TheLostSwede
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LG has gained a pretty good reputation for its UltraGear monitors and the company has now launched its first accessory, the matching GP9 gaming speaker. At first glance, it just looks like a compact soundbar, but looks can be deceiving and that's very much the case here, as not only is it a portable, battery powered speaker, but it hides quite a few features that aren't apparent at first glance.
For starters, LG has incorporated what they call a "Quad DAC" with some help from ESS in the shape of the 9038Pro, which is ESS' flagship 32-bit DAC. LG uses this to deliver virtual 7.1-channel audio and the GP9 is Hi-Res Audio certified. The GP9 also has a built-in noise cancelling microphone, so you can use it for voice chat or online meetings if so inclined.
As this is a portable speaker, it also comes with a 2600mAh battery, which LG claims is good for up to 6 hours of usage, although it's not clear if this is with RGB on or off, as yes, the GP9 does of course come with built in RGB LEDs like any respectable gaming focused product these days.
Connectivity consists of USB-C, optical S/PDIF and Bluetooth, as well as a 3.5 mm output jack that can be used with a headset for those times when the speaker might be too loud. There's also support for DTS Headphone:X and a customizable equalizer that can be configured via LG's XBOOM app. LG doesn't seem to have paid too much attention to the Bluetooth side of things, as only the SBC and AAC audio codecs are supported. Both Google Assistant and Siri are also supported, although it's not clear if this works in a stand-alone mode or requires a mobile device to be connected.
Speak wise, we're looking at two 2-inch "woofers" and two 20 mm tweeters with a total output of a meagre 20 W, so don't expect this speaker to be a floor shaker. LG has also incorporated several gaming presets, such as FPS and RTS modes, in addition to three EQ modes. With an MSRP of US$499.99 we can't see this being a huge seller though, as the GP9 is really quite overpriced for what it seems to offer.
View at TechPowerUp Main Site
For starters, LG has incorporated what they call a "Quad DAC" with some help from ESS in the shape of the 9038Pro, which is ESS' flagship 32-bit DAC. LG uses this to deliver virtual 7.1-channel audio and the GP9 is Hi-Res Audio certified. The GP9 also has a built-in noise cancelling microphone, so you can use it for voice chat or online meetings if so inclined.
As this is a portable speaker, it also comes with a 2600mAh battery, which LG claims is good for up to 6 hours of usage, although it's not clear if this is with RGB on or off, as yes, the GP9 does of course come with built in RGB LEDs like any respectable gaming focused product these days.
Connectivity consists of USB-C, optical S/PDIF and Bluetooth, as well as a 3.5 mm output jack that can be used with a headset for those times when the speaker might be too loud. There's also support for DTS Headphone:X and a customizable equalizer that can be configured via LG's XBOOM app. LG doesn't seem to have paid too much attention to the Bluetooth side of things, as only the SBC and AAC audio codecs are supported. Both Google Assistant and Siri are also supported, although it's not clear if this works in a stand-alone mode or requires a mobile device to be connected.
Speak wise, we're looking at two 2-inch "woofers" and two 20 mm tweeters with a total output of a meagre 20 W, so don't expect this speaker to be a floor shaker. LG has also incorporated several gaming presets, such as FPS and RTS modes, in addition to three EQ modes. With an MSRP of US$499.99 we can't see this being a huge seller though, as the GP9 is really quite overpriced for what it seems to offer.
View at TechPowerUp Main Site
) Looks like HDMI ARC is the only available audio source though (with no extra ports for pass-through), so good luck connecting that to anything other than a TV. Also, not that it matters to me personally, but you're kind of proving my point, pitting a soundbar with a subwoofer against a combo "desk soundbar"+portable speaker, even if it is grossly overpriced. My guess sound-wise: that Philips obviously has more bass (it has a sub ...), but that bass is likely boomy and poorly defined, and I would expect this LG to deliver more crisply defined audio in the sound spectrum it's actually capable of producing. The Philips should obviously be able to go much louder as well. That's of course pure guesswork, but anything else would surprise me given their positioning and featuresets.