Best Televisions for Audio Quality (2024)

Samsung's 8K lineup includes all the features, and the QN900D is at the very top of the lineup.

Samsung's upscaling has taken a notable leap forward on this TV.

The QN900D looks extremely good in its filmmaker mode for both SDR and HDR.

The QN900D achieved 2400 nits peak white from a 10% window.

A refreshed Tizen Smart TV OS includes a new health app.

The QN900D also features Samsung's all-new NQA AI Gen 3 processor.

Samsung's TV has you covered because it supports Xbox and GeForce Now cloud gaming.

It will, of course, come with four HDMI 2.1 ports, allowing you to plug in up to four devices.

I really like Samsung's One Connect Box for cable management.

This may be the thinnest 8K TV I've ever seen.

The stand is right square in the middle, so there is a bit of texture on the back of the TV too.

The S95D's anti-glare and anti-reflective technology doesn't go that far; it does, however, keep the TV screen surface from looking like a dark mirror.

What Samsung has done here, as part of the solution, is to dissipate ambient light rather than have it directly reflected by eliminating the mirror-like effect found in OLED TVs.

The S95D is a QD OLED TV, which means it can fundamentally produce higher color purity and a slightly wider color gamut with better saturation in very bright colors than a WRGB OLED TV.

The S95D measured really well. I did need to change the color temperature setting in filmmaker mode to 'warm two' to get the best white balance, so I suggest you do the same if you want the most accurate picture.

I'm not the biggest fan of the Tizen Samsung Smart TV operating system.

Tizen is quite snappy. I mean, the TV boots up really quickly when you turn it on, and the smart TV interface is immediately usable.

The TV comes with the 2024 version of Samsung's proprietary Tyen OS, as is expected of Samsung's highest-end 2024 TV. Tyen runs fast and smooth here.

There are ads on this TV, like on any other TV. You can turn off targeted ads, but you can't remove them entirely.

The S95D comes with Samsung's One Connect Box, which, though long the bane of many custom installation professionals, does allow a single cable connection to the TV.

The Box itself has four HDMI ports, and while all of them support HDMI 2.1 bandwidth like last year, they're limited to 40 Gbps per second instead of the full 48.

Last year, there were many reports of connection issues with the One Connect Box. It's unclear whether these issues were related to the reduced bandwidth or the box itself.

The Samsung S 95d has truly stellar build quality, with a grooved plastic back and a small but solid metal stand.

The stand lifts the display about 3.35 inches from the table, so any soundbar will fit just fine without blocking any part of the screen.

The TV has an entirely flat profile with no bump near the bottom. It looks fantastic while mounted, and the inputs are still accessible.

The color gamut readings are excellent.

The peak luminance with a 10% white window was exactly 2800 nits.

The TV's contrast is outstanding; seriously, it's so good that it approaches OLED territory.

The Bravia 9 has incredible HDR brightness, and when paired with its fantastic contrast, highlights really pop out during darker scenes.

The Sony Bravia 9 uses version 12 of the popular Google TV interface.

The interface is smooth and easy to use, but sometimes the settings get stuck.

This TV displays ads, and you can't disable them.

The remote is backlit and features a matte finish with blue speckles.

There are four HDMI ports, though only ports three and four support HDMI 2.1 bandwidth for 4K at 120 Hz signals.

Port 3 is also the eARC port, which means you'll lose one of your 2.1 inputs if you connect the TV to a receiver or a soundbar.

The TV can pass through all major audio formats, including Dolby and DTS.

The Sony Bravia 9 looks very premium, no doubt about it. It's framed by thin metallic bezels around the screen.

It's rather thick, but it does have a completely flat back, so it's able to be flush-mounted against the wall.

The Bravia 9 comes with a set of good quality metallic feet that can be placed in four distinct positions horizontally.

The LG C4 offers remarkable contrast due to its nearly infinite contrast ratio.

The C4 is very bright in HDR, but unfortunately, the C Series still doesn't have the MLA layer like the G Series does.

The TV has exceptional reflection handling, as its glossy screen finish significantly reduces the intensity of direct reflections.

The LG C4 does have an excellent viewing angle, but it has a green tint that is noticeable from an angle of about 27° onwards.

The LG C4 has an excellent automatic game mode that activates when playing console or PC games.

The TV comes with the 2024 version of LG's web OS interface. It works well and supports user profiles.

We encountered a bug where you get a black screen on your TV if you've been frequently changing resolutions and refresh rates in a short period of time.

The C4 has ads like every other TV on the market, but it does allow you to remove some of them.

The TV has four full HDMI 2.1 bandwidth ports, and they're all capable of up to 4K at 144 Hz.

All the inputs face towards the right, making them easy to access if the TV is on its stand, but they can be hard to reach if you wall-mount the TV.

The LG C Series has always featured interesting design elements, and this year's C4 is no different; it has incredibly thin bezels.

The back, however, is made of plastic, so material-wise, it's nothing special.

The TV wobbles a bit when pushed, but it's minor and quickly recovers.

The Hisense UAK offers peak brightness of approximately 2,000 nits.

The color looks bright and vivid, and it is very accurate, especially in HDR.

The deep blacks and inky tones next to bright highlights make it excellent for watching content in dark rooms.

The blue and cyan are still showing up as being much less accurate than all the other colors.

It comes with Google TV, which is easy to use, and it has a ton of apps you can download.

It also supports Apple AirPlay, allowing you to cast content directly from your iPhone.

Whenever you press that menu button, you automatically get this gaming bar down here.

It has inputs you'd expect to find on most modern TVs, with HDMI ports 3 and 4 supporting HDMI 2.1 bandwidth.

One of those is also the eARC port. You lose one of those high-end bandwidth slots when you connect a soundbar or receiver.

It has a rather simple yet premium design, featuring a plastic body with some metal around the edges.

The stand holds the screen well. Speaking of the stand, you can either position the feet in a wide or narrow stance.

The HDR image quality is good, with massive reserves of peak brightness.

The TCL C845 is an affordable, budget-level 65-inch TV that offers plenty of features and a bright image with plenty of punch.

The problem for movie enthusiasts is that this brightness is inaccurate and can cause the image to look washed out when viewed in a dark room.

The TCL C845 provides a dynamic tool mapping function with three different intensities. However, based on our testing in movie mode, it would always over-brighten the HDR presentation compared to reference standards.

The Google TV smart OS is similar to other Smart TVs that use the same interface.

Potential buyers in the UK should be aware that the Google TV platform on the C845 doesn't include the VPC iPlayer. However, TCL is providing a free Roku stick to cover UK local apps.

We get two full bandwidth 48 gigabit per second HDMI 2.1 ports, and the promise to run at a maximum of 4K 144Hz helps with a gaming PC.

The TV also accepted a 1080p video signal at 240 FPS, but the input lag was paradoxically higher, at around 8 milliseconds.

The build quality and materials used are what you would expect at this price point, but this set feels well screwed together and solid.

In terms of design, the TCL C845 features a central rectangular tabletop stand and a slim bezel when viewed from the front.

The phrase 'dangerously close to OLED' is one that TV enthusiasts love to hear when discussing mini LED TVs, especially when those mini LED TVs cost significantly less than OLED TVs.

The Hisense U8N has a phenomenal contrast ratio with its mini LED backlighting and Quantum Dot technology.

The Hisense U8N uses version 12 of Google TV. It's snappy and easy to navigate.

New this year is a redesigned remote. It's a little sleeker, with a brushed metallic finish and the usual app shortcut buttons. But the real kicker is that it now has backlighting.

The TV has four HDMI ports. Ports 3 and 4 support HDMI 2.1 bandwidth and 4K at 144 Hz.

Most of the inputs are side-facing and fairly close to the edge of the TV, allowing for easier access when wall-mounted.

The Hisense U8N is a premium-looking TV with thin bezels.

Most sizes of the U8N come with a metal center stand, unlike last year's UAK, which had two thin feet.

There's a bit of wobble, especially when using the high configuration of the sand, but it's not too bad.

The Sony X95L is the best LCD TV I have ever tested.

It has a VA panel with an extremely high contrast ratio, and with the local dimming feature on, it is actually one of the best we've seen on any LED TV.

The HDR peak brightness is amazing, so those highlights pop, making the content look vivid.

It also features an excellent mini LED local dimming capability with almost no blooming around bright objects.

It uses Google TV as a smart platform, which is easy to use and has a ton of apps available for download.

It supports Google Chromecast, allowing you to easily cast anything from your phone.

There's a mic in both the remote and the TV that you can use with Google Assistant.

There are four HDMI ports, but only two of them support HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, allowing you to connect devices like gaming consoles or high-end PCs.

Sadly, one of those HDMI 2.1 slots is also the eARC port, so if you want to connect a soundbar or receiver for audio pass-through, you'll lose one of the HDMI 2.1 inputs.

It is very well made and has a premium look, despite being mostly plastic.

The feet are also made of sturdy metal. You can place the feet in three positions: narrow, wide, and high.

The TV wobbles easily on the stand, but that's expected for something so big.

The C3 has very good peak brightness in both SDR and HDR content.

The C3 has a nearly infinite contrast ratio, leading to deep, inky blacks, perfect black uniformity, and no blooming around bright objects.

However, when displaying very bright images, it loses some color accuracy, especially with greens.

The C3 suffers from the same pink vertical banding found on LG's other OLED panels.

If you've never owned a smart TV before, I think you're going to get along with WebOS just fine.

There are ads built into the menu that you cannot fully disable.

You may find yourself needing to approve updates frequently.

All four HDMI inputs support HDMI 2.1 bandwidth.

The TV supports FreeSync and G-Sync. It also supports HDMI Forum VRR to reduce stuttering from any VRR-enabled source.

The C3 comes in six model sizes, ranging from a small 42-inch model to a gargantuan 83-inch model.

The stand found on both sides of the C3 is sturdy but on the smaller side, so you get a bit of wobble.

The back of the TV has a brushed metal finish that feels almost like fabric.

Outstanding in the QA, it has a great native contrast ratio.

The QM8 has a ridiculously high HDR brightness.

It's the brightest TV we have ever tested, at least in HDR.

The TV displays deep and inky blacks next to bright highlights in dark rooms.

Google TV is running perfectly on this TV.

The first thing you see when you turn it on is the Google TV interface.

The remote is large, yet it doesn't have a numpad.

There are many apps you could download, but like any Google TV, there are ads throughout the interface.

It has two HDMI 2.1 ports, but only one is capable of 4K at 144Hz.

The TV has an ATSC 3.0 tuner, so you can watch over-the-air channels in 4K.

There's a digital optical audio out port, a 3.5 mm jack for your headphones or other audio devices, and an Ethernet port.

I was not fond of the plastic portion of the pedestal stand.

The newer model looks different from last year's model, as TCL opted for a checkerboard pattern.

The bezels also have a reflective finish, so if you're sensitive to reflections, all of this could perhaps annoy you when using the TV in a bright room.