Hi, I’m Carl from Abt, and in this video we’re gonna take a look at the new bose
soundbars side by side, the SB500 and the SB700.
The first thing you’ll notice is the size difference.
The 500 is narrower at thirty one and a half inches where the 700s thirty eight and a half.
The 500s also shorter at one and three quarters inches.
The 700s a half inch taller at two and a quarters inches.
Other than the physical size, they share a very similar, upscale, design.
There’s glass that runs across the top of the 700 that picks up fingerprints and dust
pretty easily, but the 500 has a matte material that’s a little more resistant to those
fingerprints.
The 700 comes with a cleaning cloth to help with this.
The 500 doesn’t, but it doesn’t really need it anyways.
They both have the same style of grill made from a single piece of perforated aluminum
that runs across the front and wraps around the sides.
The other design difference you’re gonna notice is on the back with how the inputs
are laid out.
They both have the same: one hdmi with ARC and one optical audio input, but the 700 comes
with cables for both and the 500 only comes with an HDMI cable.
It’s not a big deal since you’ll typically be using one or the other, but if you’re
getting the 500 and you have to use an optical cable, you’ll want to make sure you have
one on hand for your install.
Sound’s another category where you’re gonna notice a difference.
The 700s got more drivers built in which make it capable of filling a larger room.
Not only that, but it seems to throw the sound around better.
It just gives a broader soundstage which makes whatever you’re watching more engaging.
For music, and movies for that matter, the vocals seemed to pop a bit more on the 700.
Bass was more noticeable too.
That’s not to say the 500 was bad by any means.
In fact, the 500 still sounds great on its own, but when you’re comparing it to the
700 you notice some differences, which is okay since the 700s more of an investment.
It should sound better, right?
Plus the 700 can decode DTS and Dolby Digital where the 500 loses the ability to do DTS.
These systems can also both be expanded.
They each have corresponding, optional subwoofers, and Bose makes a set of wireless surround
speakers that can be added to either system to give you a full surround setup.
Another notable difference is in the way they’re controlled.
Both work with the Bose Music App and functionality’s the same there, and they both also have two
touch buttons built into the top, but where they differ is in the supplied remotes.
The 500 has a more basic one designed to work only with the soundbar.
The 700 comes with a universal remote that has this really unique feature built in.
It only lights up the buttons that are relevant to the source you’re on.
This makes using it a lot easier than other universal remotes out there.
The sources to select from are TV, cable/satellite box, game system, Blu-ray player or other
source.
So the 700 has the bigger sound, better remote, cleaning cloth and supplied optical cable,
but it also costs about two hundred fifty dollars more.
Do the extras justify the additional cost?
Perhaps.
The bigger sound and universal remote, to me, are the most valuable, but I’m not sure
everyone’s gonna agree they’re worth the extra cost.
If you don’t mind the smaller size and you want to save some money on a great sounding
speaker, the 500s an excellent choice, but if the larger size of the 700 doesn’t impact
your installation and you have other sources to control, I’d invest the extra money and
go with that one.
What do you think?
Do the extras justify the price difference?
Which one would you go with?
Let’s hear what you think down in the comments.
As always, we appreciate you checking out our video.
And remember, we get new products in all the time to review so make sure you subscribe
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