Home > Consumer Reviews > Samsung HT-X810 2.1 Channel Sound Bar Home Theater System

The Samsung unit arrived well packaged and in great condition. It set up easily and the fact that there is no need for a wire connection to the subwoofer is a relief. The radio and disc player work well, and displays are clear. The unit has connections to send DVD output to the TV and to receive sound output from the TV. The Samsung's sound has reasonably goood spatial imaging and tonal balance that reflect the source. I'm more concerned about tonal balance -- if the source is balanced the sound is just fine, but if the source pushes the bass like so many radio stations that pander to the thumpa thumpa crowd then the bass is overbearing and the major weakness of the system is revealed: there is no way to cut back sufficiently on the bass (there are subtle adjustments available but they aren't enough). (Of course if you like thumpa thumpa then this is a great buy.) I have a good stereo system and this unit is no competition for it -- but by itself it is quite listenable, far more so than TV sound.

The sleek design and wireless options are cool. The less wire clutter the better. Although WM has this at a much better price, it's going with a 52" 850 Samsung from Amazon. If you care more about looks this modern looking sound bar hits the mark. While this might not be for someone that's on top of all the best and newest tech it does everything needed to have a clean yet very powerful home theater system. This is replacing a wired surround sound system from Sony only a few years old and blows sony out of the water. I would recommend this product, again if you're willing to sacrifice the best for a better design and look!

Very happy with the product. Easy installation. Sound is terrific especially with the wireless sub- woofer.

This is a great product. Circuit City had yet to stock this unit so I bought it at Amazon. Arrived at time promised w/o damage and connected quickly. Sounds great and the subwoofer does a good job.

Like many other reviewers, I didn't want to mar my walls and floors to install a 5.1 or 7.1 home theatre system, and my home entertainment living space really isn't big enough to require one. I liked the features of this product and its potential to deliver an enhanced listening experience for my new plasma TV. The wireless subwoofer was a big plus toward my decision.

Alas, getting it up and running didn't go so smoothly after all. Sound through the optical input cut in and out. Samsung readily had me send it in at their expense (they emailed a shipping label), and they quickly turned it around. But when it came back, the remote control no longer worked. They quickly sent out a new remote, and it didn't work, either, which tells me that the sensor in the receiver was the problem and not the remote. At this point, I called Amazon and asked if they could just replace it with a brand new unit and let me send back the old one. Amazon immediately sent out a new unit and emailed me a label to return the old one; the new one arrived the next business day, even before I shipped out the old unit. Both Samsung and Amazon delivered excellent customer service for these problems. I was starting to rue the decision to buy it online, though, instead of a local store where I could have probably gotten it replaced upon the first problem. Amazon's alacrity in doing so once I finally called them really impressed me. Moral to the story: call Amazon first if you have a problem right out of the box on a major electronic purchase from them.

The replacement unit has exhibited no problems, so I forgive Samsung for the problems with the first unit. Lemons happen. The subwoofer and simulated surround-sound are really effective in my setting. One of the first DVDs I watched started with a war scene in which I thought the tanks were rolling up my back hallway.

Caveats:
(a) Review the soundbar and subwoofer dimensions to determine how well they'll work in your situation. My soundbar is not mounted on a wall; it needs several inches of height clearance to be situated under a TV, meaning you either have to raise the TV mounting height or have a wide, dedicated shelf for the soundbar under the TV shelf. Contrary to the advertising, the subwoofer is too tall to fit under, say, a typical end table.
(b) Beware remote control contention if you have multiple remotes controlling common devices. For example, I can control my TV with both my soundbar remote and my DVR remote. After some bizarre situations in which I swear the soundbar mysteriously seized control of the TV (like HAL seizing the spacecraft in 2001 A Space Odyssey), I deprogrammed the soundbar remote from being able to control the TV. This has helped keep things a little simpler.
(c) The instructions for setup and connections leave much to be desired.
(d) Think twice about having this delivered somewhere other than where it's going to be used. The box is HUGE...practically a coffin...so unless you have a large vehicle it's not easy to transport.
(e) SAVE THE PACKING MATERIALS, at least for a while, in case you get a lemon, too, and have to ship it back to Amazon or to a warranty service center. It's tempting to get rid of the huge box and all that styrofoam since it takes up so much room, but good luck finding something else big enough to pack all the equipment in.