The HW-Q600B is the most affordable soundbar in Samsung’s 2022 premium Q series, head and shoulders above the S and T series. Overall, Samsung has one of the most comprehensive annual soundbar lineups that will appeal to all consumers, regardless of budget constraints. Perhaps only LG can compete with them in pure numbers.
Like all Q-series soundbars, the Q600B is a Dolby Atmos enabled device with a 3.1.2-channel configuration, and it doesn’t differ much from the Q700B in this respect. The biggest difference is related to additional features, since the Q600B does not have a WiFi module. In our review of the Samsung HW-Q600B, we will discuss whether this soundbar has any reason to be considered a worthy offering.
Design
The Samsung HW-Q600B soundbar is slightly different in design from the Q600A , but its overall footprint is almost the same. The Q600B will fit perfectly under any 55″ or smaller TV. On large diagonals, the soundbar will look small. It does not have side speakers, and this allows for more flexibility in terms of placement in tight spaces.
But be aware that due to the Acoustic Beam technology, the top must not be obstructed in order to work properly. In terms of design changes, the HW-Q600B has perforated metal grille in the form of holes. The front vertical corners are cut to half of the side at about 45 degrees. The rest of the body is made of plain black plastic, which feels solid and high quality by Samsung standards.
The Samsung Q600B includes a full function display which is located on the right side of the front panel. The display is quite small, holding only four characters, but still preferable to the disappointing LED indicators. On the top, as usual, there are several built-in control buttons, and on the back there are two large inserts that cover all available ports.
As for the subwoofer, there are no surprises here. Acoustic panel Samsung Q600A is equipped with the same woofer as Q600A and Q700A . It is made of melamine and has a fabric grille on the front that covers the bass driver. At the back, there is a large bass reflex, next to which there is only a pairing button and a status LED.
Internal organization
Samsung rates the HW-Q600B soundbar as a 3.1.2-channel soundbar. Therefore, we get two main channels and a center dedicated for better dialogue clarity, two upstream channels with Samsung Acoustic Beam technology for Atmos effects, and a subwoofer. For the three main channels, the HW-Q600B soundbar uses a round woofer in combination with oval mid-tweeters.
Last but not least is the subwoofer’s front-facing woofer, which we prefer to side-facing (like the Q950A ). The entire system is rated for 360W output power. The main unit of the Samsung HW-Q600B soundbar outputs 200W with the configuration (30W x 6 + 10W x 2) and the subwoofer delivers 160W. From the figures above, it can be seen that the parameters have not changed compared to last year.
Control
The Samsung Q600B’s soundbar controls are pretty much what we’d expect given the soundbar’s price. The soundbar has several buttons that Samsung has placed on top. These are four physical buttons for power, volume control and source selection. They may look cheaper than touchscreens, but are preferred in most cases as they are easier to find in a dimly lit room.
The included remote is the familiar One Remote. The overall design and layout of the buttons have not changed much. The two buttons above the navigation controls are used for source selection and Bluetooth pairing, while the other three below them are for mute, audio mode selection, and Q600B soundbar volume control.
The two buttons at the bottom are for the main volume on the left and the woofer volume on the right. Since the device does not have a Wi-Fi module, this means that there is no support for online applications and voice control. So don’t lose the remote as it will be your primary means of setting up and controlling your Samsung Q600B soundbar.
Functionality
The Q600B seems to have it all. That is, we have Dolby Atmos through Dolby TrueHD and Digital Plus, Dolby Digital, DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS:X and DTS. The Q600B acoustic panel also has several sound modes. These include Standard Mode, which outputs the original audio mix as it is, Surround Mode, which provides a wider sound field than Standard Mode, Game Pro Mode, and Adaptive Mode.
One thing to note here is that in standard mode, if you input a surround audio signal, you will only get up to 3.1 channels of output. Only in Surround, Game Pro or Adaptive modes all 3.1.2 channels work. The Q600B also supports Bluetooth connectivity. First of all, it is used to transmit audio from any mobile device, and this can be done for two devices at the same time.
But you can also connect to a Bluetooth-enabled TV if you don’t want to mess around with cables. Just keep in mind that you cannot connect a TV and a smartphone at the same time. In addition, connecting a TV to a Samsung HW-Q600B soundbar via Bluetooth is limited to stereo output using the connection protocol itself.
Finally, there is the Bluetooth Auto Power ON/OFF function. The Samsung Q600B soundbar will turn on or off automatically depending on the status of its Bluetooth function. As mentioned above, the HW-Q600B acoustic panel can play audio via USB port, which is not the case with the Q700B. This is a kind of compensation for the missing Wi-Fi adapter.
With the Tap Sound function, you can mirror music from your smartphone to the soundbar with a single tap. It requires the SmartThings app to work, but the process is simple. Samsung’s Q-Symphony feature is already standard on all Q-series soundbars. If your TV also supports it, the Samsung HW-Q600B soundbar and TV will sync to share sound from all available speakers.
Connections
All connectors are located in two niches of the main unit of the Q600B soundbar, which makes it difficult to constantly access them. In this niche there are two HDMI ports (one input and one output), providing through transmission, as well as a digital optical input for connecting old equipment. The other has a USB port for connecting external media, a power supply connector.
The HDMI output supports eARC , which means you can stream Dolby Atmos via Dolby TrueHD or DTS:X, except that the Samsung Q600B soundbar supports Dolby Atmos via Dolby Digital Plus, which is currently used by most streaming services. The HDMI 2.0 ports also support 4K@60Hz bandwidth and HDR10+ if you’re interested.
Should you buy it?
Looking at the Samsung HW-Q600B soundbar as a whole, we can say that if you don’t care about online features and just want a decent soundbar to enhance what your TV can do, this is definitely the option for you. It won’t impress with its performance, but the upgrade you’ll get is enough to justify its price.