KlipschFlexus CORE 200 3.1.2 Channel Powered by Onkyo Bluetooth Sound Bar with Dolby Atmos and Custom Tuned Bass - Black

No BS, this bar slaps so hard! It's so crystal clear and the Atmos angled speakers truly engulf the room in spatial sound like I've never heard before, even in my previous wired 7.1 setups. It is ridiculous how much more there is to pick up on that Klipsch & Onkyo have tag teamed to bring out louder and and more crisp for a real Win here! Best if you make friends with any Apartment neighbors, even so, I have the EQ Bass @ Zero, the sub channel level in the app turned down to negative -8 (-12 : +12 range) and the Bass Boost @ Zero or -3 (-6 : +6). After 10pm Night Mode button on remote further reduces any bass and helps prevent eviction.Apologies, I digress at the risk of sounding like a BS ad or promoter. This device is worth every single penny and mind-blowingly more! I'm truly enjoying watching shows I've already seen with this highly upgraded HiFi sound system.My existing Polk Audio 10" powered sub is able to be used (via RCA cable that plugs right into the back of the soundbar). (You can get a high quality one for under $15 to avoid any annoying and possibly damaging popping and static spurts.).I plan on getting the wireless Flexus Subwoofer but it was literally the final selling point that drew me to this over the fifty or so other surround systems I had been researching, once I found out I could start with just a High Quality expandable soundbar that has wireless and wired capabilities. SOLD. Aptly named the Flexus Core (Flexible for growing out from (the solid Core) and using existing Sub). I wanted the highest quality without breaking the bank.I was recently able to add the Flexus 100 Surround speakers (also wirelessly connected to the soundbar for easy installation). When the newer Surround 200's come out in a couple months, I'm definitely going to add them as my BH Back Height speakers to make my setup 5.1.4 surround! (These might technically count as making it 7.1.4 since they have both front facing and upward angled powered speakers in the same enclosure.)The Klipsch App shows available speaker levels (allowing for Plus 6 & Minus 6 on each) for Front Height (soundbar top angled speakers (the ".2" in the 3.1.2 bar designation), R & L lateral surround speakers, R & L Rear, Back Height angled speakers (when the new 200's come out), Wired Sub (7.1.4) & multiple Wireless Sub Channel Levels(7.2+.4) True Atmos Surround, also aptly named for the encompassing ATMOSphere of HiFi audio.Easily a stout 5 Stars. Even though I had to initially zip tie the wall mounts it came with until I found extra bolts from a dresser that actually fir the diameter of the threaded holes underneath the soundbar. The mount brackets also needed to be bent out (more obtuse than the 90° angle they come as. They leave no room for the wall mount to clip into the groove of the wall mount nubs they come with. I am still emailing with Klipsch about this minor yet impactful oversight to see if any brackets are available for my model. Still 5 Stars, all day! I've got it MacGyver'd well enough for now.Something I found out along the way of setting it up, 90° adapters needed for HDMI eARC cable if mounting it to the wall. I also used a 90° optical cable the Smart TV can detect and decide to use instead of eARC for apps like Hulu, which can best send its signal through the optical for some reason. Otherwise it and other non Atmos supported streams can include audio artifacts via the HDMI eARC which are the horrible popping and static interruptions in playback. Have both hooked up and let the Smart TV switch between them for the best signal.Klipsch for the WIN!

Prior to purchasing this Klipsch Flexus CORE 200 soundbar, I had used several other models from the likes of Yamaha, Vizio, and Sony. I felt that they did well, given their price-point, but for some, they didn't last long. Recently, I became intrigued with this Klipsch model, and at the time of this writing, I purchased it with an $80 off coupon (which only appeared for 24 hours on Amazon).When the CORE 200 arrived, I was pleasantly surprised to see such a nicely designed unit - with some good heft to it . It is mostly made with wood and metal with plenty of inputs and outputs on the rear. And did I mentioned that it was an attractive unit?Another reason I wanted to get this Klipsch model is due-to-the-fact that it had a dedicated wired self-powered subwoofer output connection on the rear - which is rare to find anymore - since most soundbars now-a-days only feature dedicated wireless connections. But for someone with a wired powered subwoofer, having this dedicated subwoofer output (RCA connection) was the icing on the cake.I connected the unit via the HDMI-arc(e) input on my 77" Samsung 4K TV, and then I began watching a variety of programs. My reasoning for calling the CORE 200 a chameleon is due to the fact that if your video has poor audio - well, that's what you'll get - poor audio. Let's face it, many (if not most) TV programs have poor audio (music, etc). Now, do keep in mind that this CORE 200 can't magically make chicken salad out of c-h-i-c-k-e-n s-h-i-t - it's that simple. Often-times, some of us - and it's not realistic to assume this - believe that fine audio gear should somehow automatically make "everything" sound better. So due to this unrealistic assumption, when listening to poor audio - with the soundbar not sounding any better - some initial disappointment can set it. As I stated, what goes in should come out with the same effects.With videos and broadcasts with good to superb soundtracks, this CORE 200 will fill the front of your viewing area with a broad sound-stage and excellent separation from left to right. With excellent movies/recordings, you'll get excellent instrumental timbre and a surprising amount of bass (even without any external subwoofers). The internal 4" subwoofers do a great job of getting the bass down to around 50-55 hz, and provide you with a palpable effect. I happen to be also using an Edifier 8" powered subwoofer connected to my Klipsch, and the bass reach and effects are even better. So if you don't have a subwoofer already, then I'd suggest getting the optional Klipsch 10" subwoofer to really give this baby some extra wallop.So folks - this is certainly one of your better soundbars. Sure, there are much more expensive models out there from several audiophile-level vendors - some going for $3000+ (and those prices are without additional subwoofers), and one would assume that they would sound better. But then, what does "better" really mean? In addition, the downloadable Klipsch app for your cell phone will give you very detailed information and options to further adjust your soundbar - even allowing you to update the firmware (when new firmware becomes available).The remote control is also nice - very straight forward - allowing you to choose a variety of functions, and that LCD screen on the right of the sound-bar, shows you at-a-glance what settings you have (as you adjust them).Of course, some of you may be asking, "well, what about the negatives?" Well, do keep in mind that all reviews are subjective, based on how we are using the gear. As I alluded to above, for me - in my family room setup - I have the Klipsch connected to a 77" Samsung 4K TV. Because I'm a senior citizen, there are certain sound tracks where the voices are difficult for us to make out. I found the dialogue control on this Klipsch still lacking somewhat (for us personally) and on some movies where the music and other sound effects almost drown out the voices, it was still difficult for us to make things out - unless we turned up the volume quite a bit. However, due to the overall superb performance of this CORE 200, I won't deduct any points in the overall rating.So for me, this CORE 200 is far, far superior to the previous brands that I've used, and I can heartily recommend this unit. Thus a full 5 stars?