Sound is one of the areas where there is most room for improvement in televisions. Today, we have increasingly thinner panels with better resolution, but at the cost of one thing: poorer audio quality. Fortunately, soundbars can help us solve this problem without breaking our heads.
Today we will focus on two quite competent soundbars, the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 and the Sony HT- A7000. Truth be told, both are winning choices but if you’re looking for which one best suits your needs, read on below.
Design and appearance
Both soundbars have a very attractive design that will look amazing wherever you put them (living room, bedroom, etc). If we start analyzing the Sony HT-A7000, we see that it is the longer of the two. With a size of 130 x 14.2 x 8 cm, you’d better make sure you have room to spare. Its solid block appearance combined with the metallic and fabric textures for the speakers give it a rather premium look. On the other hand, the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 also has an imposing look but somewhat smaller than the Sony soundbar (104.5x 10.7x 5.81 cm).
Sound quality and options
This is undoubtedly the most important section of this comparison: the sound. If you have additional Sony speakers, the soundbar makes use of 360 Spatial Sound Mapping technology. Thanks to this, several virtual speakers are created by combining the audio emitted by the soundbar with the speakers. We have Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, so we will get a great surround sound (although it is not the most powerful option on the market). The Sony bar has built-in microphones that are used to measure the position of additional speakers and thus adapt the audio to the room.
The HT-A7000 has 7.1.2 channels: two up-facing speakers, two beam tweeters and five speakers to recreate surround sound. Thanks to Vertical Surround Engine and S-Force PRO Front Surround, users will be able to enjoy Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. In terms of multimedia consumption, the vocal clarity it is able to achieve is something to be taken into account. If we look at it from an overall perspective, we would be looking at one of the best soundbards in terms of sound quality.
On the other hand, the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 is one of the best options available in its price range. Like the Sony bar, it has Dolby Atmos and has the power to flood your entire room with sound. Plus, you’ll never get lost in the dialogue of the movies or series you’re watching again. Inside the Bose bar, there are 9 speakers that are complemented by PhaseGuide technology to create multidirectional sound. And if you’re playing content without Dolby Atmos or simply in stereo, Bose’s TrueSpace feature is able to replicate the experience by “mimicking” different sensations of distance and height.
The Bose Soundbar features Alexa and Google Assistant, so you’ll be able to manage (almost) everything just by using your voice: change channels on your TV, turn it on, turn it off, etc. As you can guess, it’s also compatible with all kinds of devices thanks to its support for WiFi, Bluetooth, Chromecast, Apple AirPlay 2 and Spotify Connect. The Bose Smart Soundbar 900 also features a technology similar to Sony’s called ADAPTiQ and that serves to adapt the sound to the room in which it is located. You can also complement the Bose bar with a wireless bass module or wireless surround speakers.
Final verdict: the price
The winner in the price comparison is undoubtedly the Bose Smart Soundbar 900. It is the “cheaper” of the two, although deciding on one of them will mean making a considerable outlay of money. The quality of both soundbars is undoubted, but the truth is that Sony has a little more options in terms of sound and quality. However, the Bose also offers a kind of multimedia control center where you can manage devices, play all kinds of content without sacrificing audio quality.
After all, of one thing we are sure: both options are among the best you will find in the soundbar market.
