With countless audio solutions offered in the market, finding a quality soundbar best suited for your home theater system can be challenging. In this review, we’ll be evaluating two of Bose’s premium equipment — the Soundtouch 300 and Soundtouch 130.
Our team of experts has tested the two in this Bose Soundtouch 130 vs 300 review to help you step up your audio experience.
Bose Soundtouch 130 OR 300?
- Clear, full sound
- Small, compact soundbar
- Four HDMI inputs
- Flex mount technology
- Customizes sound to room size
- HDMI connectivity, 4K passthrough
- Adapted audio room calibration
- Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity
- Compatible with Alexa devices
- Premium glass and metal grille
Features of Bose Soundtouch 130 and 300
Bose Soundtouch 130 and 300 Design
The visual comparison between Bose Soundtouch 130 vs 300 is a head to head battle. Both gears have a long sleek black design that can be easily set-up and blend on tabletops.
While the Soundtouch 130 soundbar stood nearly twelve inches along with a subwoofer, Soundtouch 300 is a stand-alone soundbar with a slim and glassy profile of merely two inches tall, leveraging its space-saving edge.
Sound Quality
One of the most crucial parts of the Bose Soundtouch 300 vs 130 feature review that our team conducted was the sound quality evaluation. Although the two sound systems have an automatic audio calibration feature, our sound tests revealed that both soundbars provide a different feel.
Soundtouch 130 has two-phase guides that produce a virtual surround audio effect, while Soundtouch 300 delivers a detailed bass sound through its QuietPort technology.
The fully-equipped features of Soundtouch 130 with six drivers and two-phase guide radiators tailors more on the customized listening experience. The Soundtouch 300 has a new technology advantage, but the Bose Soundtouch 300 vs 130 sound quality battle goes to Soundtouch 130 by a slight margin.
Channels
The two soundbars offer the typical 2.1 channel configurations with the left and right audio output. Along with quality subwoofers, your sound system can upgrade to 5.1 channel integration surround sound format.
Unlike Soundtouch 300 that has a separate wireless subwoofer, Soundtouch 130 already includes it in its home theater package. Despite this, our team still agrees that Soundtouch 300 generates a profound bass sound effect that mimics a full-on surround audio experience.
Connectivity of the Bose Soundtouch 130 and 300
While both systems offer connectivity to wireless technologies such as WiFi and Bluetooth, Soundtouch 300 is one step ahead with its NFC data transfer feature. On the other hand, the two models can control their streams via the Soundtouch app and sync perfectly with other Soundtouch products to play media from different audio sources [1].
Connections
Input connections are often a determinant for high-quality speakers. The common ground for Soundtouch 300 and 130 is that they both support HDMI ARC.
The Soundtouch 130 has multiple HDMI input ports, but if you want to use any 4K devices, it has to be connected directly to your TV via HDMI. Meanwhile, Soundtouch 300 only has a single HDMI port for your TV, but its HDCP 2.2 compliant feature allows it to support copy-protected 4K video content.
Key Specifications
The difference between Soundtouch 130 and 300 is their key specifications that offer a distinct edge over its competitors.
The Soundtouch 130’s winning feature is its Flex Mount technology that ensures optimal audio adjustability regardless of location and brings a consistent sound quality.
The Soundtouch 300 wins over our audio enthusiasts for its classic minimalist design best suited to any modern-day home. With its vast network connectivity options, your entertainment experience won’t be limited.
Bose Soundtouch 130 and 300 Extra Features
As if you need more reasons to entice yourself from buying either of these two heavy-duty soundbars, Bose decided to add up extra features to excite you more.
Soundtouch 130 is equipped with Voice Assistant like Alexa and Google Assistant and showcases a small control console with four HDMI ports and an adaptable universal control system.
Similar to that, Soundtouch 300 is widely accessible to any Alexa-enabled device. This audio solution is also compatible with Apple AirPlay 2 and has an optional WB-300 wall bracket.
Overall Winner: Soundtouch 300
Our audio experts determined Soundtouch 300 as the winner of the Soundtouch 130 vs Soundtouch 300 round-up battle after a thorough evaluation of features.
Despite the close match between the two top-tier audio packages, Souchtouch 300 has emerged as the victor mainly because of its HDCP 2.2 compliant feature that allows 4K video content to integrate seamlessly into modern entertainment settings. Along with its space-saving design and QuietPort Technology suited for any 21st century home, its ample network options ensure a limitless audio quality experience.
