Until recently, the TCL brand was associated only with TVs and smartphones, it turns out that this manufacturer also has soundbars in its offer. The newest model of such a device, equipped with Dolby Atmos sound, TCL TS9030 RAY-DANZ I had a chance to test recently.

Soundbar TCL TS9030 RAY-DANZ offers sound 3.1 using its own proprietary acoustic lens technology, as well as Dolby Atmos. This acoustic lens solution also determines the form of the device. The Soundbar even looks like an open, openwork construction, and not a typical closed one, hidden tightly under the grille. What draws attention is the centrally placed set of speakers. Under the grille, the central channel loudspeakers and the display informing about the operating mode of the device or the selected source are located forwards. Broadband speakers of the left and right channels are placed on the sides of the already mentioned central module. The sound from them is directed by means of curved acoustic lenses in such a way that it surrounds the viewer sitting in front of the TV set. A wireless subwoofer is also included.

The device has dimensions of 105 x 11 x 5.8 cm and should fit in front of or between the legs of most TVs with 55" or larger screens. The subwoofer, on the other hand, will boldly fit next to a cabinet or a TV dresser.

On the upper surface of the soundbar there are buttons for volume control and source selection. We have a lot of the latter buttons to choose from. The soundbar can be connected to a TV using HDMI ARC (return audio from the TV), through a traditional HDMI socket to the source (then the HDMI ARC socket sends the signal further to the TV), there are also optical, AUX and USB sockets available. There is also the possibility of wireless connection via Bluetooth and WiFi and AirPlay, although such an option is not found either on the source selection panel or on the remote control. The process itself is not particularly complicated, and its description can be found in the manual. What is important, the soundbar supports AirPlay 2 and can be part of the multi-room set. The sockets are hidden in two recesses under a special flap on the back of the device.

TCL declares that the soundbar together with the subwoofer offers up to 540 watts of power output. I did not try to turn off the volume to the maximum. The average level was completely sufficient for me both when watching movies and listening to music. The whole thing, thanks to the system of acoustic lenses and virtual channels Dolby Atmos gives a really good spatial effect, especially if you sit 2.5 to 3.5 meters in front of the TV and soundbar. This may come as a surprise, because the soundbar does not offer speakers facing upwards, but with the 3.1 Dolby Atmos system together with the innovative design of the acoustic lenses works really well. The center channel, on the other hand, provides clear dialogues in movies, even where there is a lot going on in the background. The included wireless subwoofer works well in both movies and music. Of course, it should be remembered that we are talking about such ordinary daily listening, where the music simply has to sound good (in this respect no soundbar will ever replace a stereo set).

For about €350 you get a soundbar offering a very good Dolby Atmos surround sound, supporting almost all current standards. Of course, it is worth to test it yourself, so if you have the opportunity, it is certainly worth listening to it and see for yourself. However, if you have a budget of less than two thousand zlotys, it is definitely worthwhile to take an interest in the soundbar TCL TS9030 RAY-DANZ.