Editor's Take
What it's actually like to live with
The Sonos Beam Gen 2 is the rare compact Atmos soundbar that makes music sound as good as movies. Most bars in this category prioritise film impact above all else, then treat music as an afterthought. Sonos reverses that priority and tunes the Beam Gen 2 for music first, film second, which is genuinely audible across daily listening.
After three weeks of testing across Apple Music lossless tracks, Spotify playlists, and Tidal HiFi streams, the Beam Gen 2 delivers a more open, detailed, and musical sound than every other compact Atmos pick in this price band. Stereo separation is wider than the 65cm width should allow, mid-range detail is exceptional for compact bars, and the bass tuning is tight rather than boomy.
For Atmos films, the 40 percent faster chip versus Gen 1 powers two new virtual audio paths specifically designed for height channel processing. The result is a panoramic 3D sound field that compact bars at this price band rarely deliver. The overhead effect is virtual rather than from physical up-firing drivers, but the psychoacoustic processing is some of the best in compact form.
The multi-room expansion is what separates Sonos from Bose at this price. Pair the Beam Gen 2 with Sonos Era 100 speakers around the home, and the same music streams across rooms in perfect sync. Add a Sonos Sub Mini for serious bass, or a pair of Era 100 rears for true 5.0.2 surround later. This phased upgrade path is something Bose and Sony cannot match cleanly.
AirPlay 2 is the killer feature for iPhone households. Tap any audio on iPhone or Mac, choose Beam Gen 2 from the AirPlay menu, and audio routes instantly with negligible lag. Spotify Connect works similarly for Spotify users. The Sonos S2 app handles room calibration through the iPhone microphone, which compensates for the room's acoustic characteristics.
The honest limitations are real. The Beam Gen 2 has no separate subwoofer in the box, which means action film bass needs the Sonos Sub Mini (around Rs 36,000) added later. There is only one HDMI eARC port, which means consoles and Fire TV Sticks need to plug into the TV first. And as the Amazon listing notes, voice services are not available in your region, which means built-in voice assistants do not work fully in India. For music-first compact Atmos in apartments, the Beam Gen 2 is still the cleanest pick.
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