Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Audio / Video
  3. News

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

Denon’s new soundbar delivers Dolby Atmos at a budget price

Simon Cohen
By

Denon has launched a new version of its most affordable soundbar that is equipped with built-in subwoofers and can reproduce Dolby Atmos content virtually via a 2.1-channel speaker system. The $249 Denon DHT-S217 will be available starting in May from Denon.com and authorized Denon retailers.

The DHT-S217 contains several significant improvements over the DHT-S216, which also sells for $249. The biggest feature is the 217’s support for Dolby Atmos content. The soundbar uses virtualization to present Atmos’ immersive 3D effect through just a left and right channel, but it should still produce a more effective home theater sound than the S216, which relied on DTS Virtual:X.

Denon DHT-S217 Dolby Atmos Soundbar seen sitting in front of a TV.
Denon

Another big change is the inclusion of two built-in down-firing three-inch subwoofers, which provide the low-end oomph for the “.1” element of the DHST-S217’s 2.1 sound system. Rounding out the driver array are two one-inch tweeters and two 3.5-inch racetrack midrange drivers. Denon claims that this setup will deliver crystal-clear dialogue with authoritative bass response that will “certainly please both music and movie enthusiasts.” If you want even more low-end power, the soundbar has an output for a wired subwoofer.

Related
Close-up of Denon DHT-S217 Dolby Atmos Soundbar's rear ports.
Denon

Denon has also included an HDMI input that lets you connect a video device like a streaming media player, and can passthrough up to 4K resolution video with Dolby Vision HDR. That will provide an open HDMI port to compensate for the one that folks will lose when they connect the soundbar to their TV via HDMI ARC/eARC. There’s also an optical input and an analog aux-in jack for connecting analog stereo components.

Recommended Videos

Streaming music can be done over the soundbar’s Bluetooth connection, and an included remote control lets you access all of the soundbar’s functions including its four sound modes — Movie, Night, Music, and Pure — which turns off all additional sound processing.

You can place the DHT-S217 in front of your TV on a tabletop, or it can be wall-mounted using the built-in keyholes on the back of the speaker.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Simon Cohen
Simon Cohen
Contributing Editor, A/V
Simon Cohen covers a variety of consumer technologies, but has a special interest in audio and video products, like…
Nakamichi increases the price of its Dragon 11.4.6 soundbar
Nakamichi Dragon Surround System Review

Nakamichi says that it can no longer afford to sell its wild, 11.4.6-channel Dragon soundbar system for its original price of $3,500. Once the original pre-order inventory of 1,000 units has been spoken for, the company will up the price of the Dragon to $3,900.

Preorders on the first batch of 1,000 Dragons haven't started yet. They begin on August 3 at 9 a.m. PT.  It's possible that Nakamichi is using the threat of a price increase as a stick to ensure that its first 1,000 units see rapid sales, however, the company claims it has to charge more in order to offset unexpected costs associated with both the production of the Dragon as well as complexities involved in the shipment of these systems to customers.

Read more
How we test soundbars
Showing the depth of the Samsung Q990B soundbar next to a Samsung S95B OLED TV

If you’re in search of better audio from your TV, a soundbar is the fastest, easiest -- and yes, sometimes the cheapest -- solution. But given that there are hundreds of models from dozens of manufacturers, with features and prices that run from basic to bombastic, how on earth are you supposed to pick just one?

That’s where our soundbar reviews come in. We don’t just test them; we think about who they’re for. Tons of EQ settings might be just what the enthusiast wants. But for someone who just wants to finally hear dialogue clearly, it could be overkill. Same thing goes for extra surround speakers and multiple inputs and outputs. And then there’s always the price question: How does it compare to other models that cost about the same?

Read more
TCL’s 2023 soundbars are affordable, but lack a key feature
2023 TCL soundbars.

TCL has released its 2023 soundbar lineup, which consists of five new models ranging in price from $150 to $280. They offer features like wireless subwoofers and, in some cases, Dolby 5.1 surround sound. But none of the speakers is compatible with Dolby Atmos, the increasingly popular, immersive 3D surround format used by Netflix and other top streaming video services.

LG, Samsung, Sony, and even Roku make soundbars that are designed to work with their TVs -- typically offering some kind of audio sync system that lets the TV's built-in speakers share the audio load with the soundbar. Samsung takes this even further by letting you stream audio from your compatible Samsung TV to your soundbar, wirelessly, with Dolby Atmos support. However, with the exception of being Roku TV Ready (which lets you control the soundbar's settings using a Roku TV on-screen interface), TCL's new models appear to avoid any special features that are optimized for use with the company's 2023 TVs.

Read more