You will recognise, no doubt, the feeling of watching a film on TV and not quite being able to make out the dialogue. Fast-paced action can also sound a little flat, with big explosions making barely any impact. Pretty disappointing, right?
Luckily, there is a quick fix to those sonic frustrations. Soundbars offer a great solution to your TV’s lacklustre audio quality, especially if you are short on space and working on a limited budget.
And right now, to kick off Amazon Prime Day, one of the best budget soundbar systems we have tested is available at a great discount. The Award-winning Hisense AX5125H has dropped from £250 to £199 at Currys. The last time we saw it drop to this price was back in December, and it’s still the lowest price we have spotted on the five-star model.
When we had the Hisense AX5125H in our test room, we were presented with a cohesive, spacious sound that was a huge step up from the TV’s built-in speakers. Watching Civil War, as the White House is swarmed by army personnel, bullets whizz from the front to the back of the room and even behind the listening position with brilliant accuracy considering this soundbar’s low price tag.
Dialogue is also made clearer and more expressive, with only the busiest sections causing voices to become a touch muffled.
If you want a much-needed injection of weight and energy into your movies, the Hisense model can deliver. As we say in our review: “Explosions and deep gunfire have good impact and solidity, and there’s just about enough tonal expression for bassy soundtrack elements to sound reasonably musical.”
There are no up-firing drivers with the AX5125H’s surround speakers, so we don’t get a full dome of sound from the Dolby Atmos system. Still, the height effects appear quite deep into the room and the overall delivery is immersive thanks to the two up-firing drivers in the soundbar.
In terms of physical connectivity, you will find an HDMI input and HDMI output with eARC. There is also an optical digital input, a USB 2.0 port and a 3.5mm jack.
The system is easy to set up as well. The two small surround speakers can be placed on stands in your space or you can wall-mount them. The soundbar is compact as well, measuring 6 x 92 x 9cm (hwd), and should sit in front of most TVs without blocking the display. Finally, the subwoofer’s dimensions (29 x 21 x 30cm) make it easy to place next to the TV in the test room without feeling overly cramped.
If you are looking to upgrade your TV’s speakers without breaking the bank, the Hisense AX5125H is a great choice, especially for £199 at Currys.
MORE:
Here is our full review of the Hisense AX5125H
Check out the best Dolby Atmos soundbars
These are the best soundbar deals
