Skip to main content

Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

Our LG SJ9 soundbar setup and unboxing guide makes installation a cinch

Often when buying a soundbar, you’ll end up eschewing breadth and depth of sound in favor of value and effective space management. Not so with LG’s Dolby Atmos-enabled SJ9, which combines virtual surround sound with the distinctive Atmos ceiling-firing drivers, creating a massive, enveloping soundstage without requiring you to set up several individual speakers. Our LG SJ9 soundbar setup and unboxing guide will make installation a cinch, bolstering your home theater in no time at all.

What’s in the box?

In addition to the soundbar and the wireless subwoofer, you’ll get:

  • Wall mounts and a template
  • Cable management ties
  • An optical cable for digital connection
  • A remote with batteries
  • Some product literature

The power supply is built in, so there’s no need for an external cable. You won’t get an HDMI cable either, though at this point, most of us have enough of those bad boys lying around the house anyway.

Hardware setup

You’ll find all the necessary ports and jacks in the rear of the soundbar, in a centrally located alcove. There’s an aux-in jack (in case you want a second subwoofer), HDMI in and out, optical, and an Ethernet port for servicing only.

If you’ve got an HDMI ARC cable and a TV with an appropriate port, you’ll want to connect that way. If not, use optical instead — just make sure you take off the plastic caps before plugging anything in.

Once you’ve plugged the soundbar into a power outlet, allow it to fully power on before doing the same with the wireless subwoofer. That way, they’ll automatically pair.

Features and design

The curvy SJ9 is gorgeous, dressed in dark, silvery gray, with speaker grating that wraps around the front, as well as circular grates on top at either end. It features a scrolling digital readout across the front and some dedicated onboard control buttons (located on the front, near the left side) — though you’ll likely be using the remote instead.

The remote itself has all the basic controls you’d expect, plus a few unique ones. There’s automatic power and volume control, buttons to adjust bass and treble balance, and even a cool “night mode” function that compresses louder sounds when you don’t want to wake up the kids.

Software setup

Once everything is properly hooked up, head into your TV’s audio settings and make sure “audio out” is set to Optical/HDMI ARC, not “internal speakers” (and don’t select PCM in this instance).

If you have a newer LG television, you can select “LG Sound Sync/Bluetooth” to pair wirelessly, or “LG Sound Sync/Optical,” which will allow you to control the soundbar’s volume with your TV remote. Still, though, HDMI ARC should be your first choice. It just sounds better.

To connect with Wi-Fi, download the Music Flow mobile app (for iOS or Android), hit “Connect product,” and select the soundbar icon. It will walk you through the process to connect your SJ9 to Wi-Fi, after which it might prompt you to download an update — which you should do. After that, you should be good to go.

Caleb Denison
Digital Trends Editor at Large Caleb Denison is a sought-after writer, speaker, and television correspondent with unmatched…
Top-of-the-line LG OLED TVs are as much as $1,200 off
LG G3 OLED evo.

LG's Memorial day sale is lingering into June, with up to 35% off of TVs. That means one last chance to get big savings, with even $1,000 or more coming off of select LG TVs, including the best LG TVs. LG is considered to be one of the best TV brands for their impressive OLED TVs and easy-to-navigate webOS operating system. In case you've forgotten or need a refresher, the best OLED TVs (which are largely dominated by LG) are preferred over the competition for their ability to create both high levels of brightness and rich black levels, making for impressive contrasts. Before we give our recommendation on what to buy from the LG TV sale — an OLED with a price slash of $1,200 — we also want to give you a chance to browse and make your own decision. Tap the button below to go directly to the sale or keep reading to see our top pick.

Our favorite LG TV deal

Read more
LG projectors are still on sale post-Memorial Day — save $300
The LG CineBeam PF510Q Full HD 1080p smart projector on a cabinet next to a light.

Memorial Day is over but the sales remain. Well, at least in some places. Today, you can get some of LG's best projectors for hundreds of dollars off. Here, we'll look at just a couple of them. One, a budget projector that will keep you happy if you want to explore projectors for the first time in a long time (they've come a long way since your middle school math class) and another one of higher quality that still has an approachable price. These are the LG projector deals that we still keep thinking about.
LG CineBeam PF510Q — $500, was $600

The LG CineBeam PF510Q is one of LG's simpler projectors, and a great way to get immersed into the hobby. It throws light at 1080p to make a "screen" of light equivalent to that of a 30 to 120 inch TV, take your pick. It has an auto vertical keystone, helping you get your picture into alignment and keeping the edges of the frame straight and tall even when aiming at a slight angle. Despite the budget pricing this is a full, app-based projector with LG's webOS, making it easy to access Netflix and Disney+ and more, natively. At this price, this can easily become one of the best projectors under $500.

Read more
Sennheiser’s AirPods alternatives are down to $150 from $280
Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 inside their charging case.

If nothing catches your eye among AirPods deals, you may want to check out the worthy alternatives to Apple's wireless earbuds. Crutchfield has a tempting option up for sale, the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3. From their original price of $280, they're down to a more affordable $150 following a $130 discount. You won't always get the chance to buy these true wireless earbuds for nearly half-price, so you better complete your purchase for them while the offer is still online.

Why you should buy the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 earbuds
The Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 offer a range of improvements from the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2, including improved adaptive noise cancellation that you can activate by tapping the right earbud three times. The noise-canceling feature automatically adjusts to the volume of external sound, which is analyzed by a four-microphone system, and there's also a Transparency mode that will let you hear what's going or around you without having to take the wireless earbuds off. The new model also come with a more ergonomic fit and additional microphones for clearer conversations.

Read more