Verdict
Another impressive soundbar from Samsung , the HW - Q700C delivers a dynamic , cinematic performance that will have your wall agitate . It ’s also good with medicine , while owners of recent Samsung TVs get a boost from Samsung - specific features . It could gain from more transonic purification , but if you ’re fain to big , forte sounds , you ’ll want to consider the HW - Q700C for your home .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Just likewith its tv , Samsung is the king of soundbars , anointed for the ninth yr in a rowing in terms of marketplace share . It ’s a discharge it ’ll go for to continue with the likes of the HW - Q700C.
Pitched among its more affordable ( but still premium ) soundbar models for 2023 , the Samsung HW - Q700C is a soundbar / subwoofer jazz band that intend to bring a big boost on your TV ’s sound , featuring an array of features specific to Samsung television receiver , but also offer some supply value with smart features to integrate it within the home .
I ’ve like Samsung ’s previous soundbars a raft , and on specs alone the HW - Q700C look like another success . How does it execute in the caldron of our test rooms ? Here ’s my finding of fact .
Design
Samsung ’s ‘ HW ’ soundbars have in the last few class conformed to one smell : big , angulate , and rather brutalist . Like Sony ’s soundbars , they share a very ‘ substantial ’ , respectable calculate to them .
Some might describe them as politic , and there ’s a thin occupation between bland and minimalism , but the HW - Q700C , like its herald , is one that does n’t sop up attention to itself .
At over a meter wide it ’ll need a lengthy piece of AV furniture to sit on ( and is well suited to 55 - column inch TVs and bigger ) , while at 3 cm tall , it should be capable to fit out beneath most TVs ( specially if it ’s a Samsung ) . The primary unit count in at 4.8 kg , while the subwoofer is a stocky 5.9 kg .
It ’s a mirror image of theHW - Q700Bwith its grilled , perforated Earth’s surface with upfiring speakers that can be spy through the grilles as well as a serial publication of button in the centre that cover exponent , volume , and generator input . In a recessed arena underneath , there ’s a HDMI out ( to the television ) , HDMI input signal , and digital ocular yield if you have a very old TV .
The LED display is settle on the right - script side hold in behind the grille . It ’ll bulge out up with notifications for seed inputs or preferences , and it ’ll expose a masthead when a Dolby Atmos soundtrack is diddle , but wo n’t return the favor forDTS : Xtracks , which I find bemusing .
The subwoofer is boxy – what else bod would it be ? – but like the ginmill , it ’s well built and anonymous in coming into court . It ’s rearward ported , so for best basso management it should be positioned nigher to a paries .
The distant ascendence ( or One Remote Control as Samsung has coined it ) is the same as the 2022 models , which means it ’s an refined , svelte zapper that ’s easy to apply with clit for Bluetooth sexual union , configurations , EQ tuning , and more .
Features
Like the HW - Q700B before it , the Samsung HW - Q700C features a 3.1.2 - channel configuration ( nine speaker system in total ) with a centre , two upfiring speakers , and extensive range of a function tweeter plus the 6.5 - inch woofer . The system can be upgrade with the SWA-9200S tuner solidifying , turning it into a 5.1.2 system with genuine rear speakers . That ’s an extra £ 199.99 / $ 149.99 .
There ’s an raiment of Samsung - specific features if you own a compatible Samsung TV . Q - Symphony is the most illustrious , syncing the speakers of the TV and soundbar so you get sounds and dialogue more accurately placed on filmdom .
When paired with a compatible Samsung TV , the HW - Q700C ’s SpaceFit Sound feature can mechanically optimise the speech sound and fine-tune it for the way , ask into account statement aim and surfaces close by . If you own a different brand idiot box , you wo n’t be capable to take advantage of this .
Active Voice Amplifier conjure the volume of dialogue above other noisy sounds in a elbow room , while Adaptive Sound 2.0 mechanically optimises audio content by identifying the musical style ( pic , news , etc ) . If audio is diddle at a lowly bulk , it ’ll emphasise dialogue so it ’s still hearable . Game Mode 2.0 offers guiding sound to immerse the thespian in the game they ’re playing .
Moving on to connectivity , the HDMI input signal can pass through 4KHDR10+video and there ’s a USB port for servicing use only . There ’s Wi - Fi , which bringsAirPlay 2 , built - in Chromecast ( despite Samsung ’s website enounce it does n’t support it ) , andSpotify Connect . Bluetooth support is included , though it ’s only SBC .
The soundbar also supports wireless Dolby Atmos , convenient for those who have no time for line . Tap the bar with a Galaxy Android smartphone and you’re able to fling music to the barroom without impediment .
smarting add up in the form of Alexa , though it is not built in and requires another compatible gadget to be connected to the loudspeaker . There is ‘ Works with ” Google compatibility even though , once again , the Samsung web site swear there is n’t .
In terms of audio soundtracks there is Dolby Atmos ( Dolby TrueHD , Dolby Digital+ ) , Dolby 5.1ch ; DTS :X , DTS - HD Master Audio , DTS 5.1 , DTS HD and multi - channel LPCM up to eight channels .
Streaming music instead ? Audio formats include AAC , MP3 , OGG , WAV , FLAC , ALAC and AIFF , and the HW - Q700C can decipher Hi - Res Audio .
Finally , there ’s theSmartThingsapp , which can be used to check the soundbar , playback , tailor the EQ , film between source remark , tweak the channel levels , and plenty more . It ’s even more useful if you have other smart intersection compatible with the app , and it can be used to quickly ready - up the soundbar on first use . The Advanced EQ choice are n’t present when the soundbar is go down - up in Q - Symphony way .
Sound Quality
In our brushup of the HW - Q700B , we described it as striking an telling Libra between economic value and performance , and the Samsung HW - Q700C is more of the same .
With John Wick : Chapter 4 ( 4 K Blu - ray ) the HW - Q700C gets off to an impressive start in its thunder verbal description of Wick ’s clenched fist slamming into a wooden post – you may palpate the force , weight , and shot of those hits that ’s only really possible with an extraneous subwoofer .
The film ’s Atmos caterpillar tread is spaciously discover , discover a good balance between ambient detail , dialog , and score ; like where Wick talks to one of the elders in the desert – the sound of flags flap by and wind flowing puts you in the prospect . Though the HW - Q700C is n’t immersive – it is front - fleshy theatrical production without rear speaker – its fine hold of detail does immerse the viewer in another fashion .
Gunshots punctuate in the film ’s action sequences , turn in with plenty of snap fastener and dynamism , while the speech sound of Wick slit up his foes with a sword in the Osaka - establish chronological sequence is gory in the best style possible . As Wick and his opposer are sent flying through glass partition , there ’s a dainty sharpness that get out the Q700C ’s dynamic scope .
Dialogue is give up smoothly and with weightiness through the nerve center channel , though at times there are point where Hiroyuki Sanada ’s Shimazu in Wick 4 does teeter close to sibilance , the HW - Q700C refrains from being overtly knifelike .
Like its predecessor , there ’s splendid focus on dialogue , which is tatty , percipient , and naturally conveyed in Spotlight ( Blu - ray ) , with a natural performance from the Boston accents thespian put on for the film .
Films such as Dune and Tenet with their testing audio recording mixes make out well through this soundbar . Jessica ’s recitation of the Litany of Fear is hearable throughout , while it bring clarity to Kay ’s “ cut in the pits ” leave-taking fool to Sator in the catamaran sequence where on other soundbars can make it sound garbled .
If you do find dialogue is hard to hear , there is the Voice Enhancement context . It is louder , sharp but not as natural in tone ; and it also annul backcloth noises watch The English on iPlayer .
There ’s sibilance too with Emily Blunt ’s Cornelia Locke , the HW - Q700C doling a little too much sharpness and luminousness to her phonation in this mode .
Its functioning with DTS :X soundtracks is n’t as expansive or as dynamical as with Atmos . With Jurassic World : Dominion , it needed to be cranked up to volume 40 to feel as expressive as Atmos tracks are at bulk 30 .
peak channels are n’t as well defined – there ’s more of an intangible good sense of space with Dominion ’s DTS track – but there ’s skilful panning and scaffolding of effects as velociraptors chase the heroes through the streets of Malta .
A mention of the soundbar ’s Q - Symphony performance too ; it ’s dynamic , conveying the difference between hushed and loud in a manner that more expensive bars like theDevialet Dionedon’t . The subwoofer retains impact , bring home the bacon plenty of scale when the Atreides family lands on Arrakis , the freshwater bass crosswalk does n’t seem too importantly altered in this configuration either .
It ’s arguably more detailed in its Q - Symphony mode with the help of the TV ’s verbaliser , but not necessarily more subtle . The soundbar also supports wireless Atmos and despite a little bit of aberration during set up , it demonstrate to be very telling . Fast - send on or rewinding contentedness did n’t leave to it survive out of sync or lagging . If you have a compatible TV , wireless Atmos works as seamlessly as the wired connection .
While it ’s been mostly breathless praise for the Samsung HW - Q700C , there are few quibbles . intensity 30 is as loud as you need to go for Dolby audio tracks ; tread any further and soundtracks veer towards bombastic .
Bass is distinguish in hefty , wide-ranging , cinematic terms but can dart towards being too powerful at the volume level I was listening at . Bass does n’t dominate proceedings I should add – but the HW - Q700C is a touch lack in refining and subtlety . When this subwoofer hit , it hits hard but the overall tone Samsung has gone for here is more towards weight , leading to contingent and sharpness not feeling the most resolved . melt off the loudness to somewhere between 25 – 30 and pick off the woofer to -6 avail for me .
And though the HW - Q700C is spacious , it does n’t expand beyond the confines of theS95C ’s four bezel . It feel locked to the screen rather than go around beyond it , another facial expression is the Q700C does n’t advertize sound into the way either . Unlike the step - up HW - Q800C , it miss side - firing speaker to shovel sound to the sides and sum up more breadth , especially towards the bottom one-half of the screen .
With music there ’s many choices in Spotify Connect , AirPlay 2 , Chromecast , and Bluetooth cyclosis . Bluetooth offers warm , fat bass part with Groove Armada ’s At The River . song are swimmingly conveyed with a touch of prolificacy . I ’d indicate playing music ( at least on Bluetooth ) with Adaptive Sound on as it make for the vocal forward and give the track a unspoiled shape and sense of point .
I would not repeat that trick with Wi - Fi as it ladles the already snappy sound with more asperity , come across as harsh . Nevertheless , with the same track on Spotify Connect it has a larger presence , more space for vocal and instruments to strut their stuff , with a crisper midrange that retrieves more point .
Streaming Qobuz over Chromecast is the same : more energy , dynamism , and clearness across the frequency range than with Bluetooth , more might to bring up , though it can sound too bassy , while some tracks are meretricious to the point of sounding harsh . A stream of the Football Weekly podcast over AirPlay came across aloud and clear . The HW - Q700C ’s Bluetooth performance is fine , but it takes off with its Wi - Fi performance .
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Should you buy it?
The focus on dialogue is great . It ’ll render even the densest Hollywood soundtrack clear and easy to hear .
The HW - Q700C is not what I ’d call subtle . contingent levels are good , but the gradation - up HW - Q800C is clearer and sharper .
Final Thoughts
There ’s not a huge difference between the HW - Q700C andHW - Q700B : same number of speakers , same channels , similar connectivity , and for the most part the same performance .
The addition of Atmos music and LPCM channel musical accompaniment is new , but this soundbar is largely more of the same . Do n’t take that to be a knock against its public presentation , because this is a superbly cinematic effort that gives flick plenty of heft , warm vocal intelligibility , and practiced music functioning .
It lack a little sonic refinement , and you probably wo n’t require this soundbar for an apartment with its room - shaking bass voice , but movie and TV fans will dig this soundbar . It ’s a helluva upright time in its company . Otherwise , check over out ourBest Soundbarguide for more options .
Trusted Score
How we test
We test every soundbar organisation we survey soundly over an lengthened period of time . We use diligence standard mental test to equate feature article in good order . We ’ll always tell you what we find . We never , ever , accept money to review a product .
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FAQs
Chromecast is progress into the Q700C soundbar , despite the Samsung land site list the soundbar as not being able to act Chromecast streams .
