When you think of a sound bar, you might imagine a cheap speaker that plugs into your TV to get slightly better sound than the TV's built-in speakers. But some companies are taking soundbar technology to new heights, in this case, quite literally. LG just unveilved details on its 2019 soundbar line, including three new models that support height-enhanced immersive surround sound via Dolby Atmos and DTS-X. Last year's models supported Dolby Atmos, but not DTS-X, so the new systems should appeal to audio aficionados and hobbyists who want to get the best sound out of all of their movies, music and TV shows.
The SL9Y ($999) offers a 4.1.2 solution with speaker drivers and amps for front left and right channels, side-firing surround left and right channels, and two up-firing height channel speakers. These are all integrated into the main soundbar unit. A separate powered subwoofer handles the low bass. The SL10Y ($1,299) goes one better with a 5.1.2 channel system. In addition to the speaker configuration of the SL9Y, the SL10Y offers a dedicated center speaker in the main soundbar which should improve dialog clarity.
Both soundbars have the option of adding discrete "wireless" rear speakers for a more immersive surround experience. This effectively turns the SL9Y into a 6.1.2 channel system and turns the SL10Y into a 7.1.2 channel solution. With the addition of the SPK8-S wireless surround speaker module ($129.99), a separate powered receiver and amplifier module sits in the back of your room, and the rear speakers plug into this module. So there are still wires, just not wires that need to run from the front to the back of your room. Height duties for DTS-X and Dolby Atmos are handled by up-firing speaker drivers built into the sound bars. We've found that you can get very good height effects from up-firing speakers as long as you have a flat ceiling of average height (7 to 10 feet).
For those who want a taste of that immersive sound experience, but without the side-firing surround speakers, the SL8Y ($799) offers a 3.1.2 solution at a lower price point. If you decide you want to upgrade to 5.1.2, you can add the wireless rear speaker module (SPK8-S) at any time.
LG has partnered with British high-end speaker maker Meridian to create sound systems that aim to satisfy even the most critical listeners and audiophiles. Toward that goal, the soundbars include built-in support for high bit rate Hi-Res Audio: up to 24-bit/192KHz. The units all include USB ports that can play these uncompressed high resolution audio files from an attached USB drive. The three units also support Bluetooth 4.2 and Google Chromecast for high quality wireless audio streaming. Speaking of Google, you'll also find the Google Assistant on-board for voice control and integration with compatible SmartHome hubs and devices.
In terms of connectivity, all units include an HDMI input and an HDMI output with HDCP 2.2 compatibility, ARC (Audio Return Channel) support and 4K Ultra HD passthrough. The SL10Y includes a second HDMI input for greater flexibility. A fiberoptic optical jack is also included on all models for compatiblity with older TVs.
Note: just to keep things confusing, each of the models has an alternate model number with a "G" on the end. There is no difference other than the letter. The SL8Y is also the SL8YG, SL9Y is SL9YG and SL10Y is also known as the SL10YG.
Early demonstrations of the product have been promising so we plan to bring the flagship SL10Y (SL10YG) in for an in-depth review. The SL8Y and SL10Y are expected to begin shipping in mid-April with the SL9Y following in late May of this year.
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