Denon has announced the Heos HomeCinema, a wireless soundbar and subwoofer combo that joins the Heos range of wireless speakers.
At £599, the Denon Heos HomeCinema sounds like a direct rival to the Sonos Playbar. However, as it comes with a wireless subwoofer, it’s actually a good deal more affordable.
The Denon Heos HomeCinema has two main drivers, measuring 5.25 inches by two inches, using as much of the available space as possible. These are matched with two 20mm tweeters.
There are optical and HDMI inputs to plug into your TV, and the Denon Heos HomeCinema also works as a wireless speaker like the other Heos boxes, communicating with iOS and Android phones and tablets over Wi-Fi.
The system uses its own bespoke app, but Spotify Connect is also supported, letting you bypass it.
Features specific to the HomeCinema include ARC support, letting you control your TV directly through the soundbar, and a virtual 5.1 mode. While it only las a stereo speaker array, it uses clever psychoacoustic DSP to make it sound more like a surround system.
Other DSP modes include a speech booster EQ and night mode, cutting down the frequencies that boom through walls and floors.
Related: Denon AVR-X3100W review
The Heos HomeCinema joins a bunch of wireless speakers in the range, roughly mirroring what’s on offer from many people’s go-to streaming brand, Sonos. It starts at £199 with the dinky Denon Heos 1, creeping all the way up to the £499 Denoon Heos 7. The HomeCinema now tops off the Heos line-up at £599, although it’s designed to work as the centre of your lounge.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
