Samsung Q990H review: A flagship soundbar in every sense of the word

Flagship soundbars are always exciting to test. Enjoying blockbuster movies with best-of-the-best sound is, most definitely, one of the biggest perks of my job. And that’s exactly how I felt testing the Samsung Q990H. This is a flagship soundbar in (almost) every way — bass, dialogue, width; it’s got it all.

Is that enough to make it one of the best soundbars? It depends on how much you’re happy to spend. $2,000 is a lot of money, especially when soundbars like the JBL Bar 1300X MK2 exist for $300 less. SmartThings integration is a huge plus, especially if you have a Samsung TV, but I can’t tell you if that’s worth $300 over the JBL.

I’ll go through everything in detail, from design to subwoofer quality to Dolby Atmos performance in this Samsung Q990H review.

Samsung Q990H review: Specs

Samsung Q990H review: What I like

There’s so much to like about the Samsung Q990H — it is Samsung’s 2026 flagship, after all.

Supremely clear dialogue

The SmartThings app has a number of dialogue-enhancing settings: “Active Voice Amplifier Pro”, “Voice enhancement”, and individual channel EQs. Even so, I found dialogue sounded more than good enough without any of these additional features.

I test all soundbars with “Top Gun: Maverick” on 4K UHD Blu-ray, alongside two other UHD Blu-rays, standard TV on streaming services, and music on Spotify and Qobuz.

Dialogue in “Top Gun: Maverick” was extremely clear without additional dialogue features needed. In the busy bar scene, I could hear lead actors speaking clearly over the hubbub of the bar. “Top Gun: Maverick” also features tons of radioed dialogue in flying action sequences. I didn’t miss a single word. The screeching jet engines and soundtrack (“Won’t Get Fooled Again”) melded together nicely underneath the fuzzy dialogue. I could hear every layer of in-scene plane sound effects, each rich guitar chord, and every syllable of dialogue.

In “Super Mario Galaxy Movie”, dialogue was equally as clear. Just to reiterate, this was with zero dialogue enhancement features enabled. I could feel the texture in Bowser Jr.’s gravelly-yet-high-pitched voice.

“The Batman” features moody, mumbled dialogue for the majority of the movie. However, I never struggled to hear anything — neither the processed radio dialogue nor Robert Pattinson’s atmospheric voiceovers. Even in action scenes, I could make out every word. For such a broody, mumbled movie, this performance was excellent.

Even basic streaming services sounded good. Obviously, a basic-level stream will never sound as good as a UHD Blu-ray. I have Now TV’s cheapest tier (HBO for all you across-the-ponders), which uses Stereo audio — not even 5.1.

I’m not going to pretend this would impress any home cinema enthusiasts, but it’s the streaming service’s fault, not the soundbars. The Q990H did the best with what it was given; every word was clear, and I never struggled to understand dialogue.

Powerful bass

As I’d hope from a $2,000, 300-watt subwoofer, bass is great, with no distortion. “The Batman” was a particular standout here. My colleagues told me they could feel the subwoofer rumbling from downstairs, so I’m sorry, but I was having too much fun to care.

The brooding, ominous soundtrack carried a decadent depth to the low-end, bringing body to low-action scenes. High-action scenes were equally as dramatic, especially the iconic car chase and the club scenes. I could feel the subwoofer through the chair. If you long for cinematic lows and clear dialogue, you won’t be disappointed.

Music performance is decent for a soundbar, too. I listened via AirPlay. Bass in Muse’s “Supermassive Black Hole” shook the floorboards without overpowering the falsetto vocals. Softer songs fared equally as well; “Kill Me” by Hayley Williams was delicate and controlled, and the texture in Williams’ voice came through.

Wireless subwoofer and rears

Unlike the Samsung QS750F ($899), the Q990H’s rears (and subwoofer) are truly wireless. Each rear speaker and the subwoofer require only a power cable. They sync up automatically as soon as they’re plugged in.

When I set up the Q990H, I only had to connect everything to power — the sub and rears did the hard work for me. I didn’t even have to set them up in Samsung’s SmartThings app, which I was initially expecting to do. This was one of the easiest soundbar setups I've had the pleasure of experiencing.

The rear speakers are excellent in some movies and middling in others: of all the content I watched, by far the best movie for surround was “The Batman”. The car chase scene was immensely immersive. The soundtrack, pouring rain, and screeching cars were controlled deftly, and the speakers separated high-frequency effects with skill.

Design, features, and SmartThings

Samsung soundbars really excel in terms of design. They all look more or less the same (except the Samsung Ultra Slim) — sleek, inconspicuous, and although quite plasticky, this doesn’t detract from the overall appearance.

Setup is also a breeze: I plugged all the elements in, hooked up the soundbar via HDMI, and I was listening in seconds. Samsung also provides a wall mount for the soundbar if that’s your thing. The rears don’t come with stands or mounts, but you can easily find third-party options online.

SmartThings is one of my favorite companion apps, and for good reason. It’s supremely easy to use, looks great, and is replete with genuinely beneficial features. No longer restricted to Samsung TVs, SpaceFit Sound Pro is Samsung’s proprietary room calibration feature. I was able to get this working with both an LG and a TCL TV. SpaceFit Sound Pro analyzes your room space to improve immersion. If you’ve got a bigger room, it will increase audio power to ensure you still get space-filling sound.

Without SpaceFit Sound Pro, “The Batman” still sounded immersive, particularly the rain sounds coming through the rear speakers. However, with SpaceFit Sound Pro enabled, the soundbar adjusted the center channel to make dialogue and OST clearer.

In SmartThings, you can also adjust individual channel volume, sub volume, and treble/bass volume. I adjusted the rears and side-firing channels to the maximum volume, but I didn’t notice a huge difference. More on that in the “What I didn’t like” section below, though.

Wireless listening

Now, this one comes with a caveat. You can use the Q990H wirelessly — if you have a compatible Samsung TV. As I test soundbars with LG and TCL TVs, I was unable to use this feature.

However, it’s still worth mentioning here. If you have a compatible Samsung TV (all Samsung TVs with Bluetooth or Wi-Fi), you’ll be able to use the soundbar without an HDMI cable.

Samsung Q990H review: What I don’t like

As much as I enjoyed listening to the Samsung Q990H, it missed out on a perfect 5-star rating for a reason.

Sound not immersive enough for $2,000

Even though I love the Q990H, it’s not perfect. Don’t get me wrong, it sounds fantastic, and I’m sure you won’t be disappointed… unless you’ve just dropped two grand.

At $2,000, there’s very little room for error. Nay, there’s zero room for error. You could spend just a little (!) more on the $2,500 KEF XIO or save money on the JBL Bar 1300X MK2 ($1,799). Honestly, I recommend the JBL Bar 1300X MK2 wholeheartedly. It’s by far the best bang-for-buck soundbar I’ve ever tested.

Anyway, back to the Samsung Q990H. You can adjust individual channel levels in SmartThings, but I didn’t notice this had a tangible difference. Width is great, but the Q990H doesn’t sound quite as high as I’d like for $2k.

As I discussed earlier, bass was a different story — I could feel every rumble of the jet engines in “Top Gun: Maverick” and the ominous soundtrack in “The Batman”. Music playback was also decent — soundbars are never excellent, though — but I wanted more from the surround speakers. Even on “Surround” mode, I wanted a stronger surround sound. The JBL Bar 1300X MK2 excels here.

Consequently, I’m reticent to recommend the Q990H widely unless you find it on sale.

How does the Samsung Q990H compare?

I would recommend the Samsung Q990H over some of the super high-end soundbars I’ve tested. Once you get to a certain price point, it might make a little more sense to invest in a buildable hi-fi setup (like floorstanders and loudspeakers).

For example, the $2,500 KEF XIO and $3,500 Yamaha True X Surround 90A both sound excellent. Don’t get me wrong, you won’t be disappointed by their sound. The Yamaha soundbar is one of the best Dolby Atmos products I’ve ever used. However, they’re both eye-wateringly expensive. $2,000 is the most I would ever recommend spending on a soundbar.

There’s another however here, though. $2,000 is still incredibly expensive for a soundbar. Even though the Q990H sounds fantastic, with expansive width and clear dialogue… $2k is $2k. When you can get more immersive performance from the JBL Bar 1300X MK2 and similar performance with the $999 Samsung QS90H or Sony Bravia Theater 7 ($1,099), I would recommend grabbing the Q990H on sale only.

Should you buy the Samsung Q990H?

It depends on your budget. Is $2,000 an easy amount for you to spend? Then you probably won’t be disappointed by the Samsung Q990H. Dialogue is honey-smooth and clear; bass is propulsive and energetic; Dolby Atmos is immersive and all-encompassing. The only thing missing is height, and that true cinematic experience.

If $2,000 is a lot for you (relatable), then I’d recommend checking out the JBL Bar 1300X MK2. This is by far the best bang-for-buck soundbar I’ve ever tested, with industry-leading audio power and immersion.

Of course, though, the Q990H is a fantastic soundbar in its own right, and well-deserving of the flagship name. It’s just really, really expensive.