Sonos - Soundbars that are real multi-talents
The US company Sonos has been producing wireless speaker systems for almost two decades and has thus established itself as one of the leading brands in the audio segment. The special thing about Sonos speakers is that they are intelligent multi-room systems that can be placed throughout the house or apartment and be interconnected.
Of course, Sonos audio solutions also include soundbars that offer room-filling sound and numerous smart features at the same time. This makes them the ideal complement to your TV – whether for everyday use, streaming or music playback.
Sonos Soundbars compared
The soundbars from the American manufacturer have a sleek design and have in common that they are delivered without an external subwoofer. However, a wide soundstage is created since the Sonos soundbars can even reproduce three-dimensional Dolby AtmosDolby Atmos is a 3D sound format that adds sounds from above to surround sound systems and can also assign additional information to sounds so that they can be reproduced even more realistically. sound.
| Ray |  Arc |  Beam Gen. 2 | |
| Model year | 2022 | 2020 | 2021 |
| Channels | 2 | 5.2 | 5 |
| Dolby Atmos | |||
| DTS | |||
| HDMI 2.1 | 1x In | ||
| eARC | |||
| WLAN | |||
| Room size | up to 15 m2 | up to 25 m2 | up to 25 m2 |
| Subwoofer | |||
| Satellites | |||
| Dimensions Height x Width x Depth | 71 x 559 x 95 mm | 87 x 1141 x 120 mm | 69 x 651 x 100 mm |
Sonos Ray 2022Mini Soundbar with Multiroom Option
Sonos Ray Connections
- Slim size
- Dolby Digital and DTS
- Speech enhancement
- Trueplay room correction
- Apple Airplay2
- Compatible with Sonos App
- Multiroom option
- No HDMI
- No 3D or surround sound
- Trueplay only with iOS
- No Bluetooth
- No voice assistants
The Sonos Ray is the company’s smallest soundbar so far. Two tweeters, two midrange speakers and two bass reflex tubes are hidden in the 55 centimeter wide case. These reproduce 2.0-channel stereo sound in the form of Dolby Digital and DTS. Unfortunately, there is no spatial expansion like DTS Virtual:XVirtual 3D sound that can be reproduced by setups without height or down-firing speakers. Psychoacoustic algorithms are used to create surround, height and overhead effects., but it does feature Sonos’ Trueplay room correction. Since all speakers are directed to the front, you can also store the soundbar in a TV cabinet.
The little soundbar has an optical port for connecting it to your TV. However, there is no HDMI interface, which means ARCAudio Return Chanel: With the HDMI ARC connection, the higher bandwidth allows data to be both sent and received over one HDMI cable, saving additional cables in many setups. or eARCEnhanced Audio Return Chanel: A significant increase in the data transfer rate, which means that audio signals no longer need to be compressed before being transmitted to the music system. This noticeably increases audio quality. are not supported. In contrast, smart features have not been skimped on: The soundbar can be conveniently integrated into the Sonos app and can be controlled via it or paired with other speakers from the manufacturer. Apple Airplay2 is also supported.
Sonos Arc 2020Smart Dolby Atmos Soundbar with Room calibration
Sonos Arc Connections
- HDMI eARC
- Dolby Atmos
- Up- & Side-firing speakers
- Wi-Fi, Smart Features & Voice Control
- Easily expandable & Multiroom Option
- Automatic room correction
- No DTS
- No Bluetooth
- No HDMI IN
The Sonos Arc is a high-quality 5.0.2-channel system that comes in a stylish, rounded design. Thanks to the height channels and its HDMI eARCEnhanced Audio Return Chanel: A significant increase in the data transfer rate, which means that audio signals no longer need to be compressed before being transmitted to the music system. This noticeably increases audio quality. connection, the soundbar can play uncompressed Dolby AtmosDolby Atmos is a 3D sound format that adds sounds from above to surround sound systems and can also assign additional information to sounds so that they can be reproduced even more realistically.. To create an immersive sound experience, it also has side-firingThese speakers emit the sound to the side. This creates a wider soundscape and a certain surround sound. speakers and for even better surround sound, it can be expanded with additional satellite speakers. An external subwoofer is also available separately and can compensate for the deep bass that the Sonos Arc somewhat lacks.
A voice enhancement feature and center speaker ensure that the Sonos Arc reproduces dialogs clearly. It also has a room correction feature, which optimally adapts the sound to your room. Overall, the sound profile is quite balanced and there are hardly any delays, so audio and video material are displayed almost synchronously.
The wired connection options of the Sonos Arc unfortunately are very limited. There is only one Ethernet port and one HDMI eARC port. Thus, those who want to connect their device with an optical cable have to use an adapter for the HDMI port. Wireless streaming of content is possible via WLAN, Airplay or one of the integrated voice assistants. However, a classic Bluetooth interface is not available.
Sonos Beam Gen. 2 2021Small sound-miracle with Atmos support
Sonos Beam Gen. 2 Connections
- 220W total power
- Compact design
- Room correction feature
- Dolby Atmos
- Wi-Fi & Apple Airplay2
- Amazon Alexa & Google Assistant built-in
- No DTS:X
- Low volume
- No Bluetooth
The Sonos Beam is already available in the second, improved generation. The US manufacturer did not skimp on smart features for this soundbar either, so the Sonos Beam combines soundbar and smart speaker with each other. You can also control this sound bar without touching it via the integrated voice assistant. In addition, wireless connectivity is available in the form of Wi-Fi and Airplay. Like the Sonos Arc, the Beam does not support Bluetooth connectivity.
The Sonos Beam has side-firingThese speakers emit the sound to the side. This creates a wider soundscape and a certain surround sound. speakers to create a wide soundstage. Furthermore, the sound is optimally adjusted to your room conditions with the help of the room correction feature. Even Dolby AtmosDolby Atmos is a 3D sound format that adds sounds from above to surround sound systems and can also assign additional information to sounds so that they can be reproduced even more realistically. content can be reproduced by the small sound bar, but you will notice that the 5.0 setup lacks bass. Thus, if you want to use the Sonos Beam mainly for movies, it is worth investing in the separately available subwoofer. However, it performs very well for TV shows due to the center speaker and the additional voice enhancement feature.
