Looking for a Dolby Atmos Soundbar with 7.1 / 9.1 Speaker System. Budget around 500 euro.

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I have a 50" TV which is in a small living room. I had an Onkyo AV Receiver + 5.1 Speaker system (HT-S4505) earlier. But very difficult to manage as all the speakers were wired . Also the sound quality was not that good (boomy bass and bad dialogue clarity).


So I am thinking about buying a good Dolby Atmos Sound Bar with 7.1 / 9.1 channels. I am an music and movie lover.


Req#1 My budget is around 500 euro. I would like crisp clear dialoges with deep bass.


Req#2 I would need the system to produce all the channels with out using rear speakers or using wireless rear speakers. Prefer a sound bar system with just the soundbar + 1 subwoofer, capable of producing multichannel sound effects.


Req#3 I have a couple of devices like Android TV Box, BluRay Player, etc which i would need to connect these systems with the soundbar. So there should be atleast 2 or 3 HDMI IN ports.

Req#4 It needs to be futureproof


Can you please help me to select a system I should go for. Thanks...

 

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1) Deep bass? Buy quality dedicated subwoofer. 12"+ 500W+ low tuned cabinet
2) Using virtual DSP trickery is not surround sound, it'll just use angled drivers to bounce sound around the room
3) You can use your TV as a hub but not all TV's pass DTS and HD formats, so you'll need a soundbar with plenty of HDMI inputs . These aren't that common. Plus as HDMI spec changes, your soundbar is then obselete. A AVR on the other hand has six+ HDMI inputs and two outputs, and when HDMI spec on the AVR is obselete (ie HDMI 2.0 to HDMI 2.1, and you specifically need VRR 120hz 4K) you just change the AVR, leaving the speakers, subwoofers alone not needing to throw the lot away.
4) Soundbars aren't future proof. AV seperates are.

I think you know what my answer is. lol

Thanks...

 

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Mine is a small living room with TV placed at the corner. So a wired rear speaker is not suitable for my house. So I prefer go via the soundbar route.

I have seen many posts saying that the dialogue / vocals are not good with JBL BAR 9.1. Is it true? This was the main reason I got rid of Onkyo S4505 AV receiver system. So cant make the same buying error again.

Would any one of you suggest any other soundbar around the same price or less ? Or with this price in mind Euro 719 (as of 21/11/2022) this is the best I could get?

If an AV Receiver solution, I would need to go for wireless rear speakers. Any AV Receiver + Speaker system that you suggestin this case?

 

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Can you suggest an AV Receiver + L+R+C Speakers and Rear wireless speakers as an alternative to JBL BAR 9.1 please?

 

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JBL BAR 9.1 is priced 719 euro in all the Irish retail stores.

If I go for JBL 9.1 which has only 1 HDMI IN can I use a HDMI switcher (with remote) to connect multiple devices (Android TV Box, BluRay player etc) to this soundbar?