There's nothing quite like adding quality audio products to your gaming setup. It's exciting, refreshing and gives your gaming setup an audio edge that wearing a headset sometimes just can't match or offer. Also, if your TV room or living room can have a big, high-quality soundbar or sprawling surround sound system, why can't your gaming setup enjoy the same treatment? Well, it can. And that's where Bluesound's Pulse Soundbar 2i comes in. This is a truly quality soundbar that will revitalise and augment your setup and bring hi-res audio to your games. Simply put, the Pulse Soundbar 2i is a versatile wifi-connected hi-res audio device and one of the few on the market that's of 24-bit audio playback and that is tuned with true audiophiles in mind. In action, it's a thing of beauty.
When it comes to audio - and for most other tech - one often consults the web in the form of best lists, reviews, guides and forums to see whether a soundbar or satellite speakers are worth adding to one's gaming setup, particularly for a console setup with a large TV in a living room-type affair. The advice you get may drive you toward a more 'traditional' surround sound system comprising of a series of bookshelf and satellite speakers leading to a world of hurt with trailing wires and a mission in cable management - all in an attempt to try and achieve that sound quality. The Pulse Soundbar 2i bypasses all of this and still offers some of the best sound in the business.
While, of course, soundbars are not a near consideration for those who enjoy games, and TV and movies, not all soundbars are made equal. The Bluesound’s Pulse Soundbar 2i is an incredibly versatile audio hub that can take your gaming setup's audio to a next level while also offering an entrypoint into your home's smart tech, streaming service options, a plethora of connectivity options, multi-room capabilities, but also genuinely incredible, high resolution (24-bit resolution) audio. It’s one of the best ways for gamers to get room-filling sound for the latest and greatest titles from massive online shooters, to those with more detailed audio profiles like Red Dead Redemption 2. Beyond that the same audio quality can be enjoyed with your music, television shows and movies. It offers the complete package; both gaming audio behemoth and excellent home entertainment hub. And while there is a matching wireless Subwoofer available, you may not even need it, such is the range of the Pulse Soundbar 2i: it is very capable and flat down to 70Hz, which is more than enough in terms of depth for most scenarios.
Digging into the details and what's under the hood, it's clear to see where the quality and versatility lies. The Bluesound Pulse Soundbar 2i has a two-channel design and consists of two woofers, two mid-range drivers, two tweeters, and two passive radiators. These combine to create a powerful bank totalling 120W of total power output - which is a conservative estimate. Impressive.
Examining the Soundbar 2i further and it's plain to see further versatility, through connectivity, is evident. Present are an HDMI eARC, a Qualcomm AptX HD Bluetooth, along with optical, analog, and USB Type-A connections which can all be used to connect audio sources. The inclusion of the AptX HD Bluetooth transmitter is a great inclusion for gamers with shared residences or for those who value privacy: this can send a highly detailed 24-bit audio signal to wireless headphones with great ease. At the other end of the scale, the multi-room capabilities and native integration of more than 20 streaming services, as well as Apple AirPlay 2 compatibility, demonstrates, quite frankly, a ridiculous level of versatility making the Pulse Soundbar 2i one of the most versatile pieces of audio equipment going right now, and a perfect companion for gamers and entertainment gluttons alike.
In terms of extras, the Pulse Soundbar 2i has you covered too. To assist in your control and optimisation of your soundbar - and to potentially control other Pulse speakers - is the incredibly useful Pulse companion app - the BluOS Controller - that is available for iOS, Android, and desktop. Not only does this control Pulse products but all Bluesound products and those that have BluOS on board. This gives you an additional means to really personalise our audio setup and tune your soundbar to enhance dialogue, tune for extra bass, select a wider sound stage, and choose from a whole host of other settings to get your game and entertainment sound, exactly as you like it.
What results is a quality audio specimen. From design to execution the Pulse Soundbar 2i, is a serious contender for must-have tech offering an aesthetic that will melt into any living or gaming space while holding its own with an attractive aesthetic, while being able to executing some of the highest levels of audio quality, detail and fidelity that players of games and watchers of movies and TV.
