VIZIO - Elevate (P514a-H6)

Just upgraded to the samsung q990f after owning the vizio p elevate for a few years here’s my thoughts after the first day of ownership. What i really hated about the p elevate was with music it seemed like it had a hard time trying to play atmos music correctly like some songs would sound good but a lot of them required me to completely change up the levels of the individual channels to get a proper sound. With movies it sounded good though without too much adjustments, but sometimes i would have to make changes midway through a tv show or movie if the dialogue became hard to hear. Now with the q990f i have not had any of these problems once i turned on the spacefit pro option and adjusted the height and surround channels to my liking i was able to leave it there, the only thing ive had to adjust since is just the bass for when its too loud for the rest of the people in the house lol. Another thing i absolutely hated about the p-elevate was that at higher volumes the system started to get very crunchy, with the q990f i haven’t gotten anywhere near max volume and i don’t think i ever realistically will. The bass on this system is also amazing, the vizios wasn’t bad but the samsung one seems more precise instead of just big booms. Bottom line if you’re looking to make a similar upgrade or just been looking at the q990f, go for it especially since they are dropping the 990H soon the price should go down

Does the Samsung Q990D have an audio delay when using it with the G4? Last summer, I decided to get a soundbar for then LG CX and decided to go with the Vizio Elevate P Series (5.1.4) because I heard it was a decent soundbar for my price range. And I absolutely do enjoy it. However, I do have one issue that really bugs me, and that's when I start an app, play a game, or watch a movie. There's a three - to four second delay before the audio starts. On YouTube or games, it only happens on the first video I play or when I first start the game. On everything else, it happens if I pause to use the bathroom or something. At first, I thought it was because the CX had only 40 Gbps HDMI 2.1, but when I upgraded to the G4 a few weeks ago, I had the same issue. I've tried researching the issue but can't get a clear answer. Some blame the soundbar. Others say it's the TV(s) because I've seen people complain about it with other brands. So I'm trying to decide if I should just cut my losses and sell the Vizio and replace it with either the Samsung or the LG S95TR, assuming those don't have the delay issue as well.

i have a 5.1.4 Vizio soundbar (elevate) that i got 3 years ago and about 3 hours ago it turned off on its own and apparently it just died suddenly (according to vizio support). I don’t know what other soundbar i will be getting and im not excited about getting another Vizio one but this price looks good, i wonder if this model has a bit more quality being newer? my elevate was a late 2020 model that i got in 2022.

FWIW, I love my soundbar, sound was great, bass was amazing and fitted perfectly for my room size, it was loud and great. To be honest, i’m sad that it died because i really liked it lol, i just feel a bit afraid now… but for 300+ bucks, it considering to take the risk, another 3 years run lol

I live in an apartment and i have neighbors, to me soundbar is the way to go in my case but there is something that i would love to change in a future soundbar (currently i have the vizio elevate) and is a way to have a more separate front left and right channels. It annoys me a little bit when something that is supposed to be in the left or right front channel just sound like the center, unless i sit really close to the soundbar. Is almost a nitpick but something that i’ll consider next time. Other than that i think soundbars are great when you don’t have all the privacy that you’d like.

Best for the price would be the Vizio elevate. Can find the 5.1.4 (highest end) for $500 refurbished at Costco. Best new for under $450 would be the Vizio m-series SL512X currently $400 from Walmart or Sam's club. If you want to compromise slightly on performance and prioritize connectivity (120hz passthrough 4k) then it's the hisense AX5125H - currently out of stock near me but $237 on Walmart is a great deal. These are the best in class unless you get lucky on a swing deal for a high end system.

I don't think there's any specific features that stand out, some design aspects like the knobs on the top are nice. But just the Marshal name stood out to me considering they're known for guitar amps so that excited me as a rock music lover. I hope it has a channel adjustment tho. I currently have the Klipsch Flexus Core 200 + sub 100 and it's a nice system, however the dialogue can seem a bit too "pushed back" sounding. It's somewhat manageable with the midrange EQ & Dialogue adjustments but I still have trouble with movies background action being overpowering. I will say that I do miss the THD chart. That was a very helpful tool in making decisions, also helped me understand what I didn't exactly like about the sound. Like take my experience with the Vizio Elevate flagship system & the LG S80QY. I thought my LG S80QY had a very nice sound to it & it sounded good at normal conservative volumes, but once you turn it up it really falls apart and just sounds like it's shouting. Whereas the Vizio Elevate had a bit of a "tinny" sound to the treble overall, but it sounded really good and clean at loud volumes, and that alone would make me take the Elevate over the S80QY. I've had at least 15+ soundbar setups over the years, from Sony, Samsung, Bose, Sonos, Klipsch, Vizio, probably 2 or 3 other companies I'm forgetting too. Some disappointed me like Sony, some absolutely amazed me like Bose did with my Smart 600 + BM700, and some pleasantly surprised me like the flagship Vizio Elevate system. I hope to see the THD chart come back soon! Absolutely love the website!

Despite others dislike of sound bars, I’d consider one for your specific use. I use a full blown HT system for my main viewing room. For an entertainment room a sound bar works well. I use a Vizio elevate for the non HT room. Clear audio and wireless sub and surrounds. No need to run wire around the room.

Find the original elevate.. only thing beats that your spend 2k … best budget sound bar I ever heard… you can probably find one on amazon or eBay

I just replaced an M-Series Elevate with the Q990F. The Vizio was a terrific 5.1.2 soundbar but the Q990F is in a different league. I bought it on Woot for $967 with an Amazon Prime Visa (5% back in Amazon rewards) and RetailMeNot gave me another $50. I doubt you'll save much more over that on Black Friday.

Could always position the rears in the front or elsewhere. I've seen where you can change the positioning of the rears in some apps, not sure which though. I mounted mine (Samsung Q990C & Vizio Elevate). But they do make the bar sound better. If rear speakers are just hated maybe the Sonos Arc?

I own a 5.1.2 Vizio sound bar (M512E-K6), and I had a 5.1 Polk prior to that. Personally, I think the .2 is worth it. Is it going to sound as good as discrete down-firing ceiling mounted Atmos speakers? Of course not. But, the .2 does add a sense of verticality, especially if you choose the right system. As a Vizio owner, I’m biased, but there are a plethora of reputable reviews out there praising Vizio sound bars for their Atmos performance, especially for the price. If you’re going to pick between the two you have in the screenshots, I would definitely go with the Vizio Elevate. It’s reviewed well, and discreet height speakers are always going to be an improvement over none at all, even if they’re up-firing.

Yeah, like I said, it’s nothing like down firing ceiling mounted but for certain models, you can definitely hear overhead effects, with mine you can especially if LFE. I think it also depends on room, size ceiling, height, and all that. Even if they don’t produce overhead effects, they do improve the sound stage vertically, at least a little bit, and in OP’s case, that Elevate is the better system, especially for $100 less. Like I said if he had to pick between those two, I would definitely get the extra drivers, especially for less, why not?