Sonos Beam - worth it or not?

[Aretos]

Since I am pretty much-upgrading everything in my house, might as well buy a new soundbar!

Been looking at buying the Sonos Beam soundbar.

Has anyone on here had any experience with it and soundbars in general?

[Bulldog]

I've heard the Sonos Beam compared with the Yamaha YAS 109 soundbar. I purchased the Yamaha. Although I thought the Sonos sounded a little better, I didn't think the Sonos' sound quality justified the extra cost.

[AlastairH]

Since I am pretty much-upgrading everything in my house, might as well buy a new soundbar!

Been looking at buying the Sonos Beam soundbar.

Has anyone on here had any experience with it and soundbars in general?

We’ve got the earlier generation Sonos bar in the lounge. I think it’s pretty good, although I’ve not had any other soundbar to compare it to. What is clear is that it is much better than the standard tv speakers in our Sony AG8 Oled. The Sonos gets a bit bass heavy to me but otherwise it does have plenty of volume, does the job for most TV if you want to avoid lots of speakers and a surround sound set up. Typically we use the Sonos through the day and then I power up the main rig in the evening (C6 system).

[Aretos]

We’ve got the earlier generation Sonos bar in the lounge. I think it’s pretty good, although I’ve not had any other soundbar to compare it to. What is clear is that it is much better than the standard tv speakers in our Sony AG8 Oled. The Sonos gets a bit bass heavy to me but otherwise it does have plenty of volume, does the job for most TV if you want to avoid lots of speakers and a surround sound set up. Typically we use the Sonos through the day and then I power up the main rig in the evening (C6 system).

AlastairH thanks for that, most of my usage is for a more chill out feel, so listening to music via bluetooth and every day TV usage, my Hi-Fi setup would be for my movies.

Think I need to find somewhere where I can get a demo.

[AlastairH]

No problem. If you are thinking of demos John Lewis might be an option, they often have this sort of gear - well in my local High Wycombe store at least they did pre COVID.

[Garfield]

AlastairH thanks for that, most of my usage is for a more chill out feel, so listening to music via bluetooth and every day TV usage, my Hi-Fi setup would be for my movies.

Think I need to find somewhere where I can get a demo.

Aretos have you managed to have a demo on the Sonos soundbar?

Would be interesting to see what your thoughts are!

May buy one myself

[Aretos]

Aretos have you managed to have a demo on the Sonos soundbar?

Would be interesting to see what your thoughts are!

May buy one myself

So I have bought the Sonos!

Just waiting for the delivery, didn't have the chance to get a demo but have heard some good things so will see, fingers crossed

[kingabs]

So I have bought the Sonos!

Just waiting for the delivery, didn't have the chance to get a demo but have heard some good things so will see, fingers crossed

Aretos you will have to post up your setup with the Sonos Beam

[Bulldog]

Okay, so I went and bought a Sonos Beam to compare with my Yamaha YAS 109, I hooked it up to my Sony 65 inch 1080p television. Initially it wouldn't work, then I realised I needed to use my daughter's iPhone for the initial setup. We downloaded the Sonos app and a few minutes later we conducted the Sonos room equalization setup procedure (really simple). After this was completed I downloaded the Sonos app onto my little Acer Spin One - and we were away. Initial sound was good but a little boomy. I entered the sound management menu and I disabled the default 'loudness' setting. This tightened the bass up significantly. YMMV in your particular room.

So, how does it compare with the Yamaha YAS 109?

The Sonos has significantly better sound for music - more hi-fi sounding which would be appreciated by fans of the ATC sound. The Yamaha is great for movies, but the sound is is a little 'phasey' and artificial when compared with the Sonos. The Yamaha's pseudo surround sound is quite tiring for extended viewing and can't compete with the natural presentation of the Beam. Another consideration for the potential purchaser is the substantial upgrade path offered by Sonos. You initially pay more for the Beam - but it's future proof.

I guess it's unfair to compare the YAS 109 to the Beam. One is more expensive than the other, but you definitely get more for your money with the Beam. I would even take the Beam over the YAS 209. I also had a listen to the Bose 500 soundbar which was more expensive than the Beam. I reckon the Beam was better,

Yes, the Beam does loud really well and shows the Yamaha a clean pair of heels in that respect.

Just for fun, I had a listen to the Sonos Arc. Very big sounding but the Beam was so, so close in sound quality. I would only buy the Arc over the Beam if I had a very large room.

I hope you find my observations helpful.

[Bulldog]

I've just added a pair of Sonos One SL speakers as surrounds to my Beam. Wow! The sound has improved immensely. I thought the surround effects were good before, but adding the surround speakers has lifted the sound to a new level. Strangely, the overall bass response appears to have deepened as well and has become more room-filling. The Sonos One SL speakers are highly recommended.