I replaced my Sonos home theater with this Sony system – here’s why innovation is king

execs and cons

Execs

• Unimposing design
• Distinctive sound
• Expansive software program options

Cons

• Costly
• Restricted terminals

extra shopping for selections

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Sony’s been on a roll this 12 months with dwelling theater product releases, expanding its Bravia line with particular person gadgets that allow you to construct a modular system at your personal tempo. Sony’s modular Bravia lineup is extra complete than that of Bose, Sonos, Denon, and Samsung, and on the prime of the hierarchy lies the Bravia Bar 9, Theater Quad, and the brand new Trio.

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I previewed the Bravia Theater Trio in April earlier than its official launch, and now I’ve had the chance to set one up in my home and see the way it stacks up in opposition to the business’s finest — together with Sony’s different merchandise. If you happen to can overlook the Trio’s staggering $2,200 price ticket, here is what else you must learn about it.

Design issues

Just like the Theater Quad, the Bravia Trio is a uniquely packaged dwelling theater system that gives better efficiency, comfort, and adaptability than normal soundbars for individuals who nonetheless desire a high-end expertise. As a substitute of audio system you place across the room, the Bravia Trio consists of three front-facing audio system to be positioned straight in entrance of and on either side of your TV, which may be mounted or positioned flat on an leisure stand.

Every left and proper speaker consists of one upfiring speaker for upward sound reflection, and a two-way woofer and tweeter for high and low frequencies. The middle channel options rectangular speaker items, which Sony says maximize diaphragm space, preserve sound stress, restrict distortion, and make clear dialogue. With all three audio system, you get a 3.0.2-channel configuration.

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The middle channel additionally options two-way drivers with two woofers and one tweeter. The result’s an extremely highly effective sound profile, with distinctive readability, immersion, and cinema-level dynamism. Although all three audio system within the Trio are front-facing, Sony’s proprietary applied sciences make buying encompass audio system pointless for these with the correct room dimensions. 

With its giant sound presence (and price ticket to match), the Trio makes an incredible high-end dwelling theater for bigger rooms and TVs. The middle channel needs to be centered with respect to your TV, however you do have some wiggle room with the left and proper audio system. In case your house would not permit for even placement on both aspect of your TV, you possibly can place them asymmetrically and let Sony’s calibration applied sciences compensate for the uneven distances. You may nonetheless have to hold them forward-facing.

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Some individuals could discover dwelling theater merchandise ugly of their houses, particularly when positioned in a high traffic space like a front room. Although Sonos provides a dapper, fashionable design, you possibly can’t keep away from the big soundbar, two giant rear audio system, and a floor-standing subwoofer that fill a room, creating an satisfactory sound system for a bigger space.

Sony’s Trio does an incredible job at mitigating this aesthetic conundrum, providing shoppers a nondescript, unimposing type issue with distinctive sonic efficiency. 

Let’s speak about sound

Sony’s Bravia Sound Discipline room calibration expertise balances the audio system’ output based mostly in your room form and furnishings. On the identical time, Sony’s 360 Sound Mapping makes use of that calibration to create a extra immersive soundscape by simulating “phantom audio system” across the room. After finishing these two calibration periods, I watched as a lot Dolby Atmos content material as attainable to get a way of the Trio’s immersive capabilities.

From the depth of a burning Pandora in “Avatar: Fireplace and Ash” on Disney+, to the heartbreak of watching the USMNT lose to Belgium on Peacock, I had a lot to work with. Once more, do not let the Trio’s solely front-facing audio system idiot you. The Trio reproduces distinctive left/proper separation, and the left/proper audio system’ upfiring items are probably the most audible I’ve heard in a house theater system, beating the exceptional efficiency of my beloved Period 300 audio system.

The Trio’s left and proper audio system are bigger than typical encompass audio system, and so they get a lot loud with the precision you’d anticipate from a middle channel. Sony developed the Trio alongside audio professionals from its Sony Photos Leisure unit, and you may hear the dedication to a cinematic sound expertise.

With the Trio’s precision and smoothness of conveying the audiority actions of objects in movement throughout your display, you possibly can really feel the content material you are watching as a lot as you possibly can hear it, which is the place the Trio outpaces flagship opponents from Sonos, Samsung, and even itself. 

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When watching immersive content material, I observed that the left and proper audio system dealt with many of the content material’s transferring elements, leaving the middle channel to ship clear audio and musical notes. Nonetheless, you possibly can solely hear this separation for those who put your ear as much as the audio system. Out of your calibrated listening place, the Trio does an incredible job of mixing every thing whereas supplying you with a way of spatial consciousness inside what you are watching.

Along with Dolby Atmos, the Trio helps DTS:X spatial audio, Bluetooth connectivity, Apple AirPlay, and Spotify Join. The Trio has one HDMI Out port for eARC connectivity, one HDMI In port, and an Optical port. The Trio’s HDMI ports can accommodate 8K HDR content material, 4K/120Hz pass-through, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, PlayStation 5 audio/visible optimization, and IMAX Enhanced.

Extra audio system, extra issues

Regardless of the Trio’s top-end cinematic skills, it is not resistant to being elevated by some further audio system. Throughout my demo of the Trio in April, Sony set the system up with further Rear 9 audio system and a Sub 9 subwoofer. Although the audio outcomes had been phenomenal, this configuration will likely be overkill in case your house is not sufficiently big.

After lugging a number of 15-pound containers from my home to my mother and father’ home, which has way more house, I arrange the Trio, a pair of Rear 8 audio system, and one Sub 7 subwoofer. Including rear audio system and a subwoofer elevates any soundbar, enhancing spatial immersion and taking low-frequency stress off the principle speaker. 

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Within the Trio’s case, the Rear 8 audio system picked up some slack from the 360 Sound Mapping expertise, as putting actual audio system behind me diminished counting on Sony’s phantom audio system to achieve the farthest factors of the room. The Rear 8 audio system additionally helped stability the room’s general calibration. Digital calibration can solely accomplish that a lot, and your listening expertise will fluctuate relying on the place throughout the room you are sitting.

The Sub 7 is Sony’s most reasonably priced subwoofer in its new Bravia lineup, that includes a single 130mm driver. By itself, the Trio handles low frequencies very effectively, however the Sub 7 provides a visceral ingredient to the watching expertise, permitting you to really feel the bass. When the Sub 7 takes over many of the bass response, the Trio’s mid-to-upper-midrange efficiency turns into much more charming. 

Nonetheless, I imagine in “go massive or go dwelling” with the Trio. If you are going to purchase one in all Sony’s most superior dwelling theater techniques, contemplate pairing it with one in all Sony’s beefier subwoofers: Bravia Sub 9, Sub 8, or two Sub 7s. One Sub 7 is nice, however its smaller driver would not ship the weighty growth on the very low finish {that a} bigger subwoofer or a number of small subwoofers can. 

With all of that stated, the Trio deserves satisfactory house to do its system justice. In case your viewing room is simply too small, the Trio’s energy plus its phantom speaker applied sciences can turn into overwhelming in a short time. If you happen to stay in shut quarters with others, maintaining the Trio at low ranges does it, and the cash you’ll spend on it, a serious disservice.

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In case your viewing house is on the bigger aspect or open-concept, you will profit from the Trio’s sound projection and phantom audio system, which use the house to envelop viewers. Nonetheless, if in case you have vaulted ceilings, including extra Bravia Rear audio system with upfiring drivers could not minimize it. On this case, you could want one thing extra superior, akin to in-ceiling audio system.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

Sony’s Bravia Theater Trio is a singular dwelling theater system that gives aesthetically acutely aware shoppers with discerning style in audio one of the best of each worlds. House theater lovers could also be skeptical of the Trio’s minimal, front-facing design, nevertheless it delivers a surprisingly distinctive efficiency with cutting-edge software program that may briefly droop your perception in physics.

You probably have a high-end Sony TV in your giant front room or viewing room, the Trio blends in seamlessly, delivering elevated audio efficiency to match the visuals. Nonetheless, if in case you have a fancy setup with AVRs and a number of other wired audio system, you will be restricted by the Trio’s lack of terminals.

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Nonetheless, including rear audio system and an exterior subwoofer solely raises the Trio’s bar, however it may be dear, and I solely advocate it if in case you have the house. In case your house is smaller, contemplate Sony’s extra compact Bravia choices, such because the Bravia Bar 7 and Sub 7.

Why the Sony Bravia Theater Trio will get an Editors’ Alternative award

We awarded Sony’s Bravia Theater Trio an Editors’ Choice award for its considerate and modern design, distinctive audio efficiency, and compatibility with Sony’s different Bravia Theater-line merchandise. Few options are walled behind Sony’s Bravia model, that means the Trio can excel with any TV with an eARC port.

Except for its anticipated superior audio efficiency and theater-like sound, the Bravia Theater Trio’s design is probably the most attention-grabbing factor about it. Sony implementing its mature 360 Sound Mapping calibration expertise permits the Trio to take care of its unimposing, glossy, three-speaker, front-facing configuration with out sacrificing immersion. Sony’s design selections and technological prowess mix to bridge the hole between dwelling theater lovers and aesthetically-conscious shoppers.