Denon DHT-S416 Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer, Bluetooth Sound Bar for Surround Sound System, Dolby Digital 5.1, Built-In Google Chromecast, HDMI ARC, Wall Mountable, Including HDMI Cable

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The subwoofer, meanwhile, is built of vinyl-wrapped chipboard. The front is covered with more of that acoustic cloth, and there’s an exposed bass reflex port at the bottom – it’s finished in the same glossy plastic that makes up the end-caps of the soundbar. The issue we had with trying that was only having the one input: without an HDMI splitter to bring in the other devices, it becomes an impractical way to set up the DHT-S216 unless lossless audio is that important to you. Not surprisingly, the Music preset works well with music, but it also proves effective when it comes to watching TV. The mode ensures a well-defined and clear delivery, and for most shows the Denon can handle the audio with great skill. Watching Masterchef, the soundbar delivers the voice-over, music and effects with accuracy and precision.

What do you really need? Above all – legible and natural sounding. To this it is not superfluous to add a clear transmission of dialogues, the illusion of surround sound, simplicity and flexibility in setting up effects. Now we look at the remote control for the Denon DHT-S316 and find all the signs of the above on it. The easiest connection is probably HDMI ARC because it routes all audio for devices connected to the TV through it. This way, if you have a game console, cable box, streaming box or Blu-ray player, you won’t have to do much configuring. As long as the TV is set to HDMI ARC in its own settings, there should be no issue. We should note, however, that DTS-HD Master Audio formats won’t work under this setup

A fantastically capable soundbar that sounds great, but isn’t perfect out of the box

However, out of the box the subwoofer is so boomy and overpowering that it’s simply unlistenable in small to medium-sized rooms at moderate volumes. And while this problem can be tamed with judicious stuffing of the bass reflex port, I’d much rather the sub was tuned correctly in the first place. Certainly the way it delivers information in the midrange – which is where all of the dialogue sits in any movie you’ve ever watched – is very pleasing indeed. It’s quite assertive with voices, projecting them helpfully ahead of any and all the action that might be going on around them. Detail levels are high, so speakers sound characterful as well as articulate, and the dynamic variations that are always evident in speech are identified and delivered in every circumstance.

There are two main issues with the way the Denon DHT-S316 delivers sound. That’s not many, but they’re each, in their own way, significant. DTS Virtual:X is an audio technology that recreates surround sound without the need for multiple speakers. It does so by analysing audio signals and using psychoacoustic algorithms to simulate where they would be placed in a 3D space, which can include areas above and behind the listener. As someone who's always thought the Sonos PlayBar was overrated in terms of sound quality, the HEOS Bar proved something of a revelation. HDMI and optical cable included:Simply connect a single cord to your TV and enjoy immersive audio for every entertainment experienceThe S516H doesn’t come with a remote control, nor does it have a proper display, other than a light at the bottom centre of the soundbar. As a result, you really need to use the HEOS app as a controller because it provides all the necessary info. Although, if you’ve connected the soundbar to your TV via HDMI-ARC, you can also use the TV remote for basic control such as changing the volume. Very happy My first toe in the water with anything to do with soundboard or smart speakers etc. I wanted to improve the sound quality and especially the dialogue clarity from my flat screen tv. At the same time I wanted to be able to cast streamed music from Spotify and BBC sounds. The sound quality seems to be especially lush with music - probably due to the subwoofer. To my (untrained and pension-aged) ears the quality is as good as my 30 year old hifi - also Denon. I haven't yet established how much clearer the dialogue will be on the usual 'mumble mix' TV dramas and movies, but I'm hopeful.