Sound quality: In the Music sound mode Philips's Fidelio B5 delivers sound quality that falls in the good range - it reproduces music and dialog reasonably well despite the obvious shortcomings in its sound. The bass has good impact and detail, but doesn't go deep. The midrange is fairly even, but is a bit hazy, metallic sounding, and grainy. The treble is extended, but is sizzly and slightly subdued. This model does a so-so job of recovering room ambience (the sense of the acoustic space in which the music was recorded) and sounds slightly congested. When playing 2-channel program material with the surround speakers attached to the front speaker array the sound field in the Music sound mode doesn't extend much beyond the top and sides of the soundbar enclosure and lacks front to back depth. In the Movie mode setting the sound field got taller and wider, and the sound was louder, harsh, somewhat diffuse, and a bit echoey. When the surround speakers were separated from the front speaker array and placed behind the listener in the Music mode the sound doesn't change but the sound field gets subtle wider, while in the Movie mode the surround speakers take on an echoey quality. When 5.1 channel program material is played back in the Movie mode with the surround speakers placed in back of the listener sound is heard in the rear channels, and with the proper listener position and adjustment of the speaker volume levels the system can provide a sound field that envelopes the listener to the sides and rear, and sounds come from their proper positions. The Music mode sounds similar to the Movie mode, except the sounds that should be in the front also come from the rear. The Voice clarity setting made sounds that appeared to come from the center of the soundbar (an effect called the "phantom center channel") louder and midrange sounds like voices harsher regardless of the program material or speaker arrangement. There was no significant difference in sound quality between the HDMI, optical, coaxial, analog, and Bluetooth inputs. The system can provide satisfying volume in a medium sized room.
TV setup and ease of use: Fair overall. Setup: No TV connection cables are provided with unit, any cables needed must be purchased separately. Ease of Use: The remote's controls are well labeled and generally well laid out, but the erratic response of the console to the mute control dropped the remote's score from excellent to fair. The only control on the console is a power button. The source and muting status displays and power standby indicator are persistent while the volume and DSP mode displays are momentary; all can be read from the typical listening position. Indicator lights on the rear surround speakers automatically show when they are operating in surround mode.
Features setup and ease of use: Fair overall. Setup: Multi channel setup is simple and straight forward with clear instructions. Channel levels can be adjusted with an auto calibration feature, but no test tone function is provided for manual setup. Bluetooth pairing is very easy - the soundbar is automatically in pairing mode once it has been switched to the Bluetooth input. Optional NFC pairing is available for use with Bluetooth devices that have that feature. Ease of Use: The remote's controls are well labeled and generally well laid out, but the erratic response of the console to the mute control dropped the remotes score from excellent to fair. The only control on the console is a power button. The source and muting status displays and power standby indicator are persistent while the volume and DSP mode displays are momentary; all can be read from the typical listening position. Indicator lights on the rear surround speakers automatically show when they are operating in surround mode or if they have manually been switch to the independent Bluetooth speaker mode.
