While the setup might be a little more involved than a simple soundbar, there are some big payoffs. A true set of four speakers spread around your room gives a much fuller, more immersive experience than just a single set under the screen could ever hope to. Even better, with a proper subwoofer running the show as a single connection point, you’ll get powerful, rumbly bass, perfect for action movies and video games.
The subwoofer was a stand out, too, with our reviewer Ryan Waniata expressing that it brought some “serious thunder” to the setup. The other speakers can keep up, too, with a soundbar that has excellent detail, even through the upper ranges, and handles dialogue particularly well. It doesn’t have much musicality to it, a weak point for the whole system, so you might want to consider some other options if you plan on using this for your tunes too.
We regularly see soundbars with dedicated subwoofers, but the Bravia Theater System 6 also adds in two satellite speakers, which connect with a single cable to the subwoofer. They pair nicely with the rest of the system, and help support the Dolby Atmos and DTS:X experience by expanding the surround capabilities.
The only stumbling block here during our review was with Sony’s firmware and app. The mobile app provides a fair amount of value, with both sound and usability settings, as well as the option to connect your phone via Bluetooth to play music. Unfortunately if you want to actually update the firmware, which may include bug fixes, you’ll need to download it to a USB drive and flash it yourself.
Still, there’s a lot to like here, with great audio quality and an all-in-one setup process that’s easier than putting together a system from parts yourself. You can grab the Sony Bravia Theater System 6 for just $698 on Amazon, or meander over to our roundup of the best soundbars for some alternatives.