Features of the LG Eclair
Its small size, with dimensions of 30 centimeters by 12 and cm, helps to place it in front of a TV without any problem and its aesthetics integrates easily into practically any space designed to enjoy a movie or music session. Although its size could indicate that it is intended for a small room, the Eclair has enough power to fill a medium room without problem.
Nominally, its capacity is 320W, with 200 of that coming from the subwoofer, but the design of the subwoofer makes the bass heard and felt, but without the vibration associated with this type of speaker. That means no need to worry about disturbing the neighbors if we live in a building. The bar also contains 3 central speakers and 2 ceiling speakers, to complete the 3.1.2 configuration and provide the “spatial” audio effect of formats such as Dolby Atmos. However, audio designed in 5.1 format loses a bit of the surround effect on this device.
This audio bar supports many audio formats, and they can come from four sources: from devices connected via an HDMI cable or an optical cable (such as blu-ray players or game consoles), from a Bluetooth connection to a smartphone, a disk or USB memory, or the TV to which it is connected, thanks to the HDMI eARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel), so that we can have high quality audio -like DTS from a blu-ray- or music without compression from a USB, but also enjoy Dolby Atmos if we use a streaming service that supports it and sends it from the TV respecting the audio in its original channel configuration.
The included remote control is simple, but it allows you to choose the audio source (indicating the one that is active with a voice message), create bluetooth connections, control the volume or define one of the four audio modes: music, cinema, video games or an Artificial Intelligence mode that in theory could identify which of the previous three is the right one. But the real control is given by the app that LG has available for its sound bars, called LG Sound Bar, which is freely available and which I will expand on later.
The TV remote control can be configured to control the volume of the bar, and with the function of turning the TV signal on and off automatically, control of the bar has been relegated to the drawer. The bar even has physical buttons for basic functions, so tweaks are easier to do with the LG Sound Bar app. In fact, there are a couple of features that can only be tweaked from the app, such as leveling the speakers correctly. independent (assign a different volume for the woofer, the central or the ceiling), Dolby and DTS sound settings, an audio mode to cause less disturbance at night, or a diagnostic that allows you to check that each component is working correctly.
The Eclair bar supports 4K content, including HDR and Dolby Vision technologies in the case of video, and in audio formats the different options of Dolby and DTS (Atmos, TrueHD and Digital Plus / Digital Surround and HD Master) with HDMI 2.1 ports ; the experience with video games is also optimal. In all cases and with all sources, the sound meets expectations, providing stereo or immersive audio, as the case may be, and with high quality.
Different tests were done with the Dolby Atmos format, which is designed to give “spatiality” to the audio, and it was found that the speakers directed at the ceiling do their job decently. Dialogue sounds predominantly in the center channels, and while it lacks a certain ‘punch’ that we’ve experienced on other bar models, the surround audio effect is noticeable when facing the bar. This helps improve the home theater experience, which has become more relevant now that we spend more time in front of a television than in movie theaters, since the pandemic.
In the music section, thanks to the fact that it has support for uncompressed and high-quality formats, via USB, the experience is also good, even when the source is a streaming service via bluetooth. Precisely because of how good the music sounds, it is a pity that we cannot use it independently, as a Wi-Fi speaker or as part of a multi-room system, since its size suggests that it will be in a not very large place, in where it is probably not possible or worth investing in different audio systems. We also miss AirPlay support.
The LG Eclair sound bar has a good combination of technology and ease of use. It sounds great, integrates excellently with the TV when it turns on and off, is capable of filling a medium room despite its compact size, and has advanced features through its app. If we add to that that it looks good, and that it supports most audio and video formats satisfactorily, it is a good option to integrate into a current TV and be able to enjoy a complete home theater experience.
The average price of the LG Eclair QP5 is 10,000 pesos and it is available in Mexico in department stores and online.