Orbitsound M9 SoundbarThis is my review of the M9 Soundbar from Orbitsound. I first saw this when I was attending the Gadget Show live exhibition.
I was impressed previously when I had saw and had a full demonstration of the T9 soundbar. This is different as now the connection between the Sound bar and the main subwoofer is wireless, it connects seamlessly, it connects using the 2.4Ghz spectrum the same as all wifi connections.
One enhanced feature is this now allows you to connect your phone via Bluetooth, with the T9 you had to dock your iPhone on top, now this allows you to connect a device easily, you can connect any phone or tablet to have your music play through it, you are no longer limited.
With regards to the bluetooth if you have your device paired with the M9 you just press the button to grab the phone, it won't auto connect so your audio won't just start playing when you walk in the room. Once you press it it grabs the phone and automatically start playing the last played media. It will also auto disconnect when you receive a call.
Unboxing and setting this up was very quick and simple, within minutes I had connected the sound bar to my TV via a digital optical cable.
As soon I had connected it you could instantly hear the sound was greatly amplified and sounded so much better, it was totally different, and I was amazed. This is because the M9 features all-new digital amplifiers that feature more advanced signal control to deliver more power, and a more optimised spatial sound field. In the new M-series the speakers use digital crossovers, so this allows for a greater sound but with less distortion than on the T series. There is a greater clarity of sound and volume capability.
Remote ControlNow where the iPhone dock used to be, there is now an easy to understand and use Control Panel which allows you to control the soundbar, volume control, play/pause, change source, place the device into standby etc. You can also see the status of what is being played. You are not limited to this control panel, you also do get a remote control so you can operate this while you are sitting across the room. The control looks very basic, but it operates very well.
Coming back to the wireless connectivity between the soundbar and the subwoofer, as I mentioned it runs on the 2.4Ghz range the same as all other wireless devices. It features a unique ultra low latency wireless system for delivering high quality audio. The key features of the Low latency is it has a total delay of 0.01 seconds, the wireless system is significantly faster than other systems on the market. Orbitsound has developed this system specifically to achieve this. So the sound is always in sync and there is no delay, so you are always getting a high quality sound output. Because of the use of high gain antennas, and a reduction in the amount of digital buffer at the receiver end, the devices do have a shorter range, about 15m (10m with strong interference), but the benefit is higher audio quality and the all-important low latency. This means a better audio experience.
If you do have many wireless devices in your home, it can operate on a different channel, so you can help to maintain the best performance, it's very simple to change the channel on the device.
The M9 is priced at around £299, so it's not too expensive but if you are looking for a great sound system without having to have speakers all around the room, then this is a great system.