TCL A65K Soundbar Review: Small Size, Big Sound

However, the overall power output is not bad. On “Want Want” by Maggie Rogers, I was impressed by the crisp, guttural sound, thanks to the sub. On the band The bone-crunching bass in “Spangled” by the band Faust was also coming through the sub.

Gaming, Sports and News

Photograph: John Brandon

For video games, the lack of room-filling surround sound became even more noticeable. Similar to movies and shows, games forza horizon 6 It was supposed to blast you with engine noise and exhaust, but it all felt very slim and not spacious enough. Admittedly, the game doesn’t take full advantage of Dolby Atmos, but overall I wasn’t impressed. oomph.

That is until I tested Hello: Infinite. The laser blasts, alien screams, and loud explosions were at least coming from a few different angles in the room. I still missed the crispness of Atmos-powered sound coming from high-end soundbars like the Sonos Arc.

I turned to sports a few times to watch the NBA playoffs using the YouTube TV app. The broadcasters were easy to hear, but the crowd noise was a low murmur, almost like using a noise generator. What you want is to feel like you are at the game and can hear people screaming and yelling during the live broadcast. However, a news program on my local Fox station sounded clear and distinct. This isn’t surprising as the A65K certainly has enough power and specialized audio drivers, even if the surround sound is so-so.

In the end, I thought the TCL A65K met my expectations. It is small enough to be placed on a kitchen counter or near a small television. It costs much less than high-end models that truly deliver room-filling home theater surround sound. Many of the tracks I played to test the music sounded very pleasing, even if they weren’t thunderous and room-filling. If your goal is to save space and not pay an exorbitant amount, the TCL A65K is a compact and feature-rich option.