Sonos Arc Vs Beam (Gen 2) & Sub Mini: Which To Buy? 🤔

[@dlite1972]

I had the Arc, but I was underwhelmed by it. I returned it and now have the beam2 and sub mini along with 2 rears. It’s bloody brilliant in my medium sized living room 👍🏻

[@jaredortega5191]

Why were you underwhelmed?

[@pacificateur3630]

His brain cells were underwhelmed. He could be having the Arc + sub mini …😅

[@larrymormon6525]

Arc vs beam is no comparison... At all. I have arc, two gen 3 subs and two rears in my family room and a beam 2 with sub mini in my office... The sound is amazing in my smaller office but is no comparison to the sound in my family room... Like at all

[@robinthalco]

@@pacificateur3630 and the rears are a huge plus also with the arc

[@dlite1972]

@@jaredortega5191 I was expecting more for my £800. Admittedly, it was my first speaker purchase and I thought I’d be experiencing a better surround sound effect but the Arc alone just didn’t deliver. It was returned for a full refund and I ended up buying the beam 2 with the sonos rears for less. In my opinion this is a better setup than the Arc alone and I was more than happy with my choice. When the sub mini was announced I decided to go ahead and buy it, and it really does make a difference. Also, my living room isn’t particularly large and I felt the Arc was too much for the room size, and finally I didn’t like the look of it on my media unit. Hope that answers your question 👍🏻

[@reaganfrazier1941]

I have table mounted Arc with Sub Mini with 65inch LG OLED C2 TV in a average size room and am very happy with it.

[@brzky]

My Wife doesn't allow me to spend 1000€ on Arc alone, so i will mask it and buy Beam Gen 2 now and Sub mini later, thanks for the video.

[@smarthomesounds]

🙏

[@mysteriousdonkey1]

Lol snap

[@Sam-Retina]

This is your wife reading 😊

[@mickdenley]

This is exactly the comparison I've been waiting for. Bravo.

[@NizarNoor]

Beam 2, Sub Mini, 2 × One SLs = the perfect setup for most people. Only consider Arc and the bigger Sub if the room is larger than 40m² or so.

[@ernied3050]

I never comment and i have the full sonos system...You put so much effort in this video : i loved budget / scenario simulations for people who are wondering what to buy . Instead of just talking you put a lot of info on the screen for people who might not listen well or multitasking. Well i wish this exist when i was looking for a sound system Well done !!!

[@smarthomesounds]

Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the feedback :-)

[@alexanderstephenevi733]

@@smarthomesounds would you rather buy 2 Sonos era 100 paired with a sub mini, or the beam gen 2 plus sub mini? Hard choice 😂😂. Curious about your opinion! Thanks in advance!

[@ThatGuyyyyy]

I currently have 2 ones. I’ll probably go for beam + sub mini now to setup home theater in my small living room. Arc and bigger sub are awesome, but overkill for me now IMO. If I do move to big house, I can always get arc later and move beam to bedroom.

[@tvandbeermakehomergo]

Have just added the Sub mini to a beam gen one and Sonos one SLs I have had for a few years now and what a difference! Reason I put off doing it for so long was the orignal setup was baught for a terrace property and wanted a setup that would not annoy the neighbours. Now I am detached and have a bigger room the Sub Mini fills that gap and was much cheaper than buying an ARC (especially as I picked it up for £295!). Eventually I will likley strecth to doing it when arc gen 2 comes along and then the beam will then be relegated to a bedroom.

[@mrgold3591]

I did something similar with a Beam Gen 1+Symfonisk rears, added a Gen 3 sub a year later, upgraded later to the Beam Gen 2, and upgraded to the One SLs (Moved Beam 1+symfonisk to master bedroom). Improvement with every additional piece added. Love the flexibility of Sonos to mix/match/move as needed.

[@kevinvitale8980]

These room scenarios are exactly what I am facing in my big open great room vs. small man cave. Just moving into our final home.

[@Hamish.]

I have the Sonos beam(2), sub-mini and 2 one's combo. Can honestly say I am blown away by the sound, started with the beam then it all got a bit out of hand. Each addition has made a huge difference, yes there are great/better systems out there for less money its still a great buy!

[@Theplasticninja14]

What size of tv do you have? I have a 75, I want to buy that combo but after this video I'm not sure.

[@Theplasticninja14]

The beam is going on sale for Black Friday, like $100 less (Costco) plus a $40 apple gift card

[@Hamish.]

@@Theplasticninja14 60 inch, unsure about in the US but in the UK they have Sonos refurbished, I bought my ones through there and saved a sizable chunk of change and they come with they same warranty as new Sonos products

[@saauuzza]

@@Theplasticninja14 no issue with 75, although the beam will look small in front of 75.

[@valuedcustomer5496]

Exact same setup for me (and a 55" LG OLED). I couldn't be happier with the system.

[@stanlucaks]

SONOS Era 300, game changing sound!

[@RSx94]

I got a Beam Gen 2 & I recently head an Arc playing - Arc totally wins. The Beam Gen2 sounds fantastic, but the Arc got this insane stereo sound that you simply can't hear in a video.

[@PreparationdobleH]

I own both bean with mini, also the arc with the gen 3. Love them both, I’m pretty impressed with the bean+mini.

[@chrizzy2664]

How big is the difference between only beam and beam + Sub Mini?

[@PreparationdobleH]

@@chrizzy2664 it makes a big difference when watching movies and for listening to music.

[@SuperMcZombie]

I've got the Arc, Sub Gen 3 and two SLs for rears and nothing comes close to it.. but I'm super tempted by buy a Beam, Sub Mini and 2 SLs for my smaller living room now :)

[@JimboJason]

Get in there John...I'm proud of you!

[@bradleyanderson247]

Ive had a 1st gen Beam for several years. Older TV too so no Atmos. Based on this and a few other reviews I added a sub mini yesterday. Really surprised. Couldn't really believe the difference. Huge upgrade.

[@mrgold3591]

I have a Beam Gen 1 with Symfonisk rear surrounds with my LG OLED 55C1 (it has eArc). It sounded pretty good with those pieces. I later added the Gen 3 Sub and WOW! It was a totally different system with the sub. I decided to upgrade the rear surrounds to One SLs and didn't hear a noticeable difference. Probably won't upgrade the rears to Era 100 because of the cost vs benefit over the One SLs.

[@DarklordofBarovia]

I went for a Beam 2 - Mini Sub - two Sonos One SL's for surround - my god...this sounds great! I think the arc would be overkill

[@sabalero82]

I see you from Argentina, always so clear in what you say and providing ideas... thank you!

[@bmchugh9094]

I said f it and got the beam + full sized sub and 2 one's. Highly recommend - it sounds amazing.

[@ScottTheShoe]

Hi there - your best bet is to go into a showroom and listen to both options first, but the downside is you will hear the difference between the Beam and the Arc and want to get the Arc. The Arc on its own is really only useful for dialogue - so if you absolutely have to make the choice between the two, go for the Beam and sub mini combo. Also, don't discount he sub mini to accompany the arc - the sub mini is really not all that much smaller than the sub and complements the Arc really well. I wound up buying the Arc and sub, but only because I found a package that was heavily discounted. If limited on budget, I would definitely have gone with the Beam and sub mini because the Arc alone was not impressive for music.

[@ZaPpaul]

I just used this guide to buy the beam and sub mini. Cheers.

[@richardlellisjr]

Earlier this year I bought a 75” Q85 Samsung. So I bought the Arc. Very nice but didn’t complete the picture. So I bought two SL ones. More expansive but I didn’t quite feel a full experience. Reluctantly I dumped even more money into it with the Sub gen 3. I am totally happy. Way more than I wanted to invest in a TV setup but the results speak for themselves. Subsequently I bought two more SL ones for music in the bedroom. It’s great. Nothing I the kitchen though…..

[@preezy1981]

The arc is great when it is in a full set up. The arc ALONE..underwhelming unfortunately

[@JU0DAS]

Scenarios was so fun that it made me to smash that like button

[@KrisWebber]

In your larger showroom, the ARC is in a wall that is recessed. How does this affect the side firing drivers when it comes to L & R sound effects and soundstage?

[@indoorgrowwithspanky6382]

I just ordered the beam/mini sub combo. I have an 86"LG TV, I think the beam will fill my room with sound. The arc is sweet, and probably deadly with the full size sonos sub, but just solo I found the arc didn't have enough "thump" as to what I'm looking for. Don't get me wrong, the arc is amazing on its own, but the beam/mini combos price is too good to pass up!! As for "deals" sonos is pretty stiff with their prices, and merchants have very little "wiggle room" for profit margins.

[@sprecklesville]

If you were on a budget what would you go for - beam gen 2 + sub-mini OR beam gen 2 + 2 x One SLs? Main use movies and steaming music

[@smarthomesounds]

Our latest video coming out very soon along with sound tests will hopefully answer your question... 🙏 However, I personally opted to go for the One SL rears first before getting a Sub Mini as I wanted more immersion whilst watching movies and I also felt that the bass from the Beam Gen 2 was enough for me and my space without the addition of the Sub Mini. The main use of my setup is for movie watching rather than streaming music so it made more sense for me to add rears first. However, If you're regularly listening to bass heavy tracks or really after that extra low-end in action movies, then the Sub Mini might be better to go for first - Lui 😀

[@robertoruiz3784]

Gracias por el video, la decisión siempre es difícil, pero me has ayudado mucho.

[@Herber1212]

Haha those scenarios are great thanks for trying to include an answer for as many as possible I’m the second scenario 🎉

[@smarthomesounds]

Glad you enjoyed them! 😆

[@AndrasHatvani]

The Arc with two Ones as surrounds is more than enough in my 35m2 living room so that I don’t even have to consider a sub. The bass is overwhelmingly deep and immersive with movies but somehow it doesn’t work well with music.

[@craiggoulding5429]

Probably for music and it depends on the music you are playing, better off just using the 2 x One's and a Mini-Sub.

[@fpintodias]

Hello. Thank you for this review. Is it my impression or the Beam has a more detailed and sharp sound on the voices and higher frequencies? On this clip that was the impression I had. Thank you.

[@hutch3459]

Thanks for this video! I left this as a comment following your previous video!

[@carloslara8117]

I think I have a medium size home but I want the Arc with the mini sub

[@laguna111]

You can’t use the sub mini with arc, it’s not compatible, arc can only match with gen 3

[@yurymol]

@@laguna111 you can, actually.

[@mrgold3591]

@@laguna111 The sub mini can be used with the Arc; but, you can't pair dual sub mini together or pair the sub mini with the larger Sonos subs.

[@MichaelDinsmore]

You don’t specifically talk about the music only experience between the two. How do they compare for just pure listening to music?

[@jaredortega5191]

I've got the beam, normal sub and two ones, i wouldn't change it for the world

[@GadgetsGearCoffee]

Love the scenarios, helpful! But what is "medium living room" considered? Mine is almost a square with 1 side open, the opposite side a floor to ceiling glass wall/balcony door, 120sq ft, that medium sized?

[@orangeofmars2835]

The dialogue clarity of the Beam sounded much better to me.

[@vincentvalentin8177]

I already have the older playbar. Now considiring adding the sub mini. Is that a good addition?

[@DK-gz6vw]

What would be your advice for large room with vaulted ceiling for best Dolby atmos result?

[@mrgold3591]

You might have to look at the Arc with upward firing speakers for Atmos and Era 300. Adding a Gen 3 Sub or a dual sub set-up would also improve the overall sound in 5.1 and Atmos content.

[@BobNarongchai]

Living room is about 280 sq.ft with 65" TV Would Arc + sub Mini be a good combination? May add SL100 for rear speakers in the future... may be pretty much considering arc + sub mini + 2 sl 100 for future addition

[@andrewelliott1939]

Would the Sub mini much enhance an Arc in a small living room? I suspect that the Sonus would be overkill.

[@danielmiller7245]

I have been fixing with my brain on what to buy for a long time, this video might have helped. cinema room is about 4m x 8m 75"TV mounted on a TV unit (2m) I am going for the ARC sound bar then next year add a gen3 sub then later 2 rears as budget allows this way it will not sting so bad on first purchase but that sounder will give me an Atmos experience I currently run a 12 year old Sony 5.1 surround setup and I love it! but it was less that £500 even 12 years ago, so it was never high end! we only use the cinema room for movie night (and when I want to watch something diferent from the wife). so its bluray or Netflix thanks guys for the video

[@Hamish.]

Get rears first

[@danielmiller7245]

@@Hamish. hey thanks for the reply. Do you mean I should buy rears before the subs? Or rears before the bar? (Sorry for stupid question)

[@Hamish.]

@@danielmiller7245 rear speakers before sub, will make a bigger difference. Atmos is well and good but the rears will enhance the experience more imo

[@danielmiller7245]

@@Hamish. brilliant thank you kindly for the reply! I will 100% take that advice thank you! now I just need a good deal on the ARC bar :-).

[@sabrinacherubin6846]

Do you mind sharing where you got the white TV console from.

[@JeevanKumar-ue2mq]

I have the beam gen 2 in a medium size room. Would you recommend adding the 2 Sonos one for a surround or the sub mini first if budget was a constrain. Which would give me a better audio output

[@paedu]

If I may ask. What do you consider a medium sized room? Mine us around 25m2, I don't know if I should consider it small or medium. 😅

[@optus2011]

great scenarios :) Alex & Sophie

[@kyriackyriac]

Need your help guys. I’ve got a Playbase and have a good budget. I bought a Sub Mini and have now discovered Era 100s don’t work with the Playbase. Should I replace by Playbase then, and if so, with what? Arc or Beam 2? Pls advise 🙏🏼

[@smarthomesounds]

If you’ve got the budget we would go with the Arc as you already have the Sub mini. Dolby Atmos on the Arc will be a big step up in clarity and the overall immersion especially with the Sub mini & 2 x Era 100’s. Hope this helps and thanks for watching.

[@kyriackyriac]

@@smarthomesounds thanks gents. Really appreciate you coming back. I’ll let you know!

[@marianghibu8842]

Hello. What wireless setup do you recomend for a small living room(18m2)in a flat (with neighbours) . The prices are Sonos arc : 600 $ ,one sl: 180$ or era100: 280$ Sonos beam 2: 400$, sub mini : 450$, one sl: 180$ or era100: 280$ Q930b : 550$ Q990b: 750$ I want to use it for streaming music, movies from platforms, xbox. What to you recomend for that money. Thank you

[@little_feather98]

I'm thinking of getting the Sonos beam (Gen 2) underneath the Samsung serif tv in front of my couch and having one Sonos sub-mini behind the tv and two Sonos ones (Gen 2) on each side of my couch. Then I'm thinking of getting Philips Hue light strips for the tv and adding on a sync box to connect it with my ps5 and switch. Is this an overkill?

[@richardsharpe5681]

Listened to the difference through a set of headphones, and gotta say, the Beam /mini combo sounder a bit smoother and fuller than the Arc. Which I'm pleased about as I have a Beam Gen2 and my Sub Mini arrives tomorrow 👍😁

[@Kano-0492]

The end is genius made

[@MrDexterSr]

Listening to this on my arc + sub gen 2 😂

[@MrDexterSr]

The beam + sub mini has much more bass!

[@Laptopdog78]

@@MrDexterSr How do you know?………don’t tell me you own both?

[@MrDexterSr]

@@Laptopdog78 no sir, I have a beam in the master bedroom but no sub mini just yet. I’m referring to the test samples they played in the video. To me there a noticeable increase of bass when comparing the arc by itself to the beam + sub mini 👍🏾

[@F-MK96]

sub and beam2 for sure.... the arc without subwoofer sounds empty to me but I wouldnt get any of them... jbl bar 800 is a beast now

[@AngeloGoll]

Medium space? how many square meters?

[@robinthalco]

i have the arc + 2 one sl. maybee later i buy the sub mini but not sure now

[@Birmingham_racing]

I was having this debate but with the gen 3. Moved on from sonos since then

[@ny1fanta]

I still have the beam one with the big sub, should I upgrade to beam 2? I have a decent size room

[@mrgold3591]

I would upgrade to the Beam Gen 2 if your TV has eArc and you can reuse the Bean Gen 1 in another room. The IKEA Symfonisk bookshelf or One SLs are excellent for rear surrounds if you are not ready for Era 100/300 just yet.

[@edgarcmtz]

After moving my arc + sub + surrounds set up out of my bedroom and into my media room, I downgraded my bedroom to a beam + sub mini. Have to say, I am disappointed with how drastic the downgrade was, but I don’t want to have 2 separate Sonos set ups that expensive. I can’t justify that much investment into home audio.

[@junesebastian392]

i got the playbar with sub mini, which is better compare to beam with sub mini?

[@sunefrodi]

In the test I think Beam with sub mini was much better in your test.

[@audie-cashstack-uk4881]

Gen 2 beam a sub and two rears small to medium room and ar plus rears sub large room..I have beam gen 2 rests and big sub it's amazing square room flat walls low ceiling

[@maej123456]

bought the arc, and i really miss the rear speakers and sub of my previous 15 year old $150dlr home theater system. i feel it was a downgrade in power, but the one thing that got bettee was spacial audio, you can definitely tell where the sound come from, but only limited to the front space. i still think sonos is overpriced for what it offers

[@aalin81da7]

Well i have a living with 16mp so not much and i purchase now ARC + Sub MINI and 2 ONE SL. I purchase the Arc because its a bit better than Beam and my TV have 55" so the Arc will be in front of the TV.

[@laguna111]

How did you use sub mini with arc, it’s not compatible

[@danielpauley9113]

I have a 55 inch Sony oled. I don’t have a huge room. I play video games, watch Netflix, movies and listen to music. I am getting the Gen 3 sub and two Era 300 side speakers. I can’t decide if the beam or arc is best????

[@Theplasticninja14]

For me, the sub mini + beam sounded better than the arc, I asked my wife too and she thought the same

[@sivur]

I asked your wife too and she said you lie a lot and that your penis size leaves much to be desired.

[@itsvarung]

Interesting video. Reality could be different but What I could make out from the recordings is this: 1. Beam and mini are sounding as if they are trying too hard and end up sounding harsh due to high frequencies being too pronounced. 2. The arc sounds more balanced in all frequencies but yes, the low end grunt is not that pronounced for an action movie. 3. The objects tracking in Arc is just awesome. You could literally trace sound for projectiles going from right to left, through center as if it had speakers dedicated to itself. Just based on the recordings, I would go with the arc and add a sub when I get a chance.

[@danielchapter70128]

Bro straight up asked our five year plan / hopes and dreams 😂

[@Joker-fx6mh]

I have beam and sun mini, however I’m noticing a weird electric static noise in the backgrounds of shows or games. Like I hear great sound when I’m staring up front of soemthing in a game but then when I turn around and hear it behind me, it’s a weird static sound. Don’t like it

[@danielchapter70128]

I got the Beam 2 ($150 off open box Black Friday kit!), and liked it so much, that I decided to order the sub Gen 3 to pair with my 65” LGC2 OLED screen. (This is for a small -ish 13’x14’ dad-cave Game/film room). The larger TV room/ family room has a BOSE sound touch 130, which has been brilliant. I’m loving my Beam two paired with the LG in my game room all by itself, and cannot wait to unbox the Sub Gen 3; hope I don’t crack any windows 😂

[@mrgold3591]

I added a Beam Gen 1 with 2 Symfonisk rear surrounds in my 14'X22' Office with a LG 55" C1 in a pop-up cabinet. It sounded really good especially compared to the LG OLED speakers. Later added the Gen 3 sub and HOLY CRAP what an improvement with movies! This set-up sounds better compared to my 77" C1 with the Nakamichi 7.2.4 in our main viewing room. The wife and I spend more time in the office watching movie compared to the main room. Planning to replace the Nakamichi with Arc system. I would go for the sub before adding surrounds; but, surrounds will improve the overall sound also.

[@STORMIE.]

Beam 2 + Sub Mini sounded better than the ARC :)

[@mrgold3591]

I added the Gen 3 Sub to my Gen 1 Beam+2 Symfonisk surrounds. That is a excellent combination and you will hear and feel more bass with the addition for a greatly improved theater sound with the sub. Not the same impact with cable TV with channels in stereo mode.

[@easteasy4136]

arc+sub mini

[@ws_media5435]

Hey, I have looked at multiple options and my answer is Beam + sub mini + 4 SLs (2 front and 2 rare). Is that something u could test?

[@myinlawsitsupport972]

I don’t think you can run two SLs in the front as right and left channels in a 5.1. The soundbar handles those.

[@thomasjacques5286]

If needed could you add a second Sub-mini at a later date.

[@albertofranco5619]

lol nope 😂

[@Sam-Retina]

So is G.O.A.T.

[@justbored234]

Arc imho is a little bit ugly / too big so like many others in the comments the bg2&2one&sub mini is the way to go 😅😅

[@M82RKY]

All this 'humming' and 'harring'...... Fuck it, sub gen 3 purchased!

[@trevorkolmatycki4042]

Arc + Sub + 2x Play5… Is Ludicrous!

[@smarthomesounds]

:-)

[@qdis662]

I'm definitely more of a Ben kind of guy...

[@amygsm]

I’m John but poorer

[@bryans2790]

Getting bored seeing same movie clip

[@Birmingham_racing]

I don't care about the video clip I'm here for his opinion on sound

[@dpatrick813]

Sonos is overpriced trash 🚮 that works half the time.

[@andyforshaw8489]

Similar to the Apple products.

[@Alfred_Pennyworth]

😂

[@dpatrick813]

@@andyforshaw8489 Yeah

[@Laptopdog78]

@Andy Forshaw……….Yes of course Apple products only work half the time pmsl…….That’s how you build a trillion dollar company!! By having products that don’t work!!! SMH 🤦‍♂️

[@brzky]

They are so trash that they increased their products price and still have trouble with the demand.

[@Nemhoney143]

How about beam2, sub gen 3, 2 era 300s?