The Harman/Kardon name is legendary among audiophiles. In the late 1950s and on into the 1980s, the company made some of the most popular and best sounding A/V gear including tuners, receivers, amplifiers and cassette decks. Over time the company grew, acquiring big speaker brands like JBL and Infinity and expanding from the United States, where they were founded, to the global stage. My trusty hk590i receiver I bought used in 1985 got me through college powering a number of different speakers as I followed the path of perpetual upgrades. The parent company, Harman International, has changed hands a few times over the years and was most recently acquired in 2017 by Samsung. But their commitment to high quality sound has never wavered.
The Harman/Kardon brand hasn’t been super-active recently, with just some cool-looking transparent computer speakers (Sound Sticks) and a lifestyle pair or wireless speakers called the “Radiance.” The company also first introduced their Enchant line of soundbars in 2018, but these did not exactly take the world by storm. We’re happy to report that Harman Kardon is back in 2025 with a new take on their Enchant line of soundbars and powered wireless speakers.
The entry level 9-driver Enchant 900 ($549) and flagship 11-driver Enchant 1100 ($999) soundbars can be paired with the Enchant Sub ($449) for enhanced low bass and with two of the Enchant speakers ($349/each) for rear surround duties. With these add-ons, the bars can provide an up-to 7.1.4-channel immersive surround sound experience thanks to front-firing, upward-firing and side-firing drivers in the soundbar as well as upward firing and front-firing drivers in each Enchant speaker. With sub and rear speakers added, the flagship Enchant 1100 system rings up at $2,146 (MSRP), which is about $400 less than a Sons ARC Ultra with Sub 4 and ERA 300 rear channels.
Those on a budget can start with one of the bars and add the subwoofer and rear speakers over time. On its own, the Enchant 1100 can produce clear dialog, thanks to Harman’s “PureVoice” feature, solid bass, good dynamics and a reasonable surround effect thanks to up-firing and side-firing drivers and the use of Harman’s “MultiBeam” beamforming technology. Adding on the sub and rear speakers turns it into a far more capable sound system with much more enveloping and engaging surround sound.
We listened to a few clips on the full Enchant 1100 system at Audio Advice Live and found the sound to be dynamic and expansive with nice dialog clarity. If your listening/viewing room has reflective ceilings and walls, this system could do a great job creating an immersive surround sound stage for movies, TV shows and music without drawing too much attention to itself visually.
The Enchant 900 and 1100 each support both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X decoding for wide format compatibility on streaming and physical media. And they can pass through Dolby Vision and HDR10 to a connected display via their HDMI input.
Better Than Bose or Sonos?
In addition to the HDMI/eARC port, which is essential to get immersive surround from an attached TV, the Harman Kardon Enchant soundbars include a second HDMI port. This is super-handy if you have an older TV or one that doesn’t support Dolby Atmos or DTS:X passthrough. With it, you can connect a game console, Kaleidescape or UHD Blu-ray Player directly to the bar for lossless immersive surround sound. This is something that Sonos still hasn’t included in any of their soundbars, including the ARC and ARC Ultra. A second HDMI port is also missing from the Bose Smart Ultra soundbar. These two flagship bars from the competition choose simplicity over functionality and flexibility in this respect.
The Harman Kardon 1100 also includes a USB port for updates and MP3 music playback, an ethernet jack for wired networking, Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity and a fiberoptic digital jack in case you have an older TV without HDMI ARC or eARC support. The soundbars also including built-in Wi-Fi as well as compatibility with Apple AirPlay, Google Cast and Spotify Connect, so you can listen to the music streaming service of your choice.
Harman Kardon offers a mobile app for control, automatic calibration, EQ and browsing music sources. The bars also come with a remote control.
For those who are environmentally conscious, the Harman Kardon Enchant speakers and soundbars are made with 85% recycled plastic, 100% recycled aluminum and 100% recycled polyester yarn. The products are Energy Star-certified and packaged in FSC-certified paper printed with soy ink.
The Bottom Line
The $999 price point for a stand-alone soundbar is pretty typical with many competitive models on the market from Sonos, Bose, LG, Samsung and others. But for those who want a truly immersive surround experience, and have a room to support it, the full Harman Kardon Enchant 1100 system with soundbar, subwoofer and rear speakers ($2,146) has a lot to offer, particularly that second HDMI port that can help with TVs that don’t properly passthrough the advanced immersive audio codecs. Definitely worth a look and a listen.
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