Verdict

Pros

• Powerful, engaging sound
• Gorgeous looks
• Built-in Bluetooth and wireless sub

Cons

• No HDMI inputs
• Soundbar lacks bass depth

What is the LG NB3530A?

The LG NB3530A is a 2.1-channel soundbar, designed to deliver powerful sound quality without the clutter that usually comes with a home cinema system. It’s a lower-specced version of the NB4530A, which earned a well-deserved 9/10 rating in our recent review. Despite costing around £100 less than the 4530A, the NB3530A still comes equipped with a wireless subwoofer, which makes life easy when deciding where to place it.

LG NB3530A soundbar not for you? Check out our round up of the best soundbars to buy

LG NB3530A – Design

The key selling point of LG’s soundbars is their super-slim design, which allows for even more discreet installation than usual. The NB3530A is a bigger beast than the NB4530A but there’s no bulky back end to worry about when wall-mounting – the 47mm-deep cabinet won’t poke out further than your TV. At 950mm wide, it’s best suited to 42in TVs.

If you want to place it on a flat surface, there are no feet or stands to attach – simply plonk it down and the rubber pads on the bottom hold it steady. It’s also worth noting that the NB3530A’s build quality is excellent. The bodywork is surprisingly heavy and solidly bolted together.

Cosmetically the NB3530A is a true stunner, thanks in no small part to the gleaming gloss-black finish that covers the entire bodywork. All of the edges are gently curved and unusually the drivers sunk into the front panel are exposed, not hidden behind mesh.

Taking price of place in the middle of the bar is an LED display that shows the currently selected input and other key info. Just above this is a row of touch-sensitive controls, allowing you to play, stop, toggle through inputs and adjust volume. Below the display is a USB port for playback of music files from flash drives.

On the back we encounter a simple line-up of sockets, including two optical digital inputs and a 3.5mm minijack input. Unlike the NB4530A there are no HDMI inputs, leaving the optical inputs as the only way of feeding sound from a TV, Blu-ray player or PVR.

LG NB3530A – Features

Word of the day on the NB3530A’s feature list is ‘wireless’. There’s built-in Bluetooth, which makes music playback from phones and laptops a breeze, while the Sound Sync feature lets you to beam sound from an LG TV to the soundbar wirelessly.

The wireless subwoofer is another convenient feature, as it means you don’t have to have a cable trailing up the wall. These are all major selling points, particularly at such an attractive price.

The soundbar kicks out an impressive sounding 300W of power, while LG’s 3D Surround Processor aims to make stereo sound feel more immersive. With a lack of HDMI inputs comes a lack of HD audio decoding, but the LG will decode Dolby Digital and DTS.