LG S80QY Review

More immersion with three up-firing channels?

The design of the S80QY is not very different from the previous models from LG: It has a metal cover on the top and back, and a fabric cover on the front and sides. The surface of the cover is made of anthracite-colored brushed metal, which gives it a high-quality look. The included woofer also comes in this look. It is a side-firingThese speakers emit the sound to the side. This creates a wider soundscape and a certain surround sound. subwoofer, which – like the soundbar itself – has rounded corners. Both components look noble and robust at the same time.

With its width of one meter, the LG S80QY cuts a fine figure in front of 48-inch TVs or larger. Thanks to the height of around 6 centimeters, nothing of the picture is covered – at least if your TV doesn’t have a stand that’s too low, such as the Sony A95K. You can also control the 3.1.3-channel system on the soundbar itself, namely with the touch buttons on its top. It has a total of six of these, including for volume control and input source selection. The current status of the soundbar can be read on a small LCD display on its front.

If you want to mount the soundbar on the wall, you are already well prepared: after all, the corresponding wall mounts are already included. Also included are power cords and instructions for both components, a HDMI cable and a remote control including batteries.

The remote control comes in a sleek look and is handy. However, those who connect the soundbar with the included HDMI cable do not necessarily need it, because thanks to HDMI CECConsumer Electronics Control: HDMI CEC makes it possible to control various consumer electronics devices with just one remote control., the system can then also be controlled via TV remote control. However, this is mostly limited to volume settings and switching on and off. To adjust the treble and, if necessary, the external rear speakers, you have to use the soundbar’s remote control again or, since it is a Smart Soundbar, the corresponding app (more on this in the Smart Features section).

Admittedly, there are not too many options for pairing the S80QY with your own TV. Thus, it only has an HDMI output with eARCEnhanced Audio Return Chanel: A significant increase in the data transfer rate, which means that audio signals no longer need to be compressed before being transmitted to the music system. This noticeably increases audio quality. support as well as an optical port and a USB interface. Via eARC, it can then transmit formats like Dolby Atmos, DTS:XJust like Dolby Atmos, DTS:X is also a 3D sound format, with which the surround sound is expanded by height speakers. In addition, it is also an object-based sound format, whereby additional information is assigned to sounds, making them sound even more realistic. or even IMAX sound uncompressed. The special feature: With the corresponding additional hardware, this is even possible wirelessly. Finally, the system is compatible with LG’s Wowcast WTP3, a separately available audio dongle that enables lossless, wireless transmission between the TV and soundbar.

The S80QY also has an HDMI input for connecting a BluRay player, console or similar. This one also supports gaming features like VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode). Likewise, Dolby VisionDolby Vision is a dynamic HDR format that significantly improves the HDR picture quality of your TV. Not every soundbar can pass this format on to the TV., HDR10 and 4K content can be forwarded, but only at 60 Hz.

The first thing that stands out in the test is that LG’s soundbar unfortunately does not get particularly loud despite a total power of 480 watts, which could be a problem for particularly large rooms or for use at parties. At the first listening impression, the sound also seems quite bass-heavy. This is also evident from the soundbar’s frequency response, as our measurement showed that the lows are clearly emphasized. The bass ist therefore perceptible to a certain extent, but deficiencies are still noticeable in the low bass. Low mids and midrange, on the other hand, look much more balanced, whereby voices and dialogs are reproduced very clearly. However, due to the clear dip at just under 4000 Hz, the lead instruments are partly pushed into the background during music playback, for example, and the overall sound seems a bit muffled.

Regarding surround performance, the same problems arise that we already know from other systems with three main channels. Indeed, even with the S80QY, surround content has to be mixed down to stereo, which makes the direction of the sound clearly audible. The addition of the matching Rear Speaker from LG could bring another significant improvement here. The same applies to the Dolby AtmosDolby Atmos is a 3D sound format that adds sounds from above to surround sound systems and can also assign additional information to sounds so that they can be reproduced even more realistically. performance, because the setup definitely has potential in combination with the noticeable bass. Especially the treble channels do a good job and the center channel knows how to convince with clear dialogs and accurate voices.

To improve the sound of the soundbar individually, an adjustment of bass and treble is possible. It also comes with diverse sound effects, such as a Music, Cinema, Sports, Game or Bass Blast mode. A Clear Voice function is also on board, which makes dialogs sound even clearer. As additional features, it comes with AI Room Calibration, which optimally adapts the sound to your own four walls, as well as AI Sound Pro. With this, content is analyzed and the sound of the soundbar is automatically adapted to it. The same is also available for the volume with Auto Volume and night mode.

Of course, the S80QY per se can be connected to any TV. However, the manufacturer has once again integrated some specials for the pairing with a modern LG device. One of them is called Soundbar Mode Control, but this only guarantees some convenience by allowing the soundbar’s settings to be changed via the TV. Otherwise, if you own a corresponding LG TV, you can also use TV Sound Mode Share: This uses the TV’s better sound processor to analyze the audio content and adapt the sound to it accordingly.

The aforementioned sound customization features are all found in the matching app, which can be used to control the LG Soundbar. It is also compatible with Amazon’s Alexa and the Google Assistant, but an external third-party device is required for use – both voice assistants are ultimately not integrated. Other options for wireless transmission are also available via Wi-Fi connection, Bluetooth, Chromecast and Apple Airplay2.