{"id":136156,"date":"2021-09-08T06:01:21","date_gmt":"2021-09-08T05:01:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.techweekmag.com\/?p=136156"},"modified":"2023-10-18T07:04:37","modified_gmt":"2023-10-18T06:04:37","slug":"lg-eclair-qp5-review-ultra-compact-dolby-atmos-soundbar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/speakers\/lg-eclair-qp5-review-ultra-compact-dolby-atmos-soundbar\/","title":{"rendered":"LG Eclair QP5 : Ultra-compact Dolby Atmos Soundbar"},"content":{"rendered":"

LG Eclair QP5’s Tiny Dolby Atmos Soundbar – Bright Trinket or Exquisite Sound Delight?\u00a0The soundbar market is very conservative and chock-full of products that are updated annually with minor changes.\u00a0And to see a truly innovative product is a real event.\u00a0The LG QP5, nicknamed \u00c9clair, simply redefines the concept of a “compact” soundbar.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The device is so small that at first glance it might be confused with a portable speaker.\u00a0But make no mistake: the company is asking us to believe that it offers performance worthy of a “full-size” soundbar.\u00a0Its 3.1.2 acoustic design fully confirms this.\u00a0In addition to the wireless subwoofer, the panel itself is equipped with two separate height speakers oriented towards the ceiling.<\/p>\n

With these drivers, LG Eclair intends to bring Dolby Atmos and DTS: X surround tracks to life.\u00a0What else a soundbar of such a small size is capable of, albeit paired with a bi-directional subwoofer, we will look at the LG QP5 \u00c9clair review.<\/p>\n

LG QP5 review<\/h2>\n

Design<\/h3>\n

The 30cm wide QP5 is definitely a paragon of restraint.\u00a0The small size of the panel is not the only thing that allows it to very discreetly fit into most interiors.\u00a0It also benefits from its minimalist design, which is very well thought out and successful.\u00a0The materials of the case (acoustic fabric and textured aluminum) are matt, which prevents stray reflections when watching a movie.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, this does not mean that distractions are completely absent.\u00a0A bit of annoyance is the fact that the control LEDs on the front panel cannot be turned off during use.\u00a0Meanwhile, the dimensions of the subwoofer are not as slender as the panel it accompanies.\u00a0But the design is made in the same vein, which means that there will be a place in the interior.<\/p>\n

Functional<\/h3>\n

While the LG Eclair includes a decent amount of modern features like eARC pass-through and 4K HDR, the lack of any networking capabilities seems like a pretty significant omission.\u00a0And not only because of the lack of streaming.\u00a0When using the LG app, which is the only way to access certain settings, you must first switch the Eclair to Bluetooth mode.<\/p>\n

\"LG<\/a><\/p>\n

Therefore, if you are watching TV or a movie and want to make changes, you need to interrupt the sound and then manually connect your smartphone to the device before you can resume and use the app.\u00a0Quick source input switching can be done either with a small remote control or with the buttons on the back of the speaker.<\/p>\n

Beneath these are ports for HDMI, eARC, optical, and USB storage.\u00a0The three color LEDs on the front of the LG Eclair provide a visual indication of changes made with the remote.\u00a0There is also live voice confirmation.<\/p>\n

The console also provides access to four Eclair sound profiles: Standard Mode with Meridian Tuning, Advanced Cinema Profile with Height Drivers, Game Mode and AI option, allowing the QP5 soundbar to automatically select a mode.\u00a0Unlike other LG soundbars that have Music mode, the AI \u200b\u200bon the Eclair QP5 is not particularly accurate and often plays music in Movie mode.<\/p>\n

It is possible to let the LG 2020\/21 TV take over the processing functions with the \u201cSound Mode Sharing\u201d option.\u00a0But it’s worth noting that when watching Dolby Atmos or DTS: X content, all other sound modes are blocked.<\/p>\n

Sound<\/h3>\n

As they say, there is nowhere more trite, but the QP5 soundbar is gaining points thanks to full support for the HDMI 2.1 standard.\u00a0The output is eARC compatible.\u00a0Therefore, the Audio Return Channel can ideally be used for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio streams, including of course their Dolby Atmos and\u00a0DTS: X\u00a0variants\u00a0.<\/p>\n

\"LG<\/a><\/p>\n

What’s more, the video transmission between HDMI input and output works smoothly with Ultra HD 120Hz signals, including HDR10 or Dolby Vision, and even variable refresh rate (VRR).\u00a0This cannot but please the happy owners of the latest generation of game consoles or video cards.\u00a0In terms of decoded formats, the panel supports almost all Dolby formats except the rare AC4, all DTS and LPCM formats up to 7.1.<\/p>\n

It should be noted that in Bluetooth, the transmission latency is about 100ms.\u00a0The resulting audio \/ visual mismatch is close to acceptable, but still distinctly perceptible.\u00a0Therefore, it is better to reserve such a connection for a smartphone or tablet, and to connect to a TV, give preference to a wired connection (HDMI,\u00a0eARC\u00a0, or S \/ PDIF).<\/p>\n

Given the very small width of the LG \u00c9clair Dolby Atmos panel, it has to use trickery to create a soundstage that doesn’t feel squeezed in a piece of space.\u00a0The solution is simple: the left and right speakers are tilted 45 \u00b0 to exploit the reflection of sound waves off the walls of the room.\u00a0The result is surprisingly convincing: the soundstage has a completely satisfactory stereo base, without any noticeable acoustic “holes”.<\/p>\n

But the opposite of this configuration is the lack of scene uniformity.\u00a0The center channel radiates directly to the listener and has very distinct acoustic characteristics from the left and right channels.\u00a0Consequently, an object crossing the scene from left to right, for example, suddenly changes its tone in the middle of a journey, and then reverts to its original tone on its way out.<\/p>\n

\"LG<\/a><\/p>\n

Connections<\/h3>\n

The QP5 connectors are located on the rear of the soundbar.\u00a0These include HDMI ports – 1 in and 1 out, a USB 2.0 connector, an optical input and a power supply plug.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h3>\n

To conclude our review of LG’s QP5, we reiterate that the Eclair is an unusually small soundbar that delivers a volume that exceeds its size.\u00a0It’s a shame that cinematic sound reproduction is beyond the capabilities of such a miniature speaker.\u00a0But the Eclair is undoubtedly of interest to those looking to see more creative and stylish designs in a home theater audio system.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

QP5 specifications<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Sound bar<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Channel configuration<\/td>\n3.1.2-channel<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Amplifier output<\/td>\n100 watts<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Subwoofer<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Amplifier output<\/td>\n220 watts<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Connection<\/td>\nWireless<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Connections<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Inputs<\/td>\n1 x HDMI 2.1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n1 x Optical TOSLINK<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Outputs<\/td>\n1 x HDMI 2.1 eARC \/ audio \/ video port<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
USB ports<\/td>\n1 USB port (audio)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ethernet<\/td>\nNo<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Wireless audio protocols<\/td>\nBluetooth 4.0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NFC<\/td>\nNo<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bluetooth codec support<\/td>\nAAC<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Formats<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Audio decoding<\/td>\nDTS Digital Surround, DTS-HD High Definition, DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS: X, Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, LPCM<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sampling rate<\/td>\nUp to 192 kHz<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
HDMI Compliance<\/td>\nARC, CEC, eARC<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
HDR compatible<\/td>\nHDR10, Dolby Vision<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Supported file formats<\/td>\nAAC, FLAC, MP3, OGG, WAV, WMA<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Nutrition<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power consumption<\/td>\n30W (soundbar)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n33W (subwoofer)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Standby mode<\/td>\n<0.5W (soundbar)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<0.5W (subwoofer)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dimensions and weight<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Recommended screen size<\/td>\n40 inches and above<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
dimensions<\/td>\n29.7 x 6.1 x 12.4 cm (soundbar)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n33.8 x 29 x 18.5 cm (subwoofer)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Weight<\/td>\n1.5 kg (soundbar)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n7.7 kg (subwoofer)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LG Eclair QP5’s Tiny Dolby Atmos Soundbar – Bright Trinket or Exquisite Sound Delight?\u00a0The soundbar market is very conservative and chock-full of products that are updated annually with minor changes.\u00a0And to see a truly innovative product is a real event.\u00a0The LG QP5, nicknamed \u00c9clair, simply redefines the concept of a “compact” soundbar. The device is […] More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10402,"featured_media":136157,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[646],"tags":[778],"class_list":["post-136156","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-speakers","tag-reviews"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136156","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10402"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=136156"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136156\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/136157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136156"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136156"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hifiratings.com\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=136156"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}