Yamaha YAS-203 Soundbar

Yamaha makes all sorts of sound bars that do fancy things, like shooting “beams” of sound at your walls for more convincing virtual surround sound. But perhaps the company’s greatest feat in the genre is creating a simple, powerful, and affordable bar that sounds pretty damned good. That’s exactly what Yamaha has done with the YAS-203, a $400 budget beater that should be on the shortlist for anyone looking to upgrade their TV sound at a bargain.

At just under 35-inches across, the 203 isn’t built to square up with the stature of today’s swelling TV screens. Placed in front of a 65-inch Samsung H7150, the sound bar looks downright skimpy. It doesn’t sound that way, though, and its lack of width did little to hamper stereo effects.

The bar is stocked with two 2 ⅛-inch drivers, paired with a 6 ½-inch driver in the sub, and backed by a claimed 200 watts of total system power. The only physical features breaking up the otherwise blacked-out box are a porthole on the right side of the cabinet, and a green LED around back.