Replacing a three-time What Hi-Fi? Award-winner can’t be easy, and yet that is the task Sony set itself with the catchily named Bravia Theatre Bar 9. Its predecessor, the HT-A7000, appeared in 2021 and has been proclaimed Product of the Year in our soundbars category in that and every year since. Had Sony not replaced it, there’s every chance that it would have won again this year.
But Sony has replaced it, and the Bravia Theatre Bar 9 (aka the Bravia Theater Bar 9 in the States) features subtler styling, a more practical design, a better app and more drivers – but fewer HDMI sockets. Of course, what really matters is whether Sony has also managed to improve the sound.
