Bang & Olufsen has today unveiled its first soundbar. Beosound Stage will be available this autumn starting at 1500 Euro. It supports Dolby Atmos, AirPlay 2, and more.

First soundbar from B&O
Bang & Olufsen is entering the market for TV audio. The company's first soundbar can be connected to TVs from other brands but it still based on traditional B&O virtues such as elegant design, real materials, and powerful sound, the company said.
 
- "We created Beosound Stage as a powerful soundbar that doesn’t rely on a subwoofer or satellites to create an immersive experience. The first time you hear Beosound Stage, the impact of the deep, powerful sound hits you immediately, and the simple minimalistic Scandinavian design makes it stand out like a piece of furniture. It is simply clean, elegant and powerful," says Christoffer Østergaard Poulsen, VP Product Management, Bang & Olufsen.



Beosound Stage is "a testament to Bang & Olufsen’s unmatched craftsmanship, the natural and bronze tone frames are made from a single piece of forged aluminium, resulting in no visible seams". It can be placed on a table or shelf, or wall-mounted.

For the project B&O has teamed up with Norm Architects as "part of a design strategy to humanize technology".

- "Working with simple geometric shapes, using natural materials, Bang & Olufsen creates meaningful products that integrate beautifully into the home," the company said.



Wireless audio protocols
The soundbar is equipped with 11 speaker drivers, each driven by its own 50W amplifier: 3x 3/4-inch tweeters, 4x 1.5-inch full range units, and 4x 4-inch woofers. It can handle audio formats up to Dolby Atmos and Dolby TrueHD. It connects to a TV via the HDMI ARC or eARC connection.

Beosound Stage has a number of wireless audio protocols built-in: Apple AirPlay 2, Google Chromecast, Bluetooth 4.2, and QPlay 2.0. Some of these allow it to be used in existing multiroom setups together with speakers from other brands. They also allow users to listen to music without turning on the TV. Apple TV can wirelessly transmit TV audio to Beosound Stage via AirPlay 2.

There are five listening modes: TV, Music, Movie, Night Listening or None. An equalizer called ToneTouch allows the user to fine-tune sound further to find the one that fits best.



Denmark's Bang & Olufsen enters the market for TV audio as classic HiFi are teaming up with global TV manufacturers to improve the sound experience from TVs and beyond. Bowers & Wilkins has teamed up with Philips, Samsung has acquired Harman Kardon, and LG is partnering with Meridian Audio. Beosound Stage is more expensive than TV makers' flagship soundbars but not by much.

Beosound Stage will be available globally from "late autumn 2019". Beosound Stage in aluminium and 'Bronze Tone' will cost 1500 EUR / 1750 USD / 1250 GBP and be available online, through third-party retailers and in Bang & Olufsen stores. Beosound Stage in 'Smoked Oak' will cost 2250 EUR / 2600 USD / 1900 GBP and be available exclusively in Bang & Olufsen stores.







B&O Beosound Stage - specifications
Sound
Amplifier
11 power amplifiers
4 x 50 watts amplifiers for the bass drivers.
4 x 50 watts for the full-range drivers.
3 x 50 watts for the tweeters.

Speakers Drivers
11 speakers drivers
3 3/4" tweeters
4 1.5" full range
4 4" woofers


Features
3 -channel stereo sound system
Dolby Atmos
Dolby TrueHD
AirPlay 2
ChromeCast built-in
Bluetooth 4.2
TuneIn
QPlay 2.0
Deezer
Audio playback via analogue Line-in

Multiroom
Airplay 2
Chromecast built-in
BeoLink Multiroom support including Touch to Join

Remote Control
3rd party TV remote (volume – mute – on – standby), control commands via HDMI ARC
Beoremote One BT with LG OLED C9 TVs
Bang & Olufsen app


Wired Connectivity
HDMI (HDMI 2.0 HDCP 2.2) with eARC and ARC support.
HDMI in (HDMI 2.0 HDCP 2.2 with support for 4K HDR 50/60 Hz)
1 x Line-in 3,5mm stereo mini-jack
2 x Ethernet 10/100Mb
- For ethernet connection
- VLAN connection with LG C9 series TV for integrated control via Beoremote One

Dimensions & weight
Dimensions: 110 - 110.4 x 17 - 17.4 x 7.7 cm
Weight: 8 kg
Placements: Wall or table/shelf