While the Playbar and Playbase offered only a digital optical connection, the Beam (like the newer Arc) has HDMI (there's an optical adapter too). The sole purpose of the Beam’s one HDMI connection is to receive audio from the TV, using ARC (Audio Return Channel). There's no support for eARC as there is on the Sonos Arc, but because the Beam doesn't support Atmos of any type, let alone the high bitrate Dolby TrueHD version of it, eARC isn't necessary. Do not install near any heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other apparatus that produce heat. Integration with the Sonos network gives the Beam (Gen 2) something many other soundbars don’t have: an easy way to upgrade your home cinema system. While the new Beam works very well on its own, adding in a sub and rear speakers is a great way to add to your setup over time. If you already have a Sonos Roam portable speaker, you’ll be able to ‘throw’ your audio between the Bluetooth speaker and the Beam using the Sound Swap feature.

Like the original Beam, the new Sonos Beam (Gen 2) is a compact soundbar that can easily fit under most TVs on a cabinet or be mounted to a wall to keep your living room clutter-free. Once you’ve done this, you’ll be able to use the Beam’s room calibration feature, TruePlay, which tunes the ‘bar’s sound to the dimensions of your room. It’s a deep, spacious, atmospheric delivery, with echoes and reverb and three-dimensionality, but, unsurprisingly, it’s not surround sound. For that you’ll need to add a couple of Play:1s or pay the extra for the Arc, which is an upgrade on the Beam in every conceivable way, not least in terms of its room-filling ability. You’ll also find a small LED light strip on the top of the soundbar, which lights up as you interact with it, and another LED beneath the microphone icon to let you know when the soundbar’s mic is enabled. Siri: you’ll need the Apple Home app. Add your AirPlay2-compatible Sonos speakers to the Apple Home app and then use an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV to ask Siri to play music (currently limited to Apple Music). Learn more

As is the norm for Sonos speakers, you will be prompted during installation to tune the Beam’s sound using the company’s Trueplay system, which uses your iPhone’s microphone to tailor the sound to your room and usual listening position (Android phones are still not supported).

Gunshots echo and ricochet far out to the left and right, and much further into the room than you’d expect. Use the included Sonos Optical Audio Adapter to connect the soundbar to your TV if you don’t have an HDMI ARC port. One new connectivity feature for the Sonos Beam is HDMI eARC compatibility, which the company says will bring a “richer, more immersive, and higher definition sound experience”. Compared to the HDMI ARC connectivity found on the original Beam, eARC can handle more advanced audio formats and deliver superior audio quality. One key difference between the new Sonos Beam and its predecessor is the design of the grille, which is now made of plastic rather than a woven fabric. This design choice is more in keeping with the Sonos Arc, and as the company points out, it’s far easier to clean than dust-attracting fabric. We asked Sonos whether the new grille brings any acoustic benefits, but the company told us it’s purely an aesthetic choice. Five far-field microphone array uses advanced beam forming and multi-channel echo cancellation so your voice assistant can be readily activated.In terms of wireless connectivity, the Beam (Gen 2) supports Wi-Fi and Apple AirPlay 2 with compatible iOS devices. There’s also the option to hook it up to your router with an Ethernet cable if you want a more stable connection to your home network. And while the Beam is almost unbelievably spacious for its size, it doesn’t quite fool you into thinking you’re listening to a proper surround sound system. Effects stretch right across the front of the room, well beyond the dimensions of the screen but they don’t stretch up the sides of the room.

And if football is your primary concern, you’ll be delighted to hear that the Beam does a superb job with the beautiful game, recreating the crowd noise in spacious, voluminous and atmospheric fashion, keeping commentary clear and making stadium announcements open and echoey, just as they should be. In theory, this should make it seem as though the sound from your films is coming at you from every angle; we weren’t entirely convinced, however. While the Beam (Gen 2) has a vast soundstage and powerful audio performance for its size, we didn’t experience the kind of overhead sound you get from its larger sibling, the Sonos Arc (which has those all-important upfiring drivers). You can read more about this more capable—and expensive—soundbar in our Sonos Arc review. Clean only with dry soft cloth. Household cleaners or solvents can damage the finish on your Sonos components.

Overview

Saying that we were very impressed by the width of the soundstage. You get the sense that the action onscreen is taking place all around you without adding additional rear left or right speakers, like the Sonos One SL. Besides the neatness of the connection, the other advantage of using HDMI ARC is that it allows the Beam a certain amount of control over your TV, as long as it supports CEC (Consumer Electronics Control). This means that, thanks to voice support on the Sonos Beam, you can turn on your TV and adjust the volume with voice commands.

This is a pure SCAM, with one software update, you Sonos turned my "Beam" into an expensive paperweight and forcing me to buy a product. What is the guaranty that the same will not happen again?

On the subject of sound formats, it’s important to ensure all of your sources are sending Dolby Digital signals to your TV, and that the TV can accept and send them to the Beam natively. Depending on the devices involved, this can be a fiddly process, but it’s worth making the effort as Dolby Digital signals result in a far better performance. Refer all servicing to Sonos qualified service personnel. Servicing is required when the apparatus has been damaged in any way, such as power-supply cable or plug is damaged, liquid has been spilled or objects have fallen into the apparatus, the apparatus has been exposed to rain or moisture, does not operate normally, or has been dropped. Effects pan smoothly across the front of the room, and at the end of the scene a helicopter is heard in the far-right corner of the room with a weighty thrum before it eventually appears at the screen’s right edge. There’s a nice height to the delivery, too. It’s not just a wide soundstage, but a tall one. It really is impressive for the size. Clean only with dry soft cloth. Household cleaners or solvents can damage the finish on your Sonos products. Prices valid in stores (all including VAT) until close of business on 29th November 2023. (Some of these web prices are cheaper than in-store, so please mention that you've seen these offers online.)