Samsung will produce its first Dolby Atmos-compatible soundbar called HW-K950, which is the first to include dedicated rear speakers.
The new soundbar of Samsung has four upward-firing sound beams that bounce off the ceiling. It also includes a subwoofer and two independent surrounds, according to Gizmodo.
The two speakers and the soundbar itself shoot upwards as well as laterally, giving users a traditional 5.1 system as well as the sensation of four discrete sources from the ceiling. The independent surround speakers and the subwoofer connect to the soundbar wirelessly for easy setup.
The HW-K950 Soundbar is Samsung’s first to feature Dolby Atmos technology. To those who are not familiar with Atmos, the Dolby Atmos sound systems are usually found in cinemas wherein speakers are not only found surrounding the audience, but also above them.
The Samsung speakers' main unit is 2.1 inches tall and features ceiling-facing drivers as well as three forward firing drivers, The Verge reported. Dolby Atmos and DTS:X are object-based surround formats, which include height information intended to provide more immersion than standard 5.1 or 7.1 soundtracks.
The South Korean tech giant is not the first company to build a soundbar. Yamaha’s YSP-5600 soundbar was the first to offer Dolby Atmos system, but it relied on software to cause the sound-bouncing effect instead of adding speakers.
However, only a few streaming movies on services like Netflix, Vudu, and Hulu have Atmos soundtracks support.
Pricing and availability details of the HW-K950 are yet to be announced. Samsung is set to unveil the soundbar this upcoming CES 2016 in Las Vegas.