Sonos Arc Review – Is It REALLY Worth the Hype?

In this Sonos Arc review I put it to the test against the Beam and the older Sonos Playbar in a head-to-head-to-head battle. Does the $1,000 premium soundbar crush the competition?

Sonos speakers are awesome. In fact, when I first heard the Beam (Gen 2) it COMPLETELY changed how I feel about soundbars... and this is the most expensive Sonos speaker so my expectations are high. I compare it to other Sonos soundbars with music / movies / atmos. Do I give it the thumbs up or does it fall short to match it's expensive price tag? Watch my Sonos Arc review to find out.

0:00 Sonos Arc Intro
1:00 Music
1:42 Movies & Atmos
3:19 Results
5:15 Pros & Cons
9:05 Should You Buy It?

#sonosarc #sonos #sonosarcreview

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Thanks for watching my Sonos Arc review!

[TheSAHDLife]

Sonos changed how I feel about soundbars. They are so good. My favorite movies so far on the Arc have been Mad Max, 6 Underground, and John Wick 4. Please share your favs!

And I know I missed a few features in the video (Google assistant etc.). This wasn't meant to be a comprehensive deep-dive video. If there are any features you love / hate that I missed please share below. Thanks for watching!

[iluxman]

You allow the viewers to actually hear the sound from the speakers, which sets you apart from many other "reviewers" who just talk throughout the entire video, leaving the audience with no audio experience of the product. I love it. Thanks for share.

[rpg_]

Great review. Valid points. Your right though, once you get sucked into the Sonos world. You can't have just one. I started with the Arc. Saved up for the SL Ones, then saved up for the Sub Gen 3. It was absolutely amazing. Hold up there's more, I just upgraded to the Era 300's for the rear surrounds. Words can not explain the listening experience. It's out of this world.

[btpiercy]

Such a great review thanks for taking time to do it. I was about to buy the ARC but now will go for Play Bar since I am not really a big movie guy but love the music I can stream from my TV thru fiber optic cable and or just by using the Sonos app. I am sure this will be a better solution for me at this point and I can then easily add the sub along with my existing play ones which are great !
You saved me some coin on this deal now I can donate to the local kids hospital ! Best regards

[sobel]

Nice vid! You have a great personality for doing reviews. Not pretentious, not overtly biased.

Re: the HDMI port requirement, from what I'm reading, the device should actually come with an optical-to-HDMI adapter so that the optical port can still be used on the TV.

[mrgold]

Started with the Beam Gen 1 and Symfonisk bookshelf as rears for my LG OLED 55C1 a few years ago. Went down the rabbit hole and I now have 18 Sonos speakers. My last purchase was the Arc, dual Gen 3 subs, & Fives as rear surrounds for my LG OLED 77C1. I purchased after X-mas before the Era 100/300 release dates were announced. I like the ease of use, sound quality, deep/abundant bass, and flexibility of Sonos compared to the Nakamichi 7.2.4 I had before the Arc.

The only issue I have with Sonos is the Roam. It can be finicky with issues like not coming out of sleep mode, falling off the Sonos network (have to do a hard reset), no sound when grouped, unable to connect to bluetooth device, or having to pair again a bluetooth connection over time.

[tonymax]

I currently have the Beam right now, but I'm definitely upgrading to the Arc. Thanks for the video, and I'll be adding the Sub with it too.

[thieveslikeus]

Great video. I can't believe how good the Playbar was... And the iPhone Advanced Trueplay thing is due to the standardise microphones used by Apple. Also, before I completed my upgrade journey to a full 7.1.4 Sonos system, I did think about the Sony HTA9 + SW5 sub. But it was a big outlay in one hit. And the Sony setup has never been on special. At least with Sonos I could do it in stages (when the specials are on) plus I get multi-room audio. But it means I do want more... Next, some 300s for my bedroom. Or maybe a 7.2.4 system?

[lonniebrunet]

Hi. I have a big room and would prefer not to have to buy a sub & other speakers. Saw the Arc at Best Buy and like that you can add on later. Do you think the Arc would be a better choice for a large room that's 15ft wide, high vaulted ceilings ad the further couch is 16ft from TV and behind it open plan to the kitchen. Thanks. We currently only have the TV speakers

[Bxr]

Viewers like honesty, and this is honest and helps buyers understand their choices. I’m between a Sony or Bose soundbar. All of my equipment is Bose and Sony. Good video 🤗🤗

[barryprettyman]

Yeah man, you are spot on with the TV compatibility review. I would say, if you are not very tech savvy, this is probably not the setup for you. If you are, and have a good TV with eARC capability then this choice is phenomenal. The issue being budget, like you said. I am running the ARC/ (2) Era Surrounds and the Sonos SUB configuration with Trueplay tuning in my home. Let me tell you, it is a unique and awesome experience with Dolby ATMOS enabled.

You will feel like you are part of the conversations, and in the scene with the actors. If you're a gamer, the 360 degree tuning is amazing for immersion. Once the devices are mounted and tuned to your living space, it cannot be stated enough how amazing the SONOS system is. Just manage your expectations when only going with the Soundbar as a solo configuration.

[bathams]

Ive had my playbar for 10 years, unfortunately one of the speakers is faulty, so i have purchase the arc, this review has helped. Thank you

[FrisianInNLandFrance]

Thanks so much. I’ll check it out next week. Really curious if it will work at my place.

[LoriDunlap-pc]

Loved your review and learned so much. Question I hope you’ll be able to answer. I want to put my sub gen 3 behind my tv. There’s to much room back there. How much clearance back there does it need for good sound? I can lay down but prefer to stand up. LOVE this sound system.

[Togoladen]

The fact that you played Dance Gavin Dance 😍 made me subscribe even faster!

[Piranga]

Nice video, Subscribed. Regards from Portugal.

[ajbarrett]

Are you using the IKEA Symphonisk as surround speakers with your ARC? I've got one of those that's been sitting in a closet and didn't know it'd be usable to pair

[tomgroth]

I currently have a Samsung hw q900a with the surrounds. It sounds pretty good but I want more bass. It’s in the basement that is long and open. I also bought 2 era 300’s and a sub gen 3 for music. Would it be worth it to add the Arc with those and replace the q900? I would move that to my living room that has an old Panasonic surround system.

[georgevillalvazo]

I bought a home theater system, which consist of a Sony A90J 83 inch big screen and I went ahead and hooked it up to the Sonos arc and a solo GEN three sub along with a pair of Sonos five. Then I went ahead and hooked it all up to a Panasonic flagship you B 9000 4K THX DVD Blu-ray player.! It sounds awesome.!👍

[cent]

Just added era 300s as surrounds with my arc and dual subs. Watching movies is really good, it’s almost unreal.