Stuff - UK (2019-12)

104

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What an

Atmos-phere

Soundbars are a hot

ticket thanks to an

influx of competing

technologies claiming

to be good enough

to do away with

AV amps, separate

surround-sound

speakers and,

in some cases,

subwoofers. The

triple threat of Dolby

Atmos, DTS:X and

MPEG-H has made

virtual 3D audio a

reality without the

need to fill your living

room with wires.

O Get this:

Sennheiser Ambeo

£2199 / sennheiser.com

Wall of

sound

The obvious first

consideration is

finding a bar that

fits into your setup,

or can at least be

accommodated

with some furniture

jiggery-pokery. The

bigger the soundbar,

the more drivers it’s

likely to house, and

that should mean

bigger and better

sound. No cabinet

space? It can be

wall-mounted with

your TV.

O Get this:

B&W Formation

Soundbar £999 /

bowerswilkins.com

Cabinet

reshuffle

At the risk of your

eyes glazing over,

let’s talk speaker

configurations.

Traditionally, true

surround-sound

has required five or

seven speakers plus

a subwoofer; but

makers have found

ways to squeeze

more channels into

one box, aided by the

likes of Dolby Atmos.

B&O’s Beosound

Stage has four main

drivers, four subs and

three tweeters.

O Get this:

Beosound Stage £1250

/ bang-olufsen.com

Satellites

of love

That’s not to say

separates are dead.

The likes of Denon,

Marantz and Yamaha

are still pushing out

great Atmos AV

amps for those with

the space and budget

required. Or, as a

compromise, check

out soundbars with

wireless satellite

speakers. We

like Vizio’s Atmos

offering because

the woofer sits at

the back of the room

for cool sofa wobbles.

O Get this:

Vizio SB36512-F6

£599 / vizio.com

Follow

through

If you’ve got a 4K

TV, look for a bar with

4K pass-through for

the best audio quality

from games consoles.

And remember most

soundbars now

double as wireless

multiroom speakers.

O Get this:

Sonos Beam

£399 / sonos.com

Q ACOUSTICS M2

£169 / qacoustics.co.uk

Short on space? A soundbase

sits underneath your TV and

can offer impressive bassy

rumbles. The M2 is a fine and

affordable example.

SKY SOUNDBOX

from £249 / sky.com

This high-end unit is optimised

to produce the best sound for

shows broadcast on Sky Q

channels. It’s twice the price

if you’re not a Sky subscriber.

HOW TO BUY

A TV

SOUNDBAR

Make movies sound

absolutely monster...

and bag yourself

an extra multiroom

speaker to boot

HEAD FOR THE BAR RAISE THE BAR

OR TRY

ONE OF

THESE...

1 2 3 4 5

TOP TENS HOW TO BUY

JARGON

BUSTER

DOLBY ATMOS

Surround-sound

tech using up-firing

speakers for 360°

audio with height

virtualisation.

DTS:X

An Atmos rival that

uses your existing

surround-sound kit:

no upwards-pointing

drivers required.

MPEG-H

Set to revolutionise

car audio and VR

headsets, this audio

codec simulates vast

3D spaces.