still give it 4.5 stars, which rounds up to 5 stars. It's so small, so "cute" and the sound is so much better than my previous Vizio soundbar. We love it. I just want to connect to 4K via HDMI. Last night it was an 'ahhh' moment for me. Change: 05.06.19. Bought April 24, now June 5, died. We woke up this morning to find our soundbar was on and died between the time it turned off last night and this morning. No energy. I contacted Revain and we went through many phases. Eventually Revain decided to refund my money because there was no replacement. The soundbar is currently sold out indefinitely. Now I have to ship all these parts back to Revain with the label they provided. I've lowered my original rating for the product to 1 star, but Revain continues to receive 5 stars for its usefulness. I see a lot of pretty timely feedback from people who have lived our lives with this soundbar. Beware. Beware.

Pros
  • Quality build
Cons
  • No instructions