Samsung has already unleashed most of its 2023 soundbars, including the 11.1.4 flagship that debuted during CES in Las Vegas, but the home theater manufacturer has one more high-end soundbar up its sleeves.
Slated to go on sale today for $1,399.99, the 7.1.2-channel HW-Q900C sits just below the massive HW-Q990C in Samsung’s top-tier Q-series soundbar lineup.
This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best soundbars.
The HW-Q990C looks similar to the HW-Q990C, which is currently on sale for a hair under $1,600 (that soundbar has a $1,899.99 list price).
The main difference between the two is that the HW-Q900C lacks the wireless rear speakers that come with the flagship, although it does come with a wireless subwoofer. We’ve asked Samsung whether the Q900C can be upgraded with a rear speaker kit, and we’ll update this story once we hear back.
While the HW-Q900C doesn’t come with rear speakers like the pricier HW-Q990C, the two soundbars share many other features in common, including Samsung’s upgraded Q-Symphony technology, which allows the manufacturer’s soundbars to sync with the speakers in its high-end TVs.
Introduced back at CES in January, Q-Symphony 3.0 leverages a Samsung TV’s Neo Quantum processor to hone in on dialogue and pipe it through the soundbar’s speakers, while surround audio gets sent to the TV’s speakers, thus providing (according to Samsung) “more detailed and three-dimensional sound.”
The HW-Q900C also supports wireless Dolby Atmos when paired with a compatible Samsung TV (DTS:X is supported via wired HDMI), while SpaceFit Sound Pro room calibration can analyze both lower frequencies as well as surround audio.
Like the top-end HW-Q990C, the HW-Q900C comes with built-in Alexa, while AirPlay 2 allows you to stream audio to the soundbar from an Apple device, as well as use the speaker in AirPlay 2 multi-room audio setups. Spotify Connect and Tidal connect are also supported.
Two HDMI inputs and an HDMI-eARC connector sit in the back, along with an optical (Toslink) input.
We’ll have a full review of the Samsung HW-Q900C once we spend quality time with a sample unit.
Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer
Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart speakers, soundbars, and other smart and home-theater devices. You can follow Ben on Twitter.