My favorite soundbar is a massive $400 off in Amazon's Spring Sale — this is the one I'd buy

the jbl bar 1300x a black soundbar with HDMI ports, two surround channel speakers, a subwoofer wirelessly connected

(Image credit: Future)

I love reviewing soundbars. Mostly because it means I get to watch movies for my job, but also because I love finding the best soundbars around. And I also love it when one of my favorite soundbars is on sale.

Here at Tom's Guide, we're scouring the web for the best Amazon Big Spring Sale deals so you don't have to. One of my favorite deals is the JBL Bar 1300X Pro on sale for $1,299 at Amazon. (Walmart and Best Buy offer the same price).

If I could keep one soundbar forever, it would be the JBL Bar 1300X. Almost everything about the 1300X is utter perfection: its Dolby Atmos performance, its smart home integration, and its overall sound quality. But I'd expect perfection for something at this price point: its MSRP is a whopping $1,699.

In my JBL Bar 1300X review, I gave it 4.5 stars. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to give it 5, but it has one tiny little annoyance that stopped it from getting the full 100% score. This was very easy for me to look past, given that it sounded so darn good.

Sometimes when I pressed play on the TV remote, the soundbar took a second to start back up again. However, this only happened when the video had been paused for a considerable amount of time (think making popcorn break, not bathroom break), and was so infinitesimal that I was able to look past it every time.

The JBL Bar 1300X is an 11.4.1 channel setup, which means it can actually translate Dolby Atmos (surround sound) signals into real, comprehensible sound. If soundbars have a smaller channel, like 2.0.0, they will be physically incapable of transmitting surround sound, no matter how hard the company's marketing team is working.

Soundbars will always have a channel setup 'code' like this. Sometimes it'll be 2.0.1, sometimes it might say 4.2.1. The first number refers to the amount of speakers in the soundbar itself; the second refers to amount of speakers in the channel speakers; the third refers to the presence of a subwoofer.

So, if something says "2.0.0", that means it has just two speakers in the soundbar, no separate channel speakers, and no subwoofer.

This is a picture of the JBL Bar 1300X's channel speakers, so the detachable speakers that can be used on or around the soundbar. I liked to use them as separate speakers — they connect wirelessly to the soundbar itself — to utilize the soundbar's Dolby Atmos excellence.

The subwoofer also wireless connects to the soundbar, so the whole 11.4.1 system was super easy to set up. No pesky cables got in my way — everything just works, like magic.

Not only does the soundbar connect wirelessly and have an amazing Dolby Atmos cinema experience, it also has fantastic smart home integration. I was able to play music through the soundbar direct from my phone — and it actually sounded good.

three screenshots from the JBL app showing integration with the JBL Bar 1300X system — (Image credit: JBL / Future)

As you can see from these screenshots, the soundbar is super easy to control direct from your phone. There's also the option to set custom equalizers, which is ideal for swapping between different genres and music listening.

If I could take home one soundbar from all the ones I've tested, it would be the JBL Bar 1300X. Now that it's $400 cheaper, that dream is finally a little more realistic for me.

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Erin Bashford is a staff writer at Tom’s Guide, covering reviews. She has a Masters in Broadcast and Digital Journalism from the University of East Anglia and 7 years of experience writing music, events, and food reviews. Now she’s turned her attention to tech for Tom’s Guide, reviewing everything from earbuds to garlic crushers. In her spare time you can find her reading, practising yoga, writing, or stressing over today’s NYT Games.