I tested Sonos' Beam Ultra soundbar: 5 upgrades I instantly noticed

If I think of one soundbar to rule them all – in terms of being the best-suited option for many people's spaces and, indeed, their TV sizes – then it'd have to be the Sonos Beam.

After two successful previous Beam product launches, the third soundbar in the series – replete with new Beam Ultra moniker – is now available for pre-order, ahead of its 29 September on-sale date.

I was able to test out Sonos' latest soundbar ahead of that launch date, attending a dedicated event in Berlin, which ran adjacent to the IFA tech expo's calendar, to see what new audio upgrades and enhancements it offers.

1. Better Dolby Atmos for more immersive delivery

While the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) does offer Dolby Atmos surround decoding, it's achieved through psychoacoustic processing to 'trick' your brain into hearing sounds across a broader, taller soundstage.

While the Sonos Beam Ultra also deploys a lot of processing, this new soundbar's 7.1.2 channel arrangement dedicates two upfiring channels to its setup – which deliver more notable height and surround sensibility.

These use waveform guides to project their output upwards and forwards, giving a greater sense of sound that envelops you. Even in the large space at The Apartment in The Hoxton Hotel's Charlottenburg location, this small soundbar was able to project.

That's a massive and obvious step up for the Beam series, closing the gap between what it and its bigger brother, the Arc Ultra, can deliver. The latter option is much larger, louder, more enveloping and (of course) more expensive – and therefore not suitable for everyone.

2. Improved physical surround upgrade options

One of the Beam 2's most obviously successful features is the capacity to upgrade it with rear speakers for a true surround sound output – and it works really well with a pair of Sonos SL-100 speakers, which is precisely how a colleague has upgraded his setup.

While the Beam Ultra can also absolutely be setup in that way, with a pair of wired rears, it also launches in tandem with the Sonos 27 app and the ability to integrate wireless surrounds using a pair of Sonos Wi-Fi-capable speakers – either the Move 2 or Play.

I was able to experience the process of setting this up at my demo setting – and it's a total cinch. Introduce a pair of speakers, powered on, and Sonos' new system is able to detect them when there's an HDMI signal output to the soundbar, communicate without you pressing a button, and create a rear pair.

There are caveats to that, though. It can only be a pair of the same speaker – so two Move 2 or two Play units. It also can't be a singular unit to act as a sole rear – it has to be a pair. And that might be costly. In the same breath, if you already have one Play then it's a good reason to purchase a second one.

Whether you choose wired or wireless, there's no further Sonos TruePlay setup required for this integration. You can casually insert the speakers into a home cinema grouping and remove them for separate use as you wish.

3. Enhanced dialogue, improved customisation

This one is part of considerable consumer feedback and a new app-controlled feature that's key to the Sonos 27 app – and will make all of Sonos' soundbars better at dialogue delivery, thanks to a four-step system (Low, Medium, High, Max) to dynamically boost its output.

In the Beam Ultra, however, there's a big hardware change to the central driver, which is one of the nine inside this soundbar's shell. Its positioned front and centre, but integrates a mid-range driver with embedded tweeter, to ensure that mid-to-upper output can really push dialogue.

I joked with the Sonos team that it ought to have five settings, with 'Nolan' being the upper end of the setup, because modern movies are increasingly dependent on huge theatrical output that just becomes compressed and muddied on a home setup. This new feature, however, helps resolve it.

Interestingly, the 'Max' setting is aimed at those who have particular difficulty in hearing, so will sound excessive to your average listener – but is exactly what a significant section of hard-of-hearing users have long been requesting from Sonos. So here it is!

4. Bigger bass for smaller spaces

The Beam Ultra's nine drivers mean it's got an additional four compared to the earlier Beam 2. That gave Sonos the opportunity to spread the low-end share among more of those units for a bigger, broader bass delivery.

My initial demo just showed off what the soundbar can do, no subwoofer or surrounds added – that came later, showing off the ultimate Beam setup – and it's clear that there's a bigger articulation of bass from this new product.

That said, maintain your expectations. The Apartment space is large and, realistically, too big for a Beam product – an Arc Ultra would be happier in such an environment. I'm yet to try it, but I suspect my smaller living room will give that bass the physical space it requires to sound bigger.

However you look at it, though, the Beam Ultra is designed, arranged and tuned to deliver more low-end across its soundstage than the earlier Beam (Gen 2) model. Which is precisely what many people will be looking for – no separate subwoofer cost or loss of floor space to concern.

5. Maintains small footprint design

My last big positive about the Beam Ultra might seem kind of obvious, but is nonetheless worth pointing out: the product's size.

The Beam series' success has been hinged on its relatively small scale. That's critical for people's living room sizes, their TV sizes, and simply not wanting a huge soundbar eating up lots of their personal space.

While the Beam Ultra adds more drivers, more bass and better Atmos delivery, it doesn't add much more in terms of physical dimensions. Yes, it's a bigger soundbar – but we're talking in centimetres rather than greater equations.

I think that's integral to the ongoing success of the Beam series. The Ultra is clearly the ultimate addition to the range, without reinventing the wheel with regard to what made the first two models such great successes.

Should I buy the Sonos Beam Ultra?

While I've not yet lived with the Sonos Beam Ultra as my own – that's incoming, as the brand is set to deliver review samples imminently – and therefore can't give specific praise for how it'll function in an average home setup, what's clear to me is what a major upgrade this new soundbar will be for many people.

Even Beam (Gen 2) owners have a genuine reason to upgrade, thanks to my points made above, but particularly with regard to the upfiring channel output, broader soundstage, enhanced bass potential, and future-proof upgradeability.

Any downsides? The ongoing lack of an additional HDMI passthrough is going to be a nitpick for any Sonos soundbar. And the higher price for the Ultra might see some consider the Beam (Gen 2) as a bargainous alternative that makes more sense.

Sonos' Beam series has long been the soundbar for many. In the Beam Ultra, however, the audio brand has not only produced an obvious upgrade for its current users, it's also created an exquisite offering for those seeking a massive TV audio enhancement for the first time.