Verdict
The titchy SR - C30A is great at reach your terrible TV speakers go much substantially . If the rather fractured relationship between the soundbar and the subwoofer could be counselled , it would be approaching ‘ idealistic ’ .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Yamaha , it ’s safe to say , has plenty of old where soundbars are worry – in fact , you could argue that the companionship originate the whole concept in the first place .
And it ’s true to say Yamaha cognise exactly what ’s what when it comes to usefully compact soundbars , too – its dinky little SR - C20A is a brilliant combination of biggish sound from a little chassis at an equally little price .
So my hopes are high for the SR - C30A , no two ways about it . It postulate the proven SR - C20A recipe and adds a wireless subwoofer for a turn of the cinematic rumble and thump we all value in our movie and/or gambling speech sound , without let the asking price get out of bridge player . All it has to do is phone slap-up , and it ’s job done …
The Yamaha SR - C30A is on cut-rate sale and in the UK it sell for a competitive £ 299 . In America , it ’s priced even more aggressively : it ’s yours for $ 279 . Australian customer , meanwhile , while have to fork out no more than AU$399 to insure one .
Soundbars at this sort of money are n’t peculiarly tenuous on the undercoat – even soundbars with an accompanying subwoofer are n’t hard to arrive by . But a soundbar so small it can be used beneath the titchiest TV or gambling monitor , with a wireless submarine hold in ? Those are harder to come by …
Design
It ’s important to calibrate your outlook where the excogitation and finish of such an low-priced organization is touch on – even if it wear a Yamaha badge . There ’s absolutely nothing wrong with the way the SR - C30A is put together , and the materials from which it ’s made are dead fit for function too … but luxury costs a fair act more than this .
The wireless subwoofer is almost entirely chipboard , but it ’s by rights screwed together and swimmingly finish . The front panel , which has a credit card - trimmed bass inborn reflex embrasure towards the bottom , is covered in acoustical material , and there ’s more of that fabric cover the side - firing basso driver . At 335 x 160 x 364 mm ( HxWxD ) it ’s reasonably compact – and this , along with the wireless view of its specification , mean it ’s happy enough pretty much anywhere in your hearing room . As long as it has accession to mains powerfulness , of course .
The soundbar itself , meanwhile , is a dinky 64 x 600 x 94 mm ( HxWxD ) – which mean it will sit merrily beneath even the smallest tv set without looking in any way imposing . At just 1.3 kilogram it ’s no hassle to move from one elbow room to another , either – and thanks to some keyhole fixings on the rear panel , it can be rampart - climb on almost as easily as it can sit on a shelf . It ’s built from an ordinary ( but perfectly serviceable ) grade of charge plate , and boast more of the same acoustic textile across the front and top airfoil . Tactile it is n’t , but it – like the subwoofer – is decent made and finished .
Features
This is a 2.1 - channel system , as both its sizing and its asking monetary value credibly make up clear – none of your fancy - pants spatial audio frequency here . The SR - C30A is able-bodied to deal with moderately much any audio selective information that ’s incoming – but what you ’ll listen is a two-channel - plus - subwoofer rendering of it .
The soundbar features a couple of 46 mm full - grasp drivers , each in reception of 20 watts of Class D power . The subwoofer , meanwhile , has a side - firing 130 millimetre bass equipment driver ( with bass reflex reinforcement ) , which gets 50 W . The connecter between the two is wireless , and it pass mechanically the moment both constituent are powered up – and there ’s a little pairing button on the back of the subwoofer in typeface it does n’t .
The back of the soundbar features all the physical inputs . There ’s anHDMI ARCsocket , a couple of digital ocular input signal ( one pronounce optical , the other ‘ TV ’ in case you ’re not using the HDMI stimulant ) and a 3.5 mm analogue socket . There ’s also a USB one-armed bandit , but this is just for service purposes . Wireless connectivity is taken aid of byBluetooth 5.0 , with SBC and AAC codec compatibility .
Control of the system can be achieved in one of several ways . There are a few touch - control on the top of the soundbar itself ( volume up / down , input pick and force on / off ) – these are above a little row of LED tell - tales that countenance you bang what ’s what as regards input and volume point .
The Yamaha is also supplied with a full - subprogram distant ascendance handset – it ’s about as prosaic and physically unspectacular as the system it keep company , but it cover every eventuality , include a dedicated subwoofer bulk control , along with Clear Voice and Bass extension choice ( the first pushes the midrange forward in the name of limpidity , the 2nd does the same with blue frequencies in the name of cinematic excitement ) .
you could also enter the SR - C30A ’s EQ presets ( Stereo , Standard , 3D movie and Game ) , mute the system , and dim or turn off completely those little light-emitting diode .
The Yamaha can also be operated using the Sound Bar Remote control app ( for iOS and Android ) . It duplicates all the functions of the physical distant restraint , fit them all on one page , and is simplicity itself to use .
Sound Quality
Yes , the SR - C30A ’s subwoofer is small and its soundbar is smaller still – but this system nevertheless vocalise bigger , buirdly and altogether more convincing than any routine of mainstream television set or gaming monitor I could mention . It may not be staring ( what is ? ) , but it ’s a definite upgrade on the audio system fitted to the majority of low-cost television .
It ’s the directness and positivity of the soundbar ’s public presentation that ’s initially most striking . It may not have a dedicated tweeter anywhere , but it creates convincing , quite solid high frequencies regardless – and they are laden with detail as well as with body .
And it ’s a similar history where midrange response is concerned : the Yamaha vocalize self-assertive and upfront , but never gets carried aside with itself – and , again , detail layer are satisfyingly high-pitched . Dialogue is distinct , characterful , loaded with information regarding tone and tone , and projects well ahead of the other element of a soundtrack – even if the soundtrack in question is in the process of plain right off .
At the bottom of the frequency range , too , where the subwoofer does its matter , there ’s well - controlled presence and raft of fine detail available too . The sub proves punchy enough to cope with the full - on action stuff , but controls its output sufficiently well to make the attack and decomposition of item-by-item events apparent where less open designs just drone . This aid no ending where rhythmic manifestation is have-to doe with too , when your soundtrack gets music - heavy ( or you just make up one’s mind you want to rain cats and dogs so euphony ) .
The soundstage the SR - C30A create is n’t anything special in term of outright scale , but it ’s well - organised enough to keep everything in its lane and forbid even the most complex import in a soundtrack getting puddle . And there ’s sufficient dynamic headroom usable ( despite the unpromising power rating ) to allow the distance between whispered exposition and vast , expensive explosion seem fairly significant .
The relationship between the soundbar and the subwoofer is n’t all fragrancy and light , though . The subwoofer seems to have been charged with dealing with rather more of the frequency range than is vulgar in product like this – the soundbar by itself is undeniably lightweight and somewhat lacking in mien , so the subwoofer has to take care of more of the frequency range than is perhaps ideal .
So the crosswalk between the two is high enough up the frequency range to put it in quite a raw orbit as far as human hearing is bear on – and it ’s not an specially liquid handover . The difference in tonality between the two devices is made quite apparent . Fiddling with the subwoofer ’s volume relative to that of the soundbar assist a small , but it ca n’t obviate the trouble .
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Should you buy it?
You might be able-bodied to grease one’s palms a slightly better - sound alternative for this money , but it wo n’t be anything like as discreet .
Yes , it sounds much better than your useless television – but the SR - C30A is n’t exactly a all-encompassing - screen door listen .
Final Thoughts
You ’re not poor of choice where soundbars at this form of money are concerned – and , in fact , soundbars - plus - a - subwoofer are n’t all that rare at this price either . But the SR - C30A ’s unique marketing point is persuasive in the extreme . After all , bigger does n’t automatically mean better – and if delicacy and/or portability are on your regard - list , you ca n’t really go wrong here .
Trusted Score
How we test
We test every soundbar we survey soundly over an extended menstruum of time . We habituate manufacture standard mental testing to compare features right . We ’ll always tell you what we find . We never , ever , live with money to retrospect a product .
obtain out more about how we test in ourethics insurance policy .
FAQs
There ’s no immersive audio support for the C30A soundbar . It supports Dolby Digital sound recording for films and TVs
