SAMSUNG SWA-8500S 2.0 Speaker System Wall Mountable Black Model (SWA-8500S/ZA)

The kit complements the HW-MM55/ZA soundbar I also own. I knew that the kit was not completely wireless. The receiver module is wireless but you have to attach the two surround speakers using speaker wire that is provided. The speaker wires and receiver inputs are clearly marked. The receiver module is paired to the soundbar. The paring process is as follows: The receiver module is plugged in, and the LINK LED indicator will blink. The soundbar should be turned off. Then, the instructions say to press the VOL button on the remote control to the sound bar for about 5 or 6 seconds until the "ID SET" message appears on the soundbar. This does not work. The button that should be pressed is the Mute button. Once the right button is pushed, the LINK LED button becomes a solid blue. At this point, the receive module is paired with the soundbar. At first, I thought the speakers were not functioning. The issue is connecting the speaker wire to the speaker. If you push the wire in too far, it doesn't make the necessary contact. Pairing the speakers to the sound bar was difficult because the instructions given in the user manual are not correct. Once paired, the rear speakers are controlled using the remote control for the sound bar. The soundbar must be set to Surround Sound using the SOUND MODE button. The Sound Control button adjusts the TREBLE, BASS, AUTO SYNC, REAR SPEAKERS ON, and REAR LEVEL. Changes are made using the UP and DOWN buttons. I turned the REAR LEVEL to max. The sound quality is awesome! Takes the sounds of Movies, Music & Games to whole other level with quality surround sound.

I paired these with a compatible Samsung sound bar very easily. I guess you could use the speakers with any type of home audio system, but if you don't have a sound bar (Samsung or not), this is not the surround speaker set you should be considering. If you do have a compatible Samsung sound bar, and that sound bar is connected to a compatible Samsung 4K flat screen TV, you'll probably be very happy with this set up. I need to say something to the entire home audio industry first, though. It's about damned time I didn't need to take 6 hours out of my day to run and obfuscate all the speaker wires needed for each speaker. The next innovation needs to be quicker. So, I had my Samsung sound bar and it's included wireless sub already hooked up to my Samsung TV. Consequently I spent some time being confused by the instructions included with these speakers. I highly recommend that instead of repeating my mistake, go directly to the sound bar's manual for pairing instructions. If it's compatible with these speakers, it will have a section on it. Apparently for a quick little giggle, Samsung made a funny and made the pairing process just a little different and unique for every different sound bar you can use. Thanks Samsung. Nevermind reading the listing to determine the dimensions of something you want, these are WAYYYY smaller than the picture makes then look. Imagine a rectangle version of the older Bose cubes from the 90's. This wasn't a buzzkill for me, just unexpected, like when an 85 year old farts and wasn't expecting it. Like I said, setup was a breeze, I spent the most time looking for two screws to use (each takes 1). I am OCD about things I attach to the wall from the standpoint of choosing not to hang something if a stud is not a available to anchor the screw into. That said, these are so light, you'd hand no problem hanging out of a wood screw which is just screwed into drywall. They sound pretty good, but these are satellite surround sound speakers, so when they emit a sound, it's usually very obscure, and if you don't the time and configure your audio like Jesus would, it would blend seamlessly into the what's playing on the front speakers. I'm a Samsung loyalist, but only to a certain point. Their products will usually recieve deference from me, but sometimes Allende brand has something they don't.

Physical set-up very easy, pairing was easy, keep in mind that rear surround speakers are for accents, sound movement, and vary in volume depending on the show. The speakers are small, 3" X 5", I failed to look at the size before purchasing and was surprised at how small they were. The speaker wire is very thin attesting to the low voltage. All appropriate and typical for a sound bar system. We have our set-up in our basement living room and it's totally adequate for the space. The speaker quality and sound is good for what they're intended for. It's important to remember this type of set-up is not a high-powered, high-end system. We choose not to try and boost the volume as others have done, because they're not meant to act like the front speakers and are pre-set and balanced. Overall we're happy with the purchase but if you want powerful sound, don't even start with a sound bar, get a receiver and buy substantial front, center and rear speakers, plus the woofer. You'll pay about $1500+. So for the money, a sound bar, woofer, and these rear speakers are MUCH better than the TV speaker, and do better in a smaller space like a bedroom or small living room. If your expectations are appropriate for a sound bar system, you'll love them. If you're expecting a booming system that blows you away, you'll be very disappointed, because that's not what these speakers are intended for. UPDATE: "HOW TO": SWA8500s(ZA) "ZA" means made in America, same system, ignore it unless you live outside the US. "ZC" stands for made in Canada. Despite people saying the Samsung R60C (Costco) sound bar/woofer is not compatible with the SWA8500s, IT IS! We discovered "rear speaker" settings on our Samsung R60C (Costco) display box by repeatedly pressing the settings button (cogwheel), which is not made clear in the manual. Maxed out the rear speakers (+6), maxed out the bass (+6), maxed out the woofer (+6) and turned up the treble. Again, "changing" the settings from factory pre-sets (0) are done by pressing the top and bottom of the wheel for bass, treble and rear speakers, but adjusting the sound bar volume is done by toggling the volume switch up and down, and adjusting the woofer with the woofer toggle. So you use 3 different buttons for these adjustments. Very poor information from Samsung, and is probably the reason so many of these units are returned and the ratings are fairly poor. It's not obvious how to adjust these speakers, or the sound bar in general. Huge difference with new adjustments, much happier with the sound. Changed out the HDMI with the Optical cable which some said was an improvement, but it's' not. Went back to the HDMI because it carries more sound formats (especially with a 4K TV/DVD player) and is preferred over the optic cable if you have HDMI capabilities. Hang in there with the adjustments before you send it back, it will be worth it!

After finding an incredible deal on the Samsung sound bar, I saw the rear satellite on sale and couldn’t pass it up. The sound bar alone was an amazing upgrade over built in tv speakers. But it truly shines when you add in the rear channel. Having a wireless connection from the sound bar to the rear satellite is convenient and more appealing than having to route speaker cables across the room. We’re still getting used to the surround sound effects and forget the speakers are there so when something whizzes by behind us it startles us sometimes. The effect is nice though. We tested some of our favorites like Avengers Endgame and other movies with a lot of action and that take advantage of the extra channels and the immersion is incredible. It also works great with video games. There are some comments on it not being loud. The rear channel is not the primary sound source. They add a small bit of immersion for most shows but if the source doesn’t take advantage of rear channels (you’d be surprised how much it’s becoming more mainstream for example I’ve heard audience clapping on the rear channel on certain game shows) it won’t fire as loudly as the front channels. Getting the rear satellite connected is different based on your sound bar. The satellite come with a wireless dongle to give the sound bar the capability of connecting wirelessly, but my sound bar already had the wireless connectivity built in and the instructions don’t give support for this scenario. The sound bar instructions do help explain how to do remote pairing so if you’re in the same situation check that out. Once you get everything paired up there are some surround sound tests that you can find to verify everything is working well. All in all, it’s a great upgrade for Samsung sound bars, just check to make sure they work with your model.

When I first got this speaker I was under the impression that it worked with my recent purchase of the Samsung HW-Q60R/ZA sound bar. It didn't say it paired directly but when I was researching for this particular sound bar the site suggested I add the Samsung SWA-9000S. So, I bought it and then found out it didn't pair, boo on you Samsung for not making it clear. Deeper searching I found the SWA-9000S only paired with a few Samsung speakers. So I bought one that it paired with, the HW-Q80R. Note that the HW-Q90R comes with the rear speakers. The HW-Q80R wasn't that much different than it's predecessor other than the addition of the rear speakers. All was fine until I tried to connect it. Actually the connecting went well, so I thought at first. Once connected I found the rear speakers were extremely soft. You had to practically resting your ears against them. The search began for a cure...I got many different answers from both the store I got it from to Samsung themselves. None of which were helpful but more of a, tell the customer junk until they just go away. I called Samsung once again and was pleased to connect with someone that was super helpful. These are the steps they had me do to get the proper sound I was meant to get out of these rear speakers: 1. Power off the sound bar, sub-woofer, and rear speaker. Leave them all off. 2. Power on only the sub-woofer. Push the reset ID on the back of the sub-woofer for approx. 5 secs. 3. Using the speaker bar remote, push the upper part of the circle until you see, SET ID on the little screen. 4. Repeat these steps with the rear speakers. 5. Power on rear speaker. Push the reset ID on the back of the sub-woofer for approx. 5 secs. 6. Using the speaker bar remote, push the upper part of the circle until you see, SET ID on the little screen. 7. Make sure it's on surround sound and you should be good to go. Prior to these steps I found someone else adjusted their TV settings and it caused them to regain their rear speaker volume. Below are the steps they noted: "These work great, and contrary to most reviews they can get EXTREMELY LOUD if installed correctly. Step one is making sure they are even compatible with your soundbar. The next steps are the biggest pain. You need to make sure your TV is set up correctly in its advanced audio settings and that the source is too (Cable box, Xbox, etc...). Your source needs to be set to Bitstream audio, then set to either Dolby Digital or DTS. THEN your TV's audio needs to be set to Bitstream then also Dolby Digital or DTS. Each time you switch between a Cable box or Xbox, your TV audio settings will revert back to non surround sound. You will need to switch it back to Dolby Digital or DTS. Doing all of the above will make the rear speakers work exactly as intended, and loud. If you don't change the settings the rear speakers will be so quiet that it barely produces noise OR will act as nothing more than extra speakers for audio and will not produce surround sound" Those steps may work for you as I hope either one of the above does. The sound is amazing for the price. Merry Christmas!!!

There is no convenient way to run rear speaker cables in my living room so finding that my (Samsung R60C) soundbar supported wireless surround speakers was a major influence in my soundbar purchasing decision. Hooking up the speakers was incredibly easy: Place the speakers. Place the receiver module (the tall box in the center of the picture). Hook the speakers to the receiver. Provide AC power to the receiver. Turn it on. Pair. Enjoy the sound. The system paired the first time I tried it with no difficulty and has worked flawlessly since even coming back after power failures with no issues. Separate volume adjustment for the rear speakers is a function of my soundbar and doesn't show up on the menu until the rear speakers are attached. This caused some confusion in the planning stages since I bought the soundbar weeks ahead of the speakers and didn't see any reference to being able to adjust "Rear Volume." But, once the SWA8500 was in place and working, "Rear Volume" was available in the "Settings" section of the soundbar (accessed through the soundbar remote) and works great. The speakers have a crisp sound that works great for surround. (I'm using a 5.1 system. The subwoofer came with the soundbar.) The frequency response is more than adequate for this purpose and projection is good. Overall I am very pleased with this setup.

I bought these speakers on March 12th, after connecting them to my Samsung TV and Samsung Q80R soundbar all seemed good. The only problem is every couple of days I had to factory reset the sound bar to make the rear speakers work. The volume was a bit low but it did help fill the room with sound. Last Sat night I was going to return them because of the disconnect issue. I had my mouse hovering over the return button when I decided to see if by chance a new firmware was released for the soundbar. To my surprise one was released just a day or two earlier. Sunday morning I updated the firmware I have not had a single disconnect since. This is by far the longest it has lasted, the volume is also much louder now if it did not take Samsung so long to resolve this problem I would have given the product 5 stars. If you have the disconnect issue check to see if your soundbar has a firmware update you might get lucky like I did. These speakers are on the Samsung Q80R compatibility list they should have just worked as advertised. Can't help wondering how many returns there were because of a faulty firmware from Samsung?

I have the Samsung sound bar HW-N650 I purchased the Samsung SWA-8500S speaker system as an add on. Wow was I surprised. The hook up was so easy. The system paired up without any problems. I gave 4 stars only because the sound out of the speakers could be a we bit louder as they only max out at 6. Other than that this system is a must and will complete your setup. Over all watching a movie they do a very good job. When it comes to listening to music they will blow your mind. For the price you can't go wrong. I know there a lot of reviews on this but if you do your home work and take your time when hooking this system up I think you might be pleased. ( Just remember when inserting the wires into the speakers pay attention the positive and negative. Positive is marked in red, negative is marked in black. Only insert the bare wire not the shielding. If you insert the wire to deep in the speaker socket it catches the shielding and if this happens then you are not making contact and there will be no sound coming out of the speaker) Great product, Great price, Worth the purchase.