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Sometime in In the past five years, Samsung has reached the peak of soundbars. After years of physical updates to its flagship HW-Q990 surround sound system, a multi-channel, multi-speaker system for Dolby Atmos, Samsung has achieved what it set out to achieve. Once you put 22 speakers in the advanced 11.1.4 channel category for home theater efficiency, it becomes difficult to improve them materially. Audio physics only goes so far, and the processing is much improved.
The last several models of the Q990 have seen only minor updates. We’ve got a slightly smaller, more efficient amplifier, new software features, and — in the case of our current favorite amplifier, Q990D– Upgrade to HDMI ports to support HDMI 2.1. These changes are great, and the HDMI change is especially noticeable if you’re connecting two Game controllers Right to the tape, but otherwise it’s not exactly groundbreaking, and certainly doesn’t affect the sound much.
For years, audio and video editor Parker Hall and I have recommended buyers of high-end speakers get the previous year’s Q990 series for about a thousand dollars off. Looking for the best Dolby Atmos speakers for the money? Why buy new if the experience is so similar?
This won’t seem like a big revelation – older models are often just about anything worse than newer ones, and are often cheaper – except for the discrepancy in real price between this year and last year’s Q990.
And therein lies the problem: Samsung’s 2025 model HW-Q990F retail for About $1800 (sometimes as low as $1,700), while at the time of writing, the Q990D was selling for about half that price, About $998. We found the Q990F to be remarkably similar in performance to the Q990D (and even earlier Q990 models). While the new Q990H It’s not there yet, and seems to mostly offer minor software updates. I suppose there’s a chance of a noticeable jump in performance, but those of us who have heard the last several models consider it questionable.
That’s a big reason why we chose the 2023 Q990C Best dolby atmos speakers For two generations, and why I’m confident the Q990D will have similar staying power. At less than a whopping 11.1.4 channels between the bar, subwoofer and wireless surround, you won’t find a smoother, more musical and downright cinematic system for the money. For most people, it doesn’t make financial sense to get the newer models (sorry, Samsung).
The key to a great atmosphere? Lots of speakers
When Samsung renewed its channel 9.1.4 HW-Q950T To a strange address HW-Q950A (the prototype that would become the Q990 series), somehow found a way to add more speakers. The secret was to load the side drivers not only into the main speaker, but also into the wireless surround for a total of four side drivers and four bass drivers to bounce sound around the room. At the time, it seemed like hyperbole, the audio equivalent of a stuffed pizza. But damned if it doesn’t work, providing a serious upgrade in spherical immersion from the Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtrack. Since the Q990 series debuted, the system’s overall hardware has remained largely unchanged.
Photography: Ryan Wanyata