What is the best sound bar/subwoofer system?
Real men don't use soundbars because they simulate surround sound.
Be a real boy and buy a real surround system, like an Onkyo HT-S7200 or Onkyo HT-S9100THX
Soundbars may be small but when dealing with speakers you never want small. And seriously, simulated surround sound sounds like UTTER CRAP compared to the real thing.
7 Answers
Boston acoustics P400 with the CPS 10 sub, Truly Amazing for a soundbar.
I bought the Yamaha YSP-3000 last year and have been pleased with its performance in all areas. Find a reputable dealer via Pricegrabber and you shouldn't pay much more than $600. The YSP-3000 has more features than the lower priced YSP models (more HDMI inputs), but less than the over $1000 YSP-4000 (smaller woofers, less power). As other answers have suggested, if you want to spend more than $1000 you should really be looking into a traditional 5+ speaker setup. As for other soundbars, Yamaha invented the technology and was first to market with it. As a result, they're the most consistently rated models.
Real men don't use soundbars because they simulate surround sound.
Be a real boy and buy a real surround system, like an Onkyo HT-S7200 or Onkyo HT-S9100THX
Soundbars may be small but when dealing with speakers you never want small. And seriously, simulated surround sound sounds like UTTER CRAP compared to the real thing.
In audio reproduction, it's all physics; bigger is better. You can't simulate what's not there.
Levi is right. Even a low-end real surround sound system is way better than any of the sound bars. There is a characteristic of sound systems, called "presence", that cannot be simulated. This is characterized by the feeling you get that you are actually in the sound, like at a concert.
Soundbars are crap; don't waste your money.
I have a Q-AV system from Q Acoustics (Q-AV) connected to an Onkyo AV Amp and matched to a 42" plasma screen. I don't have the largest room, but the sound separation is incredible, with definition and clarity to match. Bigger and more expensive systems are better, but for $1000 or so it was worth it.
http://www.dwell.com/products/q-speakers.html these are good looking and sound pretty good.
The sound-bar class of audio products has grown like a wildfire over the past few years. Polk, Yanaha, Boston Acoustic, Phillips, Samsung, Vizio, Definitive, JVC etc... Almost all of them leave a lot to be desired. That being said I would only buy a Polk SurroundBar All of Polk's surroundbars are best in class. They have wonderful options including different sizes, included DVD players, Amps, even wireless subs.
The biggest reason for this choice: You can get wonderful Polk SurroundBar system for under $1000. There are better sound-bars out there but they are over $1000. If you are going to spend 1K on audio, get the real deal.
The economy is slow right now. There are a lot of self employed people (like me) who are struggling to find work. I guarantee there is a custom AV Installer in your area who could get you an awesome theater setup for less than you may think. If you need help finding one, let me know where you live, and I could recommend some.