OVERALL ASSESSMENT: The Samsung HW-S700D soundbar has a very small physical footprint, that can provide a very large and loud soundstage, which somehow defies its diminutive size. Paired with the supplied subwoofer, the overall immersive 3.1 audio experience exceeds my expectations. If you are in the market for a smaller soundbar with sub, that will excel at center-channel vocals providing crystal clear voices that are not overpowered by a movie’s special effects, then this could be just what you are look for.
CENTER CHANNEL CLARITY: I have three other soundbars throughout my home, all with center channels and include some level of vocal enhancement. But this HW-S700D is the only one that I can control the actual volume of the center channel. Used in conjunction with Samsung’s “Adaptive Sound” that optimizes audio, along with the AVA (Active Voice Analyzer) technology, I never once asked my wife “what did they just say?”. Very impressive indeed. Recognize that configuring for enhanced vocals during movies, will not provide a balanced output when streaming musical content.
DOLBY ATMOS: This soundbar does not have top firing speakers associated with Dolby Atmos. It was odd to me that this model is marketed as a 3.1. channel system, meaning no dedicated Dolby ATMOS top-firing speakers, then state “Wireless Dolby ATMOS Soundbar…”. After corresponding with Samsung, I was informed “Some Samsung soundbars, like the HW-S700D, use a special Dolby Atmos codec to provide a virtual 3D audio experience.”
Therefore, it appears Dolby Atmos is simulated through the array of front firing soundbar speakers. (Sort-of like when some soundbars simulate rear channel information without actually having rear speakers.) Note that the HW-S800D system does have multiple Dolby Atmos top firing speakers and may be a better option if you want a more traditional Doby Atmos immersive experience.
AUDIO FORMATS: This soundbar is advertised supporting “Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS Virtual:X, and Surround Sound”. But I can’t help from wondering, since the ATMOS is confirmed “virtual”, are any of these other supported audio formats also “virtual”? Hmmmmm…
GAME MODE PRO: I assume the advertised list of features stating “Powerful up firing speakers” is in error. Since there are no up-firing speakers on this soundbar. Maybe, this is another “virtual” effect?
REAR SURROUND OPTION: Although I am not requiring a 5.1 surround sound configuration with rear speakers today, I may in the future; I like to keep options open. Anyway, another question sent to Samsung and they quicky responded “The HW-S700D Soundbar is compatible with the SWA-9200S Rear Speaker Kit.“ Good to know in advance.
Q-SYMPHONY: I do not currently own one of the newer Samsung models with Q-Symphony. Again, keeping options open, I really like the idea of being able to pair with the same brand HDTV wirelessly and controlling with the HDTV’s remote.
INPUT PORTS: There is only one HDMI e-ARC input port. Therefore, you cannot use this soundbar as an HDMI switch. No optical, no RCA, no 3.5mm phone input jacks. I assume this is due to the reduced physical size where there is zero room to include an assortment of additional ports. Now there are Bluetooth capabilities if you wish to pair with your phone or tablet for streaming music. Is the lack of ports an issue for me? Not at all for the room and setup I currently use.
SERVICE PORT: Appears this port is used for only Firmware upgrades. Looks like a USB Micro-B port, but in the confined area, it is very difficult to determine and verify. And there is zero Samsung information currently available on the actual port type. Without exact specifications from Samsung, I am just guessing. Plus, since I have never seen a USB Micro-B Flash drive, I will not be able to upgrade the firmware through this port, if that is what it is. Therefore, I guess you’ll need to pair with a Bluetooth device to update firmware; something I did not attempt.
REMOTE CONTROL: I wish there was detailed information, available in PDF format, that explains each of the button functions on this remote. After 30 minutes of trial-and-error, I believe I figured out all of the capabilities of this remote’s functions. This soundbar model may be so new, that complete documentation will be available in the future.
SOUNDBAR LIGHTS: The soundbar user feedback information, provided by way of its lights, leaves a lot to be desired. Very small LED dots, in various sequences and colors, will flash when using the remote. I was at a total loss trying to determine the center point for adjusting the treble and bass. Appears to be 12 or more steps/degrees of control. And adjusting up or down only flashes all of the LED dots either left-to-right, or right-to-left. Now the soundbar does provide audio acknowledgements when turning on/off specific features, so that’s a plus and very helpful.
RATING: The Samsung HW-S700D earned itself a solid 4-Star Rating, for being able to provide a smaller sized soundbar, with an extraordinary 3.1 immersive audio experience. Lack of documentation, hard to understand LED feedback, and “virtual” ATMOS kept it from earning itself a 5-Start Rating.

I was looking for a sound upgrade for my television, I needed something small and unobtrusive. I have a larger surround sound system for movie nights but I wanted more than the TV’s little built in speakers could offer for everyday viewing. I thought this would fit the bill the best. The main speaker is small in size, measuring just 35” wide x 1 5/8” deep x 1 1/2” tall and can be either wall mounted (hardware included)or placed on a shelf or console. It packs six speakers, 90 watts of power, and a dedicated center channel to bring out the dialogue in a slim profile. The subwoofer is slim as well, at only 8” wide x 12” deep x 13 3/4” tall but with 160 watts in a ported enclosure it really punches up the bottom end. And since it connects wirelessly to the main speaker it can fit about anywhere in the room.
I connected the sound bar to my television via Bluetooth which was an easy process, the connection has been rock solid with no issues. It turns on and off with the TV so I don’t really need to keep the sound bar remote at hand. I don’t have a Samsung TV but my Sony TV remote controls the volume just fine. I tried connecting via the included HDMI cable to my TV’s HDMI ARC port but the volume output of the speaker was very low and would not adjust no matter what I tried so I switched back over to using the Bluetooth connection.
I prefer using it in surround mode, I think that brings out the dialogue the best. Sometimes I think the background music in a show is too loud and drowns out the audio.
One thing I found lacking- there is a Simple User Guide included in the box with instructions to view the user manual at Samsung’s website but if you go there the only download link I found is this same Simple User Guide. There’s zero instructions on what the functions of the remote control do. You can just mess with it and figure it out but it seemed like an odd omission? I’d take off half a star for that if I could.
The speaker sounds great, does exactly what I need, and works seamlessly even with my other brand television so I definitely love it.

This is my second samsung sound bar and the ease of installation and sound qualty are top notch. We purchased to go with our new 70″ tv love the slim bar design with big sound output

Super easy setup, small footprint and reasonable price…but the best part is the sound! Sounds incredible and is such an improvement over the TV speakers. Would definitely recommend!!!