Home theatre speakers were once just a luxury for audiophiles and film geeks, but as televisions become thinner, forcing TV speakers to become shallow and tinny, the need for separate audio hardware has increased. Modern soundbars are now good enough to replicate the room filling sound of older home theatre systems in a much more convenient package, and a decent soundbar should be factored into the price of any television upgrade.

The best soundbars offer Dolby Atmos, with better than surround sound, tracking objects as they move across an image to create an immersive audio experience. The best way to experience this is to watch Mad Max Fury Road - don’t purchase a soundbar without first testing it against this movie.

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The latest Dolby Atmos certified soundbar comes from a challenger brand from China, Hisense. Hisense muscled its way into the Australian television market by offering 4K televisions at half the price of competing Samsung and LG units.

Surprisingly, the company has not followed this strategy in pricing its Dolby Atmos Soundbar - the HS512 has a recommended retail price of $1099. It’s a bold move, placing the unit just below market leaders Samsung and LG but above more familiar names like Panasonic and Sony, which both have Dolby Atmos Soundbars for less than a thousand dollars.