Sony HT-ST5000 Dolby Atmos Soundbar Review & Comments

Thanks for review Steve - been waiting to decide between this and the Samsung HW K950.
 
Thanks for the review. I actually placed my ST5K in a relatively snug 2.5 by 2.5 by 2.5 meter room with a flat ceiling and solid walls all around.

In this environment it really comes to life and as our couch/sofa is flat against the wall it's immersive and, as the review states, front heavy but that suits our room set-up.

Sound quality is really something. My previous 5.1 set-up never sounded as convincing as this so there is something to be said about how it distributes the sound.

I definitely got a sense of immersion, motion and the occasional sensation of height.

For calibration I used one of the Dolby test tracks which really helped out.
 
In Steve's review of the HW-K950 and 850....this is in regard to the competition part of the review.

Steve Withers said:
It should be pointed out that although the HW-K950 supports Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Atmos, it only currently supports DTS two-channel audio.

Steve Withers said:
Although the K850 supports Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Atmos, it only currently supports DTS two-channel audio, which is a shame as it means the soundbar can't support multi-channel DTS, DTS-HD Master Audio

95% of my viewing is Blu Ray which is 95% DTS MA. I cannot consider any soundbar that doesn't support such basic audio format due to being too mardy to pay the associated fees. Especially a company the size of Samsung.
 
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In Steve's review of the HW-K950 and 850....this is in regard to the competition part of the review.





95% of my viewing is Blu Ray which is 95% DTS MA. I cannot consider any soundbar that doesn't support such basic audio format due to being too mardy to pay the associated fees. Especially a company the size of Samsung.
Since those reviews were written Samsung have actually added DTS 5.1 support to the K850 and K950 but it would be nice to see them add DTS:X support as well because as far as I know there's no technical reason why they can't.
 
Since those reviews were written Samsung have actually added DTS 5.1 support to the K850 and K950 but it would be nice to see them add DTS:X support as well because as far as I know there's no technical reason why they can't.
But that's lossy though? No HD-MA? Still a bit pointless.

I just wish the Yamaha wasn't completely boinked by its laughable HDMI connection. It can be had with the matching sub for £1600. Still costly but in my near future, a soundbar is really the only way I will be able to have decent sound.
 
Then again, it's only a soundbar's "surround sound" isn't it?

But if there are other options, then I'd still get something else I think.
 
But that's lossy though? No HD-MA? Still a bit pointless.

I just wish the Yamaha wasn't completely boinked by its laughable HDMI connection. It can be had with the matching sub for £1600. Still costly but in my near future, a soundbar is really the only way I will be able to have decent sound.
Yes it is but as far as I know none of the Atmos soundbars (except the YSP-5600) can accept anything more than lossy DTS 5.1, although the Sony is apparently going to get a firmware update.
 
Yes it is but as far as I know none of the Atmos soundbars (except the YSP-5600) can accept anything more than lossy DTS 5.1, although the Sony is apparently going to get a firmware update.
If you don't mind me asking Steve, ignoring the surround effects or inc if you want (minus the lack of rear speaker ability), does the Yamaha have better sound than the Sony? For something so much bigger, more speakers and Yamaha's proven history of good sound, I expect it to be way better, but every review you've done it doesnt sound like you rate it that much. At least value wise it appears to not great.
 
Is there ever going to be a review of the Onkyo LS7200? It's been out for ages, and is the only soundbar on paper that does DTS X and HDR pass through together. It is currently priced at around £730 for a bar, subwoofer and receiver. Intrigued, but I can find no professional reviews in the UK.
 
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My tv is in a squarish room, no ceiling beams or anything to interfere with sound waves. Ceilings/walls all perfectly smooth and flat. My listening position is 8 1/2 feet from soundbar and ceiling would be exactly 6"1" above top of soundbar.
Rear wall is another 2 feet approx behind my listening position.
Can I expect to get optimal performance from this unit in such a scenario?...
 
My tv is in a squarish room, no ceiling beams or anything to interfere with sound waves. Ceilings/walls all perfectly smooth and flat. My listening position is 8 1/2 feet from soundbar and ceiling would be exactly 6"1" above top of soundbar.
Rear wall is another 2 feet approx behind my listening position.
Can I expect to get optimal performance from this unit in such a scenario?...
Yes, it sounds about perfect.
 
Is it immersive enough for an audio purist? Nope.
You need to spread the sources around to get the best possible soundstage. I have my atmos speakers on top of the wall wide shelf near the ceiling. It sounds great.
 
Can anyone confirm if this just got the much promised dts:X firmware update the other day...a few people reporting on a US site that it did?
 
Hi dudes. I am chosing a sound system for my build-uping home theater 2018 project.

After thinking twice i finally decided to enter into soundbars instead of ordinary set up - my room is not prepared for building a massive HTS and i dont want to enter into affordable reciever + atmos acoustics..

The strong point of Sony solution is Dolby Vision compitability while HW-K950 has rear speakers that adopted for Dolby atmos audio specs

Can this stuff be comparable with HW-K950 in terms of real surround sound using rear speakers?
 
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Hi dudes. I am chosing a sound system for my build-uping home theater 2018 project.

After thinking twice i finally decided to enter into soundbars instead of ordinary set up - my room is not prepared for building a massive HTS and i dont want to enter into affordable reciever + atmos acoustics..

The strong point of Sony solution is Dolby Vision compitability while HW-K950 has rear speakers that adopted for Dolby atmos audio specs

Can this stuff be comparable with HW-K950 in terms of real surround sound using rear speakers?
I think the Sony uses a 7.1.2 but just has two upfiring speakers at the front. The Samsung hw-k950 uses a 5.1.4 configuration with the addition of two wireless rear speakers with two upfiring for the front and two upfiring for the rears...
 
I think the Sony uses a 7.1.2 but just has two upfiring speakers at the front. The Samsung hw-k950 uses a 5.1.4 configuration with the addition of two wireless rear speakers with two upfiring for the front and two upfiring for the rears...

Yes... And the main disspointment for me that Sony doesnt offer rear speakers support for 5000 model that making pointless money investment in their product
 
Yes... And the main disspointment for me that Sony doesnt offer rear speakers support for 5000 model that making pointless money investment in their product
Still seems to get rave reviews for its sound quality.
 
Still seems to get rave reviews for its sound quality.

I think the Sony soundbar is hugely dependent on your particular room layout as it seems to be a kind of love it or hate it type product. Most reviews seem to be ecstatic or the extreme opposite- very negative.
 
Hi steve.
I have someone who can sell me a st5000 for £800 with 5 years of warranty left on it.
My situation is i have a 5.1 separates. But i live in an1 bed maisonette ground floor and neighbours arent keen on my setup even on a reasonably low setting. I can give the beans as they dont like it. So i bought a k950 samsung a few months ago but returned it ad resr speakers were quiet and the base was so boomy and could not find a happy medium. Also had the sl9y for two days and couldn't find having no good setup menu or settings to be a pain in the rear. My question is it worth buying the st5000 as from the review it has a good setup menu and whilst the lack of rears is not good i just want something with atmos and dts x that is worth the effort.
Im currently using a ct780 2.1 sony soundbar.

Cheers
 
Hi steve.
I have someone who can sell me a st5000 for £800 with 5 years of warranty left on it.
My situation is i have a 5.1 separates. But i live in an1 bed maisonette ground floor and neighbours arent keen on my setup even on a reasonably low setting. I can give the beans as they dont like it. So i bought a k950 samsung a few months ago but returned it ad resr speakers were quiet and the base was so boomy and could not find a happy medium. Also had the sl9y for two days and couldn't find having no good setup menu or settings to be a pain in the rear. My question is it worth buying the st5000 as from the review it has a good setup menu and whilst the lack of rears is not good i just want something with atmos and dts x that is worth the effort.
Im currently using a ct780 2.1 sony soundbar.

Cheers
It sounds like the ST5000 would be a good compromise for you, and the setup is definitely superior to both Samsung and LG.
 

Hi Steve,

For some one looking for an Atmos Soundbar and Sub, but without rears do you think this product is good value for July 2019? The price is around £1,200 now.

I know you gave a Samsung bar a 10 rating recently, but I prefer Sony and don’t have room for rear speakers even if they are small.

I recently sold my Bose 300 soundbar / sub and rear speaker system.
After owning it for 2 years I found it to be a little harsh sounding at higher volumes.

Also i have a Sony 65inch AF9 so am looking for a significant improvement over it even though this TV is supposed to sound quite good - for a tv.
 

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