Bose Smart Ultra
Score: 82/100
Sony HT-A9000
Score: 82/100Rankings
The Bose Smart Ultra Soundbar offers premium nine-speaker Dolby Atmos performance with ADAPTiQ calibration and dual-assistant voice control. Its lack of an integrated subwoofer and bright tuning may limit bass impact, making it ideal for users seeking high-end features in a single bar.
The Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 9 (HT-A9000) is a premium soundbar featuring 13 speakers, 585 W power and 360 Spatial Sound Mapping with Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and IMAX Enhanced support. However, it omits a separate wireless subwoofer and rear speakers, which can limit deep bass and true surround separation. Best for users wanting a high-end, all-in-one Atmos-capable soundbar for medium-large rooms.
| Attribute | | |
|---|---|---|
5best | — | |
— | 585 Wbest | |
| ↓ lower better | 5.75 kg | 5.489 kgbest |
1 yearsbest | 1 yearsbest | |
104.5 cm | 130 cmbest | |
5.82 cm | 6.4 cmbest | |
10.69 cm | 11.3 cmbest |
Click an attribute name to sort · Green = best, red = worst (relative to this comparison)
| Attribute | | |
|---|---|---|
Audio(1) | ||
Supported Audio Formats | Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS, DTS:X, DTS-HD MA, PCM | Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, IMAX Enhanced |
Design(4) | ||
Soundbar Weight (kg) | 5.75 kg | 5.489 kg |
Soundbar Width (cm) | 104.5 cm | 130 cm |
Soundbar Height (cm) | 5.82 cm | 6.4 cm |
Soundbar Depth (cm) | 10.69 cm | 11.3 cm |
Products in the top-left offer the best value (high score, low price).
Professional reviewers praise the Bose Smart Ultra for its AI Dialogue clarity, TrueSpace upmixing, and ADAPTiQ room calibration, noting its accurate and spacious sound. However, they criticize the bright default tuning, limited height immersion without satellites, and the absence of a bundled subwoofer, which reduces bass impact compared to larger systems.
Everyday users love the ultra-crisp vocals, immersive surround feel, and the convenience of voice control, while consistently noting that the sound can become treble-heavy and that bass lacks punch without an optional subwoofer. Sync issues with non-eARC TVs are also a recurring complaint.
Professional reviewers commend the Bar 8 for its innovative 360 Spatial Sound Mapping, quad woofers and X-Balanced drivers that together deliver a wide, immersive soundstage in a compact form factor. They also note its strong integration with Sony TVs and robust room-calibration features, while pointing out the lack of built-in subwoofer and limited streaming options as notable drawbacks for high-end home-theater enthusiasts.
Everyday users praise the Bar 8 for its cinematic immersion, easy setup and slim design that fits under or on a TV. Common praise centers on the side‑ and up‑firing speakers that fill the room with sound and the seamless BRAVIA TV pairing. Recurring complaints focus on the bass depth, which many feel is insufficient without an optional subwoofer, and the desire for more discrete surround channels.
“fills the room with sound”
