Wharfedale Vista 200S Soundbar Review & Comments

Just ordered one from Richer Sounds online (my local shop in Bath didn’t have them in yet).
Can’t find any pictures of the mounting brackets, I hope that you can’t see them when mounted.
The different audio modes could be good but if you are using an Apple TV you could be switching between playing music, TV and movies pretty frequently so what would the best sound mode be to leave it on as a default?
I’ll have play on Monday when it arrives and leave some feedback.
 
The different audio modes could be good but if you are using an Apple TV you could be switching between playing music, TV and movies pretty frequently so what would the best sound mode be to leave it on as a default?

I suspect the change of mode would be instantaneous so Movie if watching a movie & Music if playing music obviously.
Only you can decide which mode to use as default once you've got it installed.
 
I bought one of these on the basis of Steve’s comments in the podcast. Will leave a user review when I’ve had a good test of it
 
Just ordered one from Richer Sounds online (my local shop in Bath didn’t have them in yet).
Can’t find any pictures of the mounting brackets, I hope that you can’t see them when mounted.
The different audio modes could be good but if you are using an Apple TV you could be switching between playing music, TV and movies pretty frequently so what would the best sound mode be to leave it on as a default?
I’ll have play on Monday when it arrives and leave some feedback.
The brackets are fairly discreet and I'd suggest using the Music mode as a general setting.
 
Thanks Steve
The Kate Bush remasters will be my first test too
I’m hoping it will have a bit more bass than my Canton DM9 soundbar.
 
I was the one that told Tony that he was mentioned on the podcast :D
 
I worked out that you must live at Wadswick because you mentioned on the podcast that some Pokemon Go players got trapped in the mines near your house and you had very slow broadband and Tony confirmed it :D
 
Would you recommend this or the Yamaha YAS-207? The DTS Virtual:X intrigues me on the Yamaha.

On a slightly different note, does DTS:X also do virtual surround sound or not? I'm a bit confused by it all!
 
I hope this has IR Learning because I’ll be using optical not ARC.
I’ll need to use the TV remote to do the basic Vol up and down and On/Off
 
Would you recommend this or the Yamaha YAS-207? The DTS Virtual:X intrigues me on the Yamaha.

On a slightly different note, does DTS:X also do virtual surround sound or not? I'm a bit confused by it all!
I haven't reviewed the YAS-207 but I did find DTS Virtual:X to be quite effective on the soundbars I have tested.
 
The YAS-107 is £250 and it's a good soundbar, but there's no separate subwoofer so it's lacking in the bass department.
 
Well I’ve got mine and been demo’ing it for a while and it’s not great.
You can’t really wall mount it in any neat way, the HDMI connection is very close to the top of the soundbar and the mounting brackets leave a 5cm gap between the bar and the wall so cables are all on display, no design thought has gone into this at all - its almost laughable. (The only way round this would be to fit it tight up under the TV to hide the cables)

With TV and films the subwoofer rumbles slightly when there’s just dialog as if it’s trying to join in - a bit like a muffled morse code.
Music suffers from the same problem. Sigrid’s I don’t feel like crying has the sub grumble in the intro but sound fine as the track picks up.
Kate Bush’s And Dream of Sheep is ruined by the sub trying to join in but Waking the witch sounds pretty good when you get to the middle of the track. Khruangbin live at Pitchfork on YouTube sounded pretty damn good all the way through. Basically it’s hit and miss with music (which is no good at all really)

This feels like a pretty good sound bar with a sub that is taking away more than its adds overall.

Now I just have to check Richer Sounds return policy.
 
Well I’ve got mine and been demo’ing it for a while and it’s not great.
You can’t really wall mount it in any neat way, the HDMI connection is very close to the top of the soundbar and the mounting brackets leave a 5cm gap between the bar and the wall so cables are all on display, no design thought has gone into this at all - its almost laughable. (The only way round this would be to fit it tight up under the TV to hide the cables)

With TV and films the subwoofer rumbles slightly when there’s just dialog as if it’s trying to join in - a bit like a muffled morse code.
Music suffers from the same problem. Sigrid’s I don’t feel like crying has the sub grumble in the intro but sound fine as the track picks up.
Kate Bush’s And Dream of Sheep is ruined by the sub trying to join in but Waking the witch sounds pretty good when you get to the middle of the track. Khruangbin live at Pitchfork on YouTube sounded pretty damn good all the way through. Basically it’s hit and miss with music (which is no good at all really)

This feels like a pretty good sound bar with a sub that is taking away more than its adds overall.

Now I just have to check Richer Sounds return policy.
Sorry to hear your were so dissatisfied with a product I recommended. There aren't many other soundbar/subwoofer options for £219. I don't know how big your TV is, but since music is important to you and you're not using HDMI, then the Acoustic Energy Aego Soundbar might be worth a try: it's the same price but doesn't have HDMI. It's quite small but sounds bigger than it looks, and is particularly good with music. The sub is wired rather than wireless, and all the amplification is built into the sub, which is a slightly different approach. However I thought it sounded good and the soundbar and subwoofer were really nicely integrated.

I've just got the Polk Command Bar in for review, I haven't tested it yet but you can pick it up for £250 which makes it one of the few soundbar/subwoofer combos at that price point.
 
No problem Steve, it might just have been a faulty unit.
I only tried it with ARC as the optical was still hooked up to my Canton.
Would be keen to hear what you think of the Polk as I think I might prefer a wired Sub.
thanks Nat
 
With TV and films the subwoofer rumbles slightly when there’s just dialog as if it’s trying to join in - a bit like a muffled morse code.
Music suffers from the same problem. Sigrid’s I don’t feel like crying has the sub grumble in the intro but sound fine as the track picks up.
Kate Bush’s And Dream of Sheep is ruined by the sub trying to join in but Waking the witch sounds pretty good when you get to the middle of the track. Khruangbin live at Pitchfork on YouTube sounded pretty damn good all the way through. Basically it’s hit and miss with music (which is no good at all really)

This feels like a pretty good sound bar with a sub that is taking away more than its adds overall.

That's a shame. This unit sounds like a really good middle ground for me, but if these issues are anything to go by - that's a deal breaker I'm afraid. Would be curious to hear if other users have the same problem.
 
If you're looking for a soundbar, you really should consider the Polk Command Bar. It sounds good, has more features than the Wharfedale, and is currently available from Richer Sounds for just £199. Frankly that's a crazy price for all the you're getting! Polk Command Bar Soundbar Review
 
I did consider the Polk.. On paper, it seems great!
But aesthetically speaking, its.. well.. let's just say not to my taste.
 

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