What Hi-Fi? Verdict
The keenly contested soundbar class has a new and exceptionally capable king
Pros
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Excellent all-around performance
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comprehensive spec
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simplicity
Cons
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Not cheap
Why you can trust What Hi-Fi? Our expert team reviews products in dedicated test rooms, to help you make the best choice for your budget. Find out more about how we test.
There's more surround sound on offer than ever these days: all the more reason to invest in a 5.1 sound system. That said, many's the household where the mere suggestion of installing a home cinema system would be about as welcome as snot in your sandwich.
Enter the soundbar – a single speaker, instant-fit audio upgrade for a TV. They're increasingly popular, and small wonder: for neatness and convenience, they're hard to top.
Trouble is, most struggle to deliver proper surround sound. Most, that is, except for Yamaha's Digital Sound Projectors, which employ up to 40 compact speaker drive units that individually 'steer'beams of sound around your room.
The only downside is that the Yamaha's HDMI inputs don't recognise multichannel PCM or other forms of HD audio.
The most convincing sound projector yet
Sonically this is the most convincing Digital Sound Projector yet. Directly compared to Marantz's similarly priced ES7001, it's a little brighter to listen to, but for room-filling scale (even without adding a subwoofer, which is an option), the Yamaha has the edge.
It's all hugely impressive: if you really can't accept a conventional speaker system in your front room, this is a great alternative.
