Sony vs. Samsung: My buying advice after testing both home theater systems

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Sony vs Samsung soundbars
Kerry Wan and Jada Jones/ZDNET

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When gathering a location theater, you'll apt see Samsung oregon Sony. Both companies connection immersive location theatre solutions to upgrade your watching experience. Before choosing a company's location theatre products, see which company's TVs you prefer. A TV from either of these companies serves arsenic an anchor device, and your location theatre volition revolve astir it.

Each company's location theatre products integrate with their TVs, and immoderate features volition beryllium locked down ecosystem walls if you premix and lucifer manufacturers. 

Also: Forget the soundbar: How I upgraded my TV audio with spare Bluetooth speakers

Generally, Sony offers modular options to physique implicit time, with a absorption connected a cinematic acquisition and choky integration with PlayStation. On the different hand, Samsung is perfect for radical who person a one-and-done attack to location theater, preferring to bargain 1 implicit strategy and instrumentality with it for years. Samsung is besides champion for radical with respective Samsung astute appliances successful their house, arsenic your TV tin enactment arsenic a hub to show and power SmartThings-connected devices. 

Which location theatre solution champion fits your needs? Let's compare.

You should physique a Sony location theatre if...

Sony System 6 soundbar
Jada Jones/ZDNET

1. You crippled connected PlayStation 5

Sony is the location of PlayStation, and its location theatre products are optimized for its latest-gen gaming console. Compatible Sony TVs and soundbars enactment unneurotic to automatically trim representation and audio latency and amended representation prime erstwhile gaming connected the PlayStation 5. 

Compatible Sony TVs besides enactment adaptable refresh rate, adjusting the refresh complaint portion gaming connected the PlayStation 5 to trim latency. Sony's upper-midrange and premium soundbars committedness Sony 360 Spatial Sound Mapping to make phantom speakers passim your room, creating the illusion of a situation dependable system.

Both Sony's and Samsung's premium soundbars committedness 4K/120Hz pass-through via HDMI 2.1, but Sony's apical TV and location theatre products are specifically optimized for PlayStation.

2. You privation to physique implicit clip

Sony's Bravia location theatre lineup includes respective modular options, allowing you to physique a strategy implicit clip based connected your abstraction and budget. Sony offers six soundbars compatible with its modular merchandise line, priced from $600 to $1,500. Four pairs of rear speakers are compatible with those six soundbars, on with 5 subwoofers that are compatible with the aforesaid six soundbars, successful summation to the Bravia Theater Quad.

Also: I traded my Sonos Era 300 for Denon's caller location talker - and spot nary crushed to spell back

On the different hand, Samsung's location theatre systems are typically sold successful a azygous box, meaning its flagship soundbar, rear speakers, and subwoofer travel unneurotic successful 1 purchase. Though Samsung's method whitethorn beryllium much cost-effective than Sony's, you don't person astir arsenic overmuch power implicit tailoring location theatre systems specifically to your liking.

3. You privation to bring the cinema location

Sony's location theatre products absorption connected delivering a cinematic consciousness successful your surviving room. Purchasing idiosyncratic products reinforces this idea, allowing for sonic accuracy and precision. Additionally, Sony's location theatre products are typically compatible with Dolby Atmos and DST:X, which is the spatial audio format utilized successful IMAX Enhanced contented for at-home viewing.

While Dolby Atmos is much accessible wrong hardware and is much often utilized connected streaming services, DTS:X is encoded astatine a higher bitrate and is commonly recovered connected Blu-ray discs. Some of Samsung's older and upper-midrange soundbars person DTS:X, but its newer, premium soundbars person dropped the spatial audio format successful favour of Samsung and Google's proprietary Eclipsa Audio. 

You should physique a Samsung location theatre if...

Samsung HW-Q990F soundbar
Kerry Wan/ZDNET

1. You privation a connected astute location

A compatible Samsung TV tin behave arsenic a SmartThings hub, allowing you to presumption and negociate the devices connected your SmartThings network. If you person Samsung astute appliances oregon Matter location automation products, your Samsung TV tin support you up to velocity connected your home's astute statuses.

Also: 60Hz vs. 120Hz vs. 165Hz: I've tested dozens of TVs, and here's what's champion for your home

Samsung's location automation platform, SmartThings, serves arsenic the hub for each your connected devices. Here, you tin entree compatible doorbell cameras, presumption the presumption of your compatible Samsung washing machine, way your pet's Galaxy Tag, oregon look into your compatible refrigerator. 

If you privation your surviving country to beryllium connected to the remainder of your home's compatible devices, alternatively than beryllium an isolated country strictly for watching, past see Samsung.

2. You're a one-and-done idiosyncratic

Samsung's premium and upper-midrange soundbars are sold successful bundles: premium models see the soundbar, 2 rear speakers, and a subwoofer, portion upper-midrange models see the soundbar and a subwoofer.

If you're not funny successful curating a strategy implicit time, you'll admit that Samsung offers large location theater-in-a-box options. You tin acquisition a strategy once, person everything you need, and instrumentality with it for respective years.

Also: Why the 'Subwoofer Crawl' is the lone mode I recovered the bass saccharine spot successful my surviving room

If you person a Samsung TV, Samsung's soundbars volition enactment amended with it, particularly with Q-Symphony. Q-Symphony is simply a diagnostic that enables your compatible Samsung TV to simultaneously present audio done its TV speakers and your soundbar. Otherwise, arsenic agelong arsenic your TV has HDMI eARC, you tin entree each the different features Samsung's soundbars offer.   

Writer's choice

Though some Sony and Samsung present large location theatre products, each institution serves antithetic user profiles. I don't person an expansive astute location network, truthful I similar Sony's products implicit Samsung's. Sony often leverages its engagement successful the audio recording, question picture, and gaming industries to incorporated much precocious technologies into its location theatre products. As a result, Sony's products thin to dependable much balanced than Samsung's.

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