Sound plays a humongous part in how immersive content can be. When the quality is below par, we tend to be pulled out from the content we’re viewing. On the other hand, when the sound we experience is rich, bold and warm, we’re immersed even more. That said, when it comes to stock speakers on our TVs, there can be a lot to make up for when it comes to sound – that’s where soundbars come in.
Samsung’s Q800T soundbar is one of the latest soundbars from the big blue. Initially announced at CES 2020, the sound bar brings along with it a slew of features that is aimed at creating a more immersive experience. That said, we’re taking a deep dive into the new offering from Samsung and breaking down the experience to see if it’s truly worth your hard earned money.
Design
When it comes to items like the TV and Soundbar, the first thing that we tend to look for is something that can blend seamlessly with our existing setup and enhance the look of our living space or room. We never want to see an item which disrupts our zen in a space we spend so much of our time in.
The Samsung Q800T is one of the more discreet options you can have when it comes to a soundbar. The sleek, black finish of the soundbar allows it to blend into your setup seamlessly. It’s got a minimalist feel with an industrial finish but you wouldn’t be able to tell from a distance thanks to the black colour.
You can tell that Samsung’s design team has put some thought into the aesthetics of the whole living space when it comes to the Q800T Soundbar. It is able to fit under newer QLED and Smart TVs but, more importantly, it has a small enough footprint that you’ll be able to integrate it into your living space effortlessly. You also have the option of mounting the soundbar on the wall if you so please.
The only design cue that felt a little dated is the wire mesh design that has become somewhat of a signature for Samsung’s soundbar design. It’s a very retro feel which hearkens back to the radios and boom boxes of yesteryear. While it does seem a little dated, it does lend itself to a much sturdier feel overall.
Samsung also bundles a wireless sub-woofer which brings the lows to complement the highs and mids of the main soundbar. While it can seem a little tedious to have an extra component to maneuver and assimilate, into your decor, the sleek black design allows you to place it just out of sight and still get the full benefit of theatrical sound.
Performance
The Q800T packs quite the punch when it comes to sound. In smaller living spaces and rooms, the soundbar is bound to provide a really immersive experience. It was able to flood our studio space of about 1,300sqft with good sound. In fact, we wouldn’t be surprised if it was able to accommodate a larger room of about 2,000sqft.
When it comes to the sound quality, the Q800T was pretty impressive. It had very warm mids and highs which made watching cinematic movies enjoyable. The bass on the system was able to carry the explosions in action flicks pretty well too. Overall, it gave a deeper level of immersion when it came to enjoying movies and series.
The soundbar was able to produce really clear audio even when it came to audio. In fact, in its “Voice” mode, the soundbar was able to detect and enhance the audio of news readers which made it a lot easier to hear. This was also true for movies; dialogue was crisp and even whispers were more audible. You rarely miss anything said during movies even when there’s explosions happening.
Our highlight with soundbar came when we were using the PlayStation 4, the sound really brought Horizon Zero Dawn to live. The Dolby Atmos calibration made it so the sounds that we heard felt like we were in the game itself. Objects and creatures behind us in game actually sounded like they were behind us when we were gaming.
Features
The Samsung Q800T soundbar is one of the most feature rich soundbars available. It comes with Dolby Atmos certification as well as DTS:X certification. This means that the tweeters, subs and DSP on the soundbar has been uniquely tuned to be able to reproduce high quality audio to the standards set by Dolby and DTS.
In addition to that, the soundbar is also equipped with an equalizer. You’ll be able to control it manually and cycle through the presets on the controller which comes with the soundbar. However, if you want more granular control, you’ll have to adjust the levels on the SmartThings App.
The hallmark feature on the Q800T is Q-Symphony which synchronises the TV’s built-in speakers to create even more sound depth. It effective adds another two channels to the overall sound setup allowing for better immersion.
Compatibility
The Samsung Q800T soundbar runs on Samsung’s SmartThings platform which is a good thing. All you have to do to set it up on your phone is download the app on your phone and let it do it’s magic – which includes setting up the WiFi on the Q800T as well. Of course, you can manually connect to the speaker through Bluetooth as well and do the setup step by step. However, SmartThings really makes setup a once click step. In addition, the app is universally available – even on the iOS AppStore.
In fact, Samsung’s SmartThings platform also makes it so you can use Bixby to control and play music on your soundbar from your Samsung phone. If your on your Samsung device, you can also connect seamlessly via the SmartThings apps and set your system to automatically connect to the device and playback audio when its in range.
However, be that as it may, the Samsung centric nature of the Q800T is also its biggest handicap. You can’t get the most from the device or the SmartThings platform unless you’re in the Samsung ecosystem; this includes a Samsung QLED TV and a Samsung tablet or smartphone. In fact, one of the hallmark features, Q-Symphony, of the soundbar isn’t readily available unless you have a compatible Samsung QLED TV.
The Q-Symphony feature is actually one of the best features on the soundbar. Thankfully, we got to test it during a technical seminar. In a nutsell, you get an even more immersive sound experience as the speakers on the TV itself sync with the soundbar as front firing speakers complementing the 3.1.2 setup of the soundbar. However, if you’re not using a compatible Samsung QLED TV, you’ll miss out on the extra level of immersion.
A Feature Rich Sound Experience for a Relatively Affordable Price
Overall, the Samsung Q800T soundbar delivers one of the most immersive experiences you can get at it’s MYR3,999 (USD$987.64) price point. In fact, we can say that it’s one of the more complete offering on the market at this time. The unique, feature rich approach Samsung is taking to the soundbar makes a compelling package let down by one handicap – over reliance on a Samsung QLED TV. Other than the lack of Q-Symphony support on every other smart TV, the universality of SmartThings and the quality of the sound produced by the soundbar leaves users wanting little more.
