Samsung has been working in recent years to blur the line between traditional speakers, soundbars, and multiroom solutions. We have already tested its little brother, the Music Studio 5, and it is clear that where it falls short, its big brother picks up the pieces.

I realized immediately upon lifting the box that this is no run-of-the-mill speaker, but an incredibly solid product. It is not that large, with a height of 26 centimeters and barely 20 centimeters in width and depth, but it weighs almost six kilograms!

It looks quite ordinary with its square, minimalist design, but when I started it up, I could play it so loud that the plaster almost fell off the walls. There is a small sound test where the volume level does not change; rather, it is the speaker’s performance that makes the difference.

App and usage

I found that I couldn’t even turn the volume up all the way to test it; it felt more or less as if there were no limit. You control it via an app, and unlike other speakers, this one is based on Wi-Fi rather than Bluetooth. So when you leave the room—or in my case, the home—it continues to play without needing to be connected to anything. Consequently, there is no irritation over it losing connection. The app is easy to use and works for both Android and iOS.

TV features and sound performance

As I mentioned above, Samsung wants to create a speaker that works in several ways and thus not just for music, so you can connect your TV to the Music Studio 7 via Wi-Fi (certain TVs), HDMI, or optical output. Personally, I found the connection to be best via HDMI and eARC on the TV. The optical input resulted in a slight delay, even though the sound quality remained the same.

Under the hood of the Music Studio 7, there is a genuine 3.1.1-channel construction with a total of five speaker drivers that fire forward, sideways, and upward to create a wider and more immersive soundstage. Personally, I believe that a single speaker can never replace a true surround system, but I must still admit I was impressed by how well-crafted the soundstage felt. You will never get the sensation of rear speakers, but I experienced a wider sound with clear separation between the center and side speakers. It supports Dolby Atmos, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, and the speaker also handles high-resolution audio up to 24-bit/96 kHz. You can link multiple speakers to work together for an even more complete soundstage. Unfortunately, this is not something I could test as I only have one speaker.

I have also read that the Music Studio 7 provides full support for Q-Symphony for those of you with a newer Samsung-TV, which means the TV’s own speakers continue to work alongside the Music Studio speaker instead of being turned off.

Comparison with Music Studio 5

Its little brother, the Music Studio 5, is a more traditional two-channel speaker, while its big brother, the Music Studio 7, utilizes a full 3.1.1-channel construction with an Atmos height channel and HDMI input. Consequently, the Music Studio 7 offers both a larger soundstage, better dialogue reproduction, and significantly stronger capabilities as a TV speaker. The Music Studio 5 is thus more focused on music listening.

Design and price

Overall, I am very impressed by the Music Studio 7 with all its features and an impressively clear soundstage for both music and movie watching, but what brings down the overall impression slightly is the rather hefty price tag of six thousand kronor. Furthermore, I cannot get over how boring it actually looks. It is certainly designed precisely for the purpose of blending in anywhere, but regardless, it looks like you’ve set out a regular speaker that is missing its friends.

Summary

In summary, I still want to recommend the Music Studio 7 specifically because it hits the marks that the Music Studio 5 lacks. Additionally, it is easy to connect to your TV, and the sound is impressively powerful with lovely deep bass and an impressive range. The only thing I find a pity, as mentioned, is that design-wise it won’t win any awards in my book and that the price tag is quite hefty, even if it does deliver.