New Delhi, Aug. 20 -- A soundbar can transform the audio experience of a TV, but choosing one for a small living room is not simply about picking the most powerful model. A compact space can make excessive bass feel overwhelming, while poor dialogue clarity can still make conversations difficult to follow. Features such as Dolby Atmos, virtual surround sound and a dedicated subwoofer also do not always deliver the same results in every room.

I tested soundbars in a small living room to understand what actually matters during everyday viewing. From watching movies and TV shows to listening to music, I looked at dialogue, bass, surround effects, volume and overall room coverage to see which features genuinely improve the experience.

Sony ...