Bose Solo

Bose Solo

Matthew Moskovciak

Steve Guttenberg

The Bose Solo is among the best-looking sound bars available, with a clutter-free pedestal design. The included remote is excellent and dead simple to use. Its sound quality is unambiguously better than a TV's built-in speakers, especially for movies and TV shows. And while it's a little more expensive than some competitors, it's still reasonably priced, especially for Bose.

The Solo falls short of the sound quality of both other pedestal sound bars and traditional sound bars that include a wireless subwoofer. It lacks a front-panel display, so you won't know if its volume level is maxed out or not. And the Solo's small size only supports smaller TVs up to 40 pounds.

Although its sonic talents are comparatively modest, the Bose Solo is an exceedingly handsome and easy-to-use sound bar.

Design 10 Features 6 Performance 6
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Although its sonic talents are comparatively modest, the Bose Solo is an exceedingly handsome and easy-to-use sound bar.

Senior Associate Editor / Reviews - Home theater
Covering home audio and video, Matthew Moskovciak helps CNET readers find the best sights and sounds for their home theaters. E-mail Matthew or follow him on Twitter @cnetmoskovciak .
Ex-movie theater projectionist Steve Guttenberg has also worked as a high-end audio salesman, and as a record producer. Steve currently reviews audio products for CNET and works as a freelance writer for Stereophile.
Bose basically created the "lifestyle" home audio category, so it's surprising the company has been slow to embrace sound bars. Nevertheless, the Bose Solo ($400 street) is a strong offering in the booming sound bar market. It utilizes a pedestal design where the TV sits directly on top, which reduces clutter and just plain looks better. The Solo plays to all of Bose's strengths, with a refined design, simple setup, and a fantastic remote.

The compromise is sound quality. While the Bose Solo definitely sounds better than your TV's built-in speakers, the competing Zvox Z-Base 420 ($300 street) sounds better for less money, although it doesn't look as nice. And more-traditional sound bars like the Haier SBEV40-Slim sound better than both, with their sound quality typically buttressed by a separate, wireless subwoofer.

But that shouldn't turn off lifestyle-centric buyers who aren't necessarily focused on getting the best sound for their buck. If you're simply looking for a boost over your TV's speakers that looks great in your living room, the Bose Solo is an easy pick.
Design and features: Refined and minimalistic Zvox pioneered the pedestal sound bar design, with what's essentially a big, black MDF box that sits under your TV. The Zvox looks OK in person, but its sharp edges and hollow feel still render its design a bit coarse.

The Bose Solo has a decidedly different style. There's a higher-quality feel as soon as you pull it out of the box, even though its cabinet is made of plastic. The Solo feels solid, and its curved edges and matte-gray finish give it an aesthetic edge over the Zvox 420 and SpeakerCraft CS3 . Say what you will about Bose, but the company knows how to design attractive products.

Like other pedestal-style sound bars, the Bose Solo is designed to sit under your TV, rather than in front of it, like more-traditional sound bars . I've long been a fan of the uncluttered look of pedestal sound bars, which also avoid the pesky issue of blocking your TV's remote sensor . The downside? Bose says the Solo can handle TVs up to just 40 pounds, and only recommends using it with TVs up to 37 inches and some lighter 42-inch TVs. It's a perfect fit for most 32-inchers, but too small to support increasingly popular 46-inch and larger sets.

The sole design misstep is the lack of a front-panel display, which is included on the competing Zvox Z-Base 420. It's definitely not essential, but it's nice to have some visual feedback so you know whether you're close to maximum volume or you still have some headroom.

I've often complained about the chintzy, credit-card-style remotes usually included with sound bars, but Bose's remote is fantastic. There are no tone controls or other adjustments; Bose's minimalist approach results in a four-button design -- Power, Volume (up and down), and Mute -- that's plenty for most users. Despite the simplicity, it doesn't feel cheap, with a pleasant rubberized texture and reassuring heft.

All of the Bose Solo's ports are on the back. Connectivity is limited, but again you don't need much in a sound bar. There are two digital audio inputs (optical and coaxial) and a stereo analog input. Bose is counting on you to use your TV as a switcher , so you're only limited by how many inputs your TV has. (The Bose also accepts Dolby Digital audio, so it can handle audio from your TV's internal over-the-air TV tuner.) If you're looking for extra features like built-in Bluetooth or even a minijack input, you won't find it on the Solo.
Setup, or lack thereof

The setup routine is straightforward. Place the Solo on your TV stand, then place your TV on top of it. All your home theater gear connects directly to your TV (likely via HDMI), then you connect your TV's audio output to the Solo. Plug in the Solo's power cord and that's it. Note that the Solo has two bass ports in the back, so you'll want to make sure it's a few inches away from the wall.

The only other step you may want to take is disabling your TV's internal speakers, so you're assured you're only getting sound from the Solo. Not all TVs offer this option, but it's generally easy to access in the setup menu; check your TV's manual for more information.
Sound quality: Good enough for most users

The Solo is smaller than most pedestal-type sound bar speakers, but the sound is neutrally balanced. The bass, midrange, and treble are clear, and dialogue sounds good, so the Solo certainly produces better sound than the Sony KDL-40EX640's internal speakers we used for this review.

The Bose Solo has no sound adjustment features, so you're stuck with the out-of-the-box sound quality. There are no bass or treble controls, nor is there a dialogue enhancement feature. That may irk tweakers, but it's clear that Bose thinks the simple approach is better for the majority of its buyers.

The Solo sounds fine playing dramas and comedies at soft to medium volume level, but does it have the right stuff for action movies? To find out we played "The Flight of the Phoenix" and watched the scene where the transport plane crashes in the desert. The Solo lacked the bass gravitas and dynamic punch we got from the larger, but less expensive Zvox Z-Base 420. The plane's impact wasn't as exciting over the Solo, and the Solo's sound strained as the doomed plane hurtled toward the crash site.

That's not to say the Solo's bass was overly lightweight, or we wished it had a subwoofer; the Solo sounds reasonably full range without the assistance of a sub. But larger sound bars definitely have the advantage when it comes to making more bass and producing wider dynamic range. Judged on its own, however, the Solo's bass is at least clear, and the stereo soundstage is fairly wide and spacious, so the speaker sounds bigger than its physical dimensions.

Music wasn't as enjoyable over the Solo. Diana Krall's "Live in Rio" concert DVD sounded a tad sibilant and tonally thin, while Dave Matthew's "Live at Radio City" Blu-ray confirmed the Solo's inadequacies with music. Again, the Zvox Z-Base 420's fuller sound was preferable to the Solo's.

The Solo also sounded a lot smaller than the Haier SBEV40-Slim sound bar. The Haier sound bar is just 1.1 inches thick, but it has a separate subwoofer, which really helps smaller systems like these. The SBEV40-Slim not only sounded bigger and made more bass, it sounded clearer and more detailed than the Solo.

To be fair, the Haier SBEV40-Slim also bested the Zvox Z-Base 420. The main takeaway is that unless you're willing to spend $700 for the SpeakerCraft CS3, pedestal sound bars generally don't sound as good as traditional sound bars that include a separate, wireless subwoofer. You're sacrificing some sound quality for the improved aesthetics.
Conclusion: The most lifestyle-friendly sound bar yet

If your goal is to get better sound quality than your TV's speakers with the least amount of aesthetic impact on your living room, the Bose Solo is an excellent home audio system. Better-sounding pedestal sound bars are available for both less (Zvox Z-Base 420) and more (SpeakerCraft CS3), but neither has the handsome looks of the Bose. As long as you're not expecting dramatically better sound, the Bose Solo is a winner.

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4.0 out of 5 stars

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This 'review' considers the Solo for what it is while addressing a couple of (I think, unrealistic) points made by other reviewers. I can't imagine anyone saying that the Solo is difficult to hook-up. If a power cord and either one optic or two audio cables make for such 'difficulty,' the I don't know what would please those folks. Magical, thought-connected devices, perhaps? The Solo is VERY easy to hook up. Quite literally, a child could do it. Sound quality (More on that in a bit.)--as well as enclosure and remote quality--is what you'd probably expect from Bose. I didn't expect a whole heckuva lot for this price. Seriously? Even at $399 list, that's cheap in the home A/V world. Heck, a decent dock costs $199-$299. Again, I don't know why some are complaining about the price. Overall sound quality is very good. As at least one other reviewer said, voice reproduction is excellent. Here's another example of some other reviewer's 'magical' thinking. Look at the design. It's one enclosure. If you're expecting deep, booming bass such as that from a subwoofer, you're simply expecting too much. Port design and engineering is largely where Bose excels; the Solo confirms this. My take? The lows are impressively and surprisingly 'rich.' Again, keep that in context. Overall sonic range is quite good, even when we're playing Pandora on the TV via a Roku 2XS. The Solo's sound is amazingly rich FOR a compact, single enclosure. I doubt that you'll get such richness from the typical, nearly-flat-panel soundbar unless it has a separate subwoofer--which I preferred to avoid. With the Solo, I was also shooting for less clutter. Should you believe Bose marketing that the sound is room-filling? Again, look at the enclosure. From what I can see, there seem to be four, front-firing speakers, as is the case with most soundbars. The ported bass design of the system works very well. During dramatic explosions in a movie or lows of sountracks, put your fingers over the bass ports in the back. This thing's moving a lot of air--again, for its size. That's always a good sign. It does, in a way, 'fill the room' with sound, but there no way (again, without magic) to design a single enclosure that will miraculously make it seem as though sound is coming from behind you. Bose is not Hogwart's. Again--for what it is--the sound and DSP are really impressive. Another reviewer pointed out that there should be a way to remotely and easily equalize the sound of JUST the Solo. There's not. So, to make such adjustments, you need to go into your TV's settings. Not by any means a horrible situation, just a bit clunky. Of course, if Bose were to build-in this capability, the Solo price would easily jump to $599+--and there are already some pretty good systems out there for that price. Such capability already exists in some entertainment sound systems. If you want that convenience and tuning ability, pay the price for the higher-end systems. I'm in a situation in which I don't want to wire the sound system and my house for actual Surround. It's a lot of hassle that I don't want to deal with. Heck, my cat would find the speaker wiring and shred it in about four minutes. I don't want to have to mess with an amp. I don't want to have to mess with wireless rears. For me, the Solo made a lot of practical sense. No regrets at all. Keep in mind that, unlike other reviewers who are impossible to please--and compare the $399 Solo to systems costing twice that and more--I comfortably and confidently gave it 5 Stars for what it is. If you want to use the optical connection, remember to do your research before purchase. This time and unfortunately, I didn't. While my Sharp Aquos supports a physical fiber connection, there's apparently a known incompatibility on the fiber side with the Solo. My Aquos and Solo don't play well together. From what I've read, there's some sort of copyright or patent issue between Sharp and Bose that prevents such optical cooperation. Sure, it'd be nice if both companies addressed this, but I can't legitimately minus a star for something that's also seems to be Sharp's fault. Oh, well; I hooked up the wired audio cables and--magically--it works just fine. If you want a high-end, real Surround system, you're just not going to get it for $399. For that money, however, the Solo is worth every penny. Is the Solo one box that does it all? No. It is, however, one quality setup that works exceedingly well for such a reasonable price. If you keep those things in mind, you won't be disappointed. If you want to simplify things instead of complicate them, again, you'll be quite pleased with your Solo purchase.

Pros: Very good sound that is quick & easy to setup. Sturdy build quality with small convenient footprint. Cons: Non-Programmable unit & remote. No volume level indicator or auto-power on features. Slightly expensive considering some features lacking. The Solo nicely fits a niche form factor not met by most other sound bar offerings. I wanted to improve the basic sound quality of a Toshiba 37" LCD kept inside a large oak TV cabinet on an extendable swivel stand. I had been using a Sony sound bar to enhance the nearly nonexistent sound of a LCD TV. When the Sony bar bit the dust I went looking for another. The Solo seemed the perfect solution because I could put the Solo easily inside the cabinet on the swivel stand with the TV on top. But at twice the price of other quality name sound bars, I decided to first go with a bar model tested out at Best Buy. The unit I received proved to be defective and was returned. So having had good experiences with other Bose products, I bit the bullet on the Solo. Besides, it really is better for use in a cabinet, than a standard horizontal sound bar. Out of the box, the Solo is hefty and feels very solid. The top appears to be able to easily handle the 18 KG weight of my 37" LCD. Set up was quick & easy. Just connect the power cord and the included digital audio or analog RCA cable and you are ready to go... Nothing could be simpler. The base of my 37" LCD fits the foot print of the Solo perfectly with nothing hanging over. A very stable set up overall. The sound quality was very clear and crisp from the first. It is far superior to both my old and most recently returned sound bars. Voices are very clear during dialog and newscasts. Background music or sound effects are more pronounced but not over-powering. I was expecting to hear a slightly booming bass effect like with my Bose Wave radio, but bass seems fairly controlled yet present. The base seems to come more alive with music and action sequences. You really do get the sense that the Solo is dynamically adjusting itself to the sound requirements of what is being watched. My wife noted it too. She raves about the realistic sound clarity. Still the Solo does not give a 5.1 or even a 2.1 surround sound experience. If that is what you are after, look elsewhere. However, to enjoy a HDTV with very good quality sound, the Solo delivers. Basic operation is fairly straight forward. The Power and volume can only be controlled by remote. There is no on-screen or on unit volume level indicator. The TV cannot reflect the volume changes made on the Solo as with other sound bars. This is not a huge problem since I set the level to what is best for my ears. The Solo also powers down automatically after a few minutes of audio inactivity. However, it does not automatically power back up when the TV resumes sending an audio signal. So you have to find the remote to turn it on again. The lack of a auto on feature is inconvenient. My other sound bars all had this feature. The included remote is OK and works fine, but it's not programmable. It is small and easily misplaced. Programming and using one's
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