The present review is aimed to compare two soundbars - Bose Soundbar 500 vs JBL Bar 2.1 that are meant to satisfy the needs of cinema and music lovers. Based on our rating, Soundbar 500 has a total rating of 7.4 out of 10 versus 6 for Bar 2.1. The competitors' control buttons are different: microphone and power, volume down, volume up, source, respectively.
Both soundbars have active amplification type. A significant difference between the units in the number of channels, the Bose Soundbar 500 has 3.0 versus 2.1 for the JBL Bar 2.1. Competitors do not have a built-in subwoofer. Rivals have wireless connection to separate subwoofer. The Bose Soundbar 500 got our rating of 6 out of 10, and the JBL Bar 2.1 7 for its audio features and specs. Spotify support is available on the Soundbar 500.
These models have the ability to connect to the Internet via WI-FI. Rivals from our review have Bluetooth support. The Bose Soundbar 500 has 1/0 HDMI inputs/outputs versus 1/1 of the JBL Bar 2.1. The HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC) feature supports both devices. Both soundbars have a USB connector. For connectivity, each of the soundbars received a rating of 8/10.
Both models support voice control using Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant. App control is available for the Soundbar 500. A built-in microphone is present in each model. Soundbars do not have Multi-room support.
Only the Soundbar 500 has a Dolby Atmos multichannel audio format support. The soundbars do not support the surround sound technology DTS:X. For multichannel surround, each of the opponents received 4 points out of 10.