Jbl Bar 500 MK2 Soundbar

JBL Bar 500 MK2 – 5.1-Channel Dolby Atmos Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer

The Bar 500 MK2 is JBL’s answer to flat television sound: a 5.1-channel soundbar system that pairs a slim bar with a separate wireless 10-inch subwoofer, and uses MultiBeam 3.0 processing to spread surround effects around the room from that single front position. Total system power is 750 watts maximum, split between 450 watts in the bar and 300 watts in the subwoofer. Dolby Atmos and DTS Virtual:X decoding, HDMI eARC with 4K Dolby Vision passthrough, Wi-Fi streaming and the JBL One app make it a complete home-cinema upgrade that installs in minutes.

Key features

• 5.1-channel system with 750 W maximum total power output
• Wireless 10-inch subwoofer with 300 W output for deep bass
• Dolby Atmos and DTS Virtual:X 3D audio decoding
• MultiBeam 3.0 for a wide, cinema-like soundstage from one bar
• PureVoice 2.0 dialogue enhancement and SmartDetails sound enhancement
• Easy Sound Calibration adapts surround effects to your room
• HDMI eARC with 4K Dolby Vision and HDR10 Plus passthrough
• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.3 streaming, controlled through the JBL One app

MultiBeam 3.0 and 3D audio, explained

MultiBeam works by aiming parts of the sound at your walls at calculated angles, so reflections arrive at your ears from the sides and behind, where surround speakers would normally sit. The MK2’s third-generation processing widens that effect and keeps it stable across more seating positions. Dolby Atmos adds height information from compatible content, while DTS Virtual:X creates a three-dimensional effect from ordinary surround and stereo material — so the catalogue of films and shows that benefit is not limited to Atmos titles.

Bass from a subwoofer you can place freely

The bar itself carries five racetrack drivers and four tweeters, which keeps it only 50.5 mm tall, but deep bass is delegated to the wireless subwoofer and its 10-inch driver. Because it connects wirelessly, it can sit in the corner or beside the sofa where bass couples best with the room, needing only a power socket. That division of labour is why the system reaches down to 40 Hz and why action scenes carry physical weight that a bar alone cannot produce.

Dialogue and detail at normal volumes

PureVoice 2.0 monitors both the scene and the volume level and lifts dialogue automatically, so whispered lines stay clear without you raising the overall level. SmartDetails is JBL’s enhancement processing for the small sounds in a mix — footsteps, rain, a door closing off-screen — keeping them audible and placed rather than buried. Easy Sound Calibration measures how your room reflects sound and tuning the surround effect to the space.

Connections, streaming and setup

One HDMI cable to the TV’s eARC socket carries uncompressed Atmos audio, and the bar’s own HDMI input passes 4K video with Dolby Vision and HDR10 Plus through to the screen. Optical and Bluetooth inputs cover older TVs and phones, Wi-Fi handles music streaming services through the JBL One app, which also manages setup, EQ and software updates. The bar is made in part with recycled plastic and aluminium, and can be wall-mounted with the included brackets.

For living rooms that want cinema scale without five speakers and an AV receiver, the Bar 500 MK2 is the complete package: bar, big wireless subwoofer, and processing that makes the room itself part of the system.