Q800C

Overview

HW-Q800C is a 2023 Samsung Q-series soundbar with a wireless subwoofer in the box. The soundbar is 1110.7 mm wide, 60.4 mm high and 120 mm deep and can be wall-mounted; the wall-mount brackets are included. Rear speakers are not included: Samsung lists the SWA-9500S wireless rear speaker kit as compatible.

Samsung lists 11 speakers and 360 W of total power, with up-firing and side-firing speakers.

The TV connects over HDMI eARC. One HDMI input passes 4K video with HDR10+ through to the TV, and there is also an optical input, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Over Wi-Fi, the bar supports AirPlay, Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect, and it has Amazon Alexa built in. With some Samsung TVs it also offers Q-Symphony, wireless Dolby Atmos over Wi-Fi and SpaceFit Sound.

You can control it with the buttons on the bar, the included remote, the TV remote, or the SmartThings app on iOS and Android.

What the specs mean

• 5.1.2 speaker setup: five main channels, one subwoofer channel and two height channels from up-firing speakers, which is how the bar plays Dolby Atmos and DTS:X with sound from above.
• HDMI eARC: the enhanced Audio Return Channel sends the TV's sound to the soundbar over one HDMI cable, including high-bitrate formats such as Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Atmos and uncompressed multichannel audio.
• HDMI passthrough: a console or streaming box can plug into the HDMI input; the bar passes 4K video with HDR10+ on to the TV.
• Audio formats: Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby MAT, DTS:X, DTS Digital Surround, DTS-HD, DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio and multichannel PCM.
• Room correction (SpaceFit Sound): the manual says the bar analyses the listening space with its microphone and adjusts the sound. It can be switched on from the soundbar's own remote, or from the menu of some Samsung TVs.
• Voice and night modes: Samsung lists Active Voice Amplifier (AVA) and Voice Enhance for dialogue, and a Night Mode for late listening.