Sonos Beam vs Bose Soundbar 500

In this post, we have included the comparison of Sonos Beam vs Bose Soundbar 500.

With the advancements in technology and the constant demand for all electronic devices to get thinner, lighter, and sleeker, televisions have adopted this modern design. The sound system on the Television takes a hit.

Often, the sound system/speakers in the Television tend to be the heaviest component and therefore turn into an obstacle for the engineers to devise a slimmer & sleeker Television.

Therefore, to optimise your experience and to fully utilise your new Television or living room setup, you must surely invest in a pair of Speakers.

However, buying a new pair of speakers requires a lot of effort, time, and money.

There are some decent soundbars you can consider buying if you are trying to enhance your home theatre system.

One might feel that this is not a wise investment and that the Television speakers might be sufficient.

Soundbars have audio clarity that today’s slender TVs’ built-in speakers cannot match.

They improve the entertainment and experience to complement the spectacular image quality of today’s 4K televisions.

It isn’t easy to go back to viewing TV s without a soundbar after you have used one.

If you are a gamer, music listener or even like to binge watch Netflix series, you understand the importance of a good sound system.

This article will talk about two specific speakers, mainly the Bose 500 and Sonos Beam soundbar.

We will briefly talk about each soundbar, its distinct features, and finally, compare the two.

First let us talk about the Bose Soundbar 500:

Bose Soundbar 500

Bose Soundbar 500

Key Highlights

• Dolby Digital, DTS
• Alexa and the Google Assistant
• Wi Fi, Bluetooth, and Apple airplay 2

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Bose, an American giant in the sound industry, was established in 1964 and is renowned for its high-quality audio devices worldwide.

They have a goal to create products and experiences their customers cannot get anywhere else.

Their brands are designed to complement the living room in terms of aesthetics.

If you are in the hunt for a soundbar that delivers a good soundstage, the Bose Soundbar 500 is a viable choice.

It has a neutral tone to it and offers a well-rounded soundstage. But if you are a bass enthusiast, the absence of sub-bass could be a problem.

Two touch-sensitive controls are located on the top of the soundbar, which is built of solid plastic.

A wire grill covers the front and sides. The soundbar has a pleasant and adequate overall experience.

The Bose Bass Module 500, which dramatically increases your bass efficiency but costs just as much as the Soundbar 500, can be purchased in addition to the Soundbar 500.

The Bose Surround Speakers can also provide you with authentic surround sound.

However, this can be pretty expensive.

The Bose soundbar has both Google Assistant and Alexa commands. You can access all major music streaming platforms as well using Wi-Fi.

Moreover, it also connects via ethernet cables and Bluetooth. If you instead prefer a remote, the Bose comes with a Universal remote that enables smooth navigation.

The Soundbar also comes with an ADAPTiQ headset.

To activate the surround sound quality, you must wear this ADAPTiQ headset that ships along with the Soundbar and walk around your room for 10 minutes, silently mapping it.

Bose soundbars are without a doubt the most advanced and popular soundbars on the market.

If you want the best and do not want to make any compromises, Bose is meant for you.

Bose relies on its superior support for most music services and voice assistants to compensate for average audio that you would hear in most soundbars at a cheaper price point.

The Bose Soundbar 500 is not compliant with the latest audio formats like Atmos, and it sounds better with the Bose subwoofer, which is available separately.

However, its user-friendly User interface and connectivity with Bose systems make it a wise choice.

Now let us talk about the Sonos Beam:

Sonos Beam

Sonos Beam

Key Highlights

• Alexa built-in
• Apple AirPlay 2
• Speech Enhancement

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Established only in 2002, Sonos is an American company that manufactures audio products.

Their tagline says reinventing home audio for today and tomorrow.

They have a mission of helping the world listen better by making it more immersive and rewarding. They take pride in their simple set up & use products.

The Sonos Beam is a good choice for hybrid uses, but it is also great on its own – minus the subwoofers and satellite speakers.

It does offer a good audio experience which allows you to listen to better and improved audio production.

Thanks to the side-firing speakers, the Sonos Beam has a more fantastic soundstage.

The Sonos Beam comes with four full-range woofers. This provides the listener with in-depth listening experiences that pick up the deep and rich bass.

Thanks to its tweeter, it produces crisp and clear audio.

It is suitable for almost all audio uses, including songs, videos, and audiobooks.

The Sonos beam has a simplistic look of mesh-like fabric with regards to its looks and presentation. You would have to be careful while handling it as it gets dirty quickly.

One of the Sonos Beams significant advantages is its small scale.

That means you will not have any problems with positioning it anywhere in & around your room. It is also not too tall.

That means, unless your Television is too low, you will have no trouble finding a comfortable spot for it.

Moreover, the Sonos Beam can be mounted on the wall. Concerning sound quality, the soundbar delivers a fair result.

The frequency response in stereo is satisfactory. However, some of you might be concerned about the sub-bass.

The soundbar’s low-frequency enhancement is problematic, as it fails to recognize booming sounds and tones in bass-heavy music.

It is very loud and could be used in immense spaces without causing any problems. The soundstage provided is adequate.

The Sonos Beam soundbar possesses a couple of unique features that are pretty rare for speakers at this price point.

One of the standout features of the Sonos Beam is the Room Correction aspect, which we considered very impressive.

One more insightful inclusion is the Dialogue Enhancement element.

Sonos Beam vs Bose soundbar 500 Features

Overall Sonos Beam vs Bose soundbar 500

These requirements should give you a general idea of what you are looking for and help you decide.

If you are still undecided, there are two things you should remember.

First and foremost, the Sonos Beam Soundbar arguably outperforms the Bose Soundbar 500 in independent sound quality.

The Bose Soundbar 500 is roughly six inches shorter and one inch wider than the Sonos Beam.

Although the Beam has a fabric grille that wraps across the frame, both feature matching grilles, while the Soundbar 500 has a metal grille that runs to the side.

Touch buttons are located on the top panels of both speakers.

Another notable aspect of both the Soundbars is that their corresponding applications allow you to tweak the equaliser settings to achieve the desired audio quality.

If and when the audio is weaker, the Sonos Beams Speech Enhancement feature improves voice comprehension.

The Sonos Beam provides clean and transparent sound in small to medium-sized spaces.

When listening to songs or watching a video with a lot of conversation, the Beam makes the most sense.

The Sonos Beam can fall short with regards to audio effects that demand more bass. Despite this, it still provides excellent audio for the money. 

On the other hand, The Bose Soundbar 500 has a much smoother, more complex tone with punchy bass, deep mids and trebles.

And when the sound is turned up high, the vocals are distinct.

You should expect excellent audio from some of your favourite listening locations in the room, thanks to its ADAPTiQ technology.

Verdict – Sonos Beam Vs Bose Soundbar 500

If you want multipurpose audio, the Beam is the apparent winner, as the Sonos is tough to match in this category.

Thanks to Sonos’ consumer interface, connecting the soundbar to more speakers in your home is a breeze.

Sonos Beam can enhance your essential viewing experience in a single room at a relatively lower price.

Although the Sonos does not function as good as the Bose Soundbar 500, it still provides clean, consistent audio that improves sound quality dramatically.

Moreover, being a more affordable low tier soundbar, its audio quality, innovative technology, and user-friendly interface will not let you down.

You could potentially opt for the Sonos if you have an Apple device as it is more compatible with the iOS platform.

Whereas the Bose is an excellent option if you want to boost your existing Bose surround system.

It is essential to consider even the type of content you want to consume with your speakers.

If you want a soundbar to stream multimedia content like youtube, Netflix, etc., maybe the Sonos Beam is a better option.

Whereas, if you like gaming or listening to loud music, maybe the Bose Soundbar is a better option.

Ending Thoughts on Sonos Beam Vs Bose Soundbar 500

Ultimately, It is down to you. Additionally, these speakers are great when they complement an existing set of speakers.

The Bose is excellent when paired with a subwoofer, standing floor speakers and tower speakers.

This, in turn, offers the user a complete and excellent surround sound experience that is second to none.

Both sets of speakers come from reputed world-renowned companies that are forerunners in the Audio industry.

To make the perfect decision, you should consider your needs once you understand that you can purchase the right speaker.

For instance, if you want a compact shaped sleek speaker, the Sonos Beam is a good option.

If you prefer a simple, elegant standalone speaker, you could opt for the Bose Soundbar 500.

Let us know your views on Sonos Beam Vs Bose Soundbar 500 in the comment section.

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