Sonos Arc Soundbar Review – Premium Smart Atmos Soundbar
Sonos Arc is a high-end soundbar that supports Dolby Atmos and excels in every other feature. Furthermore, the Arc is a must-have unit if you’re looking for a soundbar with smart voice assistants and Apple AirPlay 2 support. Our Sonos Arc Soundbar review will dive deep to give you a comprehensive idea of why it is best.
Product Overview
The Arc is the first-ever Dolby Atmos soundbar from Sonos. From the beginning, you will find this soundbar a premium device. The Arc comes in two colors; the unit we are reviewing is matte black, and the other one is white.
The Sonos Arc dimensions represent modern aesthetics with all-around color consistency. The style matches its 270-degree elliptical shape. This design choice helps the Arc remain sleek and blend with the environment.
The Sonos Arc soundbar is a comprehensive unit that is 114 centimeters wide and suitable for a 49-inch TV at minimum. If you plan to wall mount the device, you will need an appropriate location. Our Sonos Arc Soundbar review found that placing it before the TV is best.
The touch control is located atop the soundbar. The positioning allows users to conveniently access the volume, play/pause, and skip buttons. You will find the microphone button at the top right end of the Sonos Arc.
Sonos cleverly positions the connectivity option on the back of the device for simple access. The power input is on the right, and the Sonos Arc HDMI/eARC port is on the left. In the middle, the Join button and the Ethernet port are placed side by side.
Specifications of the Sonos Arc Smart Soundbar
- Product Dimensions: 3.4 x 45 x 4.5 inches
- Item Weight: 24.60 lbs
- Speaker Type: 3D Soundbar
- Color: Black
- Connectivity: HDMI, AirPlay 2
- Special features: Radio, Subwoofer
- Package Contents: Soundbar, AC power cord, HDMI cable, Optical audio adapter
Performance analysis of the Sonos Arc Smart Soundbar
The Sonos Arc is said to provide the best immersive home theater sound. It is undoubtedly one of the best soundbars on the market, thanks to the realistic sound that the Dolby Atmos support produces. We installed the unit in a 12 x 18 feet room to test its performance. We used a 65-inch Sony X80K TV because it has eARC support and is ideal for testing the ARC’s sound performance.
Sound Performance
The Sonos Arc uses eight elliptical woofers in front and sides, along with three silk dome tweeters. The side woofers and the upward-firing woofers enable this soundbar to project sound at various angles to create realistic 3D audio. Arc’s advanced processing generates five phased-array channels to accomplish this. Ultimately, the soundbar uses this technology to make the Sonos Arc performs very well at sound distribution.
In the space of our testing room, the Arc was flawless in delivering crystal-clear sound all over. The Sonos Arc’s bass performance is also more profound than most other soundbars we have tested. Overall, it gives one of the best sound performances we have seen from a soundbar. It is definitely on-tie with another great soundbar, the Bose 900.
App Control
One of the necessary instruments for the Arc soundbar is the SONOS app. It is essential for setting up the soundbar and fine-tuning its performance. You can, for example, control all of your speakers, soundbars, and components. Additionally, you can play in sync, adjust the volume, or play something different in every room.
To get the most out of the Sonos Arc, you must use the TruePlay feature. This feature basically measures how sound reflects off walls or other objects in a room. Following that, it can fine-tune the soundbar’s settings to deliver excellent sound quality.
Sonos soundbars have separate settings for TV, movies, and gaming. You can turn on the Speech Enhancement feature on the app to clarify dialogue when a human voice is present. You can also connect your favorite radio stations, podcasts, audiobooks, and music all in one place by using the app. The SONOS app is available on both the App Store and the Google Play Store.
Connectivity
The Sonos Arc soundbar can be connected to your TV via the eARC port. It is also the same path when connecting with a standard HDMI cable. The Arc also supports Apple AirPlay 2, distinguishing it as a genuinely versatile app with unique features. We also appreciate how well the built-in Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa work to provide a completely hands-free experience with the soundbar.
Pros and Cons of the Sonos Arc Soundbar
Here are some pros and cons that we found in our hands-on review.
Pros:
- Amazing Dolby Atmos performance
- Eleven high-performance drivers
- Apple AirPlay 2 support
- Rich bass and clear dialogue
- Quick and easy setup process
- Option to expand it to a surround system
Cons:
- A bit pricy
Is Sonos as good as Bose?
If you ask the Internet, what’s the best soundbar on the market right now? The results will include soundbars from both Sonos and Bose. To make it more precise, the Bose 900 and Sonos Arc are toe-to-toe when considering the best soundbar.
Both of the soundbars are almost in the same price range. The Bose 900 excels in configuration, whereas the Sonos Arc provides the best audio listening experience. Bose has the unique ADAPTiQ feature to fine-tune the audio output precisely the way you want. You get the TruePlay room correction feature on Sonos Arc to deliver a similar performance.
Overall, these two soundbars from Bose and Sonos are versatile devices for any environment. However, if you like the Apple AirPlay feature, you may go for the Arc, as it has this feature built-in. On the other hand, check our Bose Smart Soundbar 900 review to learn more about that soundbar.
Verdict
The Arc is the best performer in this price range if you want a versatile soundbar without the punch of a subwoofer. It combines a beautiful design and excellent sound quality with a fantastic user experience. Our Sonos soundbar review has gone in-depth to give you a complete idea of why you need such a device. Alternatively, you can check our take on how to connect a soundbar to Apple TV with HDMI for further knowledge.
