That sleek new Samsung soundbar you just unpacked has the potential to transform your living room into an immersive home theater. But getting there takes more than just plugging it in.
To unleash your soundbar’s full capabilities, from room-shaking surround sound to versatile streaming, requires optimizing setup and features beyond basic instructions.
In this guide, we’ll explore advanced tips to finely tune and customize your Samsung soundbar for the ultimate audio experience.
From proper wall mounting strategies to multi-room streaming tricks, you’ll learn insider techniques to make that soundbar really sing.
Wall mounting the soundbar and wireless subwoofer
When wall mounting your Samsung soundbar, first determine the best positioning under your TV based on the TV’s height and your seating distance.
Ideally, the soundbar should be centered under the TV and angled slightly downwards towards the prime listening position.
Leave 2-3 inches of space between the TV and soundbar for proper audio alignment.
Use the included wall mount template to mark holes and ensure the soundbar will be level. For mounting, use proper wall anchors and screws that can support the soundbar’s weight.
Carefully drill pilot holes before securing the mount. Run cables through the mount before attaching the soundbar. Level the mount and double-check measurements before fully tightening the screws.
For the wireless subwoofer, place it along the same wall as the soundbar or in a corner for bass reinforcement.
The sub should be within the wireless transmission range of approximately 20 feet from the soundbar.
Test subwoofer placement by playing something with deep bass and moving around the room to find any null spots where bass is lacking.
Move the sub to minimize these and achieve even bass response throughout the room.
Hiding Cables for a Clean Look
To complete the clean mounted look, take time to neatly hide the power and connection cables between your TV, soundbar, and subwoofer.
Use wire concealers or cable raceways painted to match your wall to run cables neatly against the wall and down to outlets. Use cable ties and clips to neatly bundle and tighten cables behind the TV and soundbar.
For in-wall power, install an outlet precisely behind the soundbar mount location.
Place any excess cable slack inside the wall to keep the visible connections and wires minimal for that wireless look. The end result is a professional and integrated home theater installation.
Connecting to Alexa or Google Home
Enable the soundbar’s smart assistant integration in the SmartThings app under the device settings menu. Here you can select either Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant and sign in to link accounts.
Follow the on-screen steps to discover devices and select your soundbar to complete setup.
Give your soundbar a unique name like “Living Room Soundbar” to identify it. Assign the soundbar to home entertainment rooms like living room or home theater for multi-zone control purposes.
Test basic voice commands like “Alexa, turn up the volume on the living room soundbar”.
Advanced Voice Control and Automation
You can create Alexa routines or Google Home shortcuts to automate your soundbar.
For example, “Alexa, movie time” could power on your soundbar, dim lights, and start your smart TV with a single command. Use a smart plug to power on the soundbar automatically as part of routines.
Enable notifications in your smart assistant app to be alerted if the soundbar disconnects for troubleshooting.
Create speaker groups and multi-room music groups that include your soundbar for whole-home audio streaming. The possibilities are endless for voice-controlling your soundbar!
Multi-room Audio with Samsung soundbars
In the SmartThings app, group multiple Samsung soundbars and wireless speakers together under one multi-room “House Party” group for example.
Choose one device as the primary room that will control the group and playback. Other rooms become secondary zones slaved into the primary.
Start music on the primary zone and adjust relative volume levels in each room’s settings to balance based on room size and speaker power.
Choose complimentary EQ settings tailored to each room’s acoustics. Disable audio delay features to prevent multi-room lip sync issues.
Stereo Pairing Rear Speakers
For more immersive surround sound, stereo pair rear speakers to the left and right channels of your soundbar. Wirelessly connect the rears to create left and right separation.
Place rear speakers at ear height to the sides of your seating position. Calibrate their levels, distance and EQ to blend with the soundbar.
Note the rears will only play surround content and not fuller range music.
Stereo pairing delivers dedicated rear effects and ambiance that envelops you in sound. Just keep the rears within wireless range of approximately 30 feet from the soundbar depending on obstructions.
Updating Soundbar Firmware
Firmware updates bring bug fixes, feature additions, and audio performance improvements to your soundbar.
Access updates in the SmartThings app under your soundbar’s settings and support menu. Or you can manually check for new firmware.
Major updates often require 15-30 minutes to install and will automatically reboot your soundbar when complete.
Avoid disrupting the update process or powering off the soundbar to prevent bricking. Read the release notes before updating to understand what changes or benefits the firmware provides.
Troubleshooting Update Issues
If your soundbar fails to update properly or experiences bricking, first redo the update process. If issues persist, you may need to factory reset your soundbar and set it up again from scratch.
As a last resort, connect online with Samsung technical support who can troubleshoot and potentially push the firmware update remotely.
Always maintain power to the soundbar during a lengthy update for best results. If needed, connect the soundbar to a UPS battery backup to avoid power interruptions that could corrupt the installation.
Take precautions to ensure successful firmware updates.
Hidden Menu Options And Settings
Your Samsung soundbar has advanced installer menu options accessible by pressing certain remote control buttons in sequence.
Here you can view technical details and run diagnostic tools to optimize performance before factory resetting.
In the service menu, tweak audio delay times to dial in perfect lip sync with your TV. Change HDMI input labels for easier identification.
Adjust Bluetooth output quality and streaming latency. Even customize tweeter and subwoofer trim for specialized room tuning.
Caution When Changing Settings
While expert settings provide more customization, certain audio changes like room size can drastically alter sound quality for the worse.
Resetting room EQ requires re-running the sound calibration sequence for proper tuning again.
Tread carefully in the installer menu and avoid experimenting with critical system settings. Note down original values before changing advanced options.
Most tweaks can simply be reverted back if unwanted results occur. But use discretion when fine tuning your soundbar via hidden menus.
Sound Calibration And Audio Tuning
For optimized audio, first run the SmartThings app’s built-in sound calibration sequence.
This emits test tones to analyze room acoustics and set appropriate speaker levels and EQ bands. Position the included calibration microphone at your central listening position and let the test sweep run.
Follow setup prompts and listen for audio cues to walk around the room during subwoofer testing. The resulting room EQ profile tailored to your unique room environment gets saved on the soundbar for refined sound.
Further Manual Audio Adjustments
After calibration, consider tweaking the sound profile under audio settings.
Switch between Movie and Music modes or apply the Adaptive EQ to suit content genres.
Adjust individual EQ bands like bass and treble or the surround effect intensity.
You can also fine-tune audio delay times to correct lip sync between audio and on-screen video. Run a Left/Right stereo channel test and center yourself equidistant between speakers.
Finally, minimize Bluetooth streaming latency by selecting the scalable codec option.
Conclusion
Getting the most out of your Samsung soundbar requires going beyond basic setup.
By properly wall mounting, integrating voice control, multi-room streaming, keeping firmware updated, tweaking expert settings, and calibrating audio, you can achieve an immersive home theater experience.
Experiment with the tips provided to customize your soundbar to your room’s acoustics and preferences.
With the right optimizations, your Samsung soundbar will transform into an audio powerhouse capable of room-filling, crystal clear surround sound that fully immerses you in movies, music, and more.