When comparing Yamaha YSP-5600 vs Creative SoundBlasterX Katana, the Slant community recommends Yamaha YSP-5600 for most people. In the question“What are the best soundbars?” Yamaha YSP-5600 is ranked 5th while Creative SoundBlasterX Katana is ranked 6th. The most important reason people chose Yamaha YSP-5600 is:
Yamaha has implemented Dolby Atmos and DTS:X support in this soundbar, meaning that the audio not only has width and depth, but also added height. It has 44 built-in speakers that help achieve the surround effect.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Good surround effect emulation
Yamaha has implemented Dolby Atmos and DTS:X support in this soundbar, meaning that the audio not only has width and depth, but also added height. It has 44 built-in speakers that help achieve the surround effect.
Pro Wide variety of connection ports
The soundbar has four 4K HDMI inputs, an HDMI ARC output, one coaxial, two optical inputs, an infrared in/out, an analog input and a subwoofer output. Even the most demanding customers with lots of equipment will be able to connect virtually anything.
Pro Easy to setup
This soundbar has a full on-screen menu via HDMI. With the included Intellibeam microphone, the setup is a breeze: just follow the walk-through instructions, mount the microphone and the soundbar will do the rest.
Pro Wireless support
The YSP-5600 supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, so you can stream music wirelessly. Wi-FI can also be used for a multi-room setup.
Pro Capable of overwhelming sound levels
While the device seems small, it can actually get really loud, without distortion. It uses good quality speakers and external components to maintain this quality. The soundstage is quite good and the subwoofer provides a deep rumble.
Pro Wide variety of PC-oriented ports
As a PC-oriented soundbar, the Katana has an optical input, a USB input for external storage, a micro USB port, and a microphone and headphone port.
Pro PC soundcard bypass
To take full advantage of this soundbar's capabilities, when it is connected to a PC via USB, it bypasses the computer's onboard soundcard.
Pro Has a programmable RGB lighting system
This soundbar has a programmable lighting system called Aurora Reactive, which features 16.8 million colors.
Pro Handy companion software
If the soundbar is connected with a USB cable, you can use the downloadable SoundBlaster Connect software to tweak with some sound enhancing settings. You can choose from different presets or manually control the equalizer. The soundbar's RGB lighting is fully controllable via the app, letting you choose between various effects and more than 16 million colors.
Cons
Con Surround is not as good as with a system with actual rear speakers
Even though this soundbar does fairly well at emulating surround sound, it still falls behind proper surround systems with actual rear speakers.
Con It's not slide-proof
There are no rubber stoppers under the soundbar, so you have to take caution to keep it from sliding along the surface it's placed on.
Con Needs an external subwoofer to reach full potential
Since the soundbar itself lacks decent bass, you will also need to connect it to an external subwoofer to get its full impact.
Con Soundstage tapers off with distance
Since it’s designed to be used up close, the Katana's soundstage tapers off as you sit farther.
Con Software is Windows-only
The Katana's companion software only works with Windows operative systems.
Con Subwoofer cable is too short
The subwoofer's cable is only 2 meters long, which can be too short for some setups.
Con No HDMI support
The Katana doesn't support HDMI.
Con Subwoofer isn't capable of handling low frequencies well
Due to its small size, this soundbar's subwoofer doesn’t handle the lowest frequencies very well.