Sony HT-G700 soundbar review: Grand final weekend at home set-up

Grand final weekend is serious business and there’s a secret weapon to ensure your living room has the best set-up in the street.

Review of Sony HT-G700 soundbar.

REVIEW

Although I’m a tech journalist and sports isn’t quite my forte, I am very aware that three of the biggest football matches are taking place this weekend. The NRL Grand Final, the NRLW Grand Final and the AFL Grand Final.

For the AFL, it is a historic moment as it’s the first time this final will be played outside of Victoria. The game has been moved to my home state of Queensland and tickets were sold out at record speeds.

These games are going to be so fantastic to watch, not just for the incredible football matches that will be played, but for the live music performances that are taking place. Amy Shark is headlining the NRL Grand Final and some of my favourites, Cub Sport and Thelma Plum are performing at the AFL.

Even watching from home, these games are sure to be a grand spectacle after the year we have had. And this, my friends, is where my expertise comes in. How can we all have the best possible experience watching these events from home? Well, besides the TV, the next best living room addition is going to be a soundbar. This is going to make all the difference when watching live matches and music performances in your living room.

Let me introduce you to the Sony HT-G700 soundbar.

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Elly Awesome will be using her Sony Soundbar in grand final weekend. Picture: Supplied.

This is a high quality, mid-priced soundbar that is made for people who want to quickly and easily add cinematic sound quality to their lounge room.

See, the Sony HT-G700, is a singular soundbar and a wireless subwoofer. Rather than a multi-speaker set up, the soundbar is a slim unit that is able to produce 7.1.2 channel surround sound. It does this with its “vertical surround engine” and front surround sound technology which means the soundbar can emulate the surround sound that you’ve come to know from going to the cinema.

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The Sony HT-G700 soundbar offers surround sound without the fussy set-up. Picture: Supplied.

Imagine the sound shooting out of the soundbar and up towards the middle of the roof and bouncing back down towards you on the couch. This enables it to mimic in-ceiling or up-firing speakers. The audio also comes out of the front of the sound bar, of course, but even bounces out to the left and right almost encapsulating you in your content.

Best of all the soundbar is compatible with Dolby Atmos and you don’t even need a fancy new 4K TV to hear the Dolby Atmos sound quality. As long as you’re capable of streaming content that is made with Dolby Atmos, the soundbar will replicate that for you simply connected through the included HDMI cable.

The wireless subwoofer can sit anywhere in your living room, it’s the size of a regular home PC and has incredible bass allowing you to feel every rumble and boom.

Sound shoots out of the sound bar and around the room. Picture: Supplied.

So, besides the simple set-up, what I like most about this product is that it produces sound with excellent depth and nuance. It’s not like some cheap soundbars that only really increase the volume and sound tinny and enclosed.

A soundbar is what’s going to get your heart pumping this weekend and this one will be great for enhancing the sounds of the crowd, the commentary, the referee’s whistle and the incredible vocals from the performing artists.

Priced around $600, Sony is more on the expensive side, but with it’s no fuss set-up and high quality sound reproduction out of the box, I’m very happy with the overall package. Lastly, just wanted to say a quick apology to my neighbours ahead of the weekend because I suppose they’ll be experiencing the footy with me too – through the walls of my apartment.

Elly Awesome is an Aussie tech and lifestyle vlogger | @ellyawwesome | YouTube