Is A Sound bar that good?

It seems lately there has been a large push in the home theater arena towards sound bars. The claims from manufacturers are that the sound bars are replacements for full surround systems. This week I received a free sound bar/subwoofer from Vizio in return for a marketing program I participated in after buying a new 55-inch LED TV. I was very interested in testing the new sound bar compared to my 7.1 in-wall surround system.
I am no audiophile, but I do enjoy clean and crisp audio from my home entertainment system. I hooked up my new sound bar and was surprised by the audio quality that it delivered. As I fired up the wireless subwoofer, the deep tones filled the room. The sound from this system was very impressive.
I must say though, that even though the sound was great, it did not replace the effects delivered by my true 7.1 surround system. In my opinion the sound bar / subwoofer system is a great alternative for those wanting affordable sound quality. But, if you want true surround sound effects, you must install a true surround system.