Sonos Beam (Gen 2). The compact smart soundbar for TV, music and more. (White)
| Dimensions: | 6.91 x 65.1 x 10.01 cm; 5 Kilograms |
| Model: | 8717755778109 |
| Manufacture: | Sonos |
| Origin: | China |
| Dimensions: | 6.91 x 65.1 x 10.01 cm; 5 Kilograms |
| Model: | 8717755778109 |
| Manufacture: | Sonos |
| Origin: | China |
Bought the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) to replace an LG sound bar and wireless subwoofer that had inexplicably stopped connecting wirelessly. My criteria for a replacement was that it had to be connected physically, have decent bass, be compact, expandable and under 500.
After much research I settled on this Sonos.
The Beam was incredibly easy to set up. Unboxing was straightforward thanks to fuss-free Apple-style packaging. Connected to TV and downloaded the Sonos app from the App Store (iOS). The menu took me through the process of adding the device step by step and within about 5 minutes I had sound.
Put it to the test on some movie trailers. First was Le Mans 66, then Shang-Chi, The Legend of the Ten Rings, then the new Dune film. Reason I did this was to test if the Dolby Atmos function made any difference. I don’t think I can make use of the Dolby Atmos setting yet on this Beam as my current TV, which is an LG 55SM8600PLA, doesn’t have eArc connection which, from my research appears necessary for Dolby Atmos. I may be wrong on that so check it out. I am about to change telly to the LG OLED55B16LA which I know does have eArc so I will hopefully have the Dolby Atmos up and running soon.
But regardless of Dolby, I can tell you that the sound on this sound bar is simply fantastic. The sound is clear and natural. Doesn’t sound muddy or over engineered. Bass is punchy and rich (and I admit to being a bit of a bass-head). So much so that I’m thinking I don’t need to spend the additional 749 on the Sonos subwoofer. Bass is still good at low volume, but obviously better at higher volumes.
Only two negatives I can think of is a lack of physical remote and no Bluetooth connection. Neither were dealbreakers for me. I may add a couple of the Sonos IKEA side speakers that others have recommended. Delighted with this purchase. I’m a Sonos convert now (something else to spend money on!). Hit the helpful button if you found this review helpful.
he app to control the sound bar was less than helpful
he basic sound is fine, but you are expected to control it via an app and I found this app less than useful and there was no clear way that I could find to simply change the treble or bass.
Though the fact it had a network connection meant an update was easy
Works well in a high ceilinged room
I live in an upside down house with the kitchen, dining snd lounge area upstairs. It measures 25 ft wide by 25 ft length by 25 ft high. Without the Sonos Beam 2, the dialogue from the TV was ‘ lost’ at times. With the Sonos Beam 2, the dialogue is so much clearer.
I wasn’t sure that this item would solve my dynamic problem , but it has in regard to TV watching
I have a Sonos speaker for music within the room and with the Beam, music is even better.
Looks wise , the Sonos Beam is minimal and contemporary looking. Perfect .
Had it one day and so far I’m really impressed. So easy to set up and the sound is fantastic. I have the it in white and it looks great and blends in fantastically under TV. I bought it to replace a Samsung sound bar that had awful audio sync problems which I couldn’t solve. No such problem with the beam 2.
I have personally tested and experienced the Beam Gen 2 Dolby Atmos effect. I liked it a lot. Love the Sonos Multi-room function as well. Will recommend everyone to go for Sonos if you are comparing with other audio brands. Now I'm tempted by the Sonos Arc. It has the up firing speakers built in.
I have personally tested and experienced the Beam Gen 2 Dolby Atmos effect. I liked it a lot. Love the Sonos Multi-room function as well. Will recommend everyone to go for Sonos if you are comparing with other audio brands. Now I’m tempted by the Sonos Arc. It has the up firing speakers built in.
Sonos upgrade part one
Im in the process of upgrading my TV and sound system and wanted to use the Dolby Atmos feature. I have only just bought the 2nd Gen “Beam” and the sound, as long as its loud, is very good, Apple play works easily and Alexa is just a word away. I am not getting the best from the sound system, just hoping Santa brings me some rear speakers
Brilliant!
Very easy to set up and link to my existing Sonos play1 speakers. Easy to link to the tv and Blu-ray too . Good surround sound and easily loud enough for our lounge.
I did a lot of research before committing to buying this Sonos Beam gen 2, i am glad i did as its the best one i believe at the mid price range, sound is great for a small unit, i did buy 2 wireless speakers after and this made a wonderful surround sound system, sub woofer to follow soon.
if anyones interested i bought the two speakers from Ikea. not from Sonos as they are very expensive, they do the job, they are made by Sonos for Ikea .
Eight years makes the difference
Ok.. I’ve a play-bar which is fabulous but not with a vaulted ceiling.. great when I lived in a box but I moved and the ceiling and the play bar just don’t work.. so I took a gamble on the cheaper forward firing Beam (2) (Sonos play 3 surrounds and Sub at the front) it’s perfect! Room 25 by 35 feet. It’s takes a bit of messing to get right but worth it. But I have the play-bar set up too for music play-bar and Beam (2) great for vaulted ceilings.. (though I don’t have the play-bar running for tv sound) I’ve not tried the Arc as it has up firing speakers but for me (hearing loss too) it’s just right!
Needed a new TV for the bedroom, and with modern TV’s being so slim I knew the TV sound would be rubbish. I’d previously had a 5.1 system in the bedroom but it was very messy with wires for rear speakers and it wouldn’t easily integrate into a fitted wardrobe, so I looked for a sound bar. The Sonos Beam Gen2 looked the right size for the space so I took a punt based on reviews. For its size the sound is brilliant! Absolute clarity of dialogue, well balanced mid, crisp but not harsh highs, and a warm bass end (but obviously not a “sub” bass). In my lounge I have a separates 5.1 system with Denon receiver, big sub etc and clearly the Beam cannot compete with that, but for casual TV watching it is superb, and it also does a very reasonable job on music. A good test for bass is Dave Grusin’s Homage to Duke, and the double bass has plenty of body and warmth, and no sign of distortion on the Beam’s small speakers. It really delivers an impressive sound for its size. Moving on to control of the Beam, the Sonos app suffered numerous disconnections in the first couple of days use. I called Sonos and they answered very quickly and had a very knowledgeable engineer who was able to connect remotely into my system. He suggested it was an issue with “multicast” on my home network (a TP Link system with 3 x EAP245 AP’s and an OC200 controller). He logged into my OC200 and made some adjustments, and although they didn’t initially fix the issue, I was impressed by his knowledge on the networking. The issue was finally solved by switching on “airtime fairness” in the beacon control of the OC200 settings for Access Point control, and then rebooting the controller and AP’s. Overall the Beam Gen2 is great, producing a great sound for its size.
Save some money and purchase the Sonos supported Ikea speakers for the rear surround effects, and you’ve a great bargain for a small to medium sized room. Awesome sound quality and highly recommended.
Like the original Beam, Gen 2 easily pairs with the TV remote, making it more convenient than my Echo Studio, which doesn’t. The sound quality is excellent, particularly after setting up Trueplay – a must. It doesn’t have quite as much ‘bite’ as the Echo Studio for music, but the sound is wonderfully smooth. Dialogue is easy to understand – but not a lot different from the original Beam, which was also great in this respect. Atmos is a revelation (with the addition of two Play Ones). In fact it was so dramatic that on first listening I jumped out of my chair! I leave the Beam on night mode now for the most part. I like that the Sonos app confirms whether a programme is being streamed in Atmos , or another Dolby format, but it’s disappointing that it doesn’t indicate the format of music streaming (bitrate, Spacial audio or whatever). I highly recommend the Beam Gen 2, it’s so powerful for a visually unobtrusive package.