Bose Home Speaker 500 vs Bose Home Speaker 300 vs Bose Soundtouch 20: A detailed review Sept 2020 

Wow, that is indeed very kind of you to say.. This is a new channel and comments like yours , likes and subscriptions really help. So thank you very much :))

Oh wow!! That’s is really kind of you to say! Thanks a lot, you made my day 🙂❤️

Thanks for leaving a comment Alberto. So glad that you liked the review and found the chapter breakdown helpful :)

Thank you so much for leaving a comment Ron. I am so glad that you found it to be thorough helpful :) If you get a chance, please free to have a look at my other videos and subscribe if you like the general theme and approach of my channel to keep an eye on the future videos :)

Hi, thanks for leaving a comment. Glad that you are enjoying the home 500, especially in these tough times. Covid has been really harsh!

Sorry me again, i guess sound touch 20 is no longer available. Would you have any recommendation? Or is it all Bose now diving into the more base fad??

Hey!! Thanks a lot for such kind words! It always helps to know that people find my videos helpful :) To be honest, i was in similar place at the time when I wanted to buy a speaker for myself, which is what made me create this video as there wasn't and proper review on these speakers. Anyhow, I also struggled to make the choice between HS-500 and ST-20. I definitely had a preference for ST-20's sound signature being a long-ish term Bose user. But inspite I went ahead with HS-500 and true it took a bit of adjusting to the new sound signature but I got there :D. Another reason for opting for HS-500 was that it is more technologically updated so no lag when u start playing music, has a display so fits better in a living room, smaller in size than ST-20 and looks better.. Because speakers like these are not only all about sound but also about 'do they fit my house'. Anyhow that was my thinking / process when it came down to selecting between the speakers. Between 500 and 300, I would definitely recommend 500 as it is more fuller sounding than 300. If you are based in the UK then Bose offers 90 days no questions asked return policy. I am yet to get my hands on a Sonos, I have one at my workplace and I know it sounds good, but until i have tested it myself, I can't recommend it. Though Sonos also offer a similar 90 days return policy. "Or is it all Bose now diving into the more base fad??" unfortunately Yes. Not going 'all-in' but definitely seems to be leaning a bit in that direction. PS: ST-20s are available on Bose online outlet store, if u really like it PPS: Considering you are a NC-700 user and have a bit of a history with Bose products, I would also recommend watching this video review of the Bose NC 700 Headphones. Would love to hear your thoughts :) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-e2wdpApvP20.html Hope this helps. Thanks

Thanks!! That's really kind of you to say and very flattering!! I am so glad that you enjoy my reviews and to be honest with you I never thought that someone would find my voice to be awesome. I didn't know about ASMR up until I saw this message and noticed that some of my videos have been added to a few asmr playlists on RU-vid. I will look in to ASMR and explore it. Thanks again for watching, leaving a comment and the compliment :)

Ok, so I was not the only one to like your voice. Not everyone really understands ASMR, because only some of the entire population can actually respond to it. Many might get a response, but they try and ignore it and they don't get the full benefit because they don't lean into it. I find it hard to believe that so many people aren't pleased by the relaxing nature of someone speaking in a calming and relaxing tone or pitch. I know we all have trouble properly hearing our own voices, so it's probably hard for you to hear it yourself. LOL

Thanks Kamikaze Oda, so glad you liked it and thanks a lot for the feedback. Very helpful. I will tty and incorporate more genres in the upcoming reviews 🙂❤️

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons Your words are so warning, my friend. I am a happy subscriber now.

So you recommend the Soundtouch 20 over the speaker 500?

Hi Patricia, thanks for leaving a comment. I personally preferred 500 over st20 as it newer and hence is a bit more responsive than ST20. I also own NC 700 and both the 500 and NC700 can then run using the same app. Overall in terms of sound quality, both are great just have different sound signatures. So in the end it boils down to which sound signature you prefers between the two. Hope this helps :)

Thank you very much. Glad you liked it and found it helpful 😊

Thanks for leaving a comment Juan, glad you liked it :)

Thanks:)

Thanks for leaving a comment. Glad you liked the video : )

Thanks for leaving a comment. So glad that you liked it :)

Thanks for leaving a comment; glad you liked it : )

Thanks Christina, glad that you liked it.. and thanks for leaving me a comment :)

Hi Treed, thank for your comment. That's actually on my list. Unfortunately here in UK Bose has paused sending out review units due to covid. But this freeze should end in a month or two. I will definitely try and do a comparison then 🙂

Thank you. Love from India ❤💙

🙂🙂

Thanks Temüjin! Made my day ❤️🙂

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons have just sold my bose range which consisted of Acoustimass 6 series V and Bose 301 series V speakers I'm sick of wires even though system was perfect every other way... I can't afford the bose 700 sound bar but am thinking of a wave IV I've kept x2 speakers from the acoustimass surround.. 🤔 Dyou have any suggestions it's just for my flat the bose sound touch 300 I'm going to avoid also because as you confirmed a fear of mine of sound lag... I think I may need to wire something for being able to watch it with TV 🤔🤔any suggestions of what to look at i will be grateful, and also thanks for getting to crucial functional points in your reviews no waffling and singing for your dinner like the rest of the reviewers

Let me look in to this for you and get back to you :)

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons I've put on notifications to watch all the broadcasts thanks 💯

Hi, sorry for the late reply but I had been awaiting some information from Bose in order to answer your question properly. My understanding is that you are looking for somewhat of an 'all-in-one' speaker which allows you to wireless listen to music and also potentially connect it to your TV. I looked at a few options but depending on your budget you can choose one. Please feel free to get back to me should you need anything else, always happy to help :) -- OPTION 01 -- Bose Soundbar 300 or 500 or 700: I know you mentioned that 700 is a bit out of your range, but in that case Bose also has 300 and 500 soundbars which have similar functionality to the 700 but are smaller in size. Another difference is that 300 and 500 support Dolby Digital and PCM whereas 700 supports DD, PCM and DTS. All of them support Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AirPlay and can connect to Spotify for playing music and have HDMI port for connecting them to TV. Soundbar 300 is about £400 which is £100 cheaper than Wave. The good thing is that it will give you much better stereo for TV in comparison to Wave. Plus will be easier to fit in front of the TV, making things look neat as well. More importantly you can build this out with time where in you can add a woofer and rear speakers as and when you are ready for it. -- OPTION 02 -- Sonos Beam: Costs the same as Bose Soundbar 300 with similar functionalities and audio codec support (DD and PCM). One thing i really don't like about Sonos is lack of Bluetooth support. (I mean come on Sonos!). It also allows you to pair Sonos One SL and wireless woofer enabling flexible building of the whole system with time. -- OPTION 03 -- Apart from the above two, if you are still not sure and want something compact, then you could potentially look in to Bose 300 or 500. I currently only have the Bose Home Speaker 500 and it doesn't lag as much anymore (latest firmware) for Bluetooth audio playback from tablets, mobiles and desktops. AirPlay also works fine mostly but is a little laggy in comparison to the Bluetooth connections. I would suggest 500 over 300 has it has 2 speakers, so will be better for TV audio playback and you can always use the headphone jack on the TV to connect it to the home speaker 500 Aux Port. That way you can swtich between sources (Aux, Bluetooth or Spotify) as needed. Wired connection will also remove the lag. I have personally not tested the AUX port to check but I don't see any issue. Of course, Home Speaker 500's primary purpose isn't for TV use so it won't be take advantage of surround audio formats like DD, DTS and so on. -- PRODUCT LINKS -- Bose Home Speaker 500: amzn.to/2VZukBV Bose Soundbar 300: amzn.to/37JQg6k Bose Soundbar 500: amzn.to/3g7vLF7 Bose Soundbar 700: amzn.to/37OMqZA Bose Bass Module 500: amzn.to/2Ulagcm Bose Bass Module 700: amzn.to/3k1xM6W Bose Surround Speakers: amzn.to/3yT4f5R Sonos Beam: amzn.to/3AOYNBh Sonos One SL: amzn.to/3xLaqaE Sonos Woofer: amzn.to/2VXFO8C -- OUTLET STORE WEBSITES -- Both Bose and Sonos have outlet stores where you might be able to find these products for a bit less. For e.g. Soundbar 300 on Bose Outlet website is for £300 instead of £400. Outlet speakers are refurbs which look and work like brand new speakers and even have the same 2 years warranty (in the UK) Bose: www.bose.co.uk/en_gb/products/outlet.html Sonos: www.sonos.com/en-gb/shop/certified-refurbished-2 -- RELATED VIDEO / ALSO WATCH -- Bose Home Speaker 500 Detailed Review: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-JB9M91u2ci4.html Hope this helps :))

Hi Micheal, thanks for your comment. So glad that you found it helpful. The good thing about Sonos is (please double check) that they can be paired to produce stereo, which in my opinion doesn't make a huge difference because music seldom requires 2 distinct channels. Overall Sonos also produce great bass and mids lack a tiny bit when it comes to highs. Music can be so subjective so let me ask you this: what's the conflicting thought you have between these two speakers or why would you choose one over the other?

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons Appreciate your input and greetings from Manhattan. My main worry about the Bose 500 are that many who have issues with the software, dropped WiFi, sudden loudness etc. Seems like 25% have these issues but the others are pretty happy. Overall I prefer the Bose sound but haven’t yet heard 2 X Sonos and unlikely to unless I buy and return them. Tough decision?

Ooh!! hello! Manhattan! What a place! On my list. Hello from London! :) Makes sense.. so I have personally sampled both.. 500 I own and Sonos at workplace. In my opinion both sound amaze balls. 500 is a tiny bit brighter. Sonos has a bit more thumpy bass for its size. My 500 is placed in my study which is miles (not literally of course) away from the router and I personally have faced any issues thus far. It just sits there in its place looking pretty and works when I want it to. Here in UK Bose allows you to buy and return for 90 days in case you don't like their products. So maybe try that. Sobos offers exactly the same. Not sure if that's the case in US though. Another thing I love about Bose is its customer service. They have never made me jump though hoops or let me down. The standard of interaction overall is very good (even during covid times where in many other companies has slipped sooo bad!)

Hi, thanks a lot for leaving a comment :) Not 100% sure if I understand. When you say 'intercalated' do you mean play the same song on the but alternate between the speakers through the lengthnof the speakers so that the listener can listen to difference between the three speakers as the sound alternates between the speakers? If so, yes definitely happy to take this as a feedback for future videos. This was my first ever RU-vid review so I had limited experience in editing at the time. As for Bose Vs Sonos is something on my list and I am aiming to do that early next year :)

Thanks for the comment. Glad you liked it :))

Thanks Uhdam, so glad that you enjoyed it :)

Awesome! I hope you enjoy your purchase and thanks a lot for leaving me a comment. I always love to hear from my audience 🙂. That being said, please check out my channel and subscribe if you want to keep an eye out on my upcoming videos : )

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons Certainly! Could I also ask what settings you like for the 500, in regards to the Bass & Treble?

I tend to keep them at default else I end up adjusting it constantly coz I can be very picky about settings.. If I leave it at default then I just get a consistent performance no matter the song. Though i feel that there are some music genres where in you might want bass to be much more dominant in which case I would pump the lows to 6 and treble to 2. Though the speaker is quite bright out of the box so I seldom need to up the treble :)

u’re welcome thanks for the info and sharing the videos have a nice day!!

Thanks :)

Greetings from Rotterdam, the Netherlands

Hello back :) Thanks for leaving a comment. So glad that you liked the review. Love Netherlands.. lovely progressive people!!!

Hi, yes you should be able to group speakers if they are Bose, have bluetooths and are listed in the compatibility list. This is achieved via Bose SimpleSync. See link below: www.bose.co.uk/en_gb/better_with_bose/simplesync.html Compatibility list for SimpleSync www.bose.co.uk/en_gb/support/article/using-groups.html Hope this helps :)

You are welcome 🙂

Hi Lewis, thanks for reaching out. Regarding the rattling issue, I personally haven’t had this issue whatsoever. I believe rattling can be caused at times due to the placement of the speaker. For this reason mine sits on a solid surface by the window. The surface is made of wood and has no moving parts. Placement is very important as slight imbalances can cause the speaker to rattle. I think I have covered this topic in this or the dedicated video for the 500 video: m.ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-JB9M91u2ci4.html Hope this helps. Please feel free to reach out should you have more questions 🙂🙂

Wow, Thanks for the quick response! Really appreciate it. Thanks for the insight also, that’s some solid advice so I’ll definitely take that into consideration. I’m glad to know you haven’t experienced any of those problems with your unit, definitely makes me a little more inclined to actually pick the 500 up. One more question if you don’t mind me asking, would you recommend picking up two 300 models over a single 500? I only ask as I was thinking that if I did decide to go down that route, I could place one on each nightstand at either side of my bed. (I intend to use either option as the main audio setup for my bedroom)

Thanks Lewis. I would have replied earlier but I was sleeping :D Though jokes apart, I tend to reply as soon as I see a message :) Between 300 and 500, I prefer 500 because it’s stereo. 300 isn’t. If you were to purchase 2x 300 for each side of the bed, they won’t act like stereo. For that I would suggest looking in to Sonos. Buying 2x 300s will also be costlier without a clear return for that money. The only time I would suggest 300 is if the room you are gonna place them is quite small. Thanks again for reaching out. I love engaging with my audience (doesn’t matter if one subscribes or not) so please also feel free to reach out 🙂🙂

Hah! I’ll be completely honest, it’s nearly 9am here in the UK and I haven’t slept a wink all night so I can’t say I’m not at least a little jealous. 🤣 It really is great that you do take the time out of your day to engage with your audience. Considering this video is a year old, I was pleasantly surprised I received a response from you to begin with! You’ve definitely earned a new subscriber for that alone! Regarding the speakers, overall I did expect the 500 to pack significantly more punch than the 300 on its own. In your opinion, do you really think the 500 alone packs more raw power than a pair of 300s? If so that must be a pretty significant amount of sound the 500 is putting out especially for its relatively small form factor. I’ll be completely honest, because it’s just for a bedroom setup and not part of a full living room setup around a TV for example, I’m not overly fussed with it being stereo sound or mono for this specific scenario, just looking for best overall output. (I’m sure that statement alone would have many audiophiles shaking in their boots) I actually do already own a Sonos One and so could easily go down the Sonos ecosystem route if I really wanted to. The thing is though, recently I’ve been sort of put off the company in general. I noticed they started hiking up the prices for some of their existing products from what appeared to be out of no where which I just thought overall was a little shady. I could understand coming out with new and improved products and pricing them a little higher than past models but for me the fact that they just randomly decided to slap an extra 50/ 100 onto some of the existing products in their lineup without anything in particular to make it justifiable was just a bit shady in my eyes.

Hi, lemme get back to you later in the day properly. Out and about to see a few friends for breakfast :) PS: I am based in UK (London) as well 🙂🙂

Thanks Karthik. So glad that you liked it : )

Hi Shalin, thanks for your comment. I would suggest that you try factory reset. See instructions here: www.bose.co.uk/en_gb/support/articles/HC2563/productCodes/bose_home_speaker_300/article.html if you have the same problem after, then I would suggest contacting the customer support. Hope this helps. thanks.

Hi Anita, thanks for the comment. I personally own the Home Speaker 500 now. I decided to keep this one thinking that it supports AirPlay and has a full screen display. The 500 also makes sense if it’s going to the ur first Bose brand home speaker. The soundtouch 20 is legacy and 300 is too small for my room and usage. Though if you are a purist, don’t care about the new fancy features and / or own bose’a legacy speakers I would recommend going for soundtouch 20. All three sound good so you can’t go wrong with any so it will ultimately boil down to what fits ur room, budget and general technological preferences. Hope this helps. Feel free to reach out should you have more questions :)

Also check out this review if you are leaning towards the 500 😊 Bose Home Speaker 500: A Detailed Review Feb 2021 ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-JB9M91u2ci4.html

I agree.. Soundtouch has a more well rounded audio profile which makes the bass more natural sounding. home speaker 500 sound more thumpy rather than well rounded. I think this was the compromise made in order to reduce the overall footprint. Glad that you found the Spanish subs helpful.. and thanks for leaving a comment :))

Mid foward on 500, great for Vocal

are you able to connect sound touch 20 and 500 together at the same time?

Thanks for your question Ishika. When you say connect to 500 and Soundtouch 20 at the same time, do you mean if you can play the same audio on 500 and 20 using one device?

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons yes I have a sound touch 20 already, and I am thinking of buying home 500, but only if I can sync and play the audio at the same time

Hi, i never faced any issues with the operation range of the remote. I used it in my living room at an average distance of 3-ish meters. Not sure it would perform in rooms bigger than that. Hope this helps

Hi Shahrass.. In my personal opinion I find Harmon Kardon products tend to produce less well-rounded sound in comparison to Bose and Sonos. Even though HK has been pricing it's poducts similar to these brands and that HK products also tend to focus on asthetics and design unfortunately they don't deliver that well in audio reproduction. But again this can change based on who's listening and the preference for sound signature. HK deliver good bass and highs but the mids end up being quite muddy and somewhat unsynced with the rest of the spectrum. Also its worth noting that these are not portable speakers whereas Go Play is a portable speaker. So these speakers might not be direct comparison. I hope this helps. Please feel free to reach out should you have more questions. I love engaging with my audience 🙂

Thanks, glad you liked it :)

Hi carlcat. Thanks for your question. Both Home Speaker 500 and 300 have voice assistants built-in including Alexa and Google. Soundtouch series doesn't have any voice assistant built in. Some topline differences between 500 and 300 are - Size, - Audio driver setup (2.0 vs mono) - In-built LCD Hope this helps 🙂

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons Thanks for info.

No prob.. glad I could help. Please feel free to reach out should you have more questions :)

I couldn't agree more. When i was reading your comment, it felt like you had read exactly what I had in my mind when I was in the process of evaluating these units. I personally was also aiming for 30 but couldn't find it whatsoever!! To your point.. 'Who cares about the screen'! Thanks for leaving a comment : )

Awesomeness 🙂🙂

Hi, none of them are powered by battery. The home speaker range is geared towards home use. Though Bose doesnoffer anportable range as well. Hope this helps :)

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons Thank you !

Hi Supriya, the song is called Crash and Burn by Sierd 🙂 Here's a link: open.spotify.com/track/2yiANtwK1Um7jcZ7ggixhV

Thanks Yoni. Glad you liked it :)

Thanks : )

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons I have been confused for 2-3 days straight, after asking you the Q I got confused between Bose Portable Home Speaker & Apple HomePod, dropped ST 30 (mostly as it was not on discount), finally went ahead with the Bose one cos of versatility and multiple connectivity options! Hope I made the right choice, would like to invest a more substantial amount when I can physically check the sound signature and look n feel. Thanks a ton though for being kind enough to take out time to reply, it helped a lot and I really appreciate it, you earned a perma sub 😊👍🏻

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons very good satisfying answer. I think HS 300 would suit me.One more question,is soundtouch 20 better than Hs 300 in terms of quality sound?

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons Really satisfying answer. And what about Bose portable homespeaker in comparison to hs 300 or 500?

Thank you for your quick reply, very detailed video. Can you recommend home speaker product which supports radio without internet?

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons sir I am using t bose hs 500 and have heard t soundtouch 20 as well.i feel t hs 500 has more bass and a better sound signature compared to t 20 which I think sounds flat.pls.give ur thoughts

Sir but I think with t bose music app where t bass and treble can be enhanced t hs 500 definitely has more powerful sound compared to t 20

Ur right sir.when t bass is set at full it starts disappearing when t volume is set overv75%.it's grt. When played at lower volumes

Thanks Nate. So glad you liked it 🙂

Good for you bud! As an “audiophile” you must understand that what’s sound good to your ears doesn’t mean it sounds good to others! If JBL is the shit for you the shut the fxck up and keep it pushing bud don’t be a female and make it all about you!

Hi Pramod. Thanks for leaving a comment. Not sure if I follow. Could you please review your comment? : ) Thanks

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons he means whats your winner.

Thanks :)

@@ToThePointReviewsComparisons now post a video

Thanks!! Glad that you liked it. And thanks a lot for leaving a comment as well 🙂