53

Vizio M51AX-J6 Review

True Score

81
80
5

Experts

87
5,644

Consumers

Product Awards

GR Certified

Customer Favorite

Expert Rankings

The Vizio M Series M51ax-J6 offers a powerful and immersive audio experience with Dolby Atmos support. Its neutral sound profile and customizable options are versatile. For the price, it works for those seeking to improve the sound over built-in TV speakers.

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Product Snapshot

Overview

With a 5.1 setup, the 2021 Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 brings immersive surround sound to home theaters. This premium speaker boasts an outstanding, neutral sound profile, which is as good for movies as it is for music and podcasts.

Supporting Dolby Atmos and featuring discrete surround speakers, this system provides a remarkable immersive movie soundstage, standing out among the best speakers on the market.

It gets really loud, making it a good choice for larger rooms. Equipped with a dedicated subwoofer, this system accurately reproduces that deep rumbling bass that is great for action movies and EDM music genres.

Connectivity options on this speaker include optical, combined HDMI ARC+Out, full HDMI In, 3.5 mm, and USB. However, wireless streaming options are limited to Bluetooth.

This system has a low latency of all ports, so there’s smooth syncing between the audio and video feeds. Learn more about the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 below and see how it stacks up against the highest-rated sound bars in the industry.

Best For

  • Large Rooms

Consensus

our Verdict

The Vizio M Series M51ax-J6 suffers some downsides, such as latency issues, subpar Voice Assistant integration, and potential connectivity problems, such as periodical Bluetooth dropouts and connection failure with the subwoofer and rear speakers.

Additionally, the instructions for pairing can be confusing, and it constantly seeks pairing options Soundwise, it has a powerful and immersive audio experience with Dolby Atmos support.

Its neutral sound profile and customizable options cater to various audio content. Its bass is thumpy and impressive, but the treble isn’t crisp and overpowered by the bass.

While the soundbar has a good stereo soundstage, it lacks advanced sound enhancement features like a graphic EQ. The build quality is sturdy and has nice physical button controls, but the fabric coverings may not be the most durable.

Reason to Buy

  • “Powerful and balanced sound quality
    • The soundbar excels both for movies and music, as it comes with Dolby Atmos support and plenty of sound customization options to adjust bass and treble. It delivers a dynamic soundstage with booming bass, clear mids, and high yet balanced trebles.

  • Good surround sound
    • The soundbar delivers a high-grade 5.1 surround sound setup, including discrete surround speakers and a subwoofer. The overall profile is powerful for cranking up movies and music while providing a neutral sound and accurate sound.

  • Voice Clarity
    • With an excellent center channel, the soundbar excels for dialogue-heavy content, like TV shows. Additionally, the soundbar features a dialogue enhancement feature to focus sound performance on vocal frequencies, making them more clear.

  • Bass Response
    • The dedicated subwoofer provides powerful bass for music with low frequencies and high-quality movie content, specifically action sequences.

Reason to Avoid

  • Poor latency and limited connectivity options
  • Lacks smart features
    • The soundbar isn’t as functional as others in the category, given it lacks a built-in voice assistant or a dedicated smart app to control via a smartphone.

  • Subpar remote
    • The small control panel on the remote is hard to see, making it difficult to navigate and frustrating.

Vizio M51AX-J6 Specs

Bluetooth EnabledBluetooth EnabledYes
DepthDepth3.5"
Dialogue Enhancement FeatureDialogue Enhancement FeatureYes
Energy Star CertifiedEnergy Star CertifiedNo
Equalizer SettingsBasic
HDMI ARCHDMI ARCYes
HeightHeight2.2"
Number of Audio ChannelsNumber of Audio Channels5.1
SubwooferSubwooferIncluded
Surround Sound SupportedSurround Sound SupportedDolby Atmos, DTS TruVolume, DTS Virtual:X
Voice AssistantVoice AssistantAmazon Alexa
Wall MountableWall MountableYes
WeightWeight5.5 lbs
WidthWidth36"
Wireless ConnectivityWireless ConnectivityBluetooth
Wireless Subwoofer ConnectivityWireless Subwoofer ConnectivityYes
Works WithWorks WithAmazon Alexa, Google Assistant

All Specs

Test Results

Low End Roll Off (Hz)35.125
High End Roll Off (Hz)13,472.794
Max Volume Test (db)96.7
Latency (ms)39
THD @ 80dB0.32

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Product Comparison

Vizio M51AX-J6 Review

True Score

81
83
78
87

Ranking

#

53

/

149

#

33

/

149

#

97

/

149

#

5

/

149

Market Context

With a 5.1 setup, the 2021 Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 brings immersive surround sound to home theaters. This premium speaker boasts an outstanding, neutral sound profile,…

With a 5.1 setup, the 2021 Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 brings immersive surround sound to home theaters. This premium speaker boasts an outstanding, neutral sound profile, which is as good for movies as it is for music and podcasts.

Supporting Dolby Atmos and featuring discrete surround speakers, this system provides a remarkable immersive movie soundstage, standing out among the best speakers on the market.

It gets really loud, making it a good choice for larger rooms. Equipped with a dedicated subwoofer, this system accurately reproduces that deep rumbling bass that is great for action movies and EDM music genres.

Connectivity options on this speaker include optical, combined HDMI ARC+Out, full HDMI In, 3.5 mm, and USB. However, wireless streaming options are limited to Bluetooth.

This system has a low latency of all ports, so there’s smooth syncing between the audio and video feeds. Learn more about the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 below and see how it stacks up against the highest-rated sound bars in the industry.

With a wider stereo soundstage, the Vizio M Series m512a-H6 is better for music than the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6. Additionally, unlike the m51ax-J6, it has…

With a wider stereo soundstage, the Vizio M Series m512a-H6 is better for music than the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6. Additionally, unlike the m51ax-J6, it has two up-firing speakers, producing a better Dolby Atmos soundstage. That said, the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 gets slightly louder. You can learn more by checking out our Vizio m512a-H6 review today.

With the lower audio latency on all ports, the Vizio M Series m51a-H6 syncs the audio and video feeds in movie dialogue scenes better than…

With the lower audio latency on all ports, the Vizio M Series m51a-H6 syncs the audio and video feeds in movie dialogue scenes better than the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6. It also produces deeper extended low bass, making it better for movies and music than the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6. Check out our Vizio m51a-H6 review for details.

Producing deeper extended low-bass, the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 is better for movies and music than the Sonos Arc, it also has equalizer presets as well…

Producing deeper extended low-bass, the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6 is better for movies and music than the Sonos Arc, it also has equalizer presets as well as a full HDMI input, unlike the Sonos Arc. On the other hand, the Sonos Arc has a built-in voice assistant system unlike the Vizio M-Series m51ax-J6, which needs connecting a third-party device to benefit from voice assistant features.

Bluetooth Enabled

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Depth

3.5"

3.54"

16.9"

4.56"

Dialogue Enhancement Feature

Yes

No

No

Yes

Energy Star Certified

No

No

No

No

Equalizer Settings

Basic

Basic

n/a

HDMI ARC

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Height

2.2"

2.24"

10.8"

3.43"

Number of Audio Channels

5.1

5.1.2

5.0.2

Dig Deeper

Vizio M512A-H6 Review →

Vizio M51A-H6 Review →

Sonos Arc Review →

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Score Card

E

Expert Score

80

*.75

We place a 75% weighted value on Expert Test Scores

C

Customer Score

87

*.25

We place a 25% weighted value on Customer Scores

True Score

81

Any product with a True Score above 80 is a Absolutely Fresh

Expert Score Breakdown

  • Rtings
    103

    Category Trust Score

    81
    The Vizio M51ax-J6 is great for mixed usage. This 5.1 setup offers a neutral, balanced… read more

    By:

    John Panoryios
  • PC Mag
    54.9

    Category Trust Score

    NR
    The affordable Vizio M-Series 5.1 Sound Bar (M51ax-J6) combines a subwoofer and two rear satellites… read more

    By:

    Unknown
  • Consumer Reports
    40.86

    Category Trust Score

    NR
    “No bottom line found for this product” read more

    By:

    Unknown
  • Techhive
    38.97

    Category Trust Score

    80
    The M51ax-J6 serves up Dolby Atmos and DTS:X audio using virtualization rather than upfiring drivers,… read more

    By:

    Ben Patterson
  • Spy.com
    26.38

    Category Trust Score

    NR
    Is the Vizio the world’s greatest soundbar for Dolby Atmos? No. Absolutely not. But if… read more

    By:

    Unknown

Customer Score Breakdown

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