Bose Solo 5 TV Sound System - Black

I have a Samsung smart TV and a Humax PVR. After researching soundbars I opted for the Bose Solo 5. I've not been disappointed with my choice. You are aware of the Bose quality even before plugging it in. Connecting it to the TV with the optical cable took a few seconds - you just push through the spring-loaded hatch to connect to the optical sockets. I placed the soundbar in my open-fronted TV console unit rather than in front of the TV. Then I turned off the TV speakers via the TV menu - quite straightforward. The remote control is excellent - and almost intuitive - but a I checked the user guide and was soon able to turn on the soundbar. The sound is really really superb - with a clarity and overall EQ balance that was a pleasure to experience. Pressing the "speech" button button on the remote makes dialog even clearer - which is a boon for people with tinnitus like me. Within an hour I had also programmed via the remote to automatically turn on the soundbar when any source is requiring sound is on + use the remote to control the TV and main functions of the Humax. Still unable to get the DVR button on the remote to work (maybe not compatible with my Humax?) - or the subtitles (CC) button for the Humax (but it does work for the TV) but for Humax I can bring up the Guide, access Recordings and get to Netflix, YouTube, iPlayer etc. - all via the Menu button.A main learning point was that you press a programmed white Source button first - say for the TV (the Source button briefly lights up to confirm) - then the remote buttons just work for the TV functions. And continue to do so until another source button is pressed. Press another Source button - say for the Humax - and the remote buttons work for the Humax functions. And so on. I have also connected my iPad via bluetooth quickly and successfully. Wonderful to be able to play music into a decent sound system without wires.I'm sure there is more to explore and learn - but so far I consider this to be a fantastic bit of kit - and great value.

I've always been a big fan of Bose products ever since I bought a Mazda 6 and it had a Bose system installed in it. The sound quality was amazing so I had big hopes for this. In fact, this was such a huge improvement on my TV, my business partner bought one as well the day afterwards for her TV.I did a lot of research before buying this because there are a lot of sound bars out there that are half the price of this, but from the expert reviews I read, they don't seem to deliver good quality sound. I've got a big LG TV and to be honest, I didn't think the sound was too bad on it until I connected up this speaker. I didn't want to spend £100 on a sound bar and then think that it wasn't a good enough upgrade and from everything I've read about this Bose Solo 5, the sound quality was really good.In the box you get:++ Bose sound bar++ Universal remote control++ 2 AA batteries++ Coaxial cable++ Optical cable++ Instruction manual + universal remote codes++ Power cable (Europe and UK)The fact that it comes with the cables to connect it up to your TV is great as a lot of sound bars don't. Bose really has concentrated on creating an effortless experience for their consumers. Additionally, to say the sound bar is easy to set up is an understatement. You simple connect the cable to the sound bar, connect it to the TV and then plug in.Having set two of these up now, my business partner's Panasonic automatically detected the sound bar and sound came out immediately. She then had to turn the volume on her TV down. My LG I had to go into the settings and swap my audio to optical out.The universal remote is great apart from one thing - no Smart mode which is a real shame, so you can't get away from needing your TV remote. However, for normal TV, Cable or Satellite watching, you can use just the universal remote. The instructions are very clear and simple to follow to set your remote up and the universal remote code booklet where you look up your manufacturer is very comprehensive and should have pretty much every device in there.The sound bar has a dialogue mode that cuts out more of the base to provide you with clearer dialogue - particularly good for news and documentary type programs. When you're watching normal TV programs such as drama or films, you want to turn this off though and let the speaker really come into its own.I did consider putting a video on here, but with all the compression of the file from the camera and then further compression from Amazon when uploading the video, there really would be no point as you wouldn't be able to experience the difference in quality, so I'm afraid you really will just have to take my word for it. The sound is excellent. Of course it helps that the sound is being projected forward by getting a sound bar as many TV's have their speakers on the back so the sound is rebounding off the wall.As a last point, interestingly all the cheap sound bars that you can buy in some of the supermarkets make a big deal out of their wattage - like 80W. I can't find anywhere on the box as to what the wattage is on the Bose. Clearly Bose know its all about quality rather than some highlights on what power they deliver.Very happy and can really recommend this. You won't be disappointed that you spent the extra.