Sonos Beam Ultra's directional audio shines in early demo

Sonos introduced the $699 Beam Ultra soundbar and $449 Ace Ultra headphones at its open house event. In a private demo, the 7.1.2 soundbar delivered enhanced bass, clear vocals, and detailed Dolby Atmos effects like walkie-talkie chatter. The author remains curious about its performance in a typical home setting.

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The Beam Ultra marks a hardware shift from the Beam Gen 2, which simulated spatial audio through virtualization. The new model physically incorporates side- and upward-firing drivers, with perforations across its top surface to emit height channels. Sonos positions the soundbar for televisions up to 65 inches, pricing it at $699, with a black finish option.

During the demonstration, Sonos wirelessly linked two Play portable speakers as rear channels, letting the soundbar focus on balanced front output. The author noted the demo room contained additional Sonos subwoofers that may have contributed to the punchy bass