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Arc ultra or new Beam ultra???

  • September 5, 2026
  • 4 replies
  • 203 views

Hey guys,

 

I've used a SONOS Playbar for years. Recently, I upgraded to a Beam Gen 2 because of the newer tech and connections.

 

Sadly, the Beam 2 doesn't sound as good as I hoped, and Dolby Atmos isn't giving me that full immersion even while having Play 1's as rear surrounds and Sub gen 4 in the system.

 

Now I'm thinking of returning it and going for the Arc Ultra, but since the Beam Ultra was just announced, I'm torn between those two.

 

The new Beam Ultra has a bunch of upgrades, including upward-firing drivers for Dolby Atmos immersion and I also wonder if new sound architecture might be better than the Arc Ultra?

 

I don't care much about AI functions; I just want the best sound quality and immersion.

 

What do you think I should do?

4 replies

Stanley_4
  • Stanley_4
  • Grand Maestro
  • September 5, 2026

Compare the specs of the two, the Arc Ultra is a lot more speaker and with the additional length it is going to give a wider sound field. The new Beam is a good speaker for smaller rooms and lower expectations and a nice upgrade to the older Beams, but not an Arc, Arc Ultra competitor except for small rooms. 

I didn't look but you may want to check compatibility of both with your P.ay 1 surrounds. 

    • kdowling
    • September 5, 2026

    If you’re looking for the best sounding soundbar sonos offers, that would be an Arc Ultra. If your looking to upgrade your Beam 2, I think Beam Ultra is going to be a decent upgrade. That’s what I’m doing, although I haven’t heard one yet.

    But, as Stanley_4 alluded to, neither of those two soundbars support using Play:1s as surrounds. Era 100s for the Beam Ultra or Era 300s for the Arc Ultra, would be my choice.

      • Maraz
      • Author
      • Contributor I
      • September 5, 2026

      Thank you so much!

      Sounds like I will be going for Arc Ultra and new surrounds too

        Stanley_4
        • Stanley_4
        • Grand Maestro
        • September 5, 2026

        Great, I didn't have time to confirm the Play 1 issue but thought I'd remembered it right.

        With the Arc Ultra I highly recommend the Era-300s, they add an amazing presence to Atmos (music and TV) and are nice for 5.1 too. I had spousal issues that forced a downgrade to Era-100s and while they sound pretty good you can really hear the difference in Atmos, not as much in 5.1 but still a noticeable step down.

        With the coming option to use portables as surrounds I'd consider a pair of Play speakers here as I could position them better than the 100s (no power outlets) and the spouse would tolerate temporary placement when listening to the TV. I suggest that portable option here as we only listen to TV on the Arc Ultra and have other Sonos speakers in that space for music. Not because the Arc is bad but because using closer speakers I can minimize volume, and spousal disapproval of my listening taste. Still, some days my Ace headphones are the best option. Did I mention how much I hate open floorplan homes?

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