The soundbar has become one of the most popular ways to add speakers to an HDTV. Soundbars are compact, simple devices that you can place in front of (or below, if it's wall-mounted) your HDTV to add more powerful speakers than the screen itself might have. Their small size means they can't put out much power, though, and they often need a subwoofer to give them any bass performance. The Zvox SoundBase series is a different take on the one-piece home theater speaker system. Its flat, deep design has plenty of room for bass to resonate, making it work well as just one piece of equipment to place under your HDTV. The $399.99 (direct) SoundBase 555 puts out solid sound for its size, but if you want to listen to music or mount your HDTV on a wall, it's not as ideal as a soundbar like the Bluetooth-equipped Editors' Choice Sony HT-CT260.

Design

Zvox's design aesthetic is best described as pizza box-ish. The speaker system is wide, flat, and could be mistaken for a black wooden block you'd place under your HDTV to move it up a few inches. The SoundBase 555 measures 3.4 by 28 by 14.5 inches (HWD), weighs 17 pounds, and feels very solid, making it an excellent riser for your HDTV. If your HDTV is wall-mounted, you're going to need to find a place for the speaker that doesn't look ridiculous, such as on a low-profile console beneath the HDTV. The SoundBase 555 is designed to fit under your HDTV's stand to act as a subtle, almost invisible speaker system that blends into your home theater cabinet. Zvox says the SoundBase 555 is designed for HDTVs between 37 and 55 inches, but because it's only 28 inches wide you should check the dimensions of your HDTV's base before getting it up. Most HDTV stands are smaller than the screens themselves but still keep them stable, but if they're shaped oddly you might run into problems.

The entire speaker is nondescript, with a four-digit amber alphanumeric LED display hidden behind the right side of the grille, and four buttons placed under the grille, almost hidden from view. Strangely, the power function is limited to a switch on the back, and the four buttons on the front panel are only Mute, Volume Up and Down, and Input. A 3.5mm input is placed just below them so you can connect your mobile device, as the SoundBase 555 lacks both Bluetooth and AirPlay. The back panel holds two sets of stereo RCA audio inputs, an optical audio input, a coaxial audio input, a subwoofer output, and a remote control input.

The included remote is simple and not much larger than a credit card. The buttons are rounded rubber, but the Volume Up and Down buttons are suitably large, and the Bass and Treble Up and Down buttons are easy to find under the thumb. The remote is functional, but doesn't have any bells, whistles, or backlighting.

This is strictly a wired speaker system, so don't expect any online services or streaming media support. Its only real "gimmick" is Zvox's PhaseCue II virtual surround feature, which can produce a simulated surround sound effect through processing how the stereo drivers output sound. To Zvox's credit, it comes right out and says that PhaseCue II can't provide an authentic 5.1-channel surround experience, and that it can only provide a simulated sound field that can offer a sense similar to it. Most companies that produce soundbars aren't that up-front about the limitations of virtual surround sound features.