DHT-S517

Overview

The DHT-S517 is a Denon soundbar and wireless subwoofer system introduced in January 2022. The bar is 1050 mm wide, 60 mm high and 95 mm deep and comes in black. It can be wall-mounted with its keyhole mounts; spacers and a template are in the box.

Denon calls it a 3.1.2 configuration with a 7-driver array: left and right tweeters and midrange drivers, a dedicated center channel and two up-firing speakers. Denon's info sheet lists 50 W for the bar and 100 W for the subwoofer.

The TV connects over HDMI eARC or optical, and the bar has one 4K HDMI input, a 3.5 mm analog input, a USB port and Bluetooth 5.0. There is no Wi-Fi. Sound modes are Movie, Music, Night and Pure. The TV remote adjusts the volume over HDMI, and the bar can learn commands from a TV remote.

The box contains the subwoofer, the remote (battery built in), power cords, an HDMI cable, an optical cable, wall-mount spacers, the wall-mount template, the quick start guide, safety and battery instructions and the warranty.

What the specs mean

• 3.1.2 speaker setup: left, right and center channels, the wireless subwoofer (".1") and two up-firing speakers (".2") for the height layer of Dolby Atmos.
• HDMI eARC: the enhanced Audio Return Channel carries the TV's sound, including Dolby Atmos, to the bar over one HDMI cable.
• HDMI passthrough (4K): a player or console plugs into the HDMI input, and the bar passes 4K Ultra HD video on to the TV.
• Audio formats: the manual lists Linear PCM, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Atmos. Denon's spec list says DTS is not supported.
• Denon Dialog Enhancer: three levels that raise dialogue independently of the overall volume. Night listening mode is for quiet late-night playback.