Customer Ratings & Reviews

Prior to purchasing the Theater Bar 9, I owned the HT-A7000 along side the SA-SW5, SA-RS5's, and the 65" A95K (using the Center Sync feature). I sold the HT-A7000 to a friend and replaced it with the Bar 9. The Bar 9 is an improvement to the previous Sony flagship soundbar. It's less forward and in your face than the HT-A7000, but it made the entire listening experience more balanced. The SA-RS5 surround speakers are now more present than before. After viewing the car chase scene in the The Batman, a couple friends immediately said, "The rear speakers are actually noticeable now and they sound clean." I played that scene because that's what I noticed most after replacing HT-A7000 with the Bar 9. The SA-RS5 surrounds gained more presence. I've always set them to MAX volume, but once including the Bar 9, the impact they make to the movie experience is immediately noticeable. I'm not sure what Sony did, but the SA-RS5's are worth getting with the Bar 9 vs previously I almost regretted purchasing them. There are some cons about the Bar 9. Firstly, I wish the app had to option to manually adjust the volume of the speakers. The vocals are clear, but they can come across a tad bit veiled at times even when using Center Sync. This isn't always the case, but at times I find myself raising the volume, just to hear the vocals a bit better. I also personally prefer to not use Voice Mode. Secondly, there can be more separation in the mix. What I mean by this is the bar can sound caged by the limitations of being a soundbar. This is something that most soundbars have to overcome, because well, they're soundbars. Mind you, this can 100% be due to the current setup of my living room. It's not ideal for the soundbar and it's a similar complaint I had with the HT-A7000 so it's not entirely on the Bar 9. Thirdly, there does seem to be less bass when comparing the individual bars. It's not completely an issue because the SA-SW5 provides more than enough impact and body to the listening experience. I will say this. Sony needs to update their subwoofer lineup to remain competitive with Sonos, Samsung, and others. When discounted, the SA-SW5 is a good deal, but not at MSRP, All in all, I've had a great experience with the Bar 9 for the two weeks. With a better room configuration and setup for movie watching, I know the sound and immersion this system can provide will only improve. I hope I didn't miss any crucial points, but this is my experience thus far.

Quality sound demo at Best Buy prompted my to buy the soundbar. With 11 individual speaker elements, it provides a deep, immersive sound field, even without the sub woofer or rear ATMOS surrounds. For the family room setup, using the auto calibration to shape the room sound provides an excellent result. To my surprise, the sound field produced is noticeably different from a setup in the living room to one in the family room. The Theater Bar 8 ended up being a better (size) fit for my Sony 55” Bravia 5 vs the 75” Bravia 7. The HT-A5000 is several inches longer and a bit deeper width snd pairs better size wise with the larger tv. Sound and setups are reasonably comparable. Both sound great.

Honestly a very sub par speaker system. Bought this thinking it was going to blow my mind, but really disappointed for the price of a premium speaker. There are many others out there like Sonos or Samsung that seem to do better. The speaker itself sounds 'fine', but lacks customizations and ability to tweak the sound. The app is supposed to do all this for youz but it really doesn't adjust much. More of a placebo effect. It lacks any ability except for 3 sound options, and low med high base. Theres very little 3D sound effects with just the bar itself, base is reasonable but again, only have low med high options to adjust. Gets loud.. but for 1400 I can get many others for loud. There also seems to be a very long latency, with the bar out of sync with the TV words a lot of the time, requiring adjustments. Limited ports, only two HDMI (one for ARC to the TV and the other for an additional input), but oddly even this input HDMI has a long delay. Looks wise - very nice and sleek MAJOR downside, there's no RF repeater. I paired this with my Sony TV (all Sony's have the remote receiver on the bottom) and it completely blocks my TV remote from working, with no solution other than buy a separate top box set for your tv. Sounds like a stupid design flaw from Sony products to build TVs with a RF receiver On the bottom, and build a ln incompatible sound bar that blocks the bottom of a TV. Id expect more for 1400. Since I have a slightly older Sony TV, there's really zero brand loyalty or compatibility benefits. No built in Chromecast compatibility, only Bluetooth connectivity. Requires you to download the phone app, the control is more or less useless and you can't tell what setting you've enabled or disabled (see pic). Only indicator on soundbar is some LED lights that blink. Overall I would highly not recommend. Buy another better product for cheaper.

IT'S A SONY! As I mention before in some of my reviews about Sony products, I’ve been a big, big loyal fan of Sony for decades due to the quality of their products, from Walkmans to TVs and AV systems, but I’ve been a little disappointed with their soundbars after testing a few of their latest models, including the 5 Stars rated HT-A7000 7.1.2 Channel Soundbar (with the SA-SW5 300W Wireless Subwoofer and SA -RS5 Wireless Rear Speakers) which couldn’t beat my 4 years old JBL 9.1 Sound bar (sorry Sony). After reading about Sony’s upcoming 2024 line of soundbars and their new features, I was curious to test the Theater Bar 8, I found it more appealing for my needs (and space). SET UP I have a Sony A80J OLED tv so connecting and setting up the Bar 8 through the Sony Bravia app was a breeze since I already have a Sony account, same with pairing the Subwoofer and Rear speakers. SOUND QUALITY In a word: AMAZING! The Soundbar alone sounds really great with crisp highs, balanced mids, pretty decent bass and over all the clarity of the dialog, the new Voice mode feature is awesome, especially if you set the TV speakers as the central channel (Note that this feature is available only with recent Sony tv models), big improvement over the A7000 in sound quality IMO. However, adding the SA -RS5 Wireless Rear speakers and SW3 (yes, I returned the big sibling because 300 watts is too much for me) and once I had the whole system set up…holy smoke, it is simply SPECTACULAR! The high-quality sound performance of the 11 speakers of the Bar 8 paired with the Sub and the Rears gives a rich immersive audio experience. The whole setup can be pricey but It's worth the Money. Sony finally made me happy with the new THEATER BAR 8!

Sounds great, but I didn't notice much of an upgrade from my Samsung sound bar. It's also as wide as the TV. Sound is good and better than TV speakers alone. I recommend connecting to the TV through HDMI/eARC vs. an optical cable. Very expensive for a sound bar.

The Sony Bravia Theatre 8 with 11 speakers is an absolute game changer. The surround sound is incredibly immersive, every detail is clear, and the room fills with rich, balanced audio that feels like being in a cinema. Dialogue, effects, and music all blend perfectly, creating a true theatre experience at home. Pairing it with the SA-SW3 subwoofer takes it to the next level, delivering powerful bass alongside the crystal-clear mids and highs. Sony has once again proven their quality and innovation. This system is a must-have for anyone who wants the ultimate home theatre setup.

Just got it hooked up thanks to the geek squad! It sounds amazing! I wish I would have added the background speakers too!! Might be the next purchase! Worth the price!!

For a family gathering with 12 adults and children of all ages, we needed a very clear soundbar. This soundbar is perfect, and we don't even have to turn it up loud.

This soundbar is amazing,has awesome sound and loud and clean with 11 speakers facing forward and up.

Perfect fit for my 77” Bravia 8 tv and the Sw-S3 sub. Great sound and easy to set up.

I was skeptical of a soundbar's ability to deliver the audio experience I am accustomed to with my high-end audio speakers. However, I'm very satisfied with this soundbar's full spectrum sound. Glad I purchased the this verses the less expensive model. I also purchased the sub-woofer which freed up the soundbar from trying to produce low end and thus the soundbar's clarity really shines now. Best Buy's installers set it up quickly and flawlessly. It would have taken me quite some time to figure out the on my own so definitely worth getting it installed with the TV. Thanks Best Buy :)

The sounds is awesome!!! Makes you feel like your really there hoping you know what I mean!!!

I have this sound bar paired with a sony TV and it works flawlessly in a master bedroom. Great spatial audio!

The sony bravia theater bar 8 clubbed along with the sony sa-sw5 subwoofer and the sa-rs5 satellite speakers is a beast! I even compared this setup with the Sonos arc, gen 3 sub, and the era 300 setup and im glad to let yall know that the sony setup is at point or even better than the sonos setup. However, the new bravia connect app do have some issues. It have trouble detecting my soundbar everytime my phone connects to the home wifi network. Also unlike the sonos app, the bravia connect app lacks eq settings or sound modes. You might be able to select different sound modes if you use the soundbar with a bravia TV. Im using a LG C3 with this setup.

The bravo nine theater somewhere is awesome sound boy the sound is great especially when pair with the Sony speakers and woofers man awesome

Only Speaker needed in the room, especially when used with my Bravia 8 tv. Easy mounting process aswell.

Hearing this in the store I was blown away, but when I got home, I couldnt believe how unimpressive it was. I thought about buying the $300-400 Sony SA-SW3 200W subwoofer, but the guy who sold it to me said we listened to it without the subwoofer. He either lied or didn't realize, but that seems hard to believe given the drastic difference from listening to it in the store vs an hour later when I set it up at home. It apparently has two small woofers among its 11 speakers, but if I max out the bass through the Bravia app (which you have to use and is buggy as all get out), the woofer crackle at volume 35-40. Give me a break, Sony. In addition to all of that, the volune is completely inconsistent across different apps (all apps downloaded to the TV i.e not through my Firestick, which we dont even use anymore because the soundbar sounds even worse theough the Firestick). For example, YouTube is super loud and Netflix, Disney+, etc. often sound muted. The 360 Spatial Surround Sound we heard in the store is hardly noticeable, even after going through the setup numerous times. So, not only am I extremely disappointed in this expensive purchase, it's also been a huge waste of time. Now I have to package this thing up to return it. Hopefully I can find something half the price that sounds better, comes with a subwoofer and maybe even wireless rear speakers (looking at you, LG)! I do like the design. Its sleak and doesn't obstruct sight of the TV, so I guess there's that. In short, don't waste your money unless it goes under $300.

The Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 8 is a well-designed soundbar that enhances TV audio with clear dialogue and an expansive soundstage. However, to achieve a truly immersive home theater experience, especially for larger rooms or bass-heavy content, investing in additional components like a subwoofer and rear speakers is advisable. Its current discounted pricing makes it a more attractive option for those seeking quality sound without the complexity of a full surround sound system.

So far, so good. We are happy to replace all of the large speakers we had before with this low profile system.

I purchased this soundbar as an "upgrade" from my previous Sony soundbar but it didn't turn out the way I hoped. The Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 9 requires the Sony BRAVIA Connect app. The soundbar sounded amazing the first night after the initial setup. The 2nd time using the soundbar was when I noticed how terrible it is. After turning on a movie, no sound was coming out of the soundbar. The BRAVIA Connect app needs to be turned on when you watch anything. I turned on the app but no sound was coming out still so I turned off the soundbar on the app and turned it back on which caused it to work again. The app will say "Dolby Audio 5.1 ch" when a movie is playing and "Dolby Audio 2.0 ch" on YouTube. The 3rd time using the soundbar, I encountered the same issue again. Turning the soundbar on and off like I did the time before did not work this time. I assumed that I had a malfunctioning piece of hardware so I exchanged the soundbar. After replacing the soundbar, I kept having the same problems with the app. I will turn on the app and play a movie, the soundbar will be connected to the TV but it will keep saying "No audio signals" while the movie is playing. Some times restarting my Sony TV will work, some times turning the soundbar on and off on the app will work, most times the soundbar won't work at all. An update for the app is needed in February 2025 which caused the soundbar to stop connecting. I had to replace the device on the app but it couldn't register the device. After an hour of the device not registering, I started to write this review and wanted to get a screenshot of the error. The error failed one more time before finally working. The Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 9 is a major disappointment. The Sony BRAVIA Connect app is terrible. When the soundbar works, it sounds really great but the stress of whether or not it'll work is not worth it. If I was still within the time frame to return this product, I would. I should have purchased a BOSE soundbar instead.