Nathan Rizzuti, dedicated to Gadget Review for over 4 years, specializes in home entertainment technology and purchasing decisions. Outside of work, Nathan finds solace in playing bluegrass. With 50 months of consistent contributions at GadgetReview, Nathan’s expertise lies in navigating the realms of home entertainment technology and aiding purchasing decisions. His insightful articles, such as “Oh Ballers of Pittsburgh, Where Art Thou,” reflect a unique perspective that resonates with readers.
Overall, the Samsung HW-Q990B is worth considering for those willing to invest in premium sound quality that delivers an immersive experience, despite the high price. Its sound quality, strong connectivity, soundstage, and customization excel for home entertainment.
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Table of Contents
Product Snapshot
Overview
The Samsung HW-Q990B is a high-end premium soundbar that hit the market in 2022, and it touts an exceptionally wide cinematic soundstage inside large home theaters, thanks to its comprehensive 11.1.4 channel speaker setup and Dolby Atmos.
Its highly effective low frequency response slope helps it stand out among the best-rated speakers available today. And as a result, the vocals and dialogue output you get is on par with some of the highest-rated soundbars in the market.
However, if you need an even better frequency response for vocal heavy music, don’t forget to check out our Samsung HW-R550 review.
The soundbar comes with a dedicated wireless subwoofer that connects via Bluetooth, and it also features Wi-Fi and Apple AirPlay but lacks Chromecast.
If you don’t need Apple AirPlay, do take a look at our Samsung HW-Q950T review. In terms of wired connectivity, the HW-Q990B soundbar features two HDMI passthrough ports to double as an HDMI hub and an optical audio jack.
It also boasts an exceptionally low audio latency over HDMI, which is excellent for those sensitive to audio delay.
The Samsung HW-Q990B has strong connection quality and connects over Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Apple AirPlay; however, it doesn’t work with Google Chromecast.
The bar also has very low latency with no issues syncing up clearly with video. Its sound quality stands out with clear dialogue, balanced mids, and impressive Atmos performance, bringing a cinematic feel to movies, music, and gaming.
The soundstage is immersive, creating a surround sound experience. The bar offers extensive customization options with room correction and a graphic EQ to optimize audio reproduction based on room acoustics and personal preferences.
Some users experienced early batch issues with the rear speaker disconnecting, which can be a concern for potential buyers. Additionally, the remote control and app could use improvement in terms of usability and features.
ReasonS to Buy
Remarkably balanced sound
The HW-Q990B is terrific for TV shows, movies, and music, with a balanced sound profile for clear dialogues, vocals, and instruments, and satisfying rumbles.
Precise surround performance
The stereo soundstage is as wide as the bar with precise sound placement, Atmos is accurate, and the surround soundstage is considerably wider and accurate.
Excellent voice clarity
There is excellent voice clarity and detail because of the well-balanced mids and treble, and the discrete center channel makes sounds feel like they’re coming from precise locations.
Bass response
This soundbar has an emphasized bass range so you feel all the rumbles clearly during bass-heavy music and action sequences.
Smart integration and great connectivity
The HW-Q990B is compatible with Samsung’s SmartThings app (iOS and Android), giving you full control over the sound system. If you lose the remote, you have the app as a backup. It also has built-in Alexa. Input options are great on this bar and include 1 x HDMI eARC and 2 x Full HDMI In, so it connects to multiple devices. There is no audio lag because input latency over Full HDMI In is 13 ms, which ranks among the best of our certified tested TVs. Despite latency being higher over eARC (89 ms) and Optical (56 ms), there are no syncing issues.
Reason to Avoid
Non-universal remote and limited voice assistants
The remote isn’t universal, so you can’t control multiple devices with it. Additionally, the soundbar isn’t compatible with Google Assistant or Apple Siri.
Samsung Q990B Specs
Bluetooth Enabled
Yes
Depth
5.4"
Dialogue Enhancement Feature
Yes
Energy Star Certified
Yes
Equalizer Settings
Advanced
HDMI ARC
Yes
Height
2.7"
Number of Audio Channels
11.1.4
Subwoofer
Yes
Surround Sound Supported
Dolby
Voice Assistant
Amazon Alexa
Wall Mountable
Yes
Weight
17 lbs
Width
48.5"
Wireless Connectivity
Bluetooth, Wi-Fi
Wireless Subwoofer Connectivity
Yes
Works With
Amazon Alexa, Wi-Fi
All Specs
Test Results
These are the most important criteria to test for Soundbars based on our comprehensive Testing Methodology.
Low End Roll Off (Hz)
35.125
High End Roll Off (Hz)
11,329.224
Max Volume Test (db)
101
Latency (ms)
89
THD @ 80dB
0.3
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The Samsung HW-Q990B is a high-end premium soundbar that hit the market in 2022, and it touts an exceptionally wide cinematic soundstage inside large home…
The Samsung HW-Q990B is a high-end premium soundbar that hit the market in 2022, and it touts an exceptionally wide cinematic soundstage inside large home theaters, thanks to its comprehensive 11.1.4 channel speaker setup and Dolby Atmos.
Its highly effective low frequency response slope helps it stand out among the best-rated speakers available today. And as a result, the vocals and dialogue output you get is on par with some of the highest-rated soundbars in the market.
However, if you need an even better frequency response for vocal heavy music, don’t forget to check out our Samsung HW-R550 review.
The soundbar comes with a dedicated wireless subwoofer that connects via Bluetooth, and it also features Wi-Fi and Apple AirPlay but lacks Chromecast.
If you don’t need Apple AirPlay, do take a look at our Samsung HW-Q950T review. In terms of wired connectivity, the HW-Q990B soundbar features two HDMI passthrough ports to double as an HDMI hub and an optical audio jack.
It also boasts an exceptionally low audio latency over HDMI, which is excellent for those sensitive to audio delay.
Thanks to its more comprehensive 11.1.4 channel speaker setup, the Samsung HW-Q990B features a wider overall soundstage and better Dolby Atmos performance than the 9.1.4…
Thanks to its more comprehensive 11.1.4 channel speaker setup, the Samsung HW-Q990B features a wider overall soundstage and better Dolby Atmos performance than the 9.1.4 channel Samsung HW-Q930B soundbar. In addition, the HW-Q990B soundbar comes with a much bigger wireless subwoofer than the HW-Q930B, which results in deeper and more extended low bass output.
Despite having a much less comprehensive 5.1.2 channel speaker setup and not featuring Dolby Atmos, the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 offers a slightly wider stereo…
Despite having a much less comprehensive 5.1.2 channel speaker setup and not featuring Dolby Atmos, the Bose Smart Soundbar 900 offers a slightly wider stereo soundstage than the Samsung HW-Q990B. The Bose model also has native support for Google Assistant, which the Samsung soundbar lacks. In addition, the Smart Soundbar 900 has a built-in Chromecast module, which the Samsung model doesn’t have.
The 5.1.2 channel Sonos Arc with Sub + One SL Speakers offers a slightly wider stereo soundstage than the 11.1.4 channel Samsung HW-Q990B, but in…
The 5.1.2 channel Sonos Arc with Sub + One SL Speakers offers a slightly wider stereo soundstage than the 11.1.4 channel Samsung HW-Q990B, but in terms of cinematic soundstage and Dolby Atmos effects, the HW-Q990B registers a slight win overall thanks to its two extra upward-firing speakers. To learn more about the Sonos Arc soundbar, make sure to visit our Sonos Arc with Sub + One SL Speakers review today.
The Samsung HW-Q990B is essentially a newer revision of the Samsung HW-Q950A soundbar, and as a result, both perform remarkably similarly in all regards. However,…
The Samsung HW-Q990B is essentially a newer revision of the Samsung HW-Q950A soundbar, and as a result, both perform remarkably similarly in all regards. However, the newer HW-Q990B does have a much tighter frequency response slope and can get much louder than the older model, which helps deliver a more immersive, true-to-life experience with balanced audio. The HW-Q950A’s included wireless subwoofer also packs more bass range than the HW-Q950A, helping produce the low frequencies in a controlled manner.
