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Xiaomi Redmi MDZ-34-DA 30W Soundbar US$61.90 (~A$83.44) Delivered @ Mi Yeelight Store via AliExpress

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Have been on the lookout for a simple & affordable Soundbar to increase clarity on my Dads TV and have been tempted to give one of these a go but didn't bite the bullet until this offer came through earlier today. This particular model is only new so reviews are limited but the ones I could find all seem to be '5-Stars'. Just ordered one and at todays exchange rate with import tax included the total came to $83.44 AUD then with approx $4.17 worth of a 5% offer from CashRewards that should sneak the total just under $80. 'Xiaomi' so worth the risk IMO as I still haven't had a bad product of theirs but it possibly isn't as good as the Yamaha YAS108 bargains from earlier this year… but of course they were twice as much anyway! We'll see.

Looks to be around 35 left from this seller but you may have to choose a different country power adaptor option to secure one. I've been looking at these for a while now and know these usually sell closer to the $100-$120 mark via OS sellers so this is a pretty good price. Give me 4-6 weeks and I'll report back with my findings once it arrives and I've set it up.

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closed Comments

  • +1

    Interested to see what you think about this, have been considering a cheap soundbar for the TV in my bedroom.

    • Yeah. Worth a shot I reckon. I don't need high power or a Sub or ATMOS or anything… it's purely just to improve the clarity so Dad doesn't have to crank the TV and fill the room with sound just because it has rear-facing speakers. Even the Bluetooth feature is just a bonus for this application :)

  • +1

    Waiting for the 94"? TV to release, there stuff is generally good value so this should be too. Tho increase your wait time a bit lol

    • They also have a 98" TV which sold out within hours of release.

      • That would be the one I'm thinking off. I wasn't sure of the size so I added the ? But yeh I'm waiting for that to be available again. Better then any projector

  • Anyone know how this compares to the OzB favourite, the Yamaha YAS108?

    • +2

      Nope. It's only a new product so we're all flying blind. It doesn't offer a Sub output and its digital input is COAX not Optical (not a big issue) however at around half the price of the Yamaha when it was at its lowest it's worth the risk for me.

      • Thanks :)

  • Not sure if this is the same model but the reviews from Singapore users says it not that great.

    https://s.lazada.sg/s.qGBM

    • Yep, there are a few Xiaomi Soundbars available however the one in your link is the same as this. A lot of those reviews aren't terrible either with most complaining that it isn't loud enough and that their TVs only have optical out (same as my Dads) but all in all it seems to be decent for the money.

  • +3

    Thanks worked with the US$3.12 off US$24.97 coupon posted earlier- https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/550109

  • +1

    I'd be keen to hear back here from anyone who purchases.

    If its anything like the JBL SB200 without separate sub box (similar specs to this), it was a HUGE difference in sound quality to the ALDI 2.1

    • +1

      Good to hear that because I was tempted by the upcoming ALDI 2.1 deal ($129 I think) but then read the woeful reviews on it and decided not to bother. I'll definitely report back here with a mini review of this one though.

      • +1

        They're OK, i loved the ALDI's for a time.. i liked that the speakers detach and can be setup as two separate speakers or a connected soundbar.

        Connection via ARC (HDMI) was a bit dodgy as it would randomly make a loud pop sound and disconnect, then automatically reconnect 80% of the time (unless theyve fixed it as I got mine in 2018)… tested on a Bauhn, Kogan and Samsung TV.

        The ALDI speakers, also despite having basic equaliser presets, never really improved the sound quality or sound stage.. it just sounded like an amplified version of my tv.. which ultimately just meant you can get it louder and further without distortion.

        They eventually became my gaming sound system for my PC

  • +4

    Yeah, you can't really compare this to YAS-108 cos that's 120W and this is only 30W.

    That being said, for a small bedroom this Xiaomi soundbar is probably ok.

  • Mate bought a Xiaomi soundbar and we couldn't get it working via optical or HDMI. Only Bluetooth audio would work - there was a delay to the sound, but after turning it off and on it fixed it.

    Hopefully this one is different.

    The sound was surprisingly good, however.

  • +1

    Would this help for movies where I constantly need to adjust the volume because the sound is too low and I can't hear the voices/background sound is too loud?

    • +1

      Sounds like you're watching a 5.1 stream on a 2.0 or 2. 1 system.

      It should help but see if you can change your audio source to stereo

  • +1

    Note that the inputs are Bluetooth, AUX (3.5mm stereo) and SPDIF (coax cable) - so it won't connect via HDMI and won't do ARC, meaning if you want to change the volume you'll need to adjust it on the soundbar itself.

    • Just an FYI, if you connect the aux to the headphone jack on the TV the tv can still turn the volume up and down. I have some logitechs set up on the tv like that and just leave it at 50% volume and use the TV remote volume to adjust from there.

  • I find the clarity on soundbars to be terrible - better off getting some bookshelf style computer speakers, e.g. Edifier R1280T

    • All depends. I'm looking at a YAS-2700. They sound awesome. Just depends on make/model/price, like anything else.

  • You can get better sound from a cheap set of 2.1 computer speakers that come with a subwoofer example.
    Before I bought my first soundbar few years back, I always used computer speakers with my TVs, because they provided significantly better sound than any soundbar in that price range. In fact I still have a Logitech 2.1 system hooked up to a TV in our rumpus (which I think I paid around $150 like 10 years ago), I think its on par if not better than the $300 2.1 Samsung soundbar I have in my bedroom. Besides, with PC speakers you can get better stereo separation since you can place them apart.

  • These are selling at about $45 in China, just want to mention

    • +2

      Nice price! Can't really justify the expense & risk flying over just to buy one at the moment though ;)

  • +2

    Ooh, I just checked and it look like the special price is no more… it's back up to around $100 inc. import duty. Well done to others who may have managed to get one for the sale price & sorry for those who missed out.

    I'll report back here with a quick review once I get mine. Who knows, it might be crap afterall!

  • I am getting US$59.62 delivered including GST with $3.00 discount code via https://m.aliexpress.com/item/4001066143531.html?spm=a2g0n.s…

    • Shipping: AU $26.22

      • The product is only US$38.92 + US$18.01 delivery to Melbourne + $5.69 GST = US$62.62 + New user US$3.00 discount = US$59.62

  • +1

    Got mine delivered this morning.. wow that quick - 7 days turn around.
    Fastest I've seen from Asia recently.. I'd assume the seller paid a fair wack for DHL.
    Haven't opened yet will do later this evening.

    • Whoa! Nice work Ezza!! Haven't got mine yet but as I use my work address I usually get things a day or two later as they have to bounce through the Post Office. Will be great to hear what you think of it.

      • +1

        Funny thing is I used my PO Box during checking out.
        DHL called me last night and said it was missing a whole street address and only had my name, suburb, post code and state (along with my mobile number).
        So they relabeled and had it delivered to my home this morning.. strange! Luckily the seller did have my mobile number on the front of the package.

    • I bought mine not long after the deal was posted and aliexpress said it was sent via "AliExpress Premium Shipping" but it still shows that it hasn't been picked up yet. I was given a tracking number- "LP0018561XXXXXX" but I don't know where to track it.

      • 17track

        • I tried that but it says "not found".

          • @videoman: Ahh that's not good msg them

            • @DoesntEvenMatter: I tried messaging them and they are now demanding I pay more money because my address is a "remote area".

              https://imgur.com/5YX9Qz9

              They also added someone else's tracking number to my order so aliexpress would think they had already posted it.

              https://imgur.com/MUBQ9l5

              https://imgur.com/Hoykxrq

              Anyone have any ideas what I can do? Thanks

              • @videoman: Wtf that's low of them. Shows that they already delivered it. Only thing you can do is open a dispute for wrong address. They will then ask for your PayPal details to refund their if yoh cancel the dispute. Don't do that, Ali will look into it and post the demand for more money in he demand and then get your refund and leave negative feedback

  • Powered it up to test it.
    Manual is in Chinese (as expected) in the box. Nothing on google to suggest an English version exists.
    Worked out how to turn bluetooth mode on - it says something in Chinese as you hit the button on the side - sounds great off my iPhone playing music, I'm no sound / speaker expert but for this price I would say its a pretty good sound bar.
    Pity the TV in the bedroom doesn't have bluetooth and it comes with a 'SPDIF' cord in the box, no idea what it is but I need an AUX to AUX cable to plug into the TV - which I just ordered on Amazon, so can't comment on how good that will work (assumption would be same as quality off iPhone music).

    • Good to hear you think it sounds good via Bluetooth. Yes, the SPDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface) Coax input is a bit of a let down with this unit… definitely not a deal-breaker (especially not at that price!) but as most TVs only have SPDIF Optical output it means most users will either have to use either the headphone output or use an inexpensive ($15) optical to coax converter with the obvious risk of adding a slight delay to the audio output. Strange move by Xiaomi I thought as it would've only added 50c (if that) to the design for them to include an optical input. Anyway, fingers crossed I get mine today.

      • I checked the TV again it doesn't have AUX but has optical.
        So i'm thinking i need this now - https://www.amazon.com.au/FosPower-Toslink-Digital-Connector…
        Plugging the SPDIF cord into the back of the TV to the soundbar didn't work.

        • No headphone socket on the TV? I know TV manufacturers (especially the generic brands) went through a phase of not including a headphone out for a while but I think they're all including them again now. Most strong 'traditional' brands like Sony & Panasonic should have a headphone socket hiding somewhere.

          BTW, the cable you linked to isn't what you need. This is one way of solving the problem and is what I ordered last week to get the Soundbar working with Dads TV. This little box is USB Powered (Cable included) so should be easy to just tuck out of view around the back of the TV… maybe even double-sided taped to the back or cable tied to other cables just to relieve the tension on the cables attached. It isn't ideal and of course bumps the price of the Soundbar up but it's still an inexpensive ($100) solution for my Dad so all I hope now is that the sound quality is OK and the little converter box above doesn't add too much of a delay to the audio. Dads Panasonic TV does have a headphone output however for some reason they decided to only allow volume control of it via a sub-menu… not via the main volume control on the remote so the above box is needed purely to keep everything as simple & streamlined for him.

          • @SteveAndBelle: Yeah couldn't find it.. I have a Panasonic 50' from a few years back.
            Righto I'll can the amazon order and maybe re-check the back of the TV.. very confusing I must say!
            Thakns for the heads up.

            Edit: Can't even cancel the order on Amazon within 10mins of ordering it now only has 'Track Package' or 'Archieve Order'… surely it wasn't packed that quick!

            • @ezza: Have another look for the headphone socket first but if/when you do find it be sure that its volume can be controlled via the volume buttons on the remote otherwise you'll have to go into a sub-menu just to change volume each time which will be painful. Yes, a little painful… but depending on the quality of the soundbar it still may be very well worthwhile.

              • @SteveAndBelle: Hmm just googled the model I have its this:
                https://www.panasonic.com/au/support/product-archives/televi…

                When check the specs, I assume this is the AUX? with a - i assume its a no.
                Analogue Audio Output —

                • @ezza: Yeah, no headphone or analog audio output at all. Why do they do that?!?!? It's crazy!

                  OK so the only way to get any audio out of the TV is either via the Digital Optical Output or via the HDMI ARC connection so you're going to need to get the same little converter box I got… but again, there's a risk that it may introduce an audio delay which will be hard to live with and render the whole setup close to useless so maybe wait until I report back with my findings?! Your call there.

                  • @SteveAndBelle: Ahh good to know you are a bit of an expert at this!
                    So the cable I found earlier wont work? The optical to SPDIF?
                    I know what you mean by the delay situation I have a similar issue at times with my living room TV as I have optical running from it.

                    • @ezza: No sorry, that cable you found is purely digital… basically a 'light pipe' with two different shape ends. It will work on special devices that can accept an optical signal via the 3.5mm socket (Chromecast Audio, certain Laptops etc.) but they're few & far between and unless I missed it I'm pretty sure the Xiaomi Soundbar does not offer such a fancy feature. The Xiaomi Soundbar needs either a COAX Digital signal (ie. copper cable, not optic fibre) or a simple Stereo Analogue signal via the 3.5mm 'headphone' type socket. In your case you'll either need to convert the Optical Digital output of the TV to a COAX Digital format or convert it via a Digital-to-Analogue converter box as per the $15 one I purchased and use the 3.5mm analogue input. They're your only options but of course depending on the TV this will be different for others.

                      To make all this 'no-brainer' simple you just need to spend more money! Something like the Yamaha YAS108 or equivalent offers both HDMI ARC and Optical Digital inputs so it's so much easier. Literally Plug & Play… but of course twice the cost. It's all relative.

                      • @SteveAndBelle: Heheh I think its time for a new TV lol

                        • @ezza: Far cheaper to just get a better Soundbar!

                          • +1

                            @SteveAndBelle: Just mearly looking for an excuse to upgrade lol

                            • +1

                              @ezza: Strangely enough I figured out a work around for my situation.

                              I don't watch regular TV at all, and I use a Xiaomi TV box to stream everything and watch stuff of USB sticks.. so I went through the menu and found 'accessories' which is pretty much bluetooth.

                              Scanned devices and added the sounder… wella! Working 100% well.. volume is controlled by the Xiaomi TV Box remote and its true to the same volume control as as the soundbar itself.

                              Problem solved!

                              Now the only issue is trying to figure out how to stick to the top of the TV, as the TV is on this exact stand https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/kogan-larvik-studio-stand-45-65…
                              So I need to figure out how to possibly cut/make some sort of legs from wood to sit on the top of the TV lol.

  • Received mine today. Box was opened by DHL for a 'Security Check' but no dramas there. The unit itself was in perfect condition. Nice simple, plain design, well built and nice buttons. Very 'Xiaomi', decent form, very functional and no BS.

    Didn't bother with the manual (probably only in Chinese anyway) but I believe any decent modern domestic product should able to be figured out by trial & error pretty quickly and this was no exception! Plugged it in, turned it on and was welcomed by an obvious 'on' sound. There's an 'opposite' version of that sound to announce when its powered off so that's all pretty easy. Pressing the input selection button scrolled through the three voice announcements AUX, SPDIF and something in Chinese I assumed was Bluetooth. Using my phone I scanned for BT devices and found it straight away, paired it and was playing tunes seconds later. Sounds good enough… not amazing, not enough to fill a large room for a party but perfectly acceptable for the calibre of device it is.

    I then moved it to the Sony TV. Unplugged the SONOS Beam & Sub and connected the Xiaomi to the headphone socket. That was 30mins ago and I'm still listening to it as I type. Again, it won't blow your mind nor will it fill a large room with high quality sound BUT it's absolutely fit for purpose, fills a small to medium space no problem and easily beats most inbuilt TV speakers hands down… especially from a clarity perspective which is exactly what I was hoping for to improve Dads TV (not to replace my SONOS Beam!)

    So for $80-$100 its definitely worth it if it suits your particular TVs audio output. Once I get the $15 Optical/Analogue converter I'll report back with any audio delay issues (if any).

  • +1

    Received mine today. Sound quality seems pretty good, but also annoyed by the inputs on it.

    The question im asking my self is whether i should have got the Edifier bookshelf speakers instead, different form factor i know, but does have optical for a similar price.

    • Agreed. It's good for $80 but no higher and only if the inputs are suitable for your needs. A pair of Edifier 1280s on sale would be far better all-round apart from the fact they're not in the soundbar format. Odd that Edifier don't make an entry level soundbar based on the components of the 1280.

      • I checked my old TV and it only has Optical out. The problem i foresee with the adapter is on my TV changing the volume on the TV does not affect the volume of the optical output. Typically you would change the volume on the speaker with a remote. But this speaker doesnt have a remote, so it would involve having to get off my arse each time.

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