Samsung HW-E550 Soundbar & Wireless Sub Preview

Sound bars are nothing new, but Samsung is attempting to multi-purpose its new HW-E550 by giving it greater flexibility of placement. The new HW-E550 Surround Sound Bar with 3D Depth Sound can either be placed horizontally below a TV or split into two sound vertical soundbar speakers. That is way cool and extremely versatile in a way that we hadn't seen before. Additionally, by attaching each speaker to an included base, the soundbar can also morph into a traditional looking 2.1-channel system with half-tall speakers.

The HW-E550 also offers Smart Volume, an active audio monitoring system that prevents spikes in volume when TV channels or radio stations are changed. Samsung claims this protects the soundbar, but mostly it's for eliminating the annoyance of the sudden rise on commercials - at least until the FCC cracks down and starts implementing its new rule on commercial volume. The HW-E550 comes with six different settings – Movie, Game, Drama, Music, News and Sports – to deliver optimal sound quality according to the content of the video. Samsung's 3D Depth sound technology also synchronizes the audio to 3D images for depth effects without the need for additional satellite speakers.

The HW-E550 has two HDMI inputs and one HDMI output so users can easily connect to Blu-ray players, set-top boxes and gaming consoles. And, support for HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC) means that you can use all of the inputs of your TV and feed the sources back to your soundbar using that method. The HW-E550 is also Bluetooth-enabled, providing wireless playback of audio files from other Bluetooth devices and a USB port provides yet another connectivity option.

The sound bar looks really thin and sleek, weighing just 4 lbs - which makes it super-easy to mount on the wall. If you're a minimalist, this is one of the products you'll want to look at. And since the sub is wireless, you don't have to drag a cable to get some low-end bass thump on your music and movies. Using Samsung's proprietary dual band 5.2/5.8GHz wireless technology, you can place the subwoofer just about anywhere in the room you want. The subwoofer has a stated frequency response of 40Hz to 200Hz.

For more information check out www.samsung.com/us/video/blu-ray-systems after CES.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.