B&O Beosound Theatre claims the soundbar high ground

Bang & Olufsen has unveiled its most ambitious soundbar to date, the Beosound Theatre. This premium all-in-one offers a groundbreaking level of performance.with a uniquely modular design, which the manufacturer says will ensure it outlives any TV it’s partnered with.

The system incorporates 12 drivers, including two custom-made long stroke 6.5-inch woofers and boasts 800W of total amplification power, able to pressure load a room to 112dB.

Handling speech is a custom coaxial driver, with tweeter mounted directly in front of the midrange.

Utilising the Beam Width and Beam Direction Control developed for Bang & Olufsen’s flagship Beolab 90 speakers, the Beosound Theatre also promises  three-dimensional sound directivity, derived from the provision of direct, side- and up-firing speakers.

Inside CI attended the launch of the Beosound Theatre, and listened to the system playing both music and movies. The system sounds fulsome and dynamic, allowing it to fill the role of a high quality music system. With movie content, it’s exciting, the centre coaxial driver in particular shining.

The Beosound Theatre utilises a unique design able to mount most any TV make, or screen size. A universal mounting mechanism holds the panel in place, while aluminium wings can be added to the bar to create a uniform appearance.

There’s a choice of install options. Soundbar and screen can be wall mounted, pedestal mounted or used with a bespoke circular stand.

It can function as a standalone unit, or be paired with other Bang & Olufsen speakers, even performing centre channel duties in a Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 surround configuration. It will support up to 16 external loudspeakers.

The Beosound Theatre also features a newly bass management system that’s unlike anything else. Where other systems simply send the bass to the most powerful loudspeaker - usually the subwoofer - Beosound Theatre uses all connected Bang & Olufsen loudspeakers as a single unit.

Room calibration comes via Bang & Olufsen’s new setup technology called Roomsense. An external microphone, supplied, measures the distance from the listener to the soundbar, and EQs accordingly.