The surprises never end - ULTIMEA Nova S70 soundbar test
The ULTIMEA Nova S70 has arrived. I am constantly looking for the soundbar that makes my heart beat and my lungs "flutter". In other words, it dazzles with its highs, impresses with its midrange, and works with its booming lows.
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Introductory
Not so long ago I had the Ultimea S50, which was a really surprising soundbar. Compared to its size, it sounded nice and clear, the subwoofer provided the necessary dynamism, overall, despite all its faults, positive impressions were left behind.
Of course, the physical size of the soundbar part was still shocking, I mean shockingly small. Since then, I have not understood how the engineers were able to produce such a sound from that set.
I thought that if I had the opportunity, I would give the manufacturer another chance, since I saw that their larger products were coming, ones that promised more speakers, larger radiators, and better surround sound. This is also the case with the S70 included in the current test, it is at least double the size of the S50 in centimeters, and it also has speakers on top, which, according to the manufacturer, will really be able to fill our living room with surround sound.
This article will tell you how successful this attempt was, but before that comes the usual stuff, i.e. the accessories and the specification.
Unpacking
The box of the Ultimea S70 - just like the box of the S50 - surprised me. I was surprised, because according to the description, an 80 cm long soundbar is hidden inside, while the longest side of the box is only 432 millimeters. So how the heck is an 80cm tube going to fit in this? Maybe it was folded? Almost!
The situation is that the soundbar comes out in two pieces next to the subwoofer, the two sides have to be snapped together, so we get the 80-centimeter length. So far, I've been lucky with such a snap-on soundbar, I hated it, so the signs weren't very good. Of course, it's not legal that it has to be bad, but…
What else came out of the box? We get an external power supply, an HDMI cable, two HDMI adapters (90 degrees), an optical cable (fiberglass), a jack-RCA cable, a 6-pin cable for connecting the two sides of the soundbar, a remote control and a hook for wall mounting.
There is actually everything you could need! The remote control is the same as the remote control of the S50, but there's nothing wrong with that, I liked it too, it's a small, easy-to-use thing.
Regarding the exterior, I can't really relate to anything. The two sides of the soundbar fit well, and when put together, it doesn't even appear that it is made of two pieces. The "tube" itself also seems to be a good piece, the materials are good, the assembly is good, so it's all good as it is.
I have to connect to one thing, and this is the 6-pin cable that connects the two sides of the "tube". It's too long, too stiff, and it wouldn't have hurt if the connector was 90 degrees, because its stiffness makes it confusing when I want to screw the soundbar to the wall. The length is confusing because I have to either fold it down or up so that it fits between the wall and the soundbar, so it sticks out from behind the "pipe". So I think they screwed this up a bit. It's not a critical problem, but a little attention wouldn't have hurt!
Specification
What can the structure do?
Based on the specification, the knowledge of the soundbar may come, first of all a few words about the much-mentioned Dolby Atmos technology:
Dolby Atmos is a surround sound technology used primarily in movies, television shows, music recordings and video games. Dolby Atmos allows the precise placement and movement of sounds in a three-dimensional space, so the viewer or listener can enjoy a careful sound experience. As a result, the sound is closer to reality, as if we were really at the center of the events.
In order for a soundbar connected to a television to be capable of Dolby Atmos surround sound, several conditions must be met. First, the soundbar must support Dolby Atmos technology. In addition, the television must also be able to pass Dolby Atmos signals to the soundbar, which is usually done via the HDMI ARC (Audio Return Channel) or HDMI eARC (enhanced Audio Return Channel) connector. The source material (such as a movie or series) must also support Dolby Atmos sound, and the player (such as a Blu-ray player or streaming device) must also be able to handle this format.
Many streaming services offer movies and series with Dolby Atmos sound, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Apple TV+, and HBO Max.
Dolby Atmos technology has many advantages:
- Surround sound: Dolby Atmos allows sounds to be precisely positioned and moved in space, resulting in a deeper and more realistic sound.
- Immersive experience: The sounds seem to appear directly around the viewer, which enhances the audiovisual experience.
- Improved sound quality: Dolby Atmos improves sound clarity, detail and depth.
However, there are also disadvantages:
- Price: Devices and equipment with Dolby Atmos support can generally be more expensive.
- Compatibility requirements: For the full Dolby Atmos experience, all devices, from source to output, must support the technology.
- Room acoustics: The experience of surround sound depends significantly on the acoustic properties of the room. A poorly designed space can reduce sound quality.
Overall, Dolby Atmos is an impressive technology that significantly improves the audio experience of movies, television shows, music and video games, but it requires the right equipment and environment to take full advantage of it.
I think I have collected the most important ones. It is certain that the Ultimea S70 supports Dolby Atmos technology, but you need to know what kind of TV you have at home, whether it has an eARC HDMI output. It is certain that the full spatial experience is created only if the entire system supports Dolby Atmos.
In order for the Nova S70 to be able to place the sounds in the space, the engineers installed two additional speakers on the upward side of the soundbar. Ultimea says that this system is not the usual 2.1 (ie right and left + subwoofer), but 3.1.2.
This means exactly the following:
- 3 – In other words, three loudspeakers are facing us, right-left-center.
- 1 – There is a subwoofer in the system
- 2 – There are two upward-facing radiators, which help place the sounds in the space
The entire system has a performance of 390 watts (peak power). This 390 watts approx. it's like what used to be labeled PMPO, that is, the system can deliver this power for a fraction of a second until it all goes up in smoke. In other words, 390 watts is a joke.
Since no real value is given anywhere, I am forced to guess based on my ears, so I put the real power between 80 and 100 watts. Before you get it wrong, I have to say that it's not bad, not even a little bit!
What we receive as data from the manufacturer is the static noise level (38 dB), the signal-to-noise ratio (75 dB AUS and 87 dB HDMI, opt, etc.), the frequency range (45 Hz-18 KHz), the maximum sound pressure (100 dB ), and finally the bias, which is <1%. These are also important data, but mostly for experts who have something to compare these numbers to.
I, as a person with little knowledge, say that based on the factory data, I will not experience anything outstanding during the test, the given values are absolutely average, the frequency range is a bit narrow.
The manufacturer makes some extra functions available via the remote control. Among them is a new one compared to the Nova S50. for example, the Dolby Atmos surround effect can be adjusted in 3 levels. In addition, we get three pre-programmed tones, such as cinema, music and dialogue, and we get bass emphasis that can be adjusted in several steps.
Because of what was described in the accessories, you already know that we can input a signal in an analog way, but you will do much better if you use optics, even better if you use HDMI. Of course, it is possible to bring in the sound wirelessly, via Bluetooth connection, but I recommend this mostly for listening to music, because the surround sound is practically shot using Bluetooth. Of course, if nothing else, it can also be good for movies, especially because the Bluetooth is 5.3, which means that there can only be a very, very minimal slip in the sound.
I hope I didn't miss anything from the skills, so the experience can come.
Experiences
First, the music!
I like to listen to music, and although the smaller set, the Nova S50, wasn't perfect for that, I wouldn't say it was terribly bad. In contrast to the Nova S70, which is absolutely crap for music. I rarely give such a polarizing (especially bad) opinion about something, but for me, a person who loves and enjoys music, the S70 sounded quite impossible.
The low sounds are even better because there is a subwoofer. The middle range is usable, the speaking voice (vocal voice) sounded clear and understandable in music based on vocals. However, there is no high pitch. Not a little, but none at all. In the sound image, they try to create high notes by pushing the middle, which leads to the fact that in music mode, what we get is not yet (excessively) offensive, but e.g. when switched to movie mode, it clearly hurts the ears.
Ok, you guys are right, why would I want to listen to music in movie mode, that's legit!
I have to report one big positive compared to the Nova S50, the strong background noise I experienced there disappeared when I listened to music via Bluetooth. So, there is progress.
After the bitter disappointment, I got the whole thing under my arm and galloped it to the living room, to the TV. I tried it optically, I tried it HDMI, I tried it with the available streaming provider, movies and series, and my experiences are mixed compared to the S50.
Let's start with the bad part. I don't like his voice. Again, you are right, this is quite a disturbing factor in the case of a soundbar, but I will shade the matter a bit. When set to music, I like it, when set to text, it goes away, when set to film, it's a disaster. Even though I tried to adjust the Dolby Atmos level and the bass emphasis, the sound in movie mode is just as painful as when listening to music. To me, it's almost a cacophonous jingle.
One thing that saves the Ultimea Nova S70 from the trash is the music mode, where the sounds are interestingly placed in their place, the strength of the sound ranges is equalized, the speech becomes understandable, and the necessary dynamics are obtained from the subwoofer, so somehow it all comes together.
I note that the treble is also lacking here, but this is not a problem for me in the case of a cinema, if I noticed the lack it was only because I paid attention to it as a tester.
Anyway, the sound of the films is not based on cymbals, so really, the lack of treble is absolutely not disturbing.
To say absolutely good, the increased number of speakers had an extremely beneficial effect on the surround effect. No, they still can't get a normal 7.1 or even a normal 5.1 sound out of such a big tube, but I don't think anyone promised that.
With that said, although I still haven't been able to hear the voices behind me, the soundstage surrounds me quite well during the film, and if I'm immersed in the film, I can also be immersed in this soundstage.
In other words, the system was definitely better as a TV soundbar than the S50, which is of course no wonder, since the S50's small box is already art.
Sum it!
On the one hand, the Ultimea Nova S70 is a disappointment, but on the other hand, I also see progress.
Disappointment because, as I wrote, I listen to music a lot, and somewhere I would expect normal music to come out of a subwoofer 2.1 (okay, 3.1.2) system. Interestingly, the much smaller, more angular S50 produced a much more consistent sound than the much larger S70.
Of course, the reason for this could be that the Ultimea Nova S70 is clearly tuned for TV and movies.
So I have to admit that this system is primarily a soundbar to be placed under televisions, the primary task of which is to replace the crappy sound of our TV with something more enjoyable. It does this. If not flawlessly, but in music mode it is already of almost pleasant quality. So I can't get involved in that.
It is important that the sense of space is much, much better than with the S50, and this is again a big red mark, because even if it is written on a small speaker (Nova S50) that it is Dolby Atmos, it will not matter as much as that is written on our phone. In many cases, Dolby Atmos support does not mean that you get surround sound, just that the device can process the Dolby Atmos signal stream.
In the case of the Ultimea Nova S70, the size of the thing is already so large, the speakers are so far apart that the thing starts to work. If not flawlessly, if not overwhelmingly so, it somehow works, and this could not be said about the S50.
All in all, I have to say that this system is worth the price, with the caveat that I personally do not dare to recommend it for music. Of course, we're not the same, and I'm perhaps more sensitive than average because of listening to a lot of music.
So the bottom line is, if you're looking for a system with some surround sound under your TV, you can buy it, I don't think you'll be disappointed.
At the end, as usual, the price. You can buy this soundbar by clicking on the link below. The delivery takes place from an EU warehouse, so there is no customs duty, and VAT is included in the price. In other words, you don't have to count on extra costs. The purchase price at the time of writing this article is 165 euros, or approximately HUF 65 here:
