What do you think of soundbars compared to speakers?

Base had the original sterne sound bars, the 901 series. Each cabinet had one crappy three inch driver aimed at you. Gratefully, the other eight crappy speakers per cabinet faces back toward the rear wall to mute the sound. Sound bars are cheap 901's, with no rightful place in audio.  They usually do sound better than the crap in flat screen. Before using a sound bar, go to a thrift shop and get a $40 receiver and buy some little speakers such as 35 year old B&W  DM 14's for less than the price of a listenable sound bar.

Ironically motion picture soundtracks are MORE DEMANDING of a sound system than a vast majority of music recordings.  The ideal scenario for both motion picture and music playback, in all but a classic two channel environment, is to have IDENTICAL left, right, and center channel speakers. A well engineered LCR bar connected to a nice outboard multi channel amplifier can outperform may conventional speakers depending on quality. This question may be concerned primarily with the powered soundbar which in general pales in comparison (and cost) to a more conventional amplifier/speaker arrangement.  That said powered speakers have several advantages over outboard amplifiers/speaker arrangements.  Companies like MEYER SOUND and GENELEC, who specialize in powered speakers, are preferred by those in the business of making music, MP Soundtracks, and Live music reinforcement at the highest levels of performance.       

Interesting seeing some of your thoughts here guys. For those that prefer the L&R speakers, why is that? I find that although attempting to give off an immersive feel, it has something missing

Hi boneman, sounds interesting, which model soundbar do you have?
Thanks,
George

jetter - I have the Martin Logan Vision Ultimate. I think it is still available, or at least a similar, more modern version. I bought a factory refurb unit from Audio Advisor for about 1/2 of the MSRP (and what Magnolia was charging) of $1499. I see that Audio Advisor has the Vision (like what I have) as a refurb now for $699 (msrp still at $1495). That may be one of the best deals I can imagine for soundbars, if sound quality-to-dollar is your driver. Do note, that it is not wireless (no BlueTooth or WiFi built in, though modules can be attached). If you want the newer wireless model, those are the Vision X, $1500-$1700.
I heartily recommend it for a TV sound upgrade. My application was "get the best sound possilbe in the most aesthetically pleasing way, and make it seamless to the user (no fiddling of inputs or separate remotes). Turn TV on, and it does the rest".  I have it mounted on the wall, below my 60" flatscreen. All wires run through the wall. I use a TosLink (optical) cable between the TV and soundbar. Works great.