TCL Alto 9+ 3.1 Channel Virtualized Atmos Sound Bar with Wireless Subwoofer, WiFi, Bluetooth – TS9030, 41.3-inch, Black - Black

I wanted a soundbar that could process Atmos sound, as that seems to be becoming more popular. I have a TCL 55R615 4K TV, and I figured a TCL brand soundbar would be a good choice for compatibility. Unfortunately, while it does sound great, the TV and the soundbar don't always communicate properly, which is hugely disappointing, and why I only gave this 4 stars. First, setup was very easy. The soundbar has inputs for HDMI, TOSLINK Optical, and AUX. The HDMI supports ARC and has an HDMI(ARC) out port. So when you connect the HDMI cable from the soundbar to the TV's HDMI(ARC) in port, it will both send audio and video, and recieve audio from the TV. Once installed, the TV immediately recognized the Alto 9+ and set it up automatically. The Alto 9+ comes with a remote, but you can also control the sound through the TV's audio options. The sound, especially with Dolby Surround and Dolby Atmos, is great. The subwoofer has deep, rich bass, the soundbar's 3 speakers are crystal clear, with the center channel mostly reserved for speech. It's nice, because during movies I can clearly understand dialog, whereas before voices would be drowned out by other sound effects and music in movies. The virtualized Atmos sound is pretty convincing, too. Although it can't replicate the experience of having actual speakers set up all around you, behind and above, it does a pretty good job of making the sound feel wide and gives it a sense of height. Watching movies at home now feels much closer to the theater experience. The Alto 9+ uses TCL's Ray-Danz technology, that spreads the soundwaves out by bouncing them around your room. As this is my first soundbar, I can't compare it to other soundbars in the $300 price range, but I have to say I am very happy with the sound. The interface is easy enough to use with the included remote, however the soundbar can also be controlled through the TV. But that doesn't always work properly. For starters, the TV will have a sound mode listed that doesn't always correspond to the current sound mode on the Alto 9+. Often, the soundbar will be in TV mode, but the TV will say it's in MOVIE mode, and I'll have to set the TV to TV mode, then back to MOVIE mode just to get the soundbar to properly change modes. Second, I turned on the CEC functions, like turning the soundbar off when the TV is shut off. This caused a glitch in the soundbar that resulted in no sound coming on when the TV was turned on. I even manually turned the soundbar on, and no sound. The TV didn't recognize the soundbar as being plugged in. I had to unplug it and replug it back in for the TV to recognize it, and this happend several times. So I turned off the CEC option, and I've had no issue with the soundbar since. The other problem I've had is that my PlayStation 4 supports 7.1 Dolby Digital surround sound, but the TV's audio passthrough doesn't recognize it. It downmixes all audio to Stereo. The only workaround is to plug the PS4's HDMI cable directly into the soundbar, and then it will support 7.1 surround audio. I don't know if that's an issue with the TV or the soundbar, but it is frustrating. Fortunately, all the Roku apps built into the TV will output the proper Dolby sound. Disney+ has Dolby Atmos audio for most of their modern movies, and the Alto 9+ will output Atmos audio properly. I also tried connecting the Optical cable from the PS4 into the soundbar, and changing the settings on my PS4 to output through Optical audio, but it didn't work for some reason. I don't know why, though. When all else fails, I use the included remote to change input, audio modes, and bass and treble settings. This is the easiest and fastest way to operate the soundbar. So, the positives are that this soundbar can decode all Dolby Digital+ formats, including 5.1, 7.1, and Atmos. It sounds great, and gives a full, booming sound in a small package that is great for small rooms where a set of satellite speakers would be impossible. I cannot overstate how much I love the sound of this soundbar. The negatives are that control through the TV is wonky, CEC caused the TV to stop recognizing the soundbar, and surround sound didn't work on the PS4 through the TV, forcing me to plug the PS4 directly into the soundbar. Overall, I do recommend the Alto 9+, but just know that having a TCL soundbar with a TCL TV doesn't mean they're going to play nice 100% of the time.

I purchased this 3 days ago because it was time for a change. I’m leaving a Samsung HW-K550, that I enjoyed for the past 4 years, behind. A complete 5.1 surround sound system, I had finally grew tired of tripping over the rear surround speaker wires. I was going to wait to post my review but, after watching The Greatest Showman, this TCL Alto 9+ takes the cake. Only $299.00 plus tax for just one sound bar and subwoofer. But, this isn’t just any old sound bar. With the Ray-Danz design, it produces a sound bubble that just envelops me and leaves me speechless. It sounded like I was right in the middle of the circus! Thanks to You Tube, I’ve watched at least 20 Dolby Atmos clips and each one had me looking to my left or right, looking for my former rear surround speakers. I know the sound is virtual but, one of the best parts about this Alto 9+ is that you can’t even tell you’re missing something. I’ve wanted Dolby Atmos since first hearing about it but, I didn’t want to spend an arm and a leg to get it. With the TCL Alto 9+, I got the full bubble of sound I wanted and also saved a lot of coin in the process! Oh, and also, my music sounds like it got an upgrade, too. With Bluetooth connection, my iPhone 7+ never sounded better. If you are looking for an excellent sound addition to your home theater that doesn’t break your bank, I highly recommend you check this out! You won’t regret it.

I bought this sound bar to replace a Sony HT-CT290 Soundbar System when the subwoofer went out. I was about to buy another Sony system until I saw this TCL Alto 9+ system in an article online yesterday and saw it was only $50 more than the Sony I was contemplating. I must also include I own a TCL Roku Ready 4k TV so this soundbar works flawlessly with it if you connect using the HDMI ARC port. When powering up the tv, it automatically turned the soundbar on and instantly recognized the system. I immediately was greeted by a video that had sound effects included (probably in order to impress you). This video is apparently included with the Roku software in the television but I thought it was a nice touch. The video starts too early because I watched a good few seconds before the soundbar kicked in but when it did it was like oh wow. I'm sure it was installing some firmware to the bar which delayed it. Since setup, the bar turns on every time when I power the tv on. I can actually use the Roku styled tv remote to change volume and all options are embedded in the Roku settings menu under Sound Settings so I don't plan to even use the soundbar remote, which would be necessary if I didnt have a Roku TV. The sound is pretty impressive when compared to the Sony soundbar. The RAY-DANZ design seems to funnel sound around the room really well. I immediately can hear more detail than my previous system. When characters in a movie are in an atmosphere that includes sound effects, it does fill my living room with those sounds, so I thought that was a nice touch. We place the subwoofer on the side of our room and it works well there. I can't tell where the bass is coming from unless I think about it. I played a little Star Wars Rise of Skywalker just to see how the bar does and I was pleasantly surprised by the row rumblings of the spacecrafts, even when I turned the bass down a bit to -2. Voices sound pretty clear as well. So overall, I really love this sound bar. It has good clarity, a full sound, decent bass that enhances movie scenes, and includes flawless integration with Roku TVs.

let me tell your right now you're paying for some technology this soundbar in not capable of delivering. my Vizio 2.1 soundbar that cost half the price sounds nicer than this bar. if you live in a small apartment with not a lot of space and you want to get the most out of the least possible footprint than i would actually recommend these. you wont be able to get the technology this soundbar has unless you get a set of speakers with 5 different pieces to create a real full cinematic experience. this will deliver that in only one soundbar with three channels and a sub but that being said, the limitations are noticeable at least for me. its not my first set, so i already have expectations in my head. dolby atmos should sound better than dolby audio and to me it did not, its unfortunate only these few tcl models are roku tv ready because that was what i was originally looking for. ill have to give that up for a better theatrical experience using 5.1 vizio for the same price. for those wondering what roku ready meant, it lets you not only adjust the volume but change the sound profiles all with one remote using on screen options. ill still be able to control the volune but if i want to change the sound profile i need to revert back to the stock remote which i was trying to avoid. oh well.

Dolby Atmos Surround Sound: Multi-dimensional sound for greater depth and excitement. RAY∙DANZ Technology: RAY∙DANZ technology creates an incredibly immersive, ultra-wide soundstage. Roku TV Ready: Optimized for Roku TV for simple set up and control. Deep Bass with Wireless Subwoofer: Enjoy extra bass to make movies and music truly come to life. Center Channel: Enjoy clearer dialogue from the sound bar's center channel, tuned for optimal clarity. More Ways to Control & Listen: Stream all your favorite music and podcasts from Pandora, Spotify, TuneIn, and more, wirelessly from your smartphone, tablet, or laptop via Chromecast, Airplay 2, or Bluetooth. Works with Hey Google.

Somehow, TCL has done the impossible. Never would I have imagined that I would come across a Dolby Atmos-capable sound bar, or at least one that worked as advertised, for under $500. Finding this sound bar for $300 was a surprise, and the sound quality even more so. Make no mistake, this is not the same as a true Atmos sound system (with speakers in the ceiling), but it is amazing how close it comes being a sound bar. Setup was fairly easy, especially with a TCL Roku TV. The subwoofer was either already paired, or paired automatically. My only gripe was connecting it to my network. As others, the one I received had "retail sample" on the box, which may have included an old version of the firmware. To connect it to the network, I had to manually connect to the soundbar's wifi, go to 10.0.0.1 on my browser, select my home network (and needed to take out a space in the network name, doesn't work with spaces), and then it updated the firmware. Once that was done, the instructions as found in the manual, were accurate. Was it somewhat of a pain, sure, but TCL responded very quickly to my e-mail, and once I got it connected, everything worked as advertised. This could be a major problem for some, but personally I caulked it up to the cost of being an early adopter. It happens. One item of note - if anyone is trying to take advantage of Dolby Atmos on your Xbox, you may have to connect directly to the soundbar. I currently have a TCL 6-series (2018) which did not pass through Atmos, so in order for it to work, I just plugged in the Xbox to the HDMI input and all was good. The sound bar allows HDR/Dolby Vision to pass through (once HDMI 2.0 was manually set on the TV) and the lag is not at all noticeable. We'll see how it handles the Series X in a month, but for the time being, it works great with a One X. Conclusion, I'm so glad I bought this. 100% worth it.

Okay, set up was a breeze. Sound is good. Not sure it’s better than my TCL 7+ soundbar. Overall it’s just okay. I really don’t like the snap sound as the sound bar registers the audio (or switches between shows or movies). Very annoying!!!! Honestly, at this point, with limited Atmos content...go with the 7+. TCL, am I missing something?

I bought this the first day it was available needed to update my old one was over 10 yrs old if you are needing a great sound for watching your movies in your living room you won't be disappointed with the dolby atmos great base from the sub woofer hooking your 4k player to the sound is the best way to receive the best sound from the sound bar if you have a newer samsung 4k tv it will recognize it but you want to go into settings on the TV check sound output then go to source menu and edit the name of the source thats in the settings mine is Receiver (HDMI) then when you're ready to watch a movie go into source click it on