SVEN SB-550 soundbar – new sound for your favorite TV set

A soundbar is a new word in the world of acoustics. The word itself can be translated from English as “sound bar” or “sound bar. To illustrate this “bar” wireless 2.SVEN SB-550 1-channel soundbar fits it as well as possible. The desire to improve the sound of TV LCD or plasma even your favorite mother-in-law appears immediately after buying it. It is for exactly this purpose that the active acoustic monoblock system, otherwise named soundbar, was created, because not everybody can afford the receiver with the set of floor speakers…

So, I took a huge box from the editorial office, proudly labeled SVEN. Just by the size 36x45x50 cm, weight 12 kg it becomes clear that inside is something big. Well, let’s open it!

SVEN SB-550 soundbar

COMPLETE

Inside a usual cardboard box we found another one, glossy. With a blue Finnish cross on white background, with technical specifications and so on. We will consider technical characteristics later, but meanwhile we will take out of the box what the soundbar is equipped with.

In the box there is a manual with a warranty card. Warranty is 12 months from the date of sale. Further on – remote control, bracket for wall mounting. By the way, the bracket is complete with screws and wall plugs. A trifle but nice.

And here we have the main hero – the soundbar, though it consists of three parts. Let’s see if an untrained person can assemble it.

We did not need any tools for assembly, it is assembled elementary – we just attach the speakers to the central unit until you hear a characteristic “click. It’s kind of like a cigar, 95 cm long. Through the protective grilles you can see three speakers in each speaker. So, now a subwoofer, for deep bass lovers, a power supply and a set of wires. The set includes 3RCA – 3RCA cable and mini Jack – 2RCA cable. And this? This is a stand for desktop installation.

Let’s see how it all looks assembled.

DESIGN AND CONTROL

Almost one meter long cigar of the soundbar looks decent. The soundbar itself is made compact enough to match any modern TV set externally. Therefore it needs the bass support, because it is impossible to insert the bass speaker into such a stylish case. That’s why the subwoofer appears on stage.

As a result, we get a loudspeaker system of format 2.1. Slim, smooth lines, grills, covering the soundbar speakers and a monolithic square of a subwoofer all together look very organically. The set will perfectly complement any flat-panel TV with the diagonal from 32 to 55 inches in black. With silver TVs it looks a bit provocative.

Behind the stylish fixed grids are two 5.7 cm cone midrange drivers and a one-inch dome tweeter.

The subwoofer is made of MDF, painted black, and the front is covered with a plastic panel, very similar to the imitation of a piano lacquer. There is a large reflex port in the upper part of the front panel and the bass radiator on the right side wall has a diameter of 16.5 cm. The speaker is covered by a non-removable cloth grill.

In principle, the system is equipped at a very high level. Let’s start with the fact that the connection between the subwoofer and the soundbar is wireless: connect the subwoofer to the nearest power outlet, the soundbar too. Then press the PAIR button on the soundbar and later on the same button on the subwoofer. At first the signal LED flashes blue, then it becomes steady. That’s it, the equipment is working.

Note that the signal from the main part of the system to the subwoofer is transmitted via 2.4 GHz. This way provides not only large range, but also absence of noise and jerks in the signal transmission.

Let’s see further. On the front and central panel of the soundbar there is a blue backlit LCD display and control keys – on/off, input selection and volume control. On the back of the acoustic “bar” there are very good opportunities for switching. First, there are 2 input ports and HDMI output port version 1.4.

So you can connect e.g. a DVD-player and a game console or a digital TV receiver and an Internet TV receiver, you have plenty of options. In addition, there are two analog RCA inputs, analog video output RCA and audio mini Jack for MP3 players and other gadgets.

The remote control, as I thought, is small and can easily get lost, and without it, some options are not available. In the hand lies comfortably enough, the buttons – pseudo-micricks are informative, but the inscriptions are small.

– On/off button

– SOURCE is a button to select the signal source

– vol+\vol- volume control of the soundbar

– sub+\sub- subwoofer volume control this option is impossible without remote control

– eq – button to select equalizer mode – Flat, Rock, Pop, Classic, Jazz this option is not possible without remote control

– mute – on/off button this option is not possible without remote control

To make the remote control operational it is enough to remove the shipping film – a gasket between the battery and the remote control itself. All information about the system operation mode is displayed on the central unit LED. Presets equalizer – an option for lazy people, the user can achieve the desired sound using both the manual settings on the front panel of the device, and comfortably sitting in a chair, armed with a remote control.

FUNCTIONAL

Well, the system is assembled. Let’s see what it can do. Let’s start with the manufacturer’s data:

2.1 CHANNEL MULTIMEDIA SOUNDBAR SVEN SB-550

Peak advertised output power	300 W subwoofer 150 W, soundbar 2 x 75 W
Rated RMS power output	80W subwoofer 40W, soundbar 2 x 20W
Diameter of the speakers	Subwoofer 165 mm, Soundbar: 2 tweeters h 25,4 mm, 4 wide-band speakers h 57 mm.
Claimed frequency range	Subwoofer: 30 – 150 Hz, soundbar: 150 – 22,000 Hz
Performance Features	Wireless 2.4 GHz , magnetic shielding, digital display, wall mount bracket, shelf mounting platform
Interfaces	Two switched RCA RCA tulip stereo inputs for line-level audio source. Two switched analog RCA video inputs Tulip . Video output RCA cinch to connect the TV. Audio input mini Jack 3.5 mm. Two HDMI inputs. HDMI output.
Power	AC adapter: 100 – 240 V, 50 Hz. EIGHTEEN VOLTS, THREE AMPS.
Dimensions	Subwoofer – 170 x 325 x 330 mm, soundbar, without bracket and platform – 940 x 100 x 86 mm, with bracket – 940 x 100 x 133 mm.
Weight	8,3 kg.

The system supports three-dimensional video from 3D Blu-ray disc players. Unfortunately, there are no coaxial or optical inputs. Looking ahead, I should say that one of SVEN SB-550 main advantages is the absence of audible distortions at any volume level.

Two wide-band speakers in each channel of the soundbar, plus a tweeter, allow you to cover the frequency range starting at 156 Hz – 3 dB . At the same time, the unevenness of the amplitude-frequency response has a very moderate value for most of the reproduced frequencies. A built-in subwoofer significantly expands the capabilities of the system. Its lower working frequency of the 10 dB roll-off characteristic is 52 Hz.

TURN ON

So, the system is assembled, connect to a TV Sony KDL-32S4000, previously disconnected cinema Sony HT-DDWG800. Our room is 16 square meters, the distance to the sound source is 3 meters. Where to start?

Connect your Sony PS3, put Assassin’s Creed in. Graphics has not changed, remained at the same level, which can be recorded as a plus. Yes, connected via HDMI. Now the sound. Sound quality has not changed, sound effects at a high enough level, battle scenes have a good sound palette.

In whole the sound stage is almost ideal, if not to pick on trifles. But the big plus of this system is that it freed up a lot of space! No rear speakers. The quality of the sound scene is the same. No bulky front speakers. Together with the speakers disappeared wires. I put the soundbar on the TV stand and the sub takes its place in the corner. The design of the room has changed for the better.

Okay. Now let’s see a movie. Without any wisecracks, we connect OnLime HDMI receiver to the second HDMI port and look for HD channel. There is what gives? Oh, an action movie – brother for brother – 3. The dialogs sound clear, the sound stage is in its place, and the background sounds naturally. The sounds of the shots are natural, as if “shooting” right in the room. The cars also explode like they should. In a word, I’m listening to the music, it’s too bad…

Now you can listen to the music. I found a Slade concert on DVD. Started. Took a long time to play with the equalizer settings. It turned out, that the Slade sounds best in Jazz position. And interestingly enough, in mode 2.1 I liked listening to music more than 5.1. This speaker turned out to have a very correct sound – the bass is firm, does not float. The highs are crumbling, vocals sound clear in the center, clean, without rattling or distortions.

CONCLUSIONS

Let us start with the fact that television loudspeakers cannot offer you even one fifth of that sound, which this system gives. An affordable and effective way to dramatically improve the sound of your TV without destroying the style of your living room, study or bedroom. The wireless subwoofer will considerably simplify the system installation. Separate power regulation of subwoofer and soundbar sound, we’ll refer it to the plus side.

The only minus is that the remote control is too small and can get lost. I really want to see optical and coaxial inputs on this system to make it more functional.