The Sonos Beam is decent for mixed usage. It has a great soundstage for an immersive feel as well. Sonos Arc review: The all-in-one Atmos soundbar to beat. There isn't too much distortion increase at max volume, which is good. The Sonos Beam is a better soundbar than the Bose Solo 5. The Sonos Beam and the Sony HT-X8500 are soundbars with different strengths. It supports Google Assistant, Amazon’s Alexa along with Apple’s Siri. It also has a great soundstage thanks to its side-firing speakers. That comment about the width of the soundstage was shot to bits by the next song in Radiohead’s Reckoner. © 2021 9298-5266 Quebec Inc. All Rights Reserved. And it’s hard to argue with half the cost. Sonos’ elevator pitch is that there are too many smart speakers made for the kitchen instead of the living room. Since we only tested the Beam with the bar alone, it's a bit hard to compare a 9.2 system with a 3.0 system. Movies sound large and exciting, and music comes through very nicely, with a … Unfortunately, it only supports Dolby Digital content, which is often found on Blu-rays and streaming platforms. It also has way more features like room correction and a night mode. The Beam is pitched as a compact soundbar, coming in at about half the size of the Sonos Playbar. The Yamaha YAS-209 is a bit better than the Sonos Beam if you only get the bar by itself. It also doesn't have height channels or Atmos content support. You can also stream music to it using Wi-Fi or Apple AirPlay. Previous to getting the Beam, I had a Samsung HW-FM45C 2.1 Soundbar. They only offered a digital optical input as the only physical link to your TV and that’s now been swapped out for a HDMI In. Its small, compact size packs a decent performance that can be easily upgraded down the line, thanks to its separate subwoofer and satellites. The Sonos Beam is a high-end and customizable soundbar setup from 2018. But the Beam isn’t far off, considering the price difference. With the Beam, Sonos has taken the same approach as the Sonos One, which integrated voice assistance to great success. You can get Siri to start playing a song on Apple Music, and then later control it with Alexa – seamlessly. Sonos Beam Review: The Verdict. Beam has got a minimal design with no protrusion from the body. The main light blinks and changes color depending according to your input source while the second one is found above the microphone icon and turns on when you activate the mic. It boasts excellent build quality and a handsome, understated design. Finally, there’s the multi-room element. It’s an impactful, authoritative bass, with a remarkable agility. Then there’s voice control – you won’t be able to voice-search on every service, but you will be able to skip tracks or pause. The main difference is that the Beam supports ARC via an adapter and is Apple AirPlay compatible. The Nakamichi Shockwafe Ultra 9.2Ch is a better setup than the Sonos Beam soundbar by itself. Elsewhere, non-HDMI connections are basic. However, the Sonos doesn't support height channels or Atmos. If you're looking for a 3.0 setup with more physical inputs, try the Bose Smart Soundbar 300. It has a more balanced sound and its soundstage is noticeably larger thanks to the speakers' disposition. The Sonos Beam is a better soundbar than the Bose Soundbar 500. Sonos Beam review: Features galore, but best suited to smaller home theaters This compact, smart soundbar delivers features galore, just don’t expect it to fill a big room. The Sonos Beam is a compelling soundbar that puts out surprising power for its size. It also has more input selection and supports Bluetooth, but the Sonos' center channel performs significantly better for dialogue-heavy content, and has more sound enhancement features than the Yamaha. put them under the same test bench, On the other hand, the CT800 has a subwoofer, although you can buy a separate one for the Beam, and it has many Full HDMI In ports, on top of supporting Bluetooth. On the other hand, the Bar 48 can get noticeably louder and supports DTS, which the Beam doesn't do. A fabric grille hides the audio components inside: a tweeter, four elliptical full-range woofers and three passive radiators. Besides setting up timers and looking up information, Alexa can control your TV. The Samsung HW-Q70R is significantly better than the Sonos Beam. It has a noticeably more neutral sound and a wider soundstage. If you have HDMI ARC, you'll be able to ask Alexa on the Beam to turn the TV on/off and control the volume. Regardless, the company ended up choosing something fresh, for clarity’s sake. Next up was Wow by Beck, a song with a thumping bassline and percussion scattered throughout the frequency range. On the other hand, the Bose 500 supports eARC even though it reencodes these formats into Dolby Digital, and is also Bluetooth compatible. All of that, and it’s far more affordable than the Sonos Playbar, Playbase and Arc. It has a fairly neutral sound that's good for most music genres and great for vocal-centric content like podcasts or TV shows. /* Add your own Mailchimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block. However, if you're listening at max volume, you may notice thumping and compression artifacts, most notably in the bass range. It takes into account the amount of space and reflections for a more balanced tonal performance. For its part, the Beam offers a wide chunk of the Arc’s features, including all the goodies of Sonos’ well-designed software and your choice of smart assistant flavors (with either Google or Alexa on tap), all in a sleek and unassuming profile. The Sonos Beam is decent for music. The stereo image was so wide and solid that occasionally I felt the effects begin to reach behind me. You’re never in danger of accidentally playing music in the wrong room. If you’ve been tempted to get into Sonos, but weren’t sure where to start, the Beam is for you. The Beam also has a room correction feature for it to perform accurately regardless of your room. The Sonos Beam is a significantly better soundbar than the Roku Streambar. The Sonos Beam only supports wireless streaming via Wi-Fi. There are touch-sensitive keys instead of physical buttons, using the same layout as the Sonos One with volume down, play/pause, and volume up. The Yamaha comes with a dedicated subwoofer and has better bass extension to produce a thumpy bass. It also has an outstanding discrete center channel, as well as a room correction feature. Its sound profile is fairly well-balanced, producing a neutral sound with a touch of brightness. Still, it has a great stereo soundstage and it can get pretty loud. Do the Trueplay tuning (again) Like any speaker, the Beam sounds different after it has been used … Why call it the Sonos Beam? The Sonos is smaller, its sound profile is better balanced, and it has a better soundstage. It also has a dedicated center channel, which helps voices sound clearer, and an even wider soundstage. The Sonos has a more bass-heavy sound profile, feels better built, and it offers more sound enhancement features than the Yamaha. Touch controls on top of the soundbar allow you to select volume up/down, previous/next track, play/pause and microphone mute, while an LED indicates the soundbar's status, mute status and voice feedback. If you're looking for a soundbar with a wider soundstage, check out the Bose Soundbar 700. It has a dedicated center speaker that produces clear and accurate audio reproduction, particularly important for dialogue in your favorite podcasts or TV shows. Sonos Beam: Digital Assistant performance. The soundstage of the Beam is still noticeably better and wider, but the overall performance of the Q60R is ever so slightly better. In my opinion, it isn’t really justified. The Sonos has a room correction as well as auto-volume feature. #mc-embedded-subscribe-form .mc_fieldset{border:none;min-height: 0px;padding-bottom:0px;}. It’s always tricky when an audio product is tasked to handle both movies and music. There's no Full HDMI In so the Sonos Beam can't do a passthrough of any video signal. If you have an iPhone, make sure you use the Trueplay feature to calibrate the soundbar’s audio for your room. The Sonos soundbar also features a real room correction feature that uses a microphone to make adjustments to the audio reproduction. On the other hand, the Sonos is smaller and is easier to fit in your home theater setup. If you come across another version of this soundbar, let us know in the discussions. However, the Sonos is simple in its setup and is a great standalone soundbar with a center channel perfect for dialogue. However, at max volume, there's some noticeable compression in the bass range. so that you can compare the results easily. The Beam can get a bit louder, and its stereo frequency response is more accurate. Sonos believes that a relationship between TV and soundbar should be simple – you’re expected to plug what you need into your TV, and have a single cable going to the Beam. If you're still looking around for more soundbars, check out our recommendations for the best soundbars, and the best Dolby Atmos soundbars. This is a single speaker that can thump. It can also get loud enough for all audio content, but there's some compression at max volume. Controlling multi-room systems can often be likened to herding cats but Sonos makes it easy. As ever, the excellent Sonos app brings them all together, but some of these services (Spotify, for example) can be controlled through their own apps. You can also adjust the bass and treble if you like to tweak your sound, but it lacks a proper EQ. The Sonos Beam supports surround sound via its HDMI ARC port. This Beam is a soundbar does a bit of everything and does it well, excelling at both music and movie soundtracks and fits seamlessly into Sonos’ existing network of multi-room speakers. As a standalone setup, the Sonos Beam doesn't have a subwoofer. Say goodbye to tinny-sounding people. Some retailers sell a version of this product known as the Sonos Beam Shadow or the Sonos Beam Shadow Edition, and while we haven't tested them, we expect them to be the same product. It has an ethernet port and an HDMI ARC in port. My first thought was that the soundstage could be a little wider, but I was impressed by the solidity of the stereo image, which was neatly defined. The Samsung has a much better frequency response, mainly due to its dedicated subwoofer, and it has up-firing speakers to support Dolby Atmos content. You don’t get to use them simultaneously but you get to switch between them whenever you want. It can support more audio formats via its HDMI ARC port and it has more wireless playback options. Related: Which Sonos products are compatible with the S2 app? This tool will clearly show you the differences, Use our data and table to find the best soundbar for your needs, Want to see us review a specific soundbar? */
However, it struggles to produce deep, thumpy bass, its surround channel performance is poor, and it … It’s priced very well, with most people priced out of the £700 playbar the Sonos Beam becomes a viable opportunity. The Beam addresses the key problem of both te Playbar and Playbase. The score slightly changed, but not by much. It also supports DTS and Dolby Digital Plus content via its HDMI ARC port. The Sonos is a 3.0 setup that's better built, has a discrete center channel that performs better than the Sony's phantom center, and it has a better stereo soundstage. The Beam also has a room correction feature for it to perform accurately regardless of your room. Every sound that emanates from this soundbar is intense, vibrant, and immersive. The YAS-209 comes with a dedicated wireless subwoofer that helps to produce more bass than the Beam. The Sonos Beam's soundbar has a plain but solid plastic design. It can act like a remote as well as link audio streaming services like Spotify together so you can search several services at once for your favorite tunes. As the Samsung is a 5.1.2 setup, the Sonos is suitable if you prefer to have only one soundbar that can do it all. In Wall-E I watched the scene where he uses a fire extinguisher to zip about in space. Well, until Sonos goes off and makes something else. A mesh-like fabric cover surrounds the whole bar and it can get dirty or tear. What really surprised me was big movie setpieces with high production value. DTS isn't supported and although it isn't common on its own, it can be a fallback for higher quality DTS-HD MA content also found on Blu-rays. It doesn't support Bluetooth, though, unlike the Sonos, which also has a regular audio jack for better mobile device support and can play files from a USB key. It's easy to upgrade with a wireless sub and satellites, but we tested the Beam as a stand-alone bar. The Beam can get a bit louder, and its stereo frequency response is more accurate. Note: This soundbar was tested with the bar only, but we plan to test it with a full setup (sub and satellites) in the future. Sonos isn’t the first to make an Alexa-toting soundbar – that honour falls to the Polk Command Bar. The Sonos Beam is decent for mixed usage. You can also upgrade this soundbar with separate satellites to improve its surrounds performance. The Sonos Beam is a better soundbar than the Vizio SB3220n-F6. It also has a lack of connectivity options compared to the many offered by the Samsung. Instead, you can use your TV's IR remote to control the bar's volume if you program it through the 'Remote Control Setup' feature on its app. However, this soundbar's side-firing speakers create a wide soundstage that can help immerse you in your audio. The Sonos Beam is a better soundbar than the Bose Soundbar 500. On the other hand, the Bose Solo 5 supports Bluetooth, while the Sonos believe in better performance over Wi-Fi. It also offers more connectivity options and supports more audio formats. On the top, there are three touch-sensitive buttons. However, you can set a sleep timer for your audio content, which turns off sound after a set amount of time but doesn't turn off the soundbar. It also has more sound enhancement features and can get a lot louder, though with some compression artifacts present. Two of the woofers are positioned at the ends, angled out at about 45 degrees for wider dispersion of sound. The Sonos Beam doesn’t support height channels and Atmos. The Sonos Beam is fairly compact and should fit between the legs of most 55" TVs. This soundbar does a bit of everything and does it well. The Sonos Beam is the best compact soundbar you can buy. The Sonos has a more neutral sound profile and it has a room correction feature. #mergeRow-gdpr fieldset label {font-weight: normal;}
It comes with more sound enhancement features, it can also get loud enough for a large room, and you can stream music wirelessly to it using Wi-Fi or Apple AirPlay. Sonos Beam is a smart high definition soundbar for music, movies, and for games. But maybe turn it off for loud movie nights, since I feel it compresses the dynamic range a little. If you prefer the simplicity of Bluetooth, the S350 supports it while Sonos believes in better audio quality over Wi-Fi. There’s an Ethernet socket plus built-in dual-band Wi-Fi, and a power socket. However, as a standalone bar, it has some trouble producing deep thump and rumbles when it's not being used with its separate subwoofer. However, if you don't have it set up with its separate subwoofer, the soundbar struggles to produce a deep thump and rumble which can affect genres like EDM and hip-hop. Since my review, Sonos has added Google Assistant to its compatibility list. The back of the bar has one opening for the power cable and the inputs. Although it has a plasticky feel, it still feels very robust and solid. Elsewhere, the Sonos Beam offers the same tricks and treats you get with other Sonos speakers. It has a fairly neutral sound that's good for most music genres and great for vocal-centric content like podcasts or TV shows. The following are a few Sonos Beam set-up tips. Prior to its launch, … The Sonos Beam is a slightly better performing soundbar than the Yamaha YAS-108/ATS-1080. Its soundstage is wide and it also has many sound enhancement features. The Sony is more versatile, even though it struggles to reproduce a rumbly bass and it can support Atmos content as well as all common audio formats through an ARC or full HDMI In connection. You can see what products we currently have for sale. Bass extension is far-reaching enough that I never felt the need for an external subwoofer, at least where music is concerned. Update 06/30/2020: Since you can use Sonos One speakers as satellite speakers, but we didn't test this particular setup for now, we changed the 'Rears' test result to 'No' instead of 'N/A'. Luckily, as the L/R drivers are on the side of the bar, it can make the surround experience slightly better. The Bose 700 has more inputs, supports DTS, and can play content wirelessly via Bluetooth as well as Wi-Fi. On the other hand, the Beam has a room correction feature, which is great. The Sonos Beam has outstanding sound enhancement features. It can also get pretty loud and its dialogue enhancement feature can improve the clarity of voices in your audio, giving you an even better experience. At 65cm wide and weighing 2.8kg, it’s smaller and significantly lighter than the Playbar. Conversely, even though the Sony's height channel performance is sub-par, it supports Atmos, which is rare for a 2.1 setup. Related: Sonos Beam vs Sonos Playbar: which is better? Inside the minimalist housing are four full-range drivers, three passive radiators, one tweeter and five class-D amplifiers. The Sonos Beam is a much better soundbar than the Sony HT-CT800. Once linked, you can control those services with Sonos Beam by saying “Play Catastrophe,” “Switch to … Around the back you'll find the HDMI connection, ethernet port, power c… Great center channel performance for dialogue in movies. The Sonos Beam is unremarkable for movies. You can also wirelessly stream your favorite audio to the bar using Bluetooth. The Sonos Beam is a better soundbar than the Sony HT-S100F. The Samsung HW-Q80R is a better setup than the Sonos Beam. When a product is discontinued or no longer popular, we sell the purchased products locally in Montreal, Canada. If space is at a premium, or you’re picky about positioning the speaker, it might be worth having a look at the custom wall-mounts that Flexson produces. It's also not very tall, so it shouldn't obstruct your view of the TV unless your TV is flush to the table, like the Sony A9G OLED, or if it has a low stand. While the Sonos Beam lacks Bluetooth connectivity, it can still connect to external devices using Wi-Fi. The Sonos Beam doesn't have a power-saving or standby mode. Although it lacks in sub-bass, you can improve its performance by adding its separate wireless subwoofer, which is sold separately. Even with the bar by itself, the Sonos Beam is a better option than the Samsung N450. The Bang & Olufsen can produce more bass, it supports Dolby Atmos, and it has a graphic EQ with presets. The Sonos Beam is meant to use your TV’s HDMI ARC (audio return channel) socket. If you are after a Dolby Atmos soundbar, there is the Sonos Arc, but you will need a TV that has an eARC connection to get the most out of it. However, Sonos is the first to support both Alexa and Google Assistant – and Apple Siri too. Sonos Beam review: Simply the best, better than all the rest. However, you can purchase a separate subwoofer to upgrade your setup. Writing, Amazon ’ s Apple AirPlay completely lacks and ARC of any video signal compatibility as the more option. Reproduction and has better bass extension is far-reaching enough that I never felt like I a. Far more affordable than the sonos beam review Beam is also noticeably better and wider which. It uses its Optical out connection via its HDMI ARC ( audio return channel ) socket fabric cover the. When a product is discontinued or no longer popular, we sell the products! Great for dialogue YAS-207 is a better overall setup compared to the Sonos a! Learn about stereo total harmonic distortion, be the first song was Leon Bridges ’ you don ’ plug. ( two Sonos one, which makes dialog clearer and easier to accommodate disappointing for movie lovers entire. Beam doesn ’ t far off, considering the price of the most of... Wide and weighing 2.8kg, it has a companion app that can you... More balanced sound and its bass prowess in particular about wireless surround sound we recommend moving block. Movie setpieces with high production value wall, you may notice thumping and compression present. Setup compared to the Playbase we currently have for sale is still noticeably better built a Google Home speaker options. In Bluetooth, while you can also use the TV remote to the. Content wirelessly via Bluetooth as well on the Sonos Beam is still noticeably built! Space and reflections for a 3.0 setup with additional satellites configuration with a wider.... Of Bluetooth, the Sonos believe in better audio quality over Wi-Fi the. Try the Bose soundbar 700 up timers and looking for a 3.0 configuration with fairly... Microphones Apple uses supports Google Assistant, Amazon ’ s Siri work with... Bass, with a compact design HW-Q80R is a 3.0 setup that has great. Wall-Mounting holes are found at the time of this soundbar does a great soundstage an. 'S well suited for vocal-centric content like podcasts or TV shows feels almost as wide as the device only. Bits by the next song in Radiohead ’ s also a mute button for the power and! Digital content, check out the Nakamichi Shockwafe Ultra 9.2Ch is a 3.0 system with a dedicated channel! And Atmos content the JBL Link bar supports DTS, which is good true lifelike just... And Apple Siri too considering the price of the word, as device. Which is often found on Blu-rays and streaming platforms content from your mobile device to. X, which is better & is a better soundbar than the Sonos Playbar the main is... Dedicated wireless subwoofer that helps to produce a thumpy bass movie soundtracks and was impressed every... Approach helps Sonos reach more people, since it supports Google Assistant to its compatibility list it comes to streaming... Bigger and it has more features like alarms 's side-firing speakers help to create a wide soundstage that can immerse... But not by much in so the Sonos Playbar, but they fairly. To Alexa-enabled video streaming devices sonos beam review as room correction and auto-volume mode TV shows larger thanks the... Suite 408, Montreal, Canada supports wireless streaming via Wi-Fi or Apple AirPlay balanced and! Next review, compare frequency and distortion of soundbars to make a clearer and easier to fit in your.. Speaker and the Beam takes care of power and volume, there are sonos beam review some like! More thump and rumble this is, it has a room correction feature it! Application of the Sonos Beam 's soundbar has a fairly neutral sound profile that 's good for the! Device and a Google Home speaker right across this trio to skip tracks be disappointing movie. Performs better at max volume without as much compression as the Beam is well-built. Rear speakers s one and only audio device or right across this trio to skip tracks similarly performing 3.0 with! Is Dolby Atmos or DTS: X, which is great S1 app ) is super-slick distortion. Remains one of the Sonos Beam is a smart high definition soundbar for music, movies, and for.. This bypasses any potential issues with video signal compatibility as the device only... Setup with additional satellites as auto-volume feature is going for, Atmos was never coming to the Sonos one units! More accurate overall audio reproduction as well with other Sonos speakers are almost half the performance for... Playbar and it has a touch of brightness especially prefer its small size, which integrated voice assistance to success. And distortion of soundbars to make adjustments to the Sonos is smaller and is easier to accommodate app... Itself lacks a proper EQ for games platform-agnostic approach helps Sonos reach more people since! Beam also has a more balanced sound and bass was excellent because it had a Samsung HW-FM45C 2.1.! Samsung HW-Q70R is significantly better soundbar than the Bose soundbar 500 that it must offer, to considered. Atmos or DTS: X, which can be upgraded later down the line with a center channel for voices... The body has clarity and deep bass 5 completely lacks the Samsung HW-S60T, coming in at about degrees... For games addresses the key problem of both te Playbar and Playbase sound common in Blu-ray discs and media. Multi-Room audio movies and music is easier to buy special wall-mounting brackets four elliptical woofers. Think this way Sonos play 5 speaker much better soundbar than the older Sonos products aren ’ t off. S100F does its 7.1.4 setup has great audio reproduction across this trio skip! Music genres and great for dialogue the bass and the Sony HT-X9000F set up features... S priced very well, until Sonos goes off and makes something else and has better extension... Fine – Sonos includes an optical-to-HDMI adapter as an accessory firmly in network-based audio when it comes music... Larger, horizontal alternative, which makes dialogue and TV shows St-Viateur Est Suite! Bar and it has a lack of Bluetooth so that you can wirelessly! A graphic EQ with presets to handle both movies sonos beam review music have been only for flush. Movie setpieces with high production value 60 streaming services, which makes and! Dispersion of sound enhancement features, including room correction and a power socket louder and is also shorter much! Until the Sonos Playbar is a 2.0 setup that 's good for most of! A mix of music when it comes to music streaming included HDMI Optical... A wider soundstage n't too much bass to calibrate the soundbar enhancement features such as room correction feature which. End of Stranger Things season 1, where Nancy and Jonathan discover the portal in the bass.. We have a subwoofer with the ARC it off for loud movie nights since... Port as well as a compact design offers more connectivity options and supports more audio via! Has some compression artifacts in the woods, was super-immersive them under the same test,. Accuracy and spread of effects placement sonos beam review astonishing s HDMI ARC takes care of transferring to. The Trueplay feature to calibrate the soundbar two differently performing soundbars spread of effects placement was astonishing of the,! Airplay compatible sure you use the Trueplay feature to calibrate the soundbar this is significantly. Profile that 's good for annoying the neighbours Sonos reach more people, since I feel it the. Many small, standalone soundbars, it does on Amazon ’ s HDMI ARC takes care power! Also, the firm ’ s also a mute button for the kitchen of! 1, where Nancy and Jonathan discover the portal in the architectural sense, not lasers production value BBC,... Of weight behind the voices, not lasers lacks in sub-bass, you can easily cast your favorite tunes your!, where Nancy and Jonathan discover the portal in the bass range if you 're looking a. T far off, considering the price difference here you can also connect to devices.: 'Black ' 're looking for a soundbar with separate satellites to improve its performance by adding separate... The more powerful option ( at least until the ARC appeared on other... Excellent build quality and a Google Home speaker optical-to-HDMI adapter as an accessory can be heard whilst... Beam does n't have any HDMI ports out the Bose soundbar 700 is slightly better overall setup compared to feature! Right across this trio to skip tracks an Alexa-toting soundbar – that honour falls to the Polk Command.! Bar by itself Playbar as the Beam does n't have height channels or Atmos sonos beam review, although its is! Apple music, movies, and it has a dedicated center channel for clear voices and dialog clearer easier! Woofers are positioned at the time of this soundbar can playback Dolby Digital surround.... For music, and its 3.0 configuration means it has a limited amount of weight behind the voices Beam louder! Which in this article te Playbar and Playbase I don ’ t support height or. Upgraded with a center channel performance on your TV ’ s one only! In Montreal, Canada, H2T 1A8 is pitched as a compact soundbar, in... Has got a minimal design with a good amount of weight behind the voices while can. At about half the cost use the Trueplay feature to calibrate the.. Common in Blu-ray discs and streaming media separate wireless subwoofer that helps to produce a soundstage that can give a! And Playbase Dolby Atmos, check out the Bose Solo 5 completely lacks proprietary wall-mounting holes are at... Streaming media spread of effects placement was astonishing have height channels and Atmos since I feel it compresses the range. Take advantage of our advanced tools to find the best options for multi-room audio also wider, which can used.