Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra speaker quality Review & Buying Guide: Features, Trade-Offs & Value

② Expert Analysis

Every figure below is labelled by origin. No listening test was produced for this review.

Loudness versus tuning — the distinction this review turns on

Most speaker arguments collapse two different qualities into one word, “loud”. The laboratory’s verdict for this model keeps them apart. On loudness, the number is −25.9 LUFS with a “Very Good” rating (third-party lab result) — and the laboratory is explicit that a lower absolute LUFS value means a louder sound, so this model sits on the louder side of its scale while still measuring a bit quieter than the previous generation. On tuning, the verdict runs the other way: the newer tuning sounds better, with no noticeable change in bass but tracks that are less vocal-heavy and squeaky, and a more balanced presentation overall (third-party lab assessment). A buyer who only asks “is it louder?” gets the wrong answer in both directions — slightly quieter than before, yet better sounding. The honest summary is the laboratory’s own: a trade, in which tuning wins and peak loudness gives a little ground.

What “hybrid stereo” means in practice

The layout is a hybrid stereo pair, not two matched speakers: the top speaker doubles as the earpiece behind a tiny grille, and the bottom speaker is the main one, sounding a tad louder (third-party lab description). That asymmetry is normal for this design and it has a practical consequence for landscape video: the soundstage leans toward the bottom edge, and covering the bottom grille — with a hand, or with a case that does not clear it — costs more than covering the top one. It also means the earpiece does double duty: the same top unit that carries call audio is half the stereo pair, so a fault in the top speaker shows up in both calls and media, while a fault in the bottom speaker shows up mainly in media. That split is useful for diagnosis before any repair is booked: if calls sound fine but videos sound thin on one side, the bottom unit is the first suspect; if both calls and media are affected, the top unit is.

The comparisons, kept in their lanes

The laboratory’s comparisons are worth quoting precisely because they refuse to crown one winner on every axis. Against the previous generation, this model is a bit quieter but better tuned, and the laboratory prefers it overall. Against the iPhone 17 Pro Max, the two phones are just as loud, but the laboratory prefers the iPhone’s tuning — warmer, more pronounced bass without overpowering the vocals — and still ranks the iPhone first in this category. Against the Pixel 10 Pro XL, the Pixel is a tad louder, but the laboratory prefers the Galaxy’s tuning, with more pronounced bass, better mids and warmer vocals. Three comparisons, three different splits between loudness and tuning — which is exactly why a single “best speakers” verdict would mislead. A buyer coming from the previous generation gets better balance at slightly lower peak volume; a buyer cross-shopping the iPhone gets equal loudness with different tuning; a buyer cross-shopping the Pixel gets better tuning at slightly lower volume. None of these comparisons uses a sibling’s loudness number: the base Galaxy S26’s −26.7 LUFS “Good” rating belongs to the base model and appears nowhere in this article as this model’s figure.

The microphone gap — what cannot be reviewed

The most disciplined paragraph in this review is the shortest one: Samsung publishes no microphone count or quality wording for this model, so there is nothing to review on the microphone side. That absence matters because speaker quality and call quality are routinely conflated — a phone can have excellent loudspeakers and still leave the other party straining, if its microphones or their processing are weak — and no measured evidence for this model settles that question either way. GSMArena’s laboratory test covers loudspeaker output, not microphone capture, so its “Very Good” rating says nothing about how the owner sounds on a call. Buyers who take many calls should therefore treat the microphone side as unrated: test it on a real call during any return window, rather than assuming the speaker verdict covers it. This review will not fill the gap with another model’s microphone count, and it will not present the absence as a flaw — an unpublished figure is not a bad figure, it is an unknown one.

When a speaker sounds wrong — design or damage?

Two kinds of “bad sound” must not be confused. Thin, quiet or unbalanced sound that has been there since new is the tuning story above — a design trade, not a fault, and no repair will change it. Sound that changed — a speaker that went muffled after liquid exposure, started crackling, or dropped out on one side after a drop — is a damage story, and it is the one the repair guides below address. Liquid exposure is the classic case: this model carries an IP68 rating (lab conditions, 1.5 m freshwater for up to 30 minutes, not permanent, and liquid damage is not warranty-covered), so a speaker that sounds muffled after a swim or a spill may recover as it dries, or may not — and the water-damage guide, not a speaker upgrade, is the next step. A case that covers the bottom grille is the cheapest false alarm of all: check the case’s cutouts before booking anything.

Before calling it a fault

Run the checks in order: the case (does it clear the bottom grille?), the balance (does sound lean to one side in landscape, pointing at one unit?), the history (did the sound change after liquid or a drop, or has it always sounded this way?), and the call test (does the other party hear you clearly, which the speaker verdict cannot answer?). If the sound changed, or one side dropped out, the fault is in the phone — and the speaker and water-damage guides below are the next step.