Most soundbars are built for HDTVs in the 40-inch screen size range. This means if you have a big 60-inch HDTV, your new soundbar won't quite produce a stereo sound field that encompasses the size of the screen. It'll sound nice, but you won't get proper imaging that matches the picture. Sharp has an alternative in the HT-SB60. This massive soundbar is built for 60-inch HDTVs, and produces a wide, rich sound field. It's also pricey at $499.99 (list) and doesn't have Bluetooth, so you might want to pause and think before you get this beefy, great-sounding speaker system for your big screen. If you don't have a 60-inch HDTV, though, the Editors' Choice Sony HT-CT260 is available for less than half the price, offers similarly good sound, and has the added benefit of Bluetooth support.

Design

The extremely wide (54.5-inch) HT-SB60 main speaker measures 2.8 inches tall and 2.7 inches deep, weighs 7.9 pounds, and has a distinct look. The bottom two thirds of the front are finished in brushed black plastic and the top third is finished in glossy black. The glossy black plastic strip holds an alphanumeric blue LED display flanked by Power, Source, and Pairing buttons on the left and Sound Mode and Volume Up/Down buttons on the right. Two midrange drivers and a tweeter sit on either end of the soundbar, unprotected by grilles. The back of the soundbar holds two HDMI inputs, a 3.5mm audio input, an optical audio input, and an HDMI output. The 13.4-pound subwoofer is surprisingly tall and thin, measuring 16.9 by 12.1 by 5.7 inches (HWD). Besides HDMI passthrough, the soundbar is relatively feature-free, lacking Bluetooth like the HT-CT260 or media hub features like the LG NB3730A.

The HT-SB60's remote is plain, black, and simple. It has Volume Up/Down and Subwoofer Up/Down buttons arranged in a direction pad around a Source button, plus AV Sync Up/Down, Bass, and Treble buttons sitting at the corners. Above them sit Channel Up/Down, Volume Up/Down, Power, and Input buttons for HDTV control, and above that a handful of soundbar-specific buttons, including six quick mode buttons. It feels very flat, making it hard to get a feel for what you're pressing without looking at it. The buttons are not backlit.