Samsung HW-Q950T Soundbar Review & Comments

I only had the HW-Q950T for a couple of weeks, but once I had everything setup the wireless connection between the rears/sub and main unit was reliable and robust. As far as my Wi-Fi setup is concerned, I have a dual-band extender in the lounge with 2.4 and 5GHz bandwidths (the actual router is in my office).
I've very rarely had connection issues using Virgin and very recently, Sky.

My biggest issue was the bar not recognising Atmos soundtracks. Lent it to a mate and so disconnecting and reconnecting everything is working better now.
 
I still have my Samsung HW-950 and it’s an awesome bit of kit! I came from a 7.3 separates system(Yamaha 769 av amp and kef eggs with three powered subs) I wanted to upgrade to a 5.2.4 Av amp and new speakers but the costs and putting more cables round the living room and putting speakers on the ceiling was putting me in doubt...I heard the Samsung HW-N950 and I actually couldn’t believe the sound that was coming out of the unit..even my sister in law was impressed...so I sold my separates and put the money towards the soundbar.I have never looked back...it’s neat,tidy,takes up far less space and sounds even better in my living room...my living room isn’t that big so it works perfectly...to get what I have now in a separates based system I would of been looking at close to three grand!
 
Mate,

Its nothing compared to the LG SN11RG being offered by Currys for £850-£900 when I paid £1400 for it at richersounds. It has already gone down in value by £600-£700 in 2 months. At least the Q90R only dropped by £500 in over a year.
Shocking, dat.
 
Great review.

I have had this soundbar for a few weeks and so far I am very happy with it.
The router with 2.4 and 5 GHz networks is across the room. There's also a mesh wlan extender and I have had no connection problems between sub/rears and the soundbar so far.

The sound is amazing. I especially enjoy 5.1 movies, which is the sound format of most of my discs. I have watched "Das Boot" so many times but this time the sound just put me in that u-boat with all that creaking sounds of the wooden beams or the subtle water sounds while under water.
The explosions of the depth charges are impressive. The subwoofer is doing a great job. Way better than my old 5.1 system (but that was more of an oversized pc speaker system).

My living room doesn't really seem to be suited for the overhead sound formats. My wife said she could sense sound coming from above when playing Dolby Atmos test files. I couldn't so far. I do not own many discs with DTS:X or Atmos. I have the same player connected as Mr. Withers. "Bohemian Rhapsody" in Atmos is just an awesome experience with this soundbar. "Jurassic Park" with DTS:X had no sound coming from the upfiring speakers. "Braveheart" in Atmos had no sound from the front upfiring speakers (I had my ears on the bar, not even white noise). No clue if I'm doing anything wrong.

I am going to test with Hunger Games in a few days. I already tried the discs for a few minutes and heard sounds in the upfiring speakers from the front and the rears.

EDIT: I have this bar attached to a Samsung Q90T. Q-Symphony has been a dissapointment so far. It switches automatically to adaptive mode which IMO is useless for movies. It might be good for sports events though.
 
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It's only that price if you buy a TV at the same time though right...
Yes, but I bought the cheapest tv at about £99 and sold it for £80. Saved over £500 then.
 
I have Samsung's 1st Atmos soundbars and even it sounds good still. But no DV passthrough, no DTS-MA is a major bummer.

This ticks most boxes now unlike mine, but I really don't like Samsung for their lack of updates. Mine has had about 2 since I got it when it came out. Once a new version of hardware is out, they quite happily drop you like a lead weight.

I would like more than 2 inputs too as I don't have an eARC TV, so as much as I don't like Samsung, the top soundbars are not really bettered.
I mirror this post exactly, I bought the first Atmos bar soon after launch and it is a good machine but after a year or so Samsung seem to have left it dead in the water, still sounds great in the living room set up it was bought for but it could have been fantastic if it had had a few important updates (if possible) in service.
 
I would love to put this up against the Sennheiser in a blind test and see what people prefered - I know Steve did the review for the Sen and I'm sure many here would love to know what he thinks on this. I'm sure the Samsung did a better job as far as rear effects went etc - due to having dedicated surround speakers. I realise the price difference, but I'm also sure the Sen will be coming down in price soon or on sale, as it has been around for about a year now.
 
I would like the future
I will get this next. Hope they sort out the few issues with DTS over eArc and LPCM.

Please do let us know how it sounds. The force appears to be strong with this one but I will exercise caution.
 
I would love to put this up against the Sennheiser in a blind test and see what people prefered - I know Steve did the review for the Sen and I'm sure many here would love to know what he thinks on this. I'm sure the Samsung did a better job as far as rear effects went etc - due to having dedicated surround speakers. I realise the price difference, but I'm also sure the Sen will be coming down in price soon or on sale, as it has been around for about a year now.
bit like comparing a 7 seat people carrier to an suv, aimed at different sectors and customers.
 
It's my review and my score – take it or leave it mate. I love the way you're scoring something you've never seen or heard. But whatever, I guess that's the Internet in a nutshell.
lol
Sorry for butting in to this conversation but TBH I didn't look at the score but now that it has been brought up, I have a question. For the target user wouldn't the lack of room correction be a downside? For the both the target audience and the AV literate, wouldn't the lack of single speaker volume controls for asymmetric rooms also be a major downside?
 
This vs the sonos arc + sub + rears would be a good contest. Roughly the same price point...
 
Thanks for the review @stephenwitb

A question I have is about your room layout / recommended room layouts for the rear speakers. The image used in the review is one of those rooms that most people could only dream of. Masses of space around. How did you test this system? Do you have masses of space to test or do you test in an average living room? Would the rear speakers work properly if you have a sofa against a back wall and the speakers to the side of you or on the back wall?

I’m thinking of getting this Soundbar or similar LG version. But was wondering if I should get one with the rear speakers or not as my sofa would be against a wall.
BB1F071C-088A-4324-BD9E-C1B094044724.jpeg
 
Curry’s still not showing this on their website. Going to wait to see what offers come up over Christmas/New Year sales. Won’t pay more than £1k so I may be waiting a while yet.
 
Amps are not choice for many though, but 2 HDMI inputs is frankly not useful these days and not everyone has a TV with eARC. Even the Sennheiser Atmos bar at £2100 only has 3.

Soundbars have many appeals to many people, but the lack of room correction for Atmos and such few HDMI inputs is a staggering omission.
@tazg101

Before the alcohol takes over the keyboard (it's already caused many typos just typing this sentence) why the off do I get an angry face to my post?? Are we agreeing or are you angry at my reply??? I only ask since there is an AGREE option for a reaction to posts!
 
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Good comprehensive review, though I can't help but think that no matter how good a soundbar this is, for £1600 bar a penny you could get a half decent surround sound system that would blow it out of the water.
Still I suppose for those who have that option it will find it's market.

Im guessing this is aimed at people who are trying to minimise their speaker and wire count but still want surround thrills.

how does this compare to the king of soundbars the ambeo @Steve Withers
 
@tazg101

Before the alcohol takes over the keyboard (it's already caused many typos just typing this sentence) why the off do I get an angry face to my post?? Are we agreeing or are you angry at my reply??? I only ask since there is an AGREE option for a reaction to posts!

Hi. Not sure what happened. I was read this tread last night and must of posted by accident. I have no interest in this product or what you may have posted.
 
I would love to put this up against the Sennheiser in a blind test and see what people prefered - I know Steve did the review for the Sen and I'm sure many here would love to know what he thinks on this. I'm sure the Samsung did a better job as far as rear effects went etc - due to having dedicated surround speakers. I realise the price difference, but I'm also sure the Sen will be coming down in price soon or on sale, as it has been around for about a year now.
You have a bit of an optimistic on that part brands like Sennheiser , B&O, and even Yamaha with YSP 5600 aren't in the market for dropping their prices. It devalues their value as a brand plus they are in some heavy economic water another reason to not discount their products.
 
I only had the HW-Q950T for a couple of weeks, but once I had everything setup the wireless connection between the rears/sub and main unit was reliable and robust. As far as my Wi-Fi setup is concerned, I have a dual-band extender in the lounge with 2.4 and 5GHz bandwidths (the actual router is in my office).
Ahh, but it wasn't a tri-band system (I.e. with two 5ghz bands)? That might be why..
 
Im guessing this is aimed at people who are trying to minimise their speaker and wire count but still want surround thrills.

how does this compare to the king of soundbars the ambeo @Steve Withers

It certainly is the king of soundbars in terms of size but we have many ex-owners of it here who think the Samsung / LG are way better sounding and has better build quality than the Ambeo.

@Talkshowchris can talk more about it more than anyone here as he has owned pretty much every high end soundbar that's out there. :)
 
It certainly is the king of soundbars in terms of size but we have many ex-owners of it here who think the Samsung / LG are way better sounding and has better build quality than the Ambeo.

@Talkshowchris can talk more about it more than anyone here as he has owned pretty much every high end soundbar that's out there. :)
One mans poison.
 
I don't get how the SB has an overall score of 10/10 when most individual score are less than 10.
plus, I disagree with the "Excellent build quality" The fabric and plastic are of incredibly low quality. Especially the fabric, it's horrible and cheap.
 
I mirror this post exactly, I bought the first Atmos bar soon after launch and it is a good machine but after a year or so Samsung seem to have left it dead in the water, still sounds great in the living room set up it was bought for but it could have been fantastic if it had had a few important updates (if possible) in service.
Which updates are you referring to? The HDMI connections are limited by the hardware Samsung was using 2/3 years ago.
 
Good comprehensive review, though I can't help but think that no matter how good a soundbar this is, for £1600 bar a penny you could get a half decent surround sound system that would blow it out of the water.
Still I suppose for those who don't have that option it will find it's market.
By all means, give examples. I read many people making claims that a AVR + speaker kits "blow it out of the water" and when it comes to prove their point, they're all disappear.

I leave in the EU. This soundbard typically sells for £1300 (Euro equivalent). I've been looking for a AVR + 7.1.4 Atmos speaker package for that money, Heck, I'm willing to tote up an extra £300 if it "blows the sounbar out of the water."
 

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