Sony HT-SF150 overview
If you happen to’ve determined it is time to improve your sub-par TV audio, however don’t need to lose your life financial savings, the Sony HT-SF150 could possibly be your preferrred low-budget answer. This super-slim 2.0 channel soundbar goals to produce “punchy bass with out compromising element and readability”, easy connectivity and cinematic digital encompass sound – however does it get the job performed?
Properly, let’s kick issues off by speaking about setup. It actually doesn’t get a lot simpler than this: merely join your soundbar through HDMI ARC or digital optical, plug it into an influence outlet and also you’re away. I chosen HDMI ARC primarily as a result of it permits you to modify the soundbar’s quantity with a typical TV distant – fairly useful.
After getting the Sony HT-SF150 all arrange, I acquired straight into testing its audio capabilities. I’m completely satisfied to report that it fared very nicely for a soundbar that’s usually out there for lower than its already low cost $129 / £99 / AU$194 listing worth. I didn’t encounter a lot tinniness or distortion, even at medium to excessive volumes – one thing I’ve skilled with loads of low cost soundbars. Talking of quantity, this factor can get surprisingly loud, partly because of its 120W energy output, which is significantly greater than what a few of the best cheap soundbars supply.
Staying with sound, I used to be impressed by dialogue readability when utilizing the Sony HT-SF150. As an illustration, I watched the film Smile on Netflix and, when two ladies had been talking in an remoted room, the vocals had been tremendous clear and every character’s tone sounded pure. When listening to a podcast, I might swap to Voice mode utilizing the included distant, which actually brings speech to the forefront and presents it in a crisp, clear-cut method.
Along with Voice, there are Customary, Cinema, Music, Evening and Auto Sound modes. That final mode tunes EQ relying on what content material you’re consuming, although generally I nonetheless wanted to do that manually.
One other glowing facet of this soundbar’s efficiency is the effectiveness of Sony’s S-Drive Entrance Encompass digital processing, which endeavors to emulate “cinema-style encompass sound.” Which may be a little bit of a stretch for a soundbar with no Dolby Atmos or DTS:X, not to mention any sub or rear audio system, however, whereas watching The Boy and the Heron, I used to be struck by the soundbar’s means to precisely map the heron’s flight as he soared throughout my display after which in direction of me. You gained’t get unimaginable verticality or room-filling expansiveness right here, however the HT-SF150 definitely outclassed my TV’s efforts.
One space the place loads of standalone soundbars fall flat is bass output – it may be onerous to muster a meaty growth with no devoted subwoofer – particularly in a funds mannequin like this. And though the HT-SF150 gained’t rock your world with mesmerizing low-end output, it nonetheless plates up respectable bass. This mannequin features a built-in bass reflex speaker, which supplies a leg as much as deep tones and makes it preferrred for motion pictures or video video games with darkish or ambient scores.
When enjoying Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, I used to be met with spectacular depth because the protagonist Cloud confronted outsized mechanical monstrosities with thumping footsteps and ground-shaking assaults. I might’ve preferred an choice to lift bass ranges manually to actually improve low-end output, however you gained’t get that, sadly.
In some locations, this sport contains speech from the principle forged, chatter from background characters or enemies and music from its grandiose soundtrack. This uncovered a slight weak point within the Sony HT-SF150 – it generally leans right into a barely muddied presentation. When there are a number of layers to stability out, chances are you’ll expertise some enterprise within the mid-range. There’s no abrasiveness or harshness to endure, only a little bit of bloating that may depart some particulars beneath wraps.
You’re most likely not anticipating completely separated, ultra-detailed audio, so for essentially the most half, the HT-SF150 performs nicely on this division. However sound isn’t the one optimistic a part of this mannequin, I additionally cherished its design. Actually, this soundbar seems to be much more premium than lots of its funds counterparts. It has a stupendous leather-like end on prime, stylish onboard buttons, and a pretty wraparound speaker grille.
The included distant is slim with well-sized button controls and a premium really feel. Sadly, some options can solely be triggered by repeatedly urgent sure buttons on the distant, which could be a bit complicated until you seek the advice of the person guide.
The one irritating facet of this soundbar’s design is its LED show. As with opponents just like the Panasonic SC-HTB100, this factor simply makes use of small lights to point quantity and sound mode alterations or when it’s in Bluetooth mode. This works nice, however I do choose a extra visible show with letters and numbers – one thing you get with the Majority Elias, as an example.
Again to the positives, although. I discovered this soundbar to be fairly feature-rich given its price-point. For instance, you possibly can toggle Dolby Dynamic Vary Management, which makes Dolby Digital audio simpler to listen to at decrease volumes. There’s additionally multiplex broadcast sound and USB connectivity out there. One key function is the inclusion of Bluetooth 4.2, which allows you to join your cellphone to the soundbar and play music.
Musical efficiency wasn’t superb over Bluetooth – breathy vocal particulars in I Need You by Moloko weren’t very audible and will sound a bit misplaced within the total combine, even when listening in Music mode. Nonetheless, the low-end kick within the bass-heavy Splash Mountain by Yung Gravy was commendable and the depth and fast decay of the drum machine in Black Eye by Allie X additionally caught out to me. This soundbar is as much as the duty when you simply need to hearken to some tunes within the background, however it will not impress audiophiles or compete with a few of the best soundbars.
Total, the Sony HT-SF150 is a really stable funds soundbar with a broad function set, typically clear-cut dialogue, appreciable energy, and a sublime design. For the worth, it’s implausible worth and whereas it’s not with out its flaws sonically, it may be trusted to supply a leg as much as a few of the greatest small TVs and even some extra premium fashions. So, this soundbar is unquestionably price taking into account for these on a funds, however when you’re a bit of brief on house, the mini Hisense HS214 is an superior different. These with a bit additional cash might also need to take into account one of many best Dolby Atmos soundbars for mind-blowingly good spatial sound.
Sony HT-SF150 overview: Worth and launch date
- $129 / £99 / AU$194
- Launched in 2018
The Sony HT-SF150 is out there within the UK and has an RRP of £99. Within the US and Australia, the mannequin has a barely completely different identify – the Sony HT-S100F – and an inventory worth of $129 / AU$194. However I deliver nice information…this soundbar is usually out there for a good quantity much less. I’ve usually seen it promote for lower than $100 / £90 / AU$180, which makes it an extremely low-priced choice. It might not be the most recent soundbar available on the market, however it’s suitable with all fashionable TVs because of its use of HDMI and digital optical connectivity.
Sony HT-SF150 overview: Specs
Dimensions | 35.4 x 2.5 x 3.5 inches / 900 x 64 x 88mm |
Speaker channels | 2.0 |
Connections | HDMI, digital optical, USB, Bluetooth 4.2 |
Dolby Atmos / DTS:X | No / No |
Sub included | No |
Rear audio system included | No |
Ought to I purchase the Sony HT-SF150?
Attributes | Notes | Ranking |
Options | S-Drive, nice sound modes, no bass/treble adjustment or Atmos. | 4/5 |
Audio efficiency | Can get a bit of bloated however often clear dialogue and respectable bass, highly effective too. | 4/5 |
Design | Premium-looking given its worth, neat distant, small LED show can confuse. | 4.5/5 |
Setup and value | Simple to arrange with HDMI, loads of methods to attach, some unorthodox controls. | 4/5 |
Worth | Nice worth for the sound improve and construct high quality on supply. | 4.5/5 |
Purchase it if…
Do not buy it if…
Sony HT-SF150 overview: Additionally take into account
Row 0 – Cell 0 | Sony HT-SF150 | Hisense HS214 | Amazon Fireplace TV Soundbar |
Worth | $129 / £99 / AU$194 | $99 / £79 (about AU$160) | $119.99 / £119.99 (about AU$180) |
Dimensions | 35.4 x 2.5 x 3.5 inches / 900 x 64 x 88mm | 25.6 x 3.7 x 2.3 inches / 650 x 95 x 58mm | 24 x 3.5 x 2.6 inches / 610 x 90 x 65mm |
Speaker channels | 2.0 | 2.1 | 2.0 |
Connections | HDMI, digital optical, USB, Bluetooth 4.2 | HDMI ARC, digital optical, AUX, USB, coaxial, Bluetooth 4.2 | HDMI ARC, digital optical, Bluetooth |
Dolby Atmos / DTS:X | No / No | No / No | No / No |
Sub included | No | No (however contains built-in woofer) | No |
Rear audio system included | No | No | No |
Sony HT-SF150 overview: How I examined
- Examined for one week
- Related the soundbar to the Hisense U7K TV at dwelling
- Used the HDMI ARC connectivity choice
For one week, I had the not-so-arduous job of testing the Sony HT-SF150. Throughout this time, I used HDMI ARC to attach the soundbar to my Hisense U7K TV – which already has stable built-in audio.
Whereas testing, I considered quite a lot of TV reveals, movies and films – primarily utilizing streaming providers like Amazon Prime Video, Netflix and YouTube. I additionally performed Ultimate Fantasy VII: Rebirth on the PS5 to evaluate the soundbar’s gaming capabilities. As well as, I related the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE to the SF150 and trialed Bluetooth connectivity for enjoying music. I made certain to play tracks from the TechRadar testing playlist to guage the standard of the soundbar’s Music mode.
- First reviewed: February 2025
- Learn extra about how we test