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LG SN10YG  Soundbar Review

Reviewed Oct 19, 2020 at 09:00am
Tested using methodology v1.0 
LG SN10YG
8.0
Mixed Usage 
8.2
Dialogue/TV Shows 
8.1
Music 
7.7
Movies 
 0

The LG SN10YG is a 5.1.2 channel setup with Google Assistant built-in. It has a bass-heavy but otherwise neutral sound profile suitable for a variety of content. Thanks to its full array of physical inputs and wireless connectivity options, it's easy to use this bar as a hub between a few devices. However, its surround and height performances are just alright. There's also some distortion present at max volume. That said, this setup still offers versatile overall performance, and has several sound enhancement features such as room correction and EQ presets available.

Our Verdict

8.0
Mixed Usage 

The LG SN10YG is good for mixed use. It has a bass-heavy sound profile that can bring out sound effects in action movies or the thumpy bassline in hip-hop tracks. It offers several sound enhancement features including EQ presets, dialogue enhancement, and room correction so that you can tweak its sound to your liking. It can also get loud with few thumping and compression artifacts. It supports Atmos, although both its height and surround performances are just alright overall.

Pros
  • Supports Atmos and DTS content.
  • EQ presets available.
  • Has room correction feature.
Cons
None
8.2
Dialogue/TV Shows 

The LG SN10YG is decent for dialogue and TV shows. Although it has a bass-heavy sound profile, its mid and treble ranges are both quite neutral. It also has a dedicated center channel that can help reproduce clear and accurate dialogue. If you want more control over your audio experience, there's a dialogue enhancement feature as well as an auto-volume/night mode available. However, the dialogue enhancement feature only works with DTS-enabled content. You can also stream to the bar via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Chromecast built-in.

Pros
  • Has dialogue enhancement and auto-volume feature.
Cons
None
8.1
Music 

The LG SN10YG is very good for music. This soundbar has a thumpy and boomy sound profile that's well-suited for genres like EDM and hip-hop. If you prefer a bit less bass, there's a few EQ presets available to help tweak your audio to your liking. This bar can get loud, but there are minimal thumping and compression artifacts at max volume.

Pros
  • EQ presets available.
  • Has room correction feature.
Cons
None
7.7
Movies 

The LG SN10YG is good for movies. It has a bass-heavy sound profile that can help bring out the intensity of sound effects in action flicks, and it supports Atmos content, although its surround experience falls a bit short since it doesn't have satellites. Still, it offers quite a few sound enhancement features if you like to customize your audio experience. It can also get loud without too much compression.

Pros
  • Supports Atmos and DTS content.
  • EQ presets available.
  • Has room correction feature.
Cons
None
  • 8.0
    Mixed Usage
  • 8.2
    Dialogue/TV Shows
  • 8.1
    Music
  • 7.7
    Movies
  • Changelog

    1.  Updated Mar 26, 2021: Converted to Test Bench 1.0.
    2.  Updated Oct 19, 2020: Review published.
    3.  Updated Oct 05, 2020: Early access published.
    4.  Updated Sep 30, 2020: Our testers have started testing this product.

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    Differences Between Sizes And Variants

    The LG SN10YG comes in one color variant: Black. You can see the label for the model we tested here. If you come across any other variants of this soundbar, let us know in the discussions so we can update our review.

    Popular Soundbar Comparisons

    The LG SN10YG is a 5.1.2 setup from 2020. It offers a thumpy, boomy sound profile that's well-suited for movies or music as well as a variety of sound enhancement features if you prefer to tweak your audio. Like many soundbars in LG's 2020 lineup, it has Google Assistant built-in. However, unlike the LG SN9YG, which is a similarly performing 5.1.2 setup from 2020, it has two Full HDMI In ports. Check out our recommendations for the best soundbars 5.1, the best soundbars for music, and the best soundbars for movies.

    LG SL10YG

    The LG SN10YG is overall a better 5.1.2 setup than the LG SL10YG. While both soundbars are similarly well-built, the SN10YG offers a significantly better center, surround, and height performance. It also has a room correction feature, and it supports eARC. However, the SL10YG can get louder with less pumping and compression artifacts.

    LG SP11RA

    The LG SP11RA is slightly better for mixed usage than the LG SN10YG. The SP11RA is a 7.1.4 setup with a better surrounds performance. It also supports Apple AirPlay, unlike the SN10YG. That said, only the SN10YG has built-in voice assistant support, whereas you need to buy a third party device to use voice assistants with the SP11RA.

    Sonos Beam (Gen 2)

    The LG SN10YG is more versatile than the Sonos Beam (Gen 2). The LG is a 5.1.2 setup with a dedicated subwoofer that can reproduce a more extended low-bass. It also comes with more sound enhancement features, including room correction, and a Full HDMI In port for video passthrough. However, the Sonos is still a really good option if you want a small, standalone bar. Its soundstage and surround performances are better than the LG.

    JBL Bar 5.1 Surround

    The LG SN10YG is better than the JBL Bar 5.1 Surround. The LG supports Dolby Atmos content and has built-in voice assistant capabilities, unlike the JBL. It also has a better stereo soundstage and more sound enhancement features, such as dialogue enhancement. However, the JBL has a better surrounds performance.

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    Test Results

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    Design
    Style - Bar

    The LG SN10YG Soundbar has a sleek black plastic look. It has two round metal grilles on the top of the bar to protect its up-firing speakers. There's also a metal grille that runs along the front and sides of the speakers.

    Style - Subwoofer

    The subwoofer is made of hard plastic. Fabric covers three of its sides, but it can rip or collect dust. Its port is found on its back side.

    Style - Satellites

    The LG SN10YG 5.1.2 doesn't have satellites. If you want a soundbar with satellites, check out the Samsung HW-Q850A.

    Dimensions - Bar
    Width56.8" (144.2 cm)
    Height2.5" (6.3 cm)
    Depth5.8" (14.7 cm)

    The LG SN10YG is very long and most likely won't fit in between the legs of a 55" TV. However, it's quite low in height, so it shouldn't block your view of the TV unless the screen sits flush to the table.

    Dimensions - Subwoofer
    Width8.7" (22.1 cm)
    Height15.4" (39.1 cm)
    Depth12.3" (31.2 cm)

    The subwoofer is about the size of an average desktop PC. It connects to the bar wirelessly, so you can place it anywhere you like, as long as it's connected to a power source.

    Dimensions - Satellites
    WidthN/A
    HeightN/A
    DepthN/A

    There are no satellites in this setup.

    Back - Bar
    Bar Mounting
    Universal (holes on underside)

    The LG SN10YG has one opening on the left-hand side for its inputs. The power cable connects towards the middle-right of the bar. There are also universal holes located on its underside if you want to wall-mount this soundbar.

    Back - Subwoofer
    Enclosure
    Ported

    The back of the subwoofer contains its port. The power cable connects above the port while the pairing button is located a bit further up, towards the top center.

    Back - Satellites
    Mounting
    No

    There are no satellites in this setup.

    8.0
    Build Quality

    The LG SN10YG has a great build quality. It's made of good quality plastic. It has two round metal grilles to protect its up-firing speakers and a long metal grille to protect the front face and sides of the bar. The subwoofer is made of plastic, but it has a fabric wrap to protect its speakers which can get dirty or rip.

    In The Box
    HDMI Cable Length
    N/A
    Digital Optical Cable Length
    1.5 m (4.9 ft)

    • Manual
    • Optical cable
    • Remote and batteries (2x AAA)
    • Power cable for subwoofer
    • Wall-mounting plates with two screws

    Sound
    8.2
    Stereo Frequency Response
    See details on graph tool
    See details on graph tool
    Tested Preset
    Standard
    Slope
    -0.81
    Std. Err.
    3.62 dB
    Channels
    5.1.2
    Low-Frequency Extension
    28.3 Hz
    High-Frequency Extension
    19.9 kHz

    The LG SN10YG has a good stereo frequency response. Its bass is well-extended, so you can feel the thump and boom of sound effects in your favorite action flicks. The rest of the response is very neutral sounding, which makes this bar well-suited for a variety of audio content. However, some may find the bass a little too boomy. If you like to tweak its sound profile, there are several EQ presets available.

    8.3
    Stereo Frequency Response With Preliminary Calibration
    See details on graph tool
    Suggested Preset
    Standard
    Suggested Bass Setting
    -4
    Suggested Treble Setting
    2
    Slope
    -0.37
    Std. Err.
    2.72 dB
    Low-Frequency Extension
    29.1 Hz
    High-Frequency Extension
    19.6 kHz
    7.5
    Stereo Soundstage
    See details on graph tool
    Crosstalk Error
    2.17 dB

    This soundbar has a good stereo soundstage. The soundstage is about the size of the bar itself, which is somewhat wide. It has really good focus, though, so objects are perceived as coming from accurate pinpoint locations, rather than general areas.

    7.8
    Stereo Dynamics
    See details on graph tool
    SPL @ Max Volume
    91.8 dB SPL
    DRC @ Max Volume
    1.30 dB

    The LG SN10YG has good stereo dynamics. It can get decently loud and it performs well at max volume, as there aren't many pumping or compression artifacts present.

    6.7
    Stereo Total Harmonic Distortion
    See details on graph tool
    Weighted THD @ 80dB
    0.81
    Weighted THD @ Max Volume
    3.47

    The LG SN10YG has an alright THD performance. There's a bit of distortion, particularly in the bass-range at a normal listening volume. However, when pushed to its max volume, there's a big jump in THD, particularly in the bass range. This may not be so audible with real-life content, though.

    7.9
    Center
    See details on graph tool
    Localization
    Discrete
    Slope
    0.19
    Std. Err.
    3.73 dB
    SPL @ Max Volume
    88.5 dB SPL
    Weighted THD @ 80dB
    1.13
    Weighted THD @ Max Volume
    5.93

    The LG SN10YG has an excellent center channel performance. Since it has a dedicated center speaker, it can reproduce clearer and more accurate dialogue in movies. It also has a fairly neutral sound profile, which further helps out vocal-centric content.

    5.1
    Surround 5.1
    See details on graph tool
    Localization
    Phantom (Side Firing, Bar)
    Slope
    0.09
    Std. Err.
    6.29 dB
    SPL @ Max Volume
    91.6 dB SPL
    Weighted THD @ 80dB
    1.02
    Weighted THD @ Max Volume
    3.16
    7.1 Rears
    No

    The LG SN10YG has a mediocre surround performance. The bar uses side-firing speakers to bounce sound off of your walls to give you the impression of a wide surround sound. However, this setup doesn't provide the most accurate and clear representation of surround objects in the soundstage, and it won't feel as real as discrete surround found with home theater speakers.

    6.0
    Height (Atmos)
    See details on graph tool
    Localization
    Phantom (Up Firing, Bar)
    Slope
    -0.23
    Std. Err.
    4.64 dB
    SPL @ Max Volume
    87.9 dB SPL
    Weighted THD @ 80dB
    0.41
    Weighted THD @ Max Volume
    1.40

    The LG SN10YG has a fair height performance. It uses its up-firing speakers to bounce sound off of your ceiling and walls to help give you the impression of height. However, the localization of objects is diffused, and it doesn't sound as real as discrete localization provided by down-firing speakers.

    9.8
    Sound Enhancement Features
    Room Correction
    Yes
    Dialogue Enhancement
    Yes
    Auto-Volume/Night Mode
    Yes
    Subwoofer Level Adjustment
    Yes
    Bass Adjustment
    Yes
    Treble Adjustment
    Yes
    EQ
    Presets
    Surround Level Adjustment
    Yes
    Rear Level Adjustment
    Yes
    Height Level Adjustment
    Yes
    Virtual Surround
    Yes

    The LG SN10YG has fantastic connectivity features. It has a room correction feature, which helps to improve its sound based on your room's acoustics. There are a few EQ presets available if you prefer to customize its sound: 'AI Sound Pro', 'Bass Blast', 'Standard', 'Movie', and 'Music'. There's also a dialogue enhancement feature called 'Dialogue Control', which works with DTS-enabled content to help reproduce clear voices with less background noise.

    Connectivity
    Physical Inputs - Bar
    Optical Audio In
    1
    HDMI ARC
    1 (shared)
    HDMI Out
    1 (shared)
    Full HDMI In
    2
    Analog Audio In 3.5mm (Aux)
    No
    RCA In
    No
    USB for Files
    1
    Ethernet
    No

    This soundbar has a wide selection of physical inputs, and you can even use it as a hub between your TV and your devices. However, it doesn't have an AUX input, so you can't directly connect older devices to the bar. On the upside, it does have a USB port, which is handy if you have music stored on a thumb drive or external drive.

    10
    Audio Format Support - ARC
    eARC
    Yes
    Dolby Atmos
    Yes
    Dolby Digital
    Yes
    Dolby Digital Plus
    Yes
    DTS
    Yes
    DTS:X (eARC only)
    Yes
    Dolby TrueHD (eARC only)
    Yes
    DTS-HD MA (eARC only)
    Yes
    5.1 PCM (eARC only)
    Yes

    The LG SN10YG has outstanding audio format support via its ARC port. It supports Dolby Atmos as well as eARC, which allows you to play advanced object-based surround signals as well as high-quality lossless formats.

    10
    Audio Format Support - Full HDMI In
    Dolby Atmos
    Yes
    DTS:X
    Yes
    Dolby Digital
    Yes
    Dolby Digital Plus
    Yes
    DTS
    Yes
    Dolby TrueHD
    Yes
    DTS-HD MA
    Yes
    5.1 PCM
    Yes

    This soundbar has fantastic audio format support via its Full HDMI In port. It can play all common surround and object-based formats, which are found in content from streaming services as well as Blu-ray discs, for an immersive experience.

    10
    Audio Format Support - Optical
    Dolby Digital
    Yes
    DTS
    Yes

    The LG SN10YG supports Dolby Digital and DTS formats via Optical In, which are usually found on streaming platforms or Blu-ray discs.

    7.1
    Latency
    ARC
    86 ms
    Optical
    92 ms
    Full HDMI In
    77 ms
    9.0
    Wireless Playback
    Bluetooth
    Yes
    Wi-Fi
    Yes
    Chromecast built-in
    Yes
    Apple AirPlay
    No

    The LG SN10YG has outstanding wireless playback options. You can easily stream your favorite albums via Wi-Fi or Chromecast built-in. If you prefer to use Bluetooth, it's available only after updating it through Google Home via Wi-Fi.

    Other Input Specifications
    4k @ 60 Hz Passthrough
    Yes
    4k @ 60 Hz @ 10 bit Passthrough
    Yes
    4k @ 60 Hz @ 4:4:4 Passthrough
    Yes
    HDR10 Passthrough
    Yes

    When used as a hub between your PC and TV, the LG SN10YG can pass through the highest quality signals, resulting in clear and crisp text on your TV.

    Connectivity - Subwoofer
    Sub Wireless
    Yes

    The subwoofer connects wirelessly to the bar, so it only has a power cable.

    Connectivity - Satellites
    Sat Wireless
    No

    There are no satellites in the LG SN10YG's setup.

    Additional Features
    Interface
    Display
    Yes

    The interface is located behind the metal grille towards the right-hand side of the bar. It displays your current input as well as your volume level.

    Bar Controls

    There are touch-sensitive buttons located on the top of the bar. You can turn the bar on/off, select the input, adjust the volume level, play/pause, mic mute, and control Google Assistant.

    Remote
    Universal Remote
    No

    The LG SN10YG's remote is fairly small and straightforward. You can control all of the bar's functions using the remote. However, you can't use it as a universal remote.

    Voice Assistants Support
    Amazon Alexa
    No
    Google Assistant
    Yes (Built-in)
    Apple Siri
    No
    App
    App NameLG Wi-Fi Speaker
    iOSYes
    AndroidYes
    Acts As A Remote
    Yes
    Controls Soundbar's Settings
    All
    Casts Device Files
    Yes

    The LG Wi-Fi Speaker app allows you to control most of the same features or settings found on the remote. However, you can only adjust bass and treble from the remote. That said, you can cast audio files using the app.

    Other Features
    Power Saving
    Standby
    HDMI CEC (TV Remote Control)
    Yes

    This soundbar enters standby when inactive for 15 minutes. Thanks to its HDMI ARC connection, you can also use your TV remote to control some basic functions of the bar.

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