Bluesound PULSE CINEMA Atmos & MINI Soundbars – Redefining Home Audio Power & Ease

The soundbar market is more crowded now than ever, with the big consumer electronics companies like Sony, Samsung, LG, and Hisense all offering countless options starting at around $200. Things get more interesting, performance-wise, when you move up to prices in the high three-figures. At the time of writing, the Sonos Arc Ultra is on sale for $899 and selling like hotcakes, despite the infamous Sonos app fiasco that led to the ousting of longtime CEO Patrick Spence. (See our article Sonos CEO Patrick Spence Steps Down.) For a few hundred bucks more, you might be considering the $1,199 Sennheiser AMBEO Soundbar Plus, which received very positive reviews even at its launch price of $1,500. Moving up into more rarefied air you’ll find the Sennheiser AMBEO Soundbar Max, the Devialet Dione, and the new KEF XIO, all of which cost $2K or more. The new Yamaha TRUE X SURROUND 90A Flagship Dolby Atmos Sound Bar with Wireless Surrounds will set you back a whopping $3,500, but if you want to get your hands on the most impressive soundbar I’ve yet heard, you’ll need to part with $5K (and up) for The Canvas from Denmark’s Canvas HiFi. (For my listening impressions, check out T.H.E. Show SoCal 2025: Active Speakers & DSP Tech Part V.) At the bottom of the price bracket, sound quality is often so poor that it hardly seems worth the admittedly modest expense. On the other hand, soundbars at the top of the price range will appeal only to a very specific kind of customer — one who is willing and able to spend thousands, but who can’t or won’t buy a receiver and separate speakers (which would generally yield superior sonic results). It’s in the middle of the price range where soundbars make the most sense to me, and where they are easiest to recommend to family and friends who want sound quality that is a step up from their TV’s speakers, with minimal fuss and complication. It’s in this sweet-spot where Bluesound is launching two all-new soundbars, the company’s first since 2021.

The new Bluesound PULSE CINEMA ($1,499) and PULSE CINEMA MINI ($999) reportedly represent a “top-to-bottom redesign” of the company’s award-winning soundbars, promising immersive audio performance, clean low-profile design, and intuitive setup. The PULSE CINEMA is a premium 3.2.2 Dolby Atmos soundbar designed to mate with TVs 55 inches and up. It features a total of 16 drivers, including dedicated up-firing drivers for height effects. (It should be specified, I think, that four of the 16 drivers are in fact passive radiators.) The smaller PULSE CINEMA MINI shrinks the same design and advanced acoustic engineering principles into a 2.1-channel soundbar intended for smaller spaces, like bedrooms, dens, and apartments. Bluesound says that both models reflect the company’s dedication to Simple AV — a design philosophy that brings together “audiophile-grade performance and everyday usability.” Obviously, the goal is to eliminate the need for bulky receivers and complicated wiring while delivering satisfying sound, whether wall-mounted in a living room or placed beneath a TV in a college dorm.

We wanted to build soundbars that didn’t just sound great — they needed to be beautifully simple to live with. Both soundbars offer high-performance audio in elegant, low-profile forms that can adapt to any space. You get immersive, cinematic sound without any of the typical AV clutter.

— Matt Simmonds, Product Manager at Bluesound

Bluesound PULSE CINEMA

At 47 inches wide, the PULSE CINEMA is about the same size as the Sonos Arc Ultra, but a few inches shorter than the Sennheiser AMBEO Soundbar Max (and less than half as heavy). The 3.2.2 configuration includes a dedicated center channel, dual woofers, and dedicated up-firing speakers, receiving a total of about 500 watts of power. There are five 0.75-inch tweeters and five 1.5-inch x 3-inch midrange drivers. Bass is handled by two 4-inch woofers and four 4-inch passive radiators. Each of the tweeters sees 38 watts of juice, as does each midrange driver. The woofers get 65 watts apiece. 

As a complete system, the PULSE CINEMA provides “a 3D soundstage that enhances everything from movies and games to music and sports with more details and realism,” according to Bluesound. The PULSE CINEMA is packed into what the company describes as a refined aluminum-body chassis, which promises both durability and a premium finish. The PULSE CINEMA is available in any color you want, as long as it’s black, with a dark grey fabric grille. The company says that the tonal weave fabric was chosen to add “warmth and texture that complements any décor.”

Bluesound PULSE CINEMA MINI

The PULSE CINEMA MINI is a much smaller device at 33 inches wide. Interestingly, the CINEMA MINI is offered both in the same black as the standard PULSE CINEMA and in a white finish with a tan fabric grille. Although the CINEMA MINI uses a simpler 2.1-channel configuration, Bluesound says it still delivers a surprisingly immersive experience, thanks to angled drivers, 280 watts of total system power, and Dolby Atmos processing with virtualized height effects. Although Bluesound is tightlipped about the DSP crossovers used in the PULSE CINEMA soundbars, the MINI appears to be a 3-way design, like its larger sibling. It features a pair of 0.75-inch tweeters, a pair of 1.5-inch midrange drivers, and a pair of 4-inch woofers augmented by 4-inch passive radiators. Again, each tweeter and midrange driver is given 38 watts of power, while each woofer gets 65 watts.

With its minimalist form, refined aluminum-body chassis, and tonal weave fabric, the PULSE CINEMA MINI blends beautifully into any space. Whether mounted below a TV screen or placed on a credenza, it keeps your setup clean and unobtrusive. Automatic orientation sensing ensures optimal sound performance no matter where you place it.

— Bluesound

Both of the new soundbars feature HDMI eARC alongside both optical digital and analog stereo inputs. Both also offer flexible placement options; they can be wall-mounted using the included brackets, or placed on a TV stand or other piece of furniture. Like the more expensive KEF XIO, both PULSE CINEMA models use automatic DSP-powered orientation detection that eliminates the need for manual tuning when wall-mounted. And of course, both models are powered by the BluOS streaming platform, which supports more than 20 streaming services — including TIDAL, Qobuz, Spotify, Amazon Music, Pandora, and Deezer, all at playback resolutions up to 24-bit/192kHz. Users can also access their favorite internet radio stations and play from their own digital music libraries. 

Audio can by synced seamlessly across multiple rooms with other BluOS-enabled products. All of this can be controlled via the BluOS Controller app, available on iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows. But you aren’t bound to the app if you prefer to use a third-party app. Both PULSE CINEMA soundbars support Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect, Apple AirPlay 2, and Roon Ready. They also integrate with smart home control systems like Crestron, Control4, RTI, Nice, URC, and Lutron.

The true beauty of these products is they remove friction in both setup and daily use. We focused on building an elegant, low-profile form with our latest acoustic architecture, so Bluesound users don’t have to compromise between aesthetics and sound quality.

— Morten Nielsen, Bluesound Associate Product Manager

Users of the PULSE CINEMA and PULSE CINEMA MINI can add a pair of other Bluesound speakers (such as the $499/each Bluesound Pulse M) to create a multi-channel surround system with discrete front and rear channels. While these speakers need to be plugged into power, you don’t have to worry about running speaker wires to the back of your room to get real surround sound. If you want to go truly wireless for your surrounds, try a pair of the $299/each PULSE FLEX 2i speakers and add the optional rechargeable FLEX battery pack ($119 each). You can also add the PULSE SUB+ subwoofer wirelessly, but Bluesound doesn’t force you to choose its sub the way some other brands do. Thanks to the RCA subwoofer output on the back of the PULSE CINEMA and PULSE CINEMA MINI, you can use whatever subwoofer you prefer.

With the new soundbars, we're not just delivering hi-res audio. We’re delivering a new way to experience music and home entertainment — one that’s powerful, flexible, and designed around how people actually live. We’ve always believed that performance and simplicity aren’t mutually exclusive and with these two new soundbars, we’re giving Bluesound customers and integrators more flexibility with a clear upgrade path to better TV sound.

— Matt Simmonds, Product Manager at Bluesound

More information: Bluesound 

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.