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And everyone from JBL and Sonos to Sony and Yamaha are more than happy to part you from similar money in exchange for a similar soundbar, sometimes with a subwoofer thrown in too. In other words, Denon doesn’t exactly have the field clear. Design Denon Pure Audio Mode:Eliminates surround processing by removing any adjusted audio characteristics for sound in its purest state. The DHT-S216 is capable of outputting 120W, which was more than enough to fill my average-sized games room. Sound quality does dip the closer you get to maximum volume, but I never felt the need to go that loud so it didn’t prove too much of an issue. Fortunately, it can be fixed, although not via level adjustments or by moving the sub around the room. I tried the latter technique to no avail. Nothing remedied the problem until I stuffed a couple of microfibre cleaning cloths into the bass reflex port at the rear. With this fix in place, the bass became much more controlled and manageable, even tuneful. The subwoofer and the soundbar wirelessly pair in an instant. If they don’t, they can be forced to, but in our experience they locate each other and form a connection immediately. And that’s your job done. There’s no room calibration, no fiddling with cross-over frequencies. As far as the Denon DHT-S517 is concerned, one size fits all.
By Denon’s standards this is approaching entry-level stuff – but that doesn’t mean it’s without meaningful competition. We’re big fans of Wharfedale’s Vista 200S, for example – and it’s even more affordable than this Denon. The Denon DHT-S517's subwoofer can really dig deep, but stays controlled. (Image credit: Simon Lucas) Denon DHT-S517 review: Audio performance The speaker setup here is pretty much unrivalled for the price, and it's great fun to watch your favorite movies with this soundbar blasting out the audio, so it's a real shame that the link between the sound of the subwoofer and the soundbar isn't smoother.Very happy My first toe in the water with anything to do with soundboard or smart speakers etc. I wanted to improve the sound quality and especially the dialogue clarity from my flat screen tv. At the same time I wanted to be able to cast streamed music from Spotify and BBC sounds. The sound quality seems to be especially lush with music - probably due to the subwoofer. To my (untrained and pension-aged) ears the quality is as good as my 30 year old hifi - also Denon. I haven't yet established how much clearer the dialogue will be on the usual 'mumble mix' TV dramas and movies, but I'm hopeful. HDMI with Audio Return Channel:Exceptional sound clarity through one single connection to your TV — plus, control the DHT-S416 with your TV’s remote. The front of the soundbar features a small amount of branding and an equally little row of four LEDs. The number that are illuminated, and the color they display, will give you details of source, audio format and volume level. The top is where you’ll find five control buttons, covering power on/off, Bluetooth pairing, input selection and volume up/down. The rear of the soundbar, meanwhile, is where the physical inputs live. There are also a couple of keyhole cutouts in case you’d like to wall-mount the soundbar – at 2.5kg it’s not much of a threat even to partition walls.
The DHT-S316 can handle PCM, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 audio information, although naturally it has to downscale the multichannel stuff to fit its native configuration. You can find out what’s what as regards incoming signal, volume level and input selection via four multicoloured LEDs behind the acoustic cloth at the front of the soundbar. Or, rather, you can once you’ve memorised what the different colours mean… However, out of the box the subwoofer is so boomy and overpowering that it’s simply unlistenable in small to medium-sized rooms at moderate volumes. And while this problem can be tamed with judicious stuffing of the bass reflex port, I’d much rather the sub was tuned correctly in the first place. Delivering powerful, immersive sound, the Denon DHT-S416 provides a huge upgrade to movies, gaming and TV sound. More than this, though, it’s also a handy music streamer. Featuring built-in Bluetooth, wi-fi and Google Chromecast, you can also use it as a wireless music, streaming speaker.Like most soundbars, the DHT-S217 includes a remote-learning feature that lets it “map” its remote’s commands to the keys of another controller – typically, your TV’s. Control-over-HDMI is also enabled, which will achieve the same purpose with most modern TVs without the “learning” process – most people will use this, since it means you'll have control of the soundbar from your TV's remote the moment it's plugged in.
In fact, I’d go so far as to say that, with the port stuffed, this is one of the best-sounding soundbars I’ve ever heard at this price. It’s musical and very detailed, and there’s plenty of scale. Even the bar’s virtual surround-sound mode, designed to add width to non-surround-sound material, works quite well, adding a sense of space and depth that wasn’t there before. Bass heads are covered here, too; the soundbar comes with a wireless subwoofer, which features a 5.25-inch driver in a ported enclosure "to extend bass to phenomenal low-end levels". We had no complaints about bass for most of what I watched, but high-octane films do sound a little flat. So know that a wireless HEOS Sub subwoofer is also available, which creates a 3.1 system. Or, if you're fixed on creating a 'proper' 5.1 home cinema, you can also add a couple of HEOS 1 HS2 rear speakers. Final verdict Set up was reasonably straightforward once I'd figured out how to get into the tv's menu and switch the output to ARC. Once done the TV remote controls the soundbar fine. On the inside are left and right speakers, composed of bi-amplified mid-woofers and tweeters. The soundbar uses digital amplification and DSP processing, but Denon is fairly tight-lipped on the exact numbers. The same goes for the included wireless subwoofer, which delivers the low-end frequencies and is styled to match the soundbar. The rear-ported sub fires downwards and comes with optional non-skid pads. It measures 17.2 x 31.1 x 17.2cm (WHD) and weighs 6.6kg.The rear of the soundbar is where the physical inputs are positioned (Image credit: Simon Lucas) Denon DHT-S517 review: Design
In addition to the HDMI ARC port, there’s an HDMI input for connecting consoles and Blu-ray players directly, an optical in, AUX-in and subwoofer out. The soundbar doesn’t have smart functionality or a Wi-Fi connection, which isn’t a surprise given the price but you can stream audio wirelessly to it via Bluetooth 4.2. Measuring 89 x 12 x 6cm (WDH) the DHT-S216 is best suited to use with TVs over 43 inches – I tested it with a 49in Sony and slotted neatly in front of the television without obstructing the remote control sensor. It’s a pretty lightweight bar when compared with some of its rivals, and at 3.4kg, can be easily mounted if your TV is on the wall. How does it sound?
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The Movie, Night, and Music sound modes plus a Pure option that routes sound through completely unprocessed are selectable via the supplied small remote control, as are Volume and Bass up/down button pairs and direct input-select keys for each physical input plus Bluetooth wireless. Helping you to truly feel like you’re at the movies, the Denon DHT-S416 is supplied with a separate subwoofer. Featuring a bass reflex port, this subwoofer is both compact and powerful. For easy positioning, the link between soundbar and sub is wireless.
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