The Modern Sonos Arc Ultrais pack with 15 amps and 14 drivers , yield theDolby Atmos soundbarthe power to procreate 9.1.4 channels of sound , grant to the companionship . That ’s a giving stair up from the originalSonos Arc , an 11 - driver , 5.1.2 organization . And while the increase in surround channels ( from 5 to 9 ) and height line ( from 2 to 4 ) is impressive , it ’s the lonely “ 1 ” in the centre of the Arc Ultra ’s channel setup that might make the big difference .
That middle .1 represents the low frequency effect ( LFE ) duct — the one that ’s punted over to a dedicatedsubwooferwhen you have one available . It ’s the channel that throw movies the thick , hefty rumble we most close tie in with theatrical sound . On its own , the Sonos Arc does a decent job with humiliated frequencies , but it bank on the same drivers that produce its mid - frequency sounds to do so . These drivers are n’t optimized for LFE sound , which is why many Arc buyers supply aSonos Sub or Sub Mini , increasing the monetary value of their system by as much as $ 799 .
The Arc Ultra , however , possesses a new “ Sound Motion ” equipment driver — a four - motor , dual - tissue layer woofer . ( That ’s the orthogonal box at the top of the exploded image below . ) It has two tissue layer ( the portion of the machine driver that move atmosphere ) in an country that would normally only have room for a single membrane . Sonos order this strange agreement “ delivers particular bass in a revolutionary savorless , compact figure , ” and claims that it gives the Ultra “ double the basso ” of the unconstipated Arc .
The Sound Motion driver is found on patented applied science that Sonos acquire when in bought Mayht , a Netherlands - base audio company , in 2022 . This2020 article in audioxpress.comexplains how Mayht ’s driver technology works .
But what , exactly , does “ double ” mean ?
“ When we say Arc Ultra acquire up to twice as much basso as Arc , ” Sonos told Digital Trends , “ it mean that at maximal volume there is 6dB more low - close output . This means that Arc Ultra has more dynamic capableness in the low remainder which present subject with more realism . ”
interrogatively , the Arc and Arc Ultra have the same 50Hz demarcation on their low - destruction frequency response . So while bass wo n’t be any low on the Ultra , it will be tatty , which will give it enceinte impact .
I attain out to Hilmar Lehnert for his thoughts on how Sonos might tune the Ultra . Lehnert is one of the few hoi polloi with deep knowledge of both Sonos and Mayht . He worked at Sonos for nine years , the last two as the company ’s audio engineering science manager . When he left in 2020 , he start a stint as a member of Mayht ’s circuit board of advisers , which finish when the company was acquired in 2022 .
I asked Lehnert if ship lower frequency to the Sound Motion driver would improve the execution of the remaining driver . He concurred .
“ It definitely would , ” he say . “ This subdue the demand for the mid woofer to move a lot of air and their excogitation and tuning can focalize on further improving ghostlike and spacial public presentation . ”
Can the Sound Motion driver replace a consecrated zep ? No . As much as it would be awe-inspiring if a single soundbar could satisfy both role , we ’re not there yet . However , Sonos ’ young driver technology narrows the opening . For some folks , it could make the difference betweenwantinga subwoofer andneedingone .
This would n’t be a first for soundbars — I was mightily impressed by theKlipsch Flexus Core 200‘s solo freshwater bass performance — but it would a first for aSonos soundbar . That could go a longsighted way toward making kinfolk experience better about the Ultra ’s slenderly more expensive price .
