Sonos brings home cinema-like sound with their new Arc, Five, and Sub

Sonos today launched not one, but three new home audio solutions designed to bring cinematic sound quality to your living room (or just about any homely space).

The American audio company unveiled the new Sonos Arc soundbar, the updated Sonos Five high-fidelity speakers, and the third-gen Sonos: Sub wireless subwoofer to their lineup at attractive prices.

Let's get straight into the details.

Tip: You can also check them out, and even pre-order at https://trysonos.sg/.

Sonos Arc

The Sonos Arc is a smart sound bar meant to deliver an ultra-wide soundstage with its impressive driver array and support for Dolby Atmos Surround Sound.

In it are 11 high-performance transducers with a dedicated amplifier for each driver. Of the 11, two are upward-firing, of which Sonos claimed to be an essential feature in providing the 3D audio effect for depth and height.

The Sonos Arc sound bar adjusts its sound profile using a host of software optimisations. It depends on the home theatre set-up, the source of the audio, and it checks whether the content supports stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1, or Dolby Atmos.

Other software magic includes Speech Enhancement for clarified vocals, Night Sound for softening loud explosions, and its built-in Trueplay tuning technology that adjusts the acoustics based on the profile of the room.

Hardware features include its four microphones for picking up voice commands from any corner of the room.

The Sonos Arc uses a 270-degree plastic grille to hide its numerous drivers and hardware. Arc can be placed in front of a standing TV set or mounted to a wall. It uses an HDMI eARC or ARC cable for connecting to your audio source.

It's compatible with the Sonos S2 app, as well as other remote control alternatives, such as the Apple AirPlay 2, and voice-controls such as Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

The Sonos Arc will retail at US$799 (S$1,100) globally. Interested audiophiles in Singapore can pre-order the sound bar starting from 7 May 2020, before it becomes available on 10 June 2020. The official retail price here is $1,499.

Sonos Five

The Sonos Five high-fidelity speaker replaces the popular Play:5 (Gen 2). It has the same acoustic architecture as the Play:5, but it now comes with increased memory and faster processing power, alongside a new wireless radio for wireless playback.

For folks who are new to Sonos' flagship speakers, the Sonos Five comes with three custom-designed woofers for rich bass, and its sealed architecture helps mitigate reverb and echo.

It comes with six built-in Class-D digital amplifiers, three tweeters (one in the centre, two angled to the sides), and three mid-woofers for tracks with vocals.

Its phased array allows its wide soundstage to be steered to the left, right or centre, so there's no need to tilt or turn the Sonos Five when it's in use.

It's typically available in Black (with a black audio grille), but Sonos will now offer - for the first time - white Sonos Five with a white grille. It's typically valued for its versatility as a standalone speaker or part of a more extensive sound set-up in homes.

The Sonos Five retails globally at US$499. However, the Sonos Five will be available for pre-order here starting 7 May 2020, with general availability in Singapore starting much later at 10 July 2020. Official local retail price sits at $799.

Sonos Sub (Gen 3)

The third-generation of Sonos' wireless bass speaker comes with the same iconic design and purpose - it dramatically boosts the bass of any home speaker set-up.

It now packs updated internals that improves its memory and processing power, alongside a new wireless radio.

Two Class-D amplifiers primarily power these bass speakers. It also contains two force-cancelling drivers at the centre that face inwards, helping to eliminate vibration and rattle.

The Sonos Sub is meant to be an add-on for bass lovers, and it's compatible with the new Sonos Arc, alongside the old Sonos Beam, Sonos Playbar, and Sonos Playbase.

Globally, it retails at US$699. Pre-orders in Singapore start on 7 May 2020, with general local availability coming online around 10 June 2020. Locally, it goes at $1,149.​​​​

The three new systems here are all built upon Sonos' latest operating system, S2, which also means that they are compatible with the Sonos S2 app. The app is available globally in June 2020.

This article was first published in Hardware Zone.