This might be out of range for your budget, but I demoed the B&W Panorama the other week and I was blown away. Generally I have been skeptical of soundbars, but the Panorama has me convinced.
Even without a separate sub, the Panorama delivered very convincing bass. The surround effects were also impressive, though so much depends on the layout of your room. But what really impressed me was the wideness of the front soundstage. It was literally as wide as the width of the room.
In the demo room, they also had the B&W CM9s set-up as fronts with the corresponding CM line speakers fleshing out the 5.1. The Panaroma literally had a wider and more enveloping front soundstage than the CM9 set-up.
I think the reason for this is because the Panorama has driver pointing to the sides besides straight ahead. So the effect is that you literally hear sounds bouncing off from the side walls, giving you that impression of the room width soundstage.
I'm sure much also has to do with the room's set-up, so if the soundbar is not set-up directly in the center of the room, or if you have curtains or other surfaces that will not reflect the soundwaves, then the effect may be compromised.
At USD$2,200 list price, it's definitely an extremely expensive option for a soundbar, so not for everyone, but if that's within your budget, I would suggest a demo to see if it fits your needs.
Even without a separate sub, the Panorama delivered very convincing bass. The surround effects were also impressive, though so much depends on the layout of your room. But what really impressed me was the wideness of the front soundstage. It was literally as wide as the width of the room.
In the demo room, they also had the B&W CM9s set-up as fronts with the corresponding CM line speakers fleshing out the 5.1. The Panaroma literally had a wider and more enveloping front soundstage than the CM9 set-up.
I think the reason for this is because the Panorama has driver pointing to the sides besides straight ahead. So the effect is that you literally hear sounds bouncing off from the side walls, giving you that impression of the room width soundstage.
I'm sure much also has to do with the room's set-up, so if the soundbar is not set-up directly in the center of the room, or if you have curtains or other surfaces that will not reflect the soundwaves, then the effect may be compromised.
At USD$2,200 list price, it's definitely an extremely expensive option for a soundbar, so not for everyone, but if that's within your budget, I would suggest a demo to see if it fits your needs.