Panasonic SoundSlayer soundbar review A solid gaming-focused single speaker solution GamesRadar+ .

Panasonic SoundSlayer soundbar review A solid gaming-focused single speaker solution

By (Image: © Future/Rob Dwiar)

GamesRadar Verdict

The Panasonic SoundSlayer is a solid little audio solution for anyone looking for an all-in-one speaker for their PC gaming and desk setup. There are a few gripes, and while its audio is great, it can't quite excel like more traditional soundbars and brands, but it'll still do the job - and then some. . The Panasonic SoundSlayer sound bar is aimed squarely at being a solid and gaming-focused, one-speaker solution - and, for the large part, it delivers. Doing away with a dedicated, separate subwoofer, and streamlining connectivity, it's aiming to muscle in on the by nailing the USPs of a single-unit setup and providing great audio at the same time. We all might not have thought of Panasonic delivering such dedicated gaming audio, but here we are - and, on the whole, it sounds great.Reduced PriceReduced PriceWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices

Design & Features

, or massive surround sound speaker systems do, but it genuinely is good. It made everything, games, music, podcasts, you name it, sound richer and more rounded than the default setting. It's also got all the Dolby audios and DTS's too, which is great. The sound quality is called into question when it's side by a side with a competitor,. however. I had a brief window where I could test the SoundSlyaer against the Yamaha SR-C20A soundbar, and, despite costing less, I should say, the limits of the SoundSlayer's audio are immediately apparent. This is not to say it's 'bad' in any way, but the difference is notable when compared directly. What it does perform well at is being a solid single-unit solution for those of us with . I am constantly up and down on my standing desk, and soundbars I've recently reviewed that had dedicated sound bars, like the and the , have made it difficult to get a good bass balance right. And especially difficult to get bass, and thus rounded audio, settings right at both sitting and standing positions. As mentioned earlier, the HDMI-only connection (Bluetooth aside) was quite irksome - though some of this is down to Windows. Of course, as it's an HDMI, windows immediately recognised the input (great) but then only and always recognised it as an extra monitor (bad). This means, for my setup, I had to rejig my display settings and screen layout and also experienced times when the HDMI connection just wasn't reliable, or wouldn't output the audio. I did get into a rhythm and groove with it eventually, but a USB or audio jack would have made life so much easier. Though granted, the ability to deploy the HDMI connection with a monitor and use it as a pass-through is a bonus - though would incur more cables and bits to manage.

Should you buy the Panasonic SoundSlayer soundbar

The Panasonic SoundSlayer is a pretty solid stab at being a one-and-done solution to gaming audio. If you're looking at single-unit setups then the SoundSlayer with its tidy 2.1 offering will be on your shortlist, for sure. However, coming in at the $300 mark is going to be a bit much for some. Especially in the face of the likes of the much cheaper Yamaha SR-C20A (my review of which is incoming, but has already greatly impressed me). These two elements combined, as well as the connection issues I had, do make it hard to be a nailed-on recommendation, but it's certainly a great package. Those HDMI connection grips I had may not be so irksome for some folks too, and the passthrough will help with that, but the remote and aesthetic of the unit are disappointing. However, those are swallowable should you be looking for a solid, gaming-focused single speaker solution: there's a lot of sound in this small box, and the range, depth, and richness are quite surprising and the 3D audio setting really brings this to life.Reduced PriceReduced PriceWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices

How we tested the Panasonic SoundSlayer

I used the Panasonic SoundSlayer as my daily driver for all audio for a period of several weeks. It sat under my monitor and on my sit-stand desk providing audio for calls, music, games, and movies so I could give it a thorough evaluation. The soundbar was used across a whole host of different games from open-worlds to strategies to shooters, and with music of multiple genres to get a good feel of its capabilities. I was able to A-B test it against the Yamaha SR-C20A to compare the SoundSlayer directly against a competing unit to give more context and reference too. You can read more about our hardware approach to all the gear we get our hands on in our full . Tested on PC with a supplied by Razer and with an from Acer. If you're looking to up your display game as well as your audio game, then check out our , , and guides.I'm the Commissioning Editor for Hardware at GamesRadar+ and have been here since its inception in late 2018. I'm also a writer on games and have had work published over the last five years or so at the likes of Eurogamer, RPS, PCGN, and more. Day to day, I take care of a whole host of gaming tech reviews, buying guides, and news and deals content that pops up across GamesRadar+. I'm also a qualified landscape and garden designer, so I do that in my spare time. I'm also an expert on the virtual landscapes and environments of games and love to write about them too, including in an ! Latest and and are aged 16 or over. GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS123451234512345