FlatpanelsHD has seen, heard, and examined the first speakers designed for Dolby Atmos FlexConnect, technology that promises to set sound free by eliminating the need for exact speaker placement in your living room.
Imagine placing one speaker to the right of the TV and another diagonally behind the sofa. They fit neatly on your furniture, yet this is enough to create a surround sound experience.
That is the promise of Dolby Atmos FlexConnect, which is a more flexible approach to Atmos sound at home. Wireless, of course, because cables remain the biggest obstacle to better sound in the living room.
TCL's Marek Maciejewski, Product Development Director Europe, presents the first speakers with Dolby Atmos FlexConnect. Photo: FlatpanelsHD
We have waited a long time
Dolby first introduced Atmos FlexConnect back in August 2023, promising a 2024 launch in partnership with TCL – though, for unknown reasons, pictured at the time with Apple HomePod speakers.
It has been a long wait but during TCL's European launch of its 2025 TV line-up in Warsaw, Poland, FlatpanelsHD finally had the opportunity to see and hear the TCL Z100, which is the first official FlexConnect speaker – you will need more than one.
- "The launch of Dolby Atmos FlexConnect across TCL’s Precise Dimming Series marks a new chapter of personalized home audio experiences," said John Couling, SVP of Entertainment, Dolby Labs. "With Dolby Atmos FlexConnect, consumers can unlock even more flexibility and adaptability in how they design their home entertainment systems, while removing the stress of whether their speakers are in the right location to get an incredible Dolby Atmos experience."
Dolby added that 98 of the top 100 box office titles over the past five years, from all major studios, were released in Dolby Atmos. More than 100 streaming services now support Atmos globally. In music, 93% of last year’s Billboard Top 100 songs were available in Atmos, and both Xbox Series and PlayStation 5 consoles support Atmos for gaming.
TCL Z100 is the first Dolby Atmos FlexConnect speaker. Photo: FlatpanelsHD
The Z100 is set to launch in the second half of the year, priced at around 200–250 Euro per speaker. They will work with TCL's 2025 TV models – C6K, QM6K, C7K, QM7K, C8K, QM8K, C9K and X11K – after a firmware update.
Z100 is a 1.1.1-channel speaker with two front-facing drivers, one upward-firing driver, and one bass unit. But the speaker hardware itself is only part of the story. It is the cross-integration that makes it interesting. Powered by Dolby's virtualization technology, these speakers can communicate to "move" the sound and increase immersion, making it feel like sound is coming from precise locations in the room, even if no speaker is physically there.
Calibration sets the tone
Before anything else, the system must be calibrated, which a process handled semi-automatically using the built-in microphones in each speaker. It is surprisingly accurate and the on-screen map correctly shows each speaker's location, even when a speaker moved to the far corners of the room.
We repeated the calibration multiple times – it just works.
FlexConnect's calibration process accurately identifies the location of the speakers in the room. Photo: FlatpanelsHD
We saw the demo with four speakers, which is currently the system's maximum. The technology is designed to work with as few as two, but the software is not readt yet. TCL says a wireless subwoofer is also on the way. All speakers connect over WiFi, but each one still needs a power cable.
When we listened to movies and shows, the surround sound was pronounced – noticeably better than any standalone soundbar. It was impressive to witness how sound appeared to come from in front and to the right of the TV, even when the speaker was sitting on the floor below it. Rear effects felt wide and immersive, despite the speakers being placed too far forward relative to the seating position. In short, a convincing demo of what this added flexibility can achieve.
If you have followed FlatpanelsGD' search for soundbar alternatives – such as Sony's 360 system or Apple HomePod – you know the compromises soundbars often entail. Dolby Atmos FlexConnect is inching closer to the wireless audio solution we have been waiting for.
Also: FlatpanelsHD' reviews of TV audio products
It works with Dolby surround and Atmos as well as DTS audio. That is because the TV decodes the sound and sends it wirelessly as PCM to the speakers along with signals that allow surround sound to virtualize based on the room's layout.
Of course, none of this is unique, and we have similar system from Sony with HT-A9 and Theatre Quad, which also use four speakers, or a pair of Apple HomePod, which somehow manages to create a virtual center channel where the TV is, but FlexConnect has the potential to scale the technology, driven by Dolby.
We don't recommend placing your FlexConnect speakers like this, but it's technically possible. Photo: FlatpanelsHD
The limitations
Better surround sound than a soundbar, yes, but if the price ends up at around 250 Euro per speaker, it will not be a cheap setup either. In addition, Z100 is currently tied to TCL's TVs – and only 2025 models for now.
Ideally, we would like to see a solution that lets you can mix and match speakers from different manufacturers. We can accept that the TV is the brain of the system, but we want as much flexibility as possible. The TV's speaker was used as the center channel with the first software version, but TCL said that Dolby is working on more flexible configurations and settings.
Another relevant limitation is that the system does not currently work optimally with game audio from consoles and PCs because surround virtualization takes some time to process continuously. It works with movies because TVs typically delay the picture by over 100ms in the Movie picture mode to use various video processing systems. Dolby can use that buffer time in its audio algorithms. It may become possible to support game audio later – and in the meantime you can use the system without virtualization – but no promises are being made yet.
The system is currently limited to four speakers and one subwoofer, at least for TCL. Time will tell which other manufacturers adopt it. The good news in this regard is that FlexConnect runs on the MediaTek system chip, which is used in many TV brands today, especially in Google TVs.
FlexConnect already shows great potential as a better solution than soundbars for delivering good surround sound in the living room. If some of the mentioned challenges can be solved, it will get even more exciting.
TCL TV models with Dolby Atmos FlexConnect
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