Harman Kardon is an American audio equipment brand founded in 1953, known for combining high sound quality with original design. The company has gained recognition for its high-quality home audio systems and its involvement in the development of cutting-edge audio solutions for both home entertainment and the automotive industry. Today, Harman Kardon manufactures speaker systems, soundbars, portable Bluetooth speakers, home audio systems, and car audio systems. The brand is part of Harman International, owned by Samsung Electronics. Samsung bought the company in 2017, deciding to strengthen its position in the audio equipment market.
Harman Kardon Audio Systems in TVs
Harman Kardon has long been engaged by TV manufacturers to integrate its high-end audio solutions into televisions. One of the first collaborations was with LG, which in 2014–2015 worked with Harman Kardon to develop advanced audio systems called ULTRA Surround for some of its flagship OLED and Ultra HD TVs. Further cooperation was discontinued after Harman began negotiations regarding its acquisition by Samsung.
Between 2022 and 2025, Sharp’s premium TVs were equipped with Harman Kardon audio systems, thanks to the collaboration between Foxconn, Sharp’s owner, and Harman Kardon.
Hisense offers large TVs, such as models around 100 inches, with built-in Harman Kardon speaker systems and wireless subwoofers, delivering a more powerful, home theater-style sound. Hisense laser TVs in 2018–2020 also featured Harman Kardon audio systems.
These integrations mean that the TVs’ internal speakers are designed or tuned by Harman Kardon, providing superior sound compared to typical built-in audio.
Since Harman Kardon is now owned by Samsung, many TV models use their audio technology, and some soundbars, including the HW‑N950 and HW‑N850, were also developed by Harman Kardon.
Overall, the Harman Kardon brand has been used both to equip TVs with high-end audio systems and, to a large extent, for marketing and promotion.
