Samsung HW-Q70R Soundbar Review & Comments

Steve, any idea when the q80 and q90 release? Place I Usually buy said he doesn’t expect them in for a few months still here in Florida.
 
I am trying to choose between this (Q70R) and the LG SL8YG. They are similarly priced here in the UK. Any thought on this?? tia
 
I am trying to choose between this (Q70R) and the LG SL8YG. They are similarly priced here in the UK. Any thought on this?? tia
They look very similar in terms of specs, but the LG is £100 cheaper. Unfortunately I haven't heard the LG in action yet, so I can't really compare the two in terms of performance.
 
Best of all, if you decide to add rear speakers at a later date you can buy exactly the same ones included with the Q90 to create 5.1.4 (you couldn't do that last year).

This is great news though If I go for one of this years samsung bars I'd get the Q90r. Last time I got K850 (which I still have) and after a few months I was already regretting not purchasing the K950, tried the recommended rear speakers (not the ones you got on the 950) but it was an absolute mess and didn't work properly.
 
Great Review man!

I bought the HW-Q60r upon release and after 20 days I was not impressed at all. I felt like $500 was too steep of a price for "meh" performance (my opinion). I returned it, but while there at Fry's Electronics I saw the HW-Q70r. Since I had nothing to do I decided to try it out, but honestly I expected it to be a "rip-off." To my surprise, I will say that the HW-Q70r is worth every dollar. The sub woofer is amazing, and vocals are very clear in movies and music. Definitely going to keep.

I concurrently bought a 65" Q80r TV, and I was pretty amazed of how the Q80r TV seamlessly controls the soundbar (which has a Nvidia Shield TV connected to the sole HDMI input). The Q80r TV also controls the Nvidia shield without issue. The soundbar detects Atmos from Plex media server on Nvidia Shield.
 
So I know it's kind of the opposite reason for getting a sound bar, but how does it do at low volumes? While I love big sound, the main tv room is below the bedroom and I anticipate times when low volume viewing is going to be required. My old receiver set up had a night mode and dynamic range compression that helped keep volume in check while still being able to hear voices. Does this sound bar offer any of these type of features?
 
So I know it's kind of the opposite reason for getting a sound bar, but how does it do at low volumes? While I love big sound, the main tv room is below the bedroom and I anticipate times when low volume viewing is going to be required. My old receiver set up had a night mode and dynamic range compression that helped keep volume in check while still being able to hear voices. Does this sound bar offer any of these type of features?
It sounds great at lower volumes, and you might find the Adaptive Sound feature very useful as well.
 
I can’t make my mind up between the q70r or the q80r. Will there be much difference between the two sound bars?
Also you say you can add the rear speakers later. Are they the swa-9000s?
 
@Steve can the volume of the front channels be adjusted separately or they grouped as one like on N850, n950?
 
Last edited:
@Steve can the volume of the front channels be adjusted separately or they grouped as one like on N850, n950?
Someone here told me that the left and right were fixed and centre channel adjusted separately on n950.It were one of my main gripes with said soundbar,hence I do not have it anymore, to test it out!
 
I read forums and reviews that on the N950 front left, centre and right are grouped as one so when you adjust, they all move up and down together.

But i just messaged Steve and replied that on the HW-Q70R Samsung allows separate centre channel adjustment separately to the left and right.
 
I read forums and reviews that on the N950 front left, centre and right are grouped as one so when you adjust, they all move up and down together.

But i just messaged Steve and replied that on the HW-Q70R Samsung allows separate centre channel adjustment separately to the left and right.
I absolutely agree with the first point.I am glad to hear that the q70 allows separate adjustment.I don't suppose that He can confirm 100% that the q80 and q90 are grouped as one,or the left and right are fixed and centre adjusts separately,as someone has suggested to me?
Edit:I think that he has the q90 in for review atm.I will ask when he posts it.
Thanks for your input.
 
Last edited:
@Steve Withers / Anyone,

Hope you can answer a few questions:

1. Does the Q70R support multi-channel LPCM? (i.e. 5.1/7.1)

2. Between the Q70R and the Sony HT-Z9F, which would you recommend? Just consider the base units as the rears are not available locally. I understand that the LG SL8YG is similar option but I haven't read anything about it yet. I like that the Z9F has 2 HDMI inputs, but is that enough to tip the scales?

P.S. It's annoying how vague Samsung's specs listings are. You have to read reviews and go over forum posts to find out which exact formats they support for a specific feature. LG's generally has a lot details but they go lazy on some parts (e.g. LPCM: Yes). Of the 3, Sony's the only one who goes into the exact details (e.g. LPCM: 2.0/5.1/7.1).
 
@Steve Withers / Anyone,

Hope you can answer a few questions:

1. Does the Q70R support multi-channel LPCM? (i.e. 5.1/7.1)

2. Between the Q70R and the Sony HT-Z9F, which would you recommend? Just consider the base units as the rears are not available locally. I understand that the LG SL8YG is similar option but I haven't read anything about it yet. I like that the Z9F has 2 HDMI inputs, but is that enough to tip the scales?

P.S. It's annoying how vague Samsung's specs listings are. You have to read reviews and go over forum posts to find out which exact formats they support for a specific feature. LG's generally has a lot details but they go lazy on some parts (e.g. LPCM: Yes). Of the 3, Sony's the only one who goes into the exact details (e.g. LPCM: 2.0/5.1/7.1).
I have the Samsung HW-Q70R connected to my LG OLED65C9. LPCM5.1/7.1 works from my Xbox One X when I am directly connected to it through the soundbar.

eARC sadly doesn't seem to work yet. As it can only pass through DD+, DD+Atmos, DTS and LPCM2.0 from a HDMI source or from internal apps.
Already replaced my cables with HDMI2.1 Ultra Speed. Xbox One X does still pass Dolby Atmos to the soundbar while it is connected to the TV. So I guess the TV still converts it to DD+Atmos just like the C8 did.

Apart from the eARC thing, am really happy with the soundbar. Needed one with a low height as I can't wall mount and the stand of the C9 is pretty low. This fits perfectly. LG's own soundbars sound like shit compared to this bar and are actually too high to fit in front of their own TV's of 2019...

The subwoofer is also quite powerful and gets plenty deep for the real depth. Especially Dolby Atmos/DTS:X tracks sound really good.
 
Last edited:
Anyone else here that can confirm if eARC is working for them? Cannot find any change logs for the firmware updates... so not sure if the one I have running now should support eARC.
Version:
HW-Q70RWWB-1006.0
122

[Edit]
Decided to return the soundbar. Was not happy with the clarity of the sound. Replaced it with the Harman Kardon Citation Bar + Sub and the sound is a lot better imho. Even without the support for Dolby Atmos/DTS:X.
 
Last edited:
Anyone else had issues with the ARC connection sporadically not being recognized by the soundbar? Everything will work fine far weeks, then one day - only D.IN/HDMI/WiFi connections are recognised...
All obvious troubleshooting steps taken - but ultimately only a full power cycle (and leaving everything off overnight) resolved this.
This has happened twice now in 2 months now

Samsung 55KS8000, HDMI connected to ARC from Sound bar to OneConnect box.
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom