WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:07.839 5 years ago, I was floored to discover that the original Sonos Arc is a pretty 00:00:05.279 --> 00:00:12.559 competent home theater audio solution, which when you consider that it's a 00:00:09.599 --> 00:00:17.119 soundbar, is pretty high praise. I liked it so much that I am still using it in 00:00:15.280 --> 00:00:20.240 my downstairs recck room to this day, where it has served everything from 00:00:18.560 --> 00:00:25.119 impromptu movie nights for my son and his friends to massive land parties with 00:00:22.960 --> 00:00:30.640 like a third of the company packed into my house. which is why I am really 00:00:27.359 --> 00:00:32.800 excited to check out the Sonos Arc Ultra 00:00:30.640 --> 00:00:37.040 along with the Sub4. 00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:42.079 Making a triumphant return is Sonus' ever adorable locking packaging. Ooh, 00:00:40.239 --> 00:00:45.600 and aside from the little bits of plastic on the lock, a mostly 00:00:43.760 --> 00:00:51.120 eco-friendly solution that can be thrown in the recycling. Love to see as much of 00:00:47.600 --> 00:00:53.680 that as possible. Wow, it looks very 00:00:51.120 --> 00:00:57.920 similar. I don't know what I was expecting. similar in some ways that I 00:00:55.760 --> 00:01:05.680 would prefer it wasn't. On the back, you have a very Spartan IO. And I don't mean 00:01:01.440 --> 00:01:08.080 this is Sparta. I mean like this is 00:01:05.680 --> 00:01:12.560 Sparta. There's nothing back here. We got our power input. We've got a 00:01:10.320 --> 00:01:16.960 microphone switch. I do like to see that. A hard switch for the built-in 00:01:14.240 --> 00:01:22.400 mic. An RJ45 Ethernet jack. Bluetooth pairing button. And one, and only one, 00:01:20.240 --> 00:01:28.880 HDMI port. That's right, my friends. While the Sonos Arc does use EERC, 00:01:26.240 --> 00:01:34.000 what it doesn't have is any kind of HDMI pass through. So, it will take up the 00:01:31.200 --> 00:01:37.520 EER port on your TV, which on some TVs can be one of the more fully featured 00:01:35.920 --> 00:01:42.880 one with support for higher refresh rates and resolutions and not give you 00:01:40.640 --> 00:01:48.079 any additional ports to plug your devices into. Maybe they'll make up for 00:01:44.799 --> 00:01:49.439 it with the accessories. 00:01:48.079 --> 00:01:55.840 Sorry, I couldn't even say that with a straight face. You get one power cable, 00:01:53.200 --> 00:01:59.680 one HDMI cobler. Not too long of one, mind you. You wouldn't want to spoil the 00:01:57.600 --> 00:02:04.399 kids. That ain't 5 ft, brother. Oh, okay. 00:02:02.960 --> 00:02:06.719 Damn it. Clearly a 3ft cable. 00:02:06.000 --> 00:02:12.720 Oh, yeah. I'm 3 and 1/2 ft tall. So, yeah. No, I thought you were 5' one, so 00:02:10.160 --> 00:02:15.520 it's like four, four and 1/2 ft. It's a 5ft cable. Before we fire it up, 00:02:14.480 --> 00:02:20.560 I feel like we should have a quick listen to something for a before and after since I conveniently have an arc 00:02:18.959 --> 00:02:26.680 installed already. It's still a soundbar, but man, 00:02:23.120 --> 00:02:26.680 it's pretty dec. 00:02:28.640 --> 00:02:36.700 But when you consider how big this room is, 00:02:33.519 --> 00:02:39.120 it does pretty okay. 00:02:39.120 --> 00:02:44.640 God, this movie is so good. 00:02:44.640 --> 00:02:51.040 The main benefit that Sonos is touting for the new Arc Ultra is their new sound 00:02:48.560 --> 00:02:55.680 motion speaker design. It's supposed to both sound better with reduced 00:02:52.959 --> 00:03:01.760 distortion and be smaller, allowing them to pack more channels into the new 00:02:57.360 --> 00:03:03.680 soundbar. So, they're advertising 9.1.4. 00:03:01.760 --> 00:03:07.040 So, that's nine surround channels, some of them direct, some of them bouncing 00:03:05.840 --> 00:03:14.000 off of stuff, though I don't know what they're planning to bounce it off of in that direction, as well as one sub 00:03:10.879 --> 00:03:17.280 channel. and then four height channels. 00:03:14.000 --> 00:03:19.360 Now, does it have a 0.1 even if you 00:03:17.280 --> 00:03:23.360 don't have a sub? Really? Like, is that what they advertise? They do say that a 00:03:21.519 --> 00:03:27.920 major benefit of the new design is dramatically improved bass. But of 00:03:25.280 --> 00:03:31.920 course, as always, Sonos can't decide whether they would rather sell you on 00:03:29.599 --> 00:03:36.640 the out of the box base of the soundbar itself or if they would rather sell you 00:03:34.080 --> 00:03:40.480 on well, but if you wanted the best experience, you'd probably have one of 00:03:38.720 --> 00:03:44.080 these. So, I kind of feel like we should try it both ways. It's funny. My notes 00:03:42.560 --> 00:03:50.239 say that it's smaller, but the first thing that I noticed is that it's actually wider. So, it's the height that 00:03:48.560 --> 00:03:55.280 I mean, yeah, I guess it's a little bit shorter. You know what, Sonos? Sure. 00:03:53.120 --> 00:03:59.280 Here's a plus. Regardless of the small differences in size, Sonos has 00:03:57.120 --> 00:04:03.439 apparently made the new one compatible with the existing wall mount. If you're 00:04:01.200 --> 00:04:06.879 going for just a quick and easy upgrade here, you'll love to see that. It should 00:04:05.040 --> 00:04:11.280 be noted, however, that because the new one is slightly lower profile, you may 00:04:09.439 --> 00:04:13.840 see the wall mount if you use the existing one. I'm sure there's a lot of 00:04:12.560 --> 00:04:17.759 you out there going, "Well, that's that's a very champagne problem." And 00:04:15.760 --> 00:04:22.400 you're right. But if you're the kind of person who spends the extra on Sonos for 00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:25.919 the aesthetic along with, you know, decent performance, it might be the sort 00:04:24.240 --> 00:04:30.880 of thing that you care about. Man, there's something to be said for the 00:04:28.080 --> 00:04:36.240 simplicity of this installation. You know, hate on sound bars all you want. 00:04:32.960 --> 00:04:39.680 Lord knows I've done it, but I have 00:04:36.240 --> 00:04:41.600 upgraded my sound system, 00:04:39.680 --> 00:04:44.560 albeit for a lot more money than I would have spent if I just went scrging for 00:04:43.120 --> 00:04:48.160 things on Facebook Marketplace, which by the way, we did a great video over on LT 00:04:46.560 --> 00:04:53.840 about. What are the odds this is just immediately working? I'm thinking zero. 00:04:50.880 --> 00:04:57.919 Cool. Let's fire up the app. Okay, I'm not quite upgraded yet. Hey, look at 00:04:55.360 --> 00:05:01.759 that, though. Pops right up. Let's go ahead and add it. This is super painless 00:04:59.840 --> 00:05:06.880 so far. Plays a little chime. uses the microphone to decode the pin to connect. 00:05:03.919 --> 00:05:12.240 And now it's connecting to my IoT Wi-Fi. I'm putting it in the recck room. 00:05:09.520 --> 00:05:19.199 Oh, shoot. Oh crap, I pressed the wrong thing. Oh, okay. 00:05:14.880 --> 00:05:21.840 Recruit is the in ceiling. Sonos um VR 00:05:19.199 --> 00:05:24.800 setup is the Darn it. There's an update. Several minutes. Okay, while we wait for 00:05:23.520 --> 00:05:29.520 this is a perfect time to tell you about our sponsor. Thanks to Plaude for sponsoring this 00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:32.560 video. Their note pin acts as your own personal executive assistant. helping 00:05:31.199 --> 00:05:37.600 you take notes during meetings, lectures, and other things you might be falling asleep listening to. 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Perfect. Okay, room VR. 00:06:15.759 --> 00:06:22.479 Okay, that was painless. Connect to TV. Nice. It's now connected to TV. Would 00:06:20.240 --> 00:06:25.360 you like to true play your Arc Ultra? So, this is supposed to do some room 00:06:24.080 --> 00:06:32.919 correction and tuning. Sure. I'm going to go stand over here, though. Make sure your room is quiet and your arc is 00:06:28.319 --> 00:06:32.919 placed where you want it. Begin tuning. 00:06:44.560 --> 00:06:52.479 It's actually a pretty impressive amount of surround that they get. It's 00:06:48.240 --> 00:06:53.840 obviously not real surround, but it kind 00:06:52.479 --> 00:06:58.800 of sounded like some stuff was behind me. Did you pick that up? Yeah. More 00:06:56.960 --> 00:07:03.840 impressively though, it was about the same effect on both sides, which given 00:07:01.759 --> 00:07:08.240 the difficulty of bouncing anything off of over there. 00:07:06.560 --> 00:07:11.880 All right. Oh, yeah. There we go. 00:07:14.880 --> 00:07:21.919 I don't have a sub connected, though. It's not going to completely change your 00:07:19.199 --> 00:07:26.560 world if you already have a Sonos arc. And I think Sonos clearly knows that 00:07:23.840 --> 00:07:31.759 given the replacement pricing. Both are at $9.99. But I am very impressed by 00:07:29.759 --> 00:07:37.199 what this thing can do without a subwoofer connected to it, which really 00:07:33.759 --> 00:07:38.960 makes me wonder if the $800 00:07:37.199 --> 00:07:43.840 for the sub 4 is going to somehow justify itself. Let's have a look at 00:07:41.039 --> 00:07:48.160 this bad boy. Sorry, I was just doubting myself cuz I'm like, that's it's a lot 00:07:46.000 --> 00:07:53.199 of bass for just a soundbar. And no, this is not activated. It's not on. 00:07:51.039 --> 00:07:57.840 That's pretty cool. In summary, the noticeable improvements would be to 00:07:54.800 --> 00:08:02.160 dialogue clarity and then especially to 00:07:57.840 --> 00:08:04.400 both the control and the depth of the 00:08:02.160 --> 00:08:10.160 bass out of just the soundbar. The question for me now though is with such 00:08:07.360 --> 00:08:16.960 strong bass experience, how can they possibly justify telling me, "Okay, I'm 00:08:13.280 --> 00:08:19.599 going to spend another $800 00:08:16.960 --> 00:08:23.199 on a sub4 here." To be clear, I'm not saying the Sub4 is bad. I haven't even 00:08:21.440 --> 00:08:29.199 listened to it yet. I'm just saying that for your typical Arc Ultra install where 00:08:26.960 --> 00:08:34.320 I imagine it's, you know, probably in a TV room or like in a an apartment or 00:08:32.320 --> 00:08:37.680 something like that. I just wonder if you're going to need it. That's all. I 00:08:36.159 --> 00:08:42.959 like the new matte finish. I'll tell you that much. Gloss. I mean, in theory, 00:08:40.719 --> 00:08:46.000 it's great. And then, look at it. Another key benefit is that it's 00:08:44.399 --> 00:08:49.360 supposed to be well, whatever generation we're comparing to, a key benefit is 00:08:47.600 --> 00:08:52.720 that this one's supposed to be smaller. I think Belle, is that right? 00:08:51.680 --> 00:08:59.200 Lighter. Lighter. Okay. Cuz it's not smaller. Oh, 00:08:56.480 --> 00:09:04.240 seriously? Their old power plug is not compatible. 00:09:02.720 --> 00:09:07.680 There's not enough clearance for it to go in. It's fine. It's not like it 00:09:05.839 --> 00:09:11.920 doesn't come with a new power cable. Just thought I might be able to drop it 00:09:09.040 --> 00:09:16.560 in. You guys ready to be impressed? It's funny because in the early days of 00:09:14.320 --> 00:09:20.480 Sonos, I really did not much care for their sound quality. I really liked the 00:09:18.640 --> 00:09:23.839 app. Or rather, I never liked the app. What I liked was the seamless 00:09:22.080 --> 00:09:27.519 integration with Google Play Music. Since then, it feels like they've done a 00:09:25.360 --> 00:09:31.040 complete 180 on both of those things. Now, I really appreciate the sound 00:09:29.440 --> 00:09:38.160 quality of their first party speakers and uh absolutely hate the control 00:09:34.080 --> 00:09:39.760 experience. It used to be so 00:09:38.160 --> 00:09:42.640 awesome. me. Sub best placement is not in corner. 00:09:42.000 --> 00:09:48.560 Me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me. That's where the wife wants it. So 00:09:46.080 --> 00:09:53.360 with that said, a key selling point of the new sub 4 is that you can put it 00:09:50.800 --> 00:09:57.519 anywhere. They literally advertise laying it down flat and like putting it 00:09:55.920 --> 00:10:02.240 under your couch as a use case. And they're like, "Yeah, yeah, it'll like correct for everything." Touch your 00:10:00.160 --> 00:10:06.000 mobile device on your Sub 4 with the flashing green and white light. Yep, 00:10:03.839 --> 00:10:10.519 sure. Touch your mobile device exactly as shown. This seems unnecessary. 00:10:10.560 --> 00:10:16.079 Nice. Oh, it that's weird. It didn't ask me to 00:10:14.480 --> 00:10:19.560 tune the room again. I feel like I should, though. Hey, 00:10:20.560 --> 00:10:27.040 this is the world's worst progress bar. Check this out. It just starts over and 00:10:25.279 --> 00:10:32.560 over and over again. It just goes to completion and then just starts over. 00:10:28.880 --> 00:10:34.320 That Sonos is not how progress bars 00:10:32.560 --> 00:10:38.640 work. There's a few key app controls. There's bass and treble adjustments for 00:10:35.839 --> 00:10:43.839 the Arc Ultra along with the loudness toggle that is just um I don't know, not 00:10:42.000 --> 00:10:48.480 working right now. Height audio, you can change the height. Sub audio, you can 00:10:46.079 --> 00:10:51.600 turn up and down and change the phase. Volume limiting in case your kids, you 00:10:50.399 --> 00:10:56.800 know, are going to turn it up or whatever and your neighbors might complain while you're not home. Speech 00:10:54.240 --> 00:11:00.480 enhancement is off by default, actually. Wow, there's a lot more settings in here 00:10:58.640 --> 00:11:05.200 since the last time that I played around with this. Got a nice little audio delay 00:11:02.880 --> 00:11:09.120 for TV dialogue sync. I wish they explained what some of the stuff was. TV 00:11:07.600 --> 00:11:12.320 autoplay, but Bluetooth is new. I'm not sure that 00:11:10.959 --> 00:11:17.519 I would ever use that if I have the option to stream via Wi-Fi, which I do. 00:11:14.399 --> 00:11:18.800 Um, but that's there. And also, you can 00:11:17.519 --> 00:11:22.399 add a voice assistant since it does have the built-in mic. Personally, I might 00:11:20.959 --> 00:11:25.920 just leave it off, but hey, there you go. Amazon Alexa and Sonus voice 00:11:24.560 --> 00:11:30.320 control. All right, let's finally listen to this thing. 00:11:28.720 --> 00:11:33.409 Impressively, 00:11:33.440 --> 00:11:41.920 even with the sub absolutely cranked, like all the way to plus 15, it's not 00:11:38.800 --> 00:11:44.240 overwhelming or boommy or muddy. It's 00:11:41.920 --> 00:11:49.360 sounds great. The only question in my mind is, do I need it? I can't say that 00:11:47.120 --> 00:11:54.079 for casually watching movies in the TV room that I would probably spend the 00:11:51.200 --> 00:11:58.959 extra $800 versus just having the soundbar itself. Of course, from what 00:11:56.399 --> 00:12:03.839 I've seen online, people who are really loving the Arc Ultra are mostly loving 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:07.720 its performance in music. So, why don't we listen to my favorite song? 00:12:11.680 --> 00:12:20.320 Okay, here we managed to make it sound a little boommy and unpleasant, but I feel 00:12:17.760 --> 00:12:24.079 like I had to really try to get it to do that. In short, if you're looking for 00:12:22.079 --> 00:12:29.200 basically the original Ark, but a little bit better, the Ark Ultra looks like a 00:12:26.399 --> 00:12:33.360 pretty great choice. It rounds out the performance, especially in the low end 00:12:31.200 --> 00:12:39.040 compared to the original Ark. And the setup is as simple as it's ever been. I 00:12:35.760 --> 00:12:41.920 mean, we got the whole thing done in 00:12:39.040 --> 00:12:45.680 10 minutes, including firmware updates. You can't really complain about that. 00:12:43.519 --> 00:12:50.160 Well, you can if you don't like spending $1,000. that video that I alluded to 00:12:48.000 --> 00:12:55.360 before that we did on LT, I'd say we ended up with in some ways even higher 00:12:53.440 --> 00:12:59.600 performance, especially when it comes to surround performance. And we spent about 00:12:57.440 --> 00:13:03.680 a quarter of the price and that included a subwoofer. But of course, there was a 00:13:02.000 --> 00:13:07.200 fair bit of hassle and some extra remotes. And it didn't have any of the 00:13:05.200 --> 00:13:11.519 modern creature comforts like Bluetooth connectivity or voice assistant 00:13:08.959 --> 00:13:16.800 connectivity or I don't even think it had ARC. I think we had to use like an 00:13:14.079 --> 00:13:21.100 optical cable old school style. Anyway, that's besides the point. The point is 00:13:18.399 --> 00:13:29.559 subscribe to ShortCircuit.