Review: Sony’s latest & greatest Soundbar, the A7000

Just watching this for a second time (still very entertained!) and one thought I had is that if you pulled the wooden cabinet under the tv forward from the wall by an inch or so and kept the tv at the back of it with a slight overhang, you'd probably be able to accommodate that HDMI cable in the back of the soundbar for your PS5. I realise that you'd lose some valuable floor real estate!

I have never liked Sony audio as a person in my 40s everything made from the late 90s until fairly recently seems to produce big sound. Lots of bass and lots of everything else but not with precision. I am no audiophile. I’ve even owned some Sony gear but I’ve ended up regretting it later when hearing Marantz JBL or Yamaha. I’m interested to hear how you feel in 12 months.

I am very concerned that this system supports or contains 'Atmos'. This was the name of the system that the Sontarans used in the (new) Doctor Who: S4E4, "The Sontaran Stratagem". It gassed and killed anyone they didn't like! I don't want to be killed by an expensive soundbar! ;-)

Thank you for a very in-depth and informative video on this setup. Very interesting to hear those thoughts on placement/setup practicalities as well as the soundfield. Happy as a pig in the proverbial sprang to mind; the use of the boxes as a literal bar and the '...ere, a word in your shell-like' pub-landlord demeanour and speech was not lost on me. I didn't fast forward and enjoyed every second! The convenience aspect of these setups can't be overstated and the wireless capability makes things so much easier for those of us who struggled routinely with ferreting yards and yards of wiring around and under carpets, around rooms 'back in the day'. In a similar vein, although I'm increasingly frustrated with my elderly Sonos setup (mainly WiFi and interface related issues) the Soundbar is the one component that is worth its weight in lead. It just works and you don't have to think about it too much; it all sounds better coming out of the telly. These things aren't cheap as you point out, either. I seem to remember relinquishing a hefty portion of income to purchase it several years ago but I now see it as an investment as it's served me well for a heck of a long time. I'm sure there will come a time when the hardware is remotely knobbled but for now I've no complaints. Great video. Thoroughly enjoyed.

I have a cheaper version of the sony soundbar but still good sound. I'm only jealous that you have the ps5. 😅😅😂. Another fine review.

Great Video About a the soundbar and addisional speakers. Really enjoyed it. 👍

Thanks for the deep dive! Living in NYC, the idea that anyone beside, above or below me would have one of these systems is my worst nightmare. Ah, to have a completely detached place...

Sony really have a knack for making great all in one home cinema systems that seem to have a bit of magic in them. I picked up their older DAV-IS10 system (the one with the tiny golf ball sized satellite speakers) second hand for £50 on Facebook marketplace (I think it's was originally £700) and it still sounds incredible to me. The sound it makes really shouldn't be coming out of those tiny speakers.

Nice review. I haven’t had my AV amp set up for 17 years due to moving to a house that doesn’t lend itself to a proper arrangement but we’re remodelling and I’m looking at soundbars instead of multiple speakers. Couple of comments: Currently showing as in stock online at John Lewis I’ve used right angle HDMI adapters when mounting TVs close to the wall

For easier access to my sound bar’s USB socket, I installed a short USB extension cable for connecting a USB flash drive, etc.

Sh*t...I have an ignorant question: for older films on... DVD say... would this Atmos setup be best optimized for re-releases on Blu-Ray or streaming? I presume the sound quality of DVD wouldn't perform adequately for movies like Speed or Lethal Weapon...or would they? I have a huge cabinet full of DVDs, looking at it just now made me wonder.

Did you try different placement with back speakers and subwoofer 🔊?

I have mad respect for your description of this purchase here on Patreon, which I only read a moment ago after seeing the video yesterday. The fetishization of spanky (and often ear-poppingly-expensive) new lifestyle tech is a very bad thing on YouTube and just in general. But this tech _means_ things to many of the people who buy it. You can't travel...and sadly, it's for multiple articulations of the word "can't." And you love Movie Night. For you, spending thousands of dollars on the latest home theater speakers isn't a social media flex, nor is it just an empty distraction. Creating the best movie-watching experience for your living room is, ultimately, making life more enjoyable. Me? I could have gotten by without the $1500 iPad Pro I bought earlier this year. And at this point it's a given that I'll be spending another big pile of cash on the Pixel 6, despite the fact that the $350 Pixel 4a I bought last year as a stopgap until I saw a new flagship I like is still running perfectly and I'm very happy with it. As for all of my Micro Four Thirds cameras and lenses...well, I'm going to just acknowledge that I'm well into Sony Home Theater Audio money and move on. It's not about the _having._ It's about what you'll be able to _do_ with tech. Yes, these things bring me joy, but it's the joy of what I'm able to experience and pursue through these tools. Tech is best when it helps you to experience life. It's worse than useless when it just distracts you from living and experiencing and feeling. So: great video, for all of the best reasons. And after keeping my thoughts centered around "Expense is meaningless when it comes to things that bring you daily joy," I'm definitely going to order the larger drives for my Plex server, which I've been waffling about for a year. Thanks for that as well. :)

As a result of the Patreon feedback - I’ve added some extra sections to the video that cover the previously unmentioned things that were being asked about. The timestamps for the new sections are below: 31:28 - 32:39 Voice Enhance 35:08 - 37:05 Power off & Solo Soundbar 37:38 -39:46 Music Playback quality & features

These Sony remotes are good

Great review - thank you. For what you paid, a uniformed SONY engineer should have come to your house to fix the defective rubber feet on the rear speakers.

Hmm, so 7 channel sound is a bit of false advertising, shame they still do that.

A bit clickbaity, you know, Warren's brother! Haha — great video Mat!

I clearly remember your previous video when you set up your atmos speakers and all the associated equipment - one of my favourites that I watched several times. This one is just as good and shows how much the tech has advanced over the years. The wireless signal connection and easy set-up are a major improvements. On a related note, I find it quite strange how inadequate our language is for describing how things sound. When I look at reviews for audio equipment, they focus on what materials they are made from, their appearance and how they work in great detail, but there is almost no intelligible information on how speaker A sounds different from speaker B - or between turntables, amplifiers etc. Reviewers do talk about 'roll off' of various frequencies, but I have no idea what that means or what it sounds like. It is nearly impossible to find a negative review of any audio item. Audiophiles will foam at the mouth if you suggest that any equipment you might have can be compared favourably with any equipment they might have - but they are equally unable to describe in words how different the sound that comes out of them is. Sorry, just rambling. Thanks for another great video, Mat. Have a good weekend.

We've got one of those Sony TV's with the vibrating screen for a speaker. It sounds suprisingly good as it also has a decent sub woofer built into the back which bounces the sound off the wall behind it. Doesn't sound anywhere near as good as our harmen kardon 5.1 system but it's still very good for sound coming out of a TV.

"Before you start, you must know why you should connect the soundbar to the TV. Let’s know it. The speaker system of a TV is the built-in type. Such speaker system makes the anemic sound to the best. But, at times when this speaker makes the worst as well as the downright unintelligible sound. To control this noise level your TV needs, help from an external device." - well that's all clean then! Actually trying to work out why the soundbar attached my parent's TV has gone phutt! And found this on the firm's troubleshooting page. Made me smile!

Hi Mat, another interesting video, thanks for posting. How do you like the sound quality for listening to music? I have a 5.1.2 separates AV system with 2 tower speakers that sounds fine for both music and cinema duties but is not really compact. What would you prefer?

The nine least-expected words in any YouTube tech review: "This isn't sponsored...I bought all this stuff myself."

Really enjoying DGAF Mat at the beginning of the video!

An interesting video. A friend and I bought some clearance $200 CAD Xbox (original) 5.1 system and that has been working well for him for nearly two decades, but really could use something new I'd bet. I never could manage dedicating the room for a speaker set up like he did, but I'd be interested in a soundbar now. And that it could add other speakers to it in time as needed. Makes me think that those rear speakers could have had an upfiring one too for that price... if it's so great at auto configuring, it probably could work well enough so maybe a future model if there isn't one already.

Great video, I'm now trying to convince myself that I don't need one! Did you try the soundbar on its own first before you added the extras? Be interested to know what it was like as a stand alone soundbar.

Is there a camera artifact at 12:20? The image of the back of the speaker seems to briefly come out of focus.

Also, I’d love to hear you chat about movies

Great review. Shame on Sony for charging so much for the rear speakers. They should be half that.

I was thinking about buying a new TV. In London in a terraced house my requirements are much lower than yours so I thought I might go for a Panasonic 4K with Dolby Atmos. And I would add a much smaller size.

Great videos, Mat - both of them. Thanks.

Blimey, that sub is MASSIVE. We used to use a sub for a whole 200 seat auditorium that was about that size!!!!!

I love that you stopped and took as much time as you wanted! I would never go 2x speed on your videos. :)

I use to have a wired 5.1 Blu-ray and the wife moaned about the wires so this would be ideal, tech I could use. (Though she is very understanding about the 250 records that have just worked thier way into the living room). I so wanted you to go into the cabinet's curious why do u need so many inputs. Guess sky box and ps5 but what else have you kept from the past videos? Laserdisc player, vhd player lol, video player. Great video

Good, thorough review Mat. Like you I like decent sound for films and have recently updated my sub-speaker set up. I keep looking for a new TV but end up suffering paralysis by analysis, and disappearing down YT rabbits holes - what did you go for? Also, any good film recommendations? We recently watched "Pan's Labyrinth” from one of those must watch film lists - enjoyed much more than we expected to.

I enjoyed the video, makes me wish I had a suitable house for the setup. I enjoyed the bonus video too. Here’s a link to the bonus in case others didn’t find it. https://youtu.be/Hn_KF1WrilI

I had to replace a Samsung HW-H750 soundbar this year and I went down a 'budget' Sony HT-ZF9 - never again, returned within a day. Bit the bullet and ordered a JBL 9.1 - haven't looked back...yet. Great sounding soundbar, on par with the older Samsung and then some, Atmos is an expensive bonus :)

Those LG to stands really are low down aren’t they. Great video, I enjoyed that. I can only dream of having a system like it but I’d need a bigger house first!

I bought a Denon HTIB in 2012, and can't go back to TV speakers or a sound bar. Mainly, because I have a Blu-Ray Player, FireTV, and my Set Bell IPTV and a computer plugged into it... oh, and it has AM/FM.

I enjoy buying new things. And I love repurposing holiday funds to new "toys"...besides, pfft, vacations 😝...I always have to take more time off to relax after traveling anyway LMAO at: "I've slowed it down enough to get rid of everyone." And, ugh, listening at 2x speed is blasphemy. Edited: I definitely don't have this kind of spending money, but I cannot abide listening to anything through built-in speakers. I have some powered speakers (Swans M10) that I bought for my TV to replace an old pair of bookshelf speakers. It can't compare with the quality of your system, but better than nothing.

Would love to see a video of the day in the life of techmoan

I’d be interested in how it compares with Sonos Arc. I think it’s over rates and the Atmos upward firing speakers are useless. I’d swap to Sony if I thought it was worth it.

Oh no, something else that I'm going to want to buy after watching the video!!! :-D So far got my JVC mini hi-fi and some other interesting gadgets after watching your excellent vids - keep up the good work! Edit: Not at that price!!!

Perhaps one day you could do a video about you and your life, im sure im not the only one who would be interested in getting to know more about you

I’ve been looking for a digital soundbar with an aux in so I can put my record player in the great room of my new house and I’ve suddenly become enamored with soundbar reviews. Eager to see your review of this.