Philips Fidelio Skyquake
FOR Deep bass; immersive sound; wide soundstage AGAINST Unclear midrange; lacks punch; not powerful
We all want more immersive sound, and the Philips Skyquake soundbar, along with the standalone subwoofer that comes with it, aims to make that process easier and cheaper. This Dolby Atmos soundbar has speakers on its top that fire sound upwards, to create a three-dimensional sound. You shouldn’t expect total surround-sound immersion (there’s no sound behind you, for example), but it is one step closer to the cinema experience.
The Dolby Atmos soundbar market is becoming increasingly competitive, and the Skyquake is up against rivals such as the Samsung HWK850 and the more expensive Yamaha YSP5600. The latter bounces sound off walls and ceiling to create the nearest thing to a 5.1 surround system we’ve heard from a soundbar.
And, as if that’s not enough competition, Philips’ soundbar also goes up against the non-dolby Atmos Dali Kubik One, our Award-winner at this price point.
Up-firing sound
We play John Wick on Blu-ray, one of the 70 or so discs with a Dolby Atmos soundtrack, using our reference Oppo UDP203 and connect it to the soundbar. We set the ‘Height’ setting to High (the Skyquake’s other options are ‘Medium’, ‘Low’ and ‘Off’) to get the most out of the 10 up-firing drivers. There are also eight front-firing speakers, and the sound that comes out is generally pleasant.
As Wick walks into a club, the Skyquake places the sound of the thumping music higher up. It’s not quite as above you as it would be with in-ceiling speakers; it sounds more like it’s coming from above the top of the TV. But it’s definitely more immersive.
Later, the sounds of bullets ricocheting off walls and shattering glass are placed precisely, and the wide tracking of an escaping car moving from the right channels across to the left is enjoyable.
That quality remains across its other inputs too; using an optical cable to play Gravity, the tense, low-frequency soundtrack is handled with commendable punch by the 20cm driver in the subwoofer – which we’d recommend placing near the soundbar to get the best integration. It doesn’t push those low frequencies forward, either, keeping a balanced tone.
Not-so-rich
Unfortunately, the other sound elements from the Skyquake are a little lacklustre. It’s not a bad sound, just not a great one. The midrange is listenable and free from any harsh edges, but there isn’t enough richness or insight to convey a scene’s emotion, and it’s not particularly crisp.
There’s room for improvement dynamically, too. We use the Skyquake’s aptx Bluetooth connection to stream Old Friends from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’s soundtrack, but the rapid rise of harmonies in the climax needs more vim and vigour, and the force behind the little patter of hand-drums is a bit weak.
One benet is that this is compact – at 105cm long, it takes up less space on a TV stand or wall than the Samsung HWK850 or whopping 110cm by 12cm Yamaha.
Set-up is straightforward – just press the ‘Connect’ button on the back of the sub to pair the subwoofer with the soundbar. Connecting via Bluetooth is simple too. There’s also NFC pairing for compatible Android phones.
The Skyquake’s remote is elegant, with input buttons along the top for quick source-switching. There are buttons for bass and treble adjustment and a Night Mode that compresses dynamic extremes on Dolby Digital soundtracks.
A little limiting
There are also three ‘Ambisound’ settings – Movie, Music and Voice – simply hit the Smart button to change between modes. The Voice mode sounds a tad unnatural, but switching between the others does make a difference, so we’d recommend keeping either of those on.
Input-wise, there are nearly enough connections: optical, coaxial, a 3.5mm jack and a USB port for MP3S. The Skyquake will process sound from other inputs through its upring speakers, but only sound through its HDMIS will be true Dolby Atmos.
You get two HDMI inputs, and one HDMI ARC output that supports 30fps 4K passthrough. Ideally, we’d like another for those with a separate Blu-ray player, set-top box and games console. Plus the HDMI output is only of the 1.4 standard rather than the modern 2.0 variety. It doesn’t support HDR, so you’ll be limited to an 8-bit colour range and no 60fps sources. If you’re spending £900 on a soundbar, you may well be thinking of pairing it with a 4K HDR television. Missing out on that colour-rich content could be a dealbreaker.
For Dolby Atmos sound without ceiling speakers, the Skyquake is a reasonable option – but it doesn’t deliver the best sound quality at its price. Those looking for a conventional soundbar should get the Dali. Or, if your heart is set on Dolby Atmos, pay the extra £700 for the Yamaha YSP5600.
”For Dolby Atmos sound without ceiling speakers, the Skyquake is a reasonable option”