Spooky season is well and truly here and we’re mere days away from Halloween, which means there’s pumpkins, trick-or-treaters and costumes galore already around. With Halloween also comes a chance to break out your favorite horror for their annual re-watch.
Now, you’ve got one of the best horror movies lined up to watch and one of the best TVs to watch them on , but what about the sound? Horror movies are known for their sound design, with every eerie atmosphere, creaky floorboard, blood-curling scream and scratchy string-led score playing as important a role to the horror movie experience as the visuals themselves.
With the evolution of surround sound in recent years, horror movies have become an entirely new beast. Dolby Atmos, which introduces height channels and uses a dome-like shape of sound to completely immerse you during viewing, has given horror movies a bigger and more atmospheric sound. Dolby Atmos is now commonly supported on a whole range of the best soundbars, from cheap to premium, so it’s easy to upgrade your TV’s sound (because let’s be honest it’s not always the best) to add even more scare to your Halloween movie marathon.
As part of TechRadar’s Halloween Week, I’ve included three soundbars below, which are among the best Dolby Atmos soundbars around, to suit any budget or situation that are sure to give your horror movie watch an even more bone-chilling feel.
1. Hisense AX5125H
The Hisense AX5125H is a budget Dolby Atmos soundbar solution that proves you don’t need to spend big to get a big sound. Four units – a soundbar, subwoofer and two satellite speakers – combine to provide 5.1.2 channels of sound and because there’s those all important height channels, you’re getting an authentic Dolby Atmos sound.
Despite its budget price, the Hisense AX5125H delivers a powerful, immersive and well-controlled sound, with plenty of detail. It also has very good balance across all of its speakers, so you’ll still be getting those all important creepy noises in the rear speakers as well as the clarity from the soundbar and thumping bass from the subwoofer.
The Hisense AX5125H is admittedly light on features, limited to Bluetooth for music streaming, but at roughly $299 / £349, it really does give you awesome bang for your buck and will still give your horror movies that extra layer. (For our Australian readers, the Hisense AX5120G is the closest alternative which has a bit less power but the same overall setup and price.)
2. Samsung HW-Q990D
The Samsung HW-Q990D is an elite soundbar, delivering arguably the best sound experience you can get at home from a soundbar system. It is at the premium end of the market, but delivers in every way you could possibly need.
The Samsung HW-Q990D’s sound is punchy, dynamic and chocked full of power for big, climactic moments but also handles the subtleties of quieter moments with real finesse. Delivering 11.1.4 channels of real Dolby Atmos sound, the HW-Q990D continues the legacy of Samsung’s flagship soundbars by being the best on the market year-in year-out. But it doesn’t just stop there, as the HW-Q990D is capable of Wi-Fi streaming for better quality music playback and comes with 4K, 120Hz support for gaming via a HDMI 2.1 input.
It is on the pricier side, costing roughly $1,499 / £1,499 / AU$1,995 (although you can pick up for cheaper), but it’s worth the cost. The HW-Q990D will take horror movies to the next level, making you feel like you’re in the movie itself, almost if Michael Myers was in your living room.
3. Sony Bravia Theater Quad
To quote Monty Python “and now for something completely different”. The Sony Bravia Theater Quad provides an alternative surround sound solution to anyone who wants to keep things neat, opting for four slim, wireless speaker units powered by a control unit plugged into the TV (although power for each speaker is also required) instead of a soundbar and big subwoofer.
Although there’s no direct soundbar in front of you, the Sony Theater Bravia Quad still manages to deliver a dynamic, immersive and engaging sound using its 4.0.4 channel setup. If you own a Sony TV however, say the new Sony Bravia 9 or Sony Bravia 8, there is a feature called Acoustic Center Sync which uses the TV as a center channel. Even without this though, the Bravia Quad effectively reproduces surround sound soundtracks such as Dolby Amtos with real clarity and detail.
At $2,499 / £2,499, the Sony Bravia Theater Quad is not cheap. What it does provide however is a neater solution that’s perfect for on-wall installation or those looking for a more discrete sound system. It also delivers on the sound front and is sure to perfectly capture every ‘bump in the night’ in your favorite horror movie.
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james.davidson@futurenet.com (James Davidson)
