Sony's show of power

Sony HT-A9 - Home-Theatre System - ₹1,97,980 (with SW5 subwoofer)

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FOR 360 Spatial Audio Mapping really works, easy to place, consistent sound

AGAINST Can get sibilant in some modes, could do with more transparency, subwoofer is essential

When Sony stumbles on liquid gold, it digs deep enough to leave a mark. The brand is no stranger to history-making tech and they’ve done it in recent times with their ANC headphones, OLED TVs and to a lesser extent, 360 Reality Audio. Finding traction on the same treadmill as Dolby may be hard, but Sony is determined to nudge its way into the Dolby Atmos ecosystem any which way. Enter the HT-A9 home theatre system. It’s a unique system where four identical satellite speakers talk to a control unit wirelessly and aims to drench you in immersive sound. How does Sony achieve this? Thought you’d never wonder…

Just about qualifying as a HTiB (Home-Theatre in a Box) system, the HT-A9 isn’t the most compact, with speakers that are giants by usual satellite speaker standards.