Michael checks out a soundbar that comes with its own headphones
The Evolve SB-2501 is a soundbar with a wireless subwoofer and comes with bonus wireless headphones for private listening sessions. Included in the package with these elements are leads for mains power, USB charging facilities and the link connectivity between the soundbar and a television. You also get a remote control unit with a button battery.
A touch-sensitive control panel takes up a central position on the front of the soundbar. There are options for power, effect, source, volume, 3D sound, Bluetooth and wireless audio, but you have to look closely to identify which is which. Fortunately, though, the remote control can be used to implement these features.
The rear of the soundbar contains an on/off switch, connections for the 12V power lead, optical connection to a television plus RCA and 3.5mm jack sockets. Built into the soundbar are six 40mm 4ohm acoustic drivers that can deliver up to 60 watts of output helped by 24-bit audio DSP and 24-bit audio codec plus a 2.4GHz digital wireless audio transceiver.
This last item provides the means of linking the soundbar to the wireless subwoofer. As the two units come pre-paired, the linking process should be automatic. The subwoofer holds a 6" drive unit delivering 60 watts of output. On the rear of the unit are connections for a DC 15V mains power, a USB port for charging an external device such as a smartphone, power switch and a pairing button, if you need to re-establish a connection with the soundbar. Re-establishing a connection requires the pressing of two pairing buttons, and you can also use this procedure when linking the supplied wireless headphones. These headphones are of the on-the-ear style featuring a rigid unpadded headband and leather strap for resting on the head. I found that the earpieces, when fully extended, only just reached my ears. As a result, these headphones were uncomfortable to wear for even short periods. Unfortunately, while you can pair other devices that stream audio, these are the only headphones to work with this soundbar.
Using the remote, you can activate and control the soundbar’s features. You can adjust volume and bass levels, plus cycle through audio sources such as Bluetooth, television or aux. There are pre-defined effect settings designated as Music, Movie, News and Sport for different types of output, plus the ability to turn on/off Definitive Surround Sound features referred to as 3D. While I was unable to detect any noticeable difference between the various sound effects, I did notice an occasional slight dropping off in sound quality from my Sony Bravia television but not when using Bluetooth devices. Michael Fereday
Reasonable without being outstanding.