What We Like

What We Don't Like

Klipsch soundbars are known as efficient, quality solutions for home use. Klipsch HD Theater SB3 is one of the best soundbar systems you can get for less than $500. Today we’re going to find out what makes it so good.

Design

Klipsch designs are often very clean and straight forward in nature. Same goes for HD Theater SB3 system. We are looking at a semi-cylindrical soundbar that comes across as pretty bulky. That is one thing no one can really deny. Klipsch didn’t aim to build a flat unit that would seamlessly blend into its environment. They could have, but the performance of such soundbar would suffer immensely. Instead, Klipsch went with a proven build that focused on performance before anything else.

The entire soundbar housing is made of black, semi-glossy plastic. The flat portion, the surface where all the speakers are located, is covered with a black tightly woven grille. The wireless subwoofer is a lot more interesting because it fires down. That’s right, right between those floor pegs, you will see a large 10″ cone. With that said, there are two bass reflex ports on the side for enhanced low-end response.

Features

Seeing how Klipsch has a long history of making quality reference speakers, we feel like it’s best to start with their transducer selection for this system. When you remove the grille, you will see two pairs of 3.5″ drivers with a small .78″ tweeter sandwiched between them. There are two things worth mentioning here. First is that the drivers are rather large for a soundbar, and the second are the waveguides on the tweeter. Klipsch has incorporated their Tractrix horn technology that does a lot toward allowing the trebles to really come out.

In terms of built-in features, we have a full Dolby Digital suite that takes care of your audio processing and tone shaping. 3D surround is also supported. Overall, there aren’t many advanced features on HD Theater SB3. Most of the attention was focused on setting a quality hardware foundation. This has its flaws and benefits.

Performance

In terms of performance, Klipsch HD Theater SB3 packs a whole lot of heat for a soundbar system. Those mid range drivers really saturate the space around them with depth and definition. Tractrix horns on tweeters make them pinpoint accurate and pretty sharp. All vocals will come out clean and intelligible. One thing where you will be slightly limited is the 3D surround mode. In order to get best results, you will have to be in a conventional room where the sound can easily bounce off the walls.

Otherwise, it is highly questionable what kind of results you’ll get. Lastly, we have to touch upon that subwoofer. That thing is a beast. With a 10″ downward firing cone, you are not only going to hear the bass but you will feel it as well. Combined with the rest of the setup, Klipsch HD Theater SB3 definitely offers a lot of bang for the buck.

The Rumble:

While it is not the most diverse nor versatile soundbar out there, Klipsch HD Theater SB3 brings a quality performance to the table. They’ve packed this thing with large drivers, lots of power, and a balanced set of features.