Sonos - Arc Ultra
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Reddit Reviews:
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Based on 1 year's data from Feb 15, 2026 How it works
Liked most:
19
5
"Atmos content makes you feel like you’re inside the TV."
"Games on PS5 sound absolutely incredible (addicted to Returnal at the moment)."
"Arc Ultra, to my aging ears, is leaps and bounds better in center channel/voices. ... It beat the Beam 2 hands down in center channel/voices to my ears. ... My Arc Ultra has 3 levels and I actually don’t use it because the voices come through well enough."
10
6
"it’s honestly amazing how deep the bass was coming from just the sound bar."
"It’s got a great “sub” in the bar itself"
"Even without the rears or sub (Ultra has a sub inside), it still provides an impressive cinematic experience."
12
2
"Atmos content makes you feel like you’re inside the TV."
"The sound is so clear it’s unreal. ... Like I can hear storm trooper lasers flying around my room."
"As I have an ultra, and two arc’s in the house, the ultra (IMO) is worth the upgrade, and at some point I will upgrade at least one of the other arc’s to an ultra as well. ... Personally, I will be upgrading my Arc to an Arc Ultra. ... I personally want the best Atmos experience I can get. ... You will have a much more perceived audio upgrade experience when upgrading from a Beam (Gen 2) to an Arc Ultra. ... IMO, I would swap it for the Ultra if you can, as it is still new. The Arc was released May 6, 2020, it’s almost 4 and half years old. For a new years, it makes sense to just get the ultra, it should be better. ... If you want my advice, go right to the ultra. The arc is $899 MSRP, and 4 years old. The ultra is new, and $999. We are talking about $100 outside of any sales on the Arc that could happen for the holidays."
8
5
"Arc Ultra, to my aging ears, is leaps and bounds better in center channel/voices. ... It beat the Beam 2 hands down in center channel/voices to my ears. ... My Arc Ultra has 3 levels and I actually don’t use it because the voices come through well enough."
"Very noticeable difference in clarity between the arc and ultra. ... For our aging ears spend the money on the ultra. ... I have 2 of each and there is a difference you can appreciate. ... I also own both and still recommend the ultra over beam for clarity"
"The sound is so clear it’s unreal. ... Like I can hear storm trooper lasers flying around my room."
2
0
"soundbars now can be very good with basic plug and play. ... No wires is a huge plus too."
"I went with the sonos, but I only wanted the bar for now. I'll buy the sub next year, and then the rears. Yes I'm spending more overall, but im spending within my limits with the money I have available at the time, and I dont mind spending that money."
"you can add components later when budget allows."
Disliked most:
1
5
"I find the arc very muffled and dry."
"I am very very underwhelmed by how arc plays music. ... Beam 2 sounded better (at least for my ears)"
"Mid frequencies in general seem lacking."
0
4
"the soundbars have so many issues connecting that I don’t even want to use it anymore"
"the app update that caused all the headaches. ... To this day the app is terrible"
"the app had caused so many issues that I was just returning it. ... Seems like Costco is aware that Sonos destroyed their app last year."
0
1
"I paid way more for the Sonos setup ... for value alone Samsung destroys the Sonos setup."
180thMeridian 1.0Sonos with dual subs. I have two 300's, Arc Ultra and two subs connected to my LG G4 65".
I run a Sonos Arc Ultra, two subs and two ERA 300's. Great sound.
There are Samsung haters and Sonos haters as well as, fan boys. I did my own research and for the past almost 2 years have been running a Sonos system: Arc Ultra, two subs (3&4), two ERA 300's into my LG G4 65" TV. From my perspective, I nailed it. Last week we had another out-of-town family member mentioned it sounded like a movie theater while we watched a movie on Netflix. I also use it for gaming and the sound as you can imagine, is pretty great.
1oser 1.0Go to Best Buy and demo the arc ultra w/o sub. Sono’s app has built in toggle for speech enhancement with low/medium/high/ultra options
2PhotoKaz 1.0I just bought an ultra. Sound is amazing but surround effects are not great. It probably depends somewhat on room layout.
420long420 1.0For me the sub is absolutely mandatory for the arc or arc ultra. The drivers are so small
For me the sub is absolutely mandatory for the arc or arc ultra. The drivers are so small
620neofaction 1.0Here is my go: I have a Sonos system consisting of: arc, 2 300s and a sub gen3. I upgraded the arc to ultra and was honestly underwhelmed. I then added a second sub, a gen 4 sub (in addition to my gen 3 sub). Hands down; the second sub is an ”OMG” upgrade. I had no idea that the second sub add would make such a difference. I am all in on telling people to add a second sub now.
7e7en87 1.0Sonos beam gen2+sub mini is most reccomended best buy and goes perfect with Sony tv's. I'm personally big fan of this combo. If You wanna premium sound than Sonos Arc ultra and sub 4.
9137891 1.0When I tried Arc Ultra with Spotify Very High, the sound felt richer. Two Era100s hit wider than Beam Gen2, but I prefer Arc for deep, detailed tracks.
9MillimeterPeter 1.0For soundbar and sub only if you're looking for the best you'll probably need to go Sonos Arc Ultra with the Sub 4.
A1CBEERS 1.0100% the answer is Sonos. The Beam Gen 2 soundbar is a solid soundbar that offers decent atmos sound. The next step up to the Sonos Arc or Arc Ultra will hit different if you're not worried about cost. Add a Sonos Sub and that's all you'll need. I say this as someone that has a Klipsch Reference Premier 5.1.2 setup with a Denon 2800h receiver in my living room. I use the soundbar setup in my bedroom and it has pretty good quality. Does it hit quite the same as Atmos in a true home theater setup? Of course not, but it's still a damn good soundbar choice that gives you the Atmos you want.
100% the answer is Sonos. The Beam Gen 2 soundbar is a solid soundbar that offers decent atmos sound. The next step up to the Sonos Arc or Arc Ultra will hit different if you're not worried about cost. Add a Sonos Sub and that's all you'll need. I say this as someone that has a Klipsch Reference Premier 5.1.2 setup with a Denon 2800h receiver in my living room. I use the soundbar setup in my bedroom and it has pretty good quality. Does it hit quite the same as Atmos in a true home theater setup? Of course not, but it's still a damn good soundbar choice that gives you the Atmos you want.
acblue78 1.0It’s double the cost. It’s not worth double the cost. Value is a huge consideration also.
Stand alone is the ideal set up. That’s worth it double the cost. But mixed with bass and surrounds and already have the arc it’s not worth double the cost. Unless you are an audiophile.
That was the idea. Stand alone power for a bedroom. Amazing. I left my Arc, era 300’s and 2 subs in the theatre room and kept Ultra in the bedroom without subs and surrounds.
Ultra isn’t worth it as an upgrade.
I have both bro. It’s not a worthy upgrade. On paper it is but in real life it’s not worth the upgrade. As a stand alone unit the way I use it, then yes it is.
Hearing is different. Many here, including myself are praising the stand alone unit. How good it is. That’s where it shines. But the word “worth” has to be shared with “value”. Twice as much $$$ for the Ultra isn’t worth it for the average consumer. I got it as a gift. I immediately saw the value in it when using it alone in my bedroom. But not with surrounds and subs. Is it an improvement? Sure. But $500 more? Not quite.
In your opinion. Everyone’s ears are different. As a stand alone unit you are correct but when used in surround it’s not so obvious. It’s not worth $500 more to upgrade from the Arc.
That was the idea. Stand alone power for a bedroom. Amazing. I left my Arc, era 300’s and 2 subs in the theatre room and kept Ultra in the bedroom without subs and surrounds.
In your opinion. Everyone’s ears are different. As a stand alone unit you are correct but when used in surround it’s not so obvious. It’s not worth $500 more to upgrade from the Arc.
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