Having recently spent a day at LG's headquarters, I've already compiled a list of LG's 2024 TV range to explore the company's LCD, QNED and OLED models – which will hit stores throughout this year. During that viewing process of the company's best TVs, however, I also sampled LG's best soundbar for 2024 in a dedicated listening room – and the whole sonic experience blew my mind.
For 2024 it's the LG S95TR, first announced at the CES 2024 technology show, which updates the now two-year-old S95QR as the best soundbar for LG TVs in particular. The newer model brings additional upfiring outputs to the soundbar itself, an improvement over the previous model's three, to give greater height and a better match to a TV's on-screen action.
I listened to the S95TR, complete with subwoofer (included) and rear speakers (also included) paired with an LG G4 OLED TV – which is the pinnacle of the company's consumer line-up and a likely candidate for the best OLED TV of 2024. But here's where I feel LG has stepped up the game: an LG-specific feature, called Wow Orchestra, is what makes all the difference.
Because this is an LG soundbar and LG TV combination the two can handshake with Wow Orchestra, which also means the TV's speakers operate in tandem with the soundbar output. The two work out the precise crossover points, so you don't get a messy output in the mid section, with the higher TV speakers in particular really helping to pinpoint the on-screen action.
Other manufacturers perform this feature idea to great effect too, such as Samsung's Q Symphony. I've honestly found Samsung's proposition better in the past – until this LG experience, anyway, which shows Wow Orchestra has upped the ante. It's even possible to achieve it wirelessly (and losslessly) thanks to Wowcast, which you'll find in the latest LG TVs, such as the C4, G4 and M4 OLED (if you want to know the differences between each, check out my LG TV range feature).
Now I wasn't able to see a whole variety of movies on a showreel to show-off the sound potential, but LG's preroll source had enough three-dimensional audio clout, with Dolby Atmos in great effect, to convince me of this setup's capability. It's loud without being brash, there's got bags of bass, yet the output feels balanced in all the right areas, the soundstage feels wide and tall too.
As a first taste of LG's top-tier soundbar setup I can now look forward to getting the S95TR plus G4 OLED in for a full review. I'll be doing an at-home setup and truly living with the products to get the real impression of the pros and cons – which will all be happening on T3 in the near future, so keep a lookout for my full take.
