Verdict
A powerful - sound Dolby Atmos and DTS :X soundbar , the Sony HT - A5000 produces a clear , detailed , and in the right setting , heroic soundstage . It performs well with TV and medicine too for those who require a soundbar that ’s a uniform performer across a kitchen range of sources .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Sony ’s refresh of its soundbar range began with theHT - A7000 in 2021 , and not long afterwards it was followed by the HT - A5000 .
The HT - A5000 is the stair - down bar from the flagship version . It ’s less expensive , with fewer channels of audio ( 9 compare to 11 ) , fewer connections and less power at its electric pig .
The Leontyne Price bracket in which the Sony HT - A5000 finds itself in is not short of contention . TheSonos ArcandBowers & Wilkins Panorama 3have the same RRP , so how well does the Sony soundbar stand out against magisterial competition ? Here are my thoughts .
Design
Compact is not a parole I ’d apply to describe the Sony HT - A5000 . Like the step - up HT - A7000 this is a big soundbar at over a measure wide , 140 millimetre in profoundness and 67 mm tall . The height allows it to sit comfortably beneath most TVs , but the breadth could be a problem if you have a TV that has stick out pes .
The width of the bar is close to that of a 55 - column inch television set but attempt to place it beneath Sony’sXR-55A80L(in its soundbar perspective ) and it could n’t fit . A idiot box with a central stand should be fine though you ’ll take some space in front of the TV to accommodate the A5000 .
The aesthetic have been pared down from the divisive HT - A7000 ( which I liked the facial expression of ) , but still stick to Sony ’s favor ‘ omnidirectional pulley concept ’ , which seems to translate as ‘ mighty big soundbar ’ .
There ’s a transparent grille on the front where , at a certain angle , you could see the drivers behind , along with an LED display that ’s lustrous enough to be viewed from a sit stance , alongside freshwater bass porthole at either goal .
Connections are housed in a sunken field around the back of the unit , with onboard control on the top surface . The upfiring driver are cover by the same type of radiator grille that features on the front – it gives the A5000 a classifiable feel that I suppose some may not take to . This is n’t really a bar that disappears into its environs , but I do n’t mind that .
The remote control is the same as the one packaged with the A7000 . It does n’t feature backlit buttons , but the layout is excellent with responsive presses and a nice , soft feel that attain it nice to apply . There are several specific release with input shift and , if you bestow fundament and subwoofer , mass control for those units .
Features
Connections entail an HDMI input and output , opthalmic input , and USB . The HDMI stimulant can pass - through HDR10 , HLG , andDolby Visionsignals ( at 4K/60 ) . There ’s currently no 4K/120Hz keep for gaming on the table .
For wireless connections there ’s build - in Chromecast , Spotify Connect , AirPlay 2 , andBluetooth 5.0 . There ’s alsoLDACsupport to stream higher quality audio files over Bluetooth ( the barroom can also carry in LDAC to other equipment ) .
The USB embrasure can toy MP3 , FLAC , ALAC , DSD and more , while the HDMI ports bear out a coterie of formats from Dolby ( Atmos , Digital+ , TrueHD ) , DTS ( DTS - HD MA , High Resolution sound recording , DTS :X ) and LPCM soundtracks to name a few .
Sony ’s Vertical Surround Engine create ‘ practical ’ height channels alongside the forcible upfiring drivers , while the S - Force PRO Front Surround claims to open fire sound towards the hearer to create a soundfield that wrap around the viewer .
There is also the Sound Field Optimization feature , which utilize the bar ’s built - in microphone to valuate the height and width of the space it ’s in to optimise the strait for the room .
The Sound Field Optimization characteristic is accessible from the bar ’s full - screen port ( press the Home button ) where along with calibrating the sound , you’re able to go into the setting , entree files on a connected USB and place up a connection to anAmazon Alexadevice to rope in Alexa smarts ( Google Assistantvoice control is also possible ) .
Sony states its DSEE Extreme algorithm can restore high-pitched - stove sound suffer in the compression of tracks for a better - quality performance . For certain BRAVIA TVs there ’s the Acoustic Centre Sync feature whereby both the TV and the soundbar can function as the center speaker unit simultaneously . The interface of both the legal profession and TV is streamlined too , so options for both can be accessed at the same time
There are several reading of Sony’s360 Reality Audio , the main one being the soundbar can toy spatial ( or three-D ) audio tracks from the likes of Tidal andAmazon Musicstreaming services . This can be set up through the Sony Music Centre app , which is also the app to go to for Alexa consolidation .
bring wireless rearward speakers and in tandem bicycle with the Sound Field Optimization , the 360 Spatial Sound Mapping processing produce phantom speaker system for a bigger , immersive hemisphere of phone .
This works with equate rear speakers from Sony in the SA - RS35 ( £ 449/$349.99 ) and SA - RS5 ( £ 699/$599.99 ) , and there ’s room to supply a subwoofer in the SA - SW5 ( £ 699/$699 ) and SA - SW3 ( £ 449/$399 ) . All of these ‘ optional ’ speakers drive the price up though .
Sony ( as far as I can tell apart ) has n’t gone into the precise particular of the HT - A5000 ’s driver apparatus , but it has a sizeable 450W of power distribute in a 5.1.2 shape made up of beam tweeter to bounce sound of wall to amplify the surround sound effect : two upfiring speakers , front - raise speaker system , and a built - in subwoofer . All are based on Sony ’s X - Balanced speaker system unit that delivers less twisting .
Sound Quality
The tone and overall audio performance of the Sony HT - A5000 is in keeping with the flagship HT - A7000 , but there is a flimsy loss of power , scale , and ‘ height ’ . It plays like the young , smaller sib of the A7000 .
But do n’t permit that deter you from taking a closer look at the A5000 ’s performance . While with Blade Runner 2049 it lack the A7000 ’s scale and power at the low remainder , there ’s a firm sense of punch and military unit to lick in the fighting scene between Sapper Morton and K. Adding a subwoofer would make the scene even more explosive .
It adopts the same natural , crispy tone with voice as the A7000 , pose dialogue where it originates on CRT screen . It describes rather compactly the difference between the deep , severe voice of Sapper Morton and lite cadence of K , which might not seem like a big factor but achieves the act of immersing the viewer with negotiation where not much is chance visually .
With Jordan Peele ’s Nope ( with Atmos enabled ) there ’s free weight to dialogue too , but it never sounds anything other than natural with no sibilance noted .
Having had theLG USC9Sin for testing at the same time , I did notice the Sony handles off - screen dialogue better , avoiding a processed - fathom tone as well as add up a mother wit of astuteness in terms of where the character is in the scene .
For those who have fuss hearing dialogue , the Voice Effect can nobble dialogue and make it louder , although it does change the tint slightly and it make nearby interference louder too , like the kettle on boil in the backdrop of Sapper and K ’s conversation in Blade Runner 2049 .
The sensation of height to the HT - A5000 ’s presentation feels diminished at first . When the Spinner set ashore at Sapper ’s farm , I ca n’t get a grasp of the locomotive as it fires down from above and the Spinner settle . This is where turning on the ‘ Soundfield ’ result can exert a positive effect by affording the HT - A5000 a bigger soundscape to act in . Sound effects and dialogue ‘ escape ’ the measure well rather than feeling as if they ’re do directly from the locker .
With the Soundfield effect on , the airstream scene through the practical street of New York in Ready Player One takes on a more dynamical and spacious feeler . Intensity to the action at law is drive up a few notches as Parzival ’s DeLorean jump through the chaos of gondola and trains flip over , dinosaurs plucking vie racers from the road and King Kong leaping from above .
Height effects are more obtrusive in the Soundfield style , with a little more biff and exponent afford to the shot .
The Soundfield routine evokes a crisper tone , with a little acuity evident that ensue in a smidge of sibilance with dialog . In Ready Player One ’s Distracted Globe sequence , the sense of energy to the vista is revalue , but the sharp shade does palpate bumpy in station .
The Soundfield setting can also make some consequence sound artificial . Watching Netflix ’s The Dig ( Dolby Atmos ) and in a scene where there ’s heavy rain , the Soundfield setting makes it voice less born . It also spotlight background haphazardness , as if it ’s trying to dredge up every mo of detail in the scene rather of concentrating on what ’s in the foreground .
The prevention ’s performance with DTS :X and stereo content mirror its Atmos functioning watching Get Out . Turning the Soundfield part on widens and raises the soundstage – ambient sounds have a bounteous comportment and background phone are project forward .
Its laconic and sharp tone gives the film ’s jump scare off a big shock . There ’s the encouragement to negotiation in adding more weight , especially to male character . A stream of The English on iPlayer tender the precise same boost with the Soundfield function on .
I would say turning the Soundfield function off produces a more rude and balanced introduction – a subtler one to be more precise – but you ’d overlook out on the details I lean above .
There ’s no ‘ Music ’ mode , at least not one I can see list , so there ’s no means of being able-bodied to falsify the bar ’s EQ . Nevertheless , with the Spotify Connect stream of Orbital ’s gasoline , it ’s a punchy , energetic , and fast-growing functioning – the built - in subwoofer is put to good use . It ’s not overly crisp in spirit , but tracks like Elbow ’s The Bones of you could edge on sounding spirant in Soundfield mode .
Otherwise , the Sony HT - A5000 has all the attributes for a good music performance : solid dynamics , good outspoken clarity , bright ( but not too piercing ) treble procreation , and lots of get-up-and-go and power driving its audio . I would n’t lean to encounter medicine above volume 50 unless you ’re hosting a party . Listening to Mitski ’s ride out subdued feels like I ’m on a exercising .
The Bluetooth performance is honest than I expected it would be , slightly smoother in tone with sea bass not as powerful , but there ’s still energy to Chvrches ’ The Mother We Share . LDAC support seems to elevate its performance beyond the average .
pour over Chromecast from Amazon Music is assorted . I ’d urge you to well out via the Alexa connection rather than the build - in Chromecast ( you ’d involve to set the saloon up with Alexa for this option to present itself ) .
Use the built - in Chromecast and there ’s not the same level of baron , thrust , or energy to tracks . The nonremittal bulk is low ; music sound fuzzier compare to Spotify Connect , and even with the Soundfield setting it sound small . The bad part is that Ultra HD tracks are downscaled to HD . Choose the Alexa connection and the performance is more in line with other wireless author .
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Should you buy it?
The Sony HT - A5000 is a systematically powerful soundbar across a range of source , with punchy bass , good dialog placement and good balance across the frequency ambit .
The HT - A5000 is on the large sizing , so if space is at a agio , consider more compact effort like theSonos Beam 2orBose Smart Soundbar 600 .
Final Thoughts
The Sony HT - A5000 soundbar is dependable for films , TV , and music . Its public presentation out of the loge is balanced , but with the Soundfield function there ’s a good sense of altitude and width to go with the bar ’s inborn sensation of DOE and big businessman across all character of content .
It ’s a fully grown bar that will need space to engage , and social function best when paired with Sony TVs . There ’s an upgrade way in the gain of a subwoofer and rearward utterer , but this summate significantly to the price , making it as expensive as theSonos ArcSurround strait system .
The Sony HT - A5000 is a knock-down immersive soundbar that will elevate a living room ’s audio experience . TheHT - A7000is the good bar , but if your budget wo n’t unfold to over £ 1000/$1000 , the HT - A5000 is a good choice . Check out ourBest Soundbarlist for even more option .
Trusted Score
How we test
We test every soundbar system we review exhaustively over an prolonged period of time . We use industry stock tests to compare feature right . We ’ll always tell you what we find . We never , ever , accept money to review a product .
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FAQs
There is n’t a subwoofer included with the A5000 soundbar , but you could add one in the shape of the SA - SW3 or SA - SW5 to increase the strength of the bass .
