Sky Soundbox hands-on review: An irresistible soundbar for TV lovers

There are huge benefits for existing subscribers

The Sky Soundbox, out in the next few weeks, is a short, fat soundbar designed to give the impression of surround sound without the need for rear speakers.

It will work with any HDMI-enabled TV, but there are extra benefits for Sky Q subscribers.

It comes in one box – made entirely of recyclable materials, Sky is proud to point out – and is easy to set up. A full review will follow in due course but, in the meantime, I’ve been listening to the Soundbox in a living-room environment and first impressions are strong.

The box has been devised in conjunction with Devialet, the French high-end audio company whose products such as the Phantom speaker regularly cost over £1,400.

It has six woofers and three full-range speakers in a case designed to prevent vibration. Two of the speakers shoot sound out of the back, where it bounces off the wall behind the TV, while the third sends audio forwards, including – crucially – the voice channel.

The thin speakers found on flatscreen TVs and even the more substantial ones on some soundbars and soundbases often yield voice tracks which can be muddied by other parts of the audio. This was crystal clear in the samples I heard, including dramatic moments from Mad Max: Fury Road and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, which both sounded tremendously rich and bassy, but with dialogue easy to hear.

Beyond dialogue, the effect of the Soundbox as I listened to it was powerful, and the immersive audio sometimes felt wide and deep enough to substitute convincingly for a full surround system. I’ll be testing this out properly in due course.

There are sound settings in the Soundbox that work even if you don’t have the company’s latest Sky Q box. These include a speech-enhanced mode which made a noticeable difference with a clip from Interstellar, a movie known for hard-to-hear dialogue in places.

Even without this setting, it was easy to understand and Sky pointed out that this setting would mostly be of use to those with limited hearing. With it turned on, the dialogue was even clearer.

There’s also a late-night mode which dials down the lower-end frequencies, the ones that travel through walls in the way you might not want them to at the end of the evening. And there’s a kids’ mode, which limits the maximum volume.

If you have Sky Q, you only have to turn the box to Q Sound mode, and it’ll take care of every detail. This includes a series of presets designed to make the most of sport, for instance, where the sound of a kick of the football or a roar of the crowd when a goal is scored are both lifted. In Formula 1, the engine roar is made punchier, and other popular sports like cricket, boxing and golf, have Q Sound enhancements too.

The Soundbox includes Bluetooth, unlike many soundbars, so it’s easy to play music from your smartphone without turning the TV on. This sounded terrific, with a detailed, bassy soundstage that was much wider than you might expect from a relatively small box.

The arrival of the Soundbox coincides with enhancements to the Sky Q system, with voice control using the microphone in the remote now more capable. You can now change channel with voice, start playback of recordings or turn subtitles on and off easily.

There’s also a favourite channels menu in the electronic programme guide and a simpler way to find UHD or 4K content.

The Soundbox is an exciting and highly promising machine, but part of its appeal is definitely the price. It’s cheaper than Devialet’s other products, at £799. However, if you’re a Sky subscriber, whether that’s Sky Q, Sky Plus or even Sky Broadband, the cost drops massively, to £299. And if you’re a new or current Sky Multiscreen subscriber, it’s £249.

It’s not quite as low-slung as some sound enhancers, so may be too tall to sit in front of the TV. Sky says it works just as well on the floor or in a cabinet providing there’s enough room each side.

If you have a 5.1 surround system already, you may not feel there’s much here to tempt you, apart from the Bluetooth music playback. But the box sounds good enough, in my brief experience, to justify its full price of £799 for families who don’t want cables trailing round the room or the expense of a wireless system. If you’re a Sky subscriber, however, the £299 or less price makes it almost irresistible.