The North American firm debuts in the headphone sector, this time focusing on the most demanding user with a fairly well-rounded product focused on delivering everything it promises.
We analyze in depth the new Sonos Ace, the headphones that come to end the reign of Apple and Sony in the sector. Discover all their details and if they are truly worth it.
As we always tell you, it is better to see it with your own eyes, and that is why we invite you to stop by. YouTube Channel de Actualidad Gadget, in which we leave you the complete unboxing of this product, along with a detailed analysis of its design and a look at its main functionalities.
Sonos design in your ears
It is obvious that the Ace maintains the design idiosyncrasy that Sonos has been maintaining in recent years. Striking is the fact that they have opted for a new variant of white (soft), but its matte black remains pristine, my favorite color for this type of product. Whatever the color chosen, both have a properly treated polycarbonate and on which not even a simple fingerprint will rest, it is appreciated.
They have an extendable stainless steel headband, this adapts to the head and remains fixed in position. In the same way, The rotating mechanism of the earmuffs regulates the pressure, They adapt to facial contours and create remarkable acoustic insulation.
The materials used They seemed light to me (312 grams), They feature memory foam pads covered in vegan leather. We have different firmness in the headband and headphones, which is appreciated in daily use.
As a curiosity, Each headphone has a different color tone on its pad, which, by the way, is removable and washable. As always with Sonos, luxury is in the detail, how much luxury and how much detail.
The button panel deserves special mention, excessive from my point of view, and crowned by a status indicator LED which, although it is common in Sonos, seems to me to negatively affect the design. I have plenty of buttons, I would have trusted everything to the spectacular multi-function metal slider that has been included in the right earpiece. Curious, considering that Sonos maintains a touch interaction system in its speakers, something it has completely dispensed with in these headphones.
Technical characteristics and sound
Let's start with the headphones, which feature a 40 millimeter dynamic speaker on each side. It has a design that, according to brand representatives, allows balance the sound and eliminate distortions, to precisely respect each of the frequencies.
Its acoustic architecture with power port (and a lot) the bass, especially if we opt to activate active noise cancellation.
How can we get the most out of the Sonos Ace? First of all we can enjoy content Lossless (lossless) via Bluetooth or its USB-C port, something essential for our test, which we carried out through Apple Music. We must especially take into account that, in addition to lossless audio, this platform offers us music Dolby Atmos another of the main assets of the headphones.
Let's talk now about what we thought of the sound. As on other occasions, I always flee from current commercial music with which, much to my regret, I do not fully sympathize. We throw at play with the main themes of Queen, Artic Monkeys, Fito & Los Fitipaldis, Héroes del Silencio and a mix with Disney's greatest hits.
You hear the medium and high with great precision. We can clearly differentiate the instruments, voices and sounds that we can consider accessories, those that round out the experience and that tend to go unnoticed in most reproductions. As for the serious, They are present, very present where they need to be, I would say perhaps excessive on some occasions, meeting the requirements of the current market.
I have to say, as I already mentioned with the Sonos team in Paris on the day of its launch, I feel that the bass is accentuated a little more than necessary when you activate active noise cancellation, although I must say that this seems to have been resolved in the first update. This could be avoided with an equalizer setting, but the equalizer is unique for all listening modes, so reducing the bass with ANC would harm the bass without this mode.
- Also for calls: It has microphones and implements output noise cancellation so that we can be heard clearly. The result in our tests has been exceptionally good.
The sound is round, on par with Sonos, but I recommend using and enjoying it with transmitters that allow you to enjoy lossless audio.
Dolby Atmos and active noise cancellation
Sonos trusts everything once again to the software, to round out the experience through the virtualization of surround sound (Dolby Atmos). In this sense, not only can we enjoy music that is compatible and available on certain platforms, but it also makes these Sonos Ace a perfect complement to our home theater.
The Sonos Ace allow us to enjoy the complete (and I would say superior) experience with a Sonos Arc. With a simple gesture from the application we can losslessly transfer the sound that is playing on the TV through the sound bar directly to our headphones. This sound comes with features such as surround sound that can be rounded with the use of technology that allows real-time head tracking, what Apple called Spatial Audio at the time.
Excelsa, complete and round is how I can define the experience of enjoying audiovisual content. We have tried the Dark Knight trilogy through Bluray, compatible with Dolby Atmos, and we haven't missed our Sonos Arc + 2x Era 100 kit at all.
The Sonos team has promised us that this functionality will soon reach the rest of their sound bars, for now we just have to wait.
As for noise cancellation, we are faced with a fairly well-made product, we have three modes: No cancellation; With cancellation; Conscious mode. These allow us to adjust it to the needs of the moment, and all of them work very well, in accordance with the requirements and demands of the current market. However, I have to say that I have chosen to enjoy these Sonos Ace always avoiding noise cancellation, a mode that, the most veteran fans, will know has never been my favorite.
The app rounds out the experience
In this type of products, the application is essential. Sonos has done some very in-depth work with their app. Although it currently has details to polish that are being resolved with the latest updates (such as the misalignment of the player bubble at the bottom), The truth is that the application offers us endless possibilities beyond alternating the noise cancellation modes or "swapping" between the sound of the Sonos Arc and the Ace.
Among other things we can:
- Take advantage of its simplified equalizer
- Turn on head tracking with spatial audio
- Allow multiple connections simultaneously
- Activate and customize usage detection
- Customize the noise control button
- Update headphones
Little more to say about the Sonos application that integrates Apple Music, Deezer, Spotify, Amazon Music and dozens of other streaming services.
Editor's opinion
Sonos has entered the headphone front with its first product. He has decided to stand up directly to the elders, look into the eyes of Apple and Sony to greet them by offering a product that, like the rest of their products, is designed for the most exquisite, those who seek not only sound and versatility, but comfort and an experience that is only rounded off in a generalized environment of products from their brand.
Do I recommend the Sonos Ace? Without a doubt yes, at least if you are a regular user of the brand. Its cornerstone is the swap with its sound bars (an Apple user may perhaps see more appeal in AirPlay with spatial audio with the Apple TV) so these Sonos Ace are undoubtedly a round product, but they It is not for everyone, mainly because they cost 499 euros.
As for what they offer, They fully fulfill everything they promise: High quality sound; Exceptional user interface; Absolute integration and spectacular design. These headphones can be purchased now on the Sonos website and the usual points of sale such as El Corte Inglés or MediaMarkt. Now it's up to you to decide if they are really worth it.