The Sonos brand has a reputation for producing premium audio gear at equally great prices. I was recently given access to the 9.1.4 Sonos Premium Set, which consists of the latest Sonos Arc Ultra soundbar and Sub 4 subwoofer. Does this classy set deliver classy audio? Here’s my full review below.
Specifications
Sonos Arc Ultra
Type Soundbar
Drivers 14 Audio Drivers
Port I/O HDMI eARC
RJ45 LAN
Audio Supported Dolby Digital Plus
Dolby Atmos (Dolby Digital Plus)
Dolby Atmos
Dolby TrueHD
Dolby Atmos (True HD)
Multichannel PCM
Dolby Multichannel PCM
Operating System Supported All
Virtual Assistant Support No
Touchpad Yes
Bluetooth Yes
AUX Audio Jack No
Size and Weight 1,178 x 110.6 x 75 mm
5.9 kilograms
Selling Price RM 5,899
Unlike the Sonos Sound Ray, the Arc Ultra is the big brother with a size of 1,178 x 110.6 x 75 mm and a weight of 5.9 kilograms. Although larger than the Sound Ray, it is slightly smaller when compared to the Samsung Soundbar Q990C that was previously reviewed. The soundbar body is equipped with 14 audio drivers consisting of 7 tweeters, 6 mid-woofers and 1 Sound Motion woofer. Sound Motion is a Sonos exclusive technology that offers louder audio using a more compact audio driver. This soundbar alone supports 9.1.4 channels.
With its relatively large size, Sonos says the Arc Ultra is compatible with TVs 50″ and above. But I think it is more compatible with TVs with a screen of 55″ and above because of its length. Make sure you have enough space below and in front of the TV if you don’t want to hang the Arc Ultra on the wall of your house.
The Arc Ultra’s body is made of metal and is available in black and white. The rounded sides make it look more elegant than other soundbars that usually use a boxy body design.
Hundreds of holes for the audio grille are placed on the surface of the body. The non-glossy finish makes it not easy to trap dirt and dust. On the top there is a touch pad for changing input modes, on the touch for audio adjustment and the feature of pausing and skipping the music being played.
On the back there's an HDMI eARC input, a LAN port, a microphone mute button, a Bluetooth tethering button, and a plug for the power cable. These are standard I/O on Sonos audio systems that don't support AUX or optical cable connections. The only new feature on the Arc Ultra over the regular Arc is that Sonos has finally added Bluetooth tethering support, which users have been asking for for a long time.
The Arc Ultra also doesn't come with a physical remote. Control is entirely via the physical buttons on the top or using a smartphone app. I'll touch on the features that can be controlled via this app in a dedicated software section below. But I can say that the lack of a remote isn't a huge issue because when connected to a TV using HDMI eARC, the TV's remote can automatically be used to control the Arc Ultra.
Sonos Sub 4
Subwoofer Type
Driver Dual 5 x 8″ drivers
I/O Ports None
Audio Supported Dolby Digital Plus
Dolby Atmos (Dolby Digital Plus)
Dolby Atmos
Dolby TrueHD
Dolby Atmos (True HD)
Multichannel PCM
Dolby Multichannel PCM
Operating Systems Supported All
Virtual Assistant Support None
Physical Buttons Sonos Tether Button
Bluetooth None
AUX Audio Jack None
Size and Weight 389 x 402 x 158 mm
11.79 kilograms
Selling Price RM 4799
Meanwhile, the Sonos Sub 4 is a subwoofer with a size of 389 x 402 x 158 mm and a weight of 11.79 kilograms. It is equipped with a pair of oval-shaped subwoofers with a size of 5 x 8 ” placed opposite each other. This is why it has a hole in the middle like the letter O.
This unconventional design according to Sonos offers a stronger but balanced bass beat because there is no audio distortion if it only has one driver like a conventional subwoofer design.
Like the Arc Ultra, the Sub 4's body finish is non-glossy with white and black color options to prevent it from attracting dirt like a magnet. There is only one physical button on the bottom to activate the Sub 4's pairing mode in the Sonos app if it cannot be detected immediately after activation.
Usage
The process of activating both the Arc Ultra and Sub 4 is easy as I have used several Sonos products before. One "uniqueness" of Sonos products is that they need to be activated with the app first and this requires a WiFi connection. A strange step but as a premium audio product, perhaps they feel it is impossible for the owner of their product not to have internet service at home.
Once all the components are included in the app, users can automatically tune the audio according to the size of the TV room at home using Trueplay. Good news for Android users, Trueplay can now be accessed using your phone. Only once again, the iPhone receives a more advanced feature where more accurate audio tuning Advanced Tuning can be done with a few additional steps.
Is the Sonos app good? You must have read the complaints of Sonos users about the new app that does not support all the features that exist in the old app. Various issues that arose caused the company's CEO to apologize but still failed to save him from being asked to resign by the board of directors recently.
As a new Sonos user, I have no experience using the old app. I can only say that the features provided in the app are satisfactory because there are basic features and also more complex ones such as changing the audio balance of the Arc Ultra and Sub 4 directly from the app. There are EQ settings and also the option to add optional music streaming services.
The only issue I faced was that there was a noticeable time delay when changing songs from within the app before the audio appeared on the audio system. This happened regardless of the service used. Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube Music all have problems. Sometimes the streaming stops, especially if I stream songs from Apple Music via an Android phone.
Because of the above issues, I only tested the ability to listen to music on the Arc Ultra and Sub 4 systems using bluetooth tethering. In bluetooth mode everything runs much smoother. There are no more audio lag issues and streaming stops suddenly. This also allows the audio system to stream music without the internet if the music is all stored on the tethered device.
Audio Quality
The Arc Ultra is more compact in size than other soundbars on the market. So at first there was a feeling that it might not be able to offer the same level of audio projection as the Q990C. But my prediction was wrong because the audio that can be produced is comparable. With Dolby Atmos support, the experience of being surrounded by audio from all directions can be enjoyed. However, with Speech Enhancement mode, the dialogue spoken by characters in movies or TV series will be given priority.
I tested this myself in the movies Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers. The actors' dialogue can be heard clearly even during the deafening explosion scenes. Speaking of deafening audio, there's a Night Mode that will reduce the bass thump that can disturb other people in the house or, more importantly, the neighbors.
If that's not enough, the audio from the Arc Ultra can be thrown to the Sonos Ace with the press of a button on these earphones. No other audio system on the market offers the convenience of switching from a soundbar to a pair of earphones.
Another thing I love about the Sonos soundbar is that it is compatible with not only movie and TV series content but also for streaming music content. It's not limited to just the classical genre like most soundbars I've reviewed. Various genres can be played on the Arc Ultra without any issues. Vocals are then clear and crisp. Instrument separation is excellent and the audio staging feels spacious.
Playing Nirvana Unplugged in New York and Portishead Live from Roseland NY concerts gave me the experience of actually watching these two concerts live. The Metallica S&M concert showed how versatile the Arc Ultra is as Metallica's metal music can be played in a balanced way with a full orchestra in the background.
But there is only one drawback that I noticed, which is that when a movie with Dolby Atmos is played, the audio that should be coming from the back and above doesn't sound realistic. Although the Arc Ultra has several woofers that throw audio to the sides and above, it still only gives a simulated effect. It's not the same as having real speakers. Therefore, a pair of Sonos Era 300 speakers need to be added with each one selling for RM2,239. For a complete Dolby Atmos system you need to spend over RM15,000!
Conclusion
There is no denying that the combination of the Sonos Arc Ultra and Sub 4 can offer a very satisfying audio experience for those who want a cinema-style audio system at home. The size of this audio system is more compact compared to competitors with similar capabilities. The Dolby Atmos system support and the Sonos Ace headphone ecosystem give it an advantage because no other soundbar on the market allows audio to be transferred directly to a pair of earphones with just one button.
But with a price combination of almost RM11,000, I feel it is a very premium price for most readers out there. The price is indeed aristocratic but the audio experience is truly captivating. It's just that in the market now there are several soundbar systems by Sony, Samsung and JBL that provide an audio experience that is no less great at a price of only around 40% compared to the Arc Ultra and Sub 4 combination.
It should also be mentioned that the Sonos application experience at this time is still not very smooth on iOS and Android. We recommend this Sonos audio set only to hardcore fans who can afford it. For people, the alternatives out there are no less great with more economical prices at the moment.
Pros
Attractive and contemporary design.
Good audio performance for movie content, TV series and music.
Finally bluetooth support.
Dolby Atmos support
Cons
No audio cable input support.
The application is still problematic.