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Head-to-head · Best Dolby Atmos Soundbars Under $1000

Bose Smart Soundbar (Dolby Atmos) vs Sonos Beam Gen 2

Which is the better buy? Side-by-side on rating, price, strengths, and watch-outs — with the published ratings we averaged to get there.

The short answer

Sonos Beam Gen 2 comes out ahead by a narrow margin (4.3 vs 4.6). The gap is mostly about Apartment and small-room owners, and existing Sonos users, who want convincing Atmos and great music playback from one tidy cabinet without a separate subwoofer. — read the strengths below before deciding.

Bose Smart Soundbar (Dolby Atmos)
Ranked #3 in Best Dolby Atmos Soundbars Under $1000
Bose Smart Soundbar (Dolby Atmos)
$549as of Jun 7

The Bose Smart Soundbar is a feature-packed, compact Dolby Atmos bar built around streaming smarts and balanced everyday sound. Its up-firing drivers and A.I. Dialogue Mode keep voices clear and effects tidy, and the deep streaming and voice-assistant integration make it a strong all-rounder. The trade-off is bass: with no subwoofer included it can't deliver the low-end weight movie enthusiasts crave, so it's best as a do-everything bar for smaller setups.

Strengths
  • — Genuinely compact 27-inch cabinet with up-firing Atmos drivers that fits tight TV stands
  • — Balanced, consistent sound that handles music, dialogue and movies evenly
  • — Built-in Alexa voice control plus AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect and Chromecast streaming
Watch-outs
  • — No subwoofer in the box means bass lacks real thump and depth
  • — Casing looks somewhat plasticky compared with rivals
  • — Atmos height effect is modest from such a small cabinet
$549 · Check Price on AmazonFull review →
Sonos Beam Gen 2
Higher ratedRanked #2 in Best Dolby Atmos Soundbars Under $1000
Sonos Beam Gen 2
$369as of Jun 7

The Sonos Beam Gen 2 is the best compact, all-in-one Dolby Atmos soundbar under $1,000. Without any up-firing drivers it uses processing and forward-facing drivers to recreate Atmos more convincingly than many pricier bars, while delivering crisp dialogue and a warm, musical balance. It can't reach the bass depth of a system with a separate subwoofer, but for small-to-medium rooms and Sonos households it's a five-star performer.

Strengths
  • — Best-in-class virtualized Dolby Atmos from a single compact cabinet, with no external speakers needed
  • — Excellent, clearly defined dialogue thanks to an upgraded center tweeter
  • — Full Sonos ecosystem: AirPlay 2, Trueplay room tuning, multiroom and voice assistants built in
Watch-outs
  • — No physical up-firing drivers, so overhead effects are simulated rather than truly height-mapped
  • — Only one HDMI eARC port and no HDMI passthrough or extra inputs
  • — Lacks the deep, physical bass of a system with a dedicated subwoofer
$369 · Check Price on AmazonFull review →

How they stack up

Bose Smart Soundbar (Dolby Atmos)

Like the Sonos Beam Gen 2, the Bose Smart Soundbar is a one-box bar with no included subwoofer, so both give up the deep bass of the Samsung HW-Q800D. The Bose actually adds real up-firing Atmos drivers the Beam Gen 2 omits, but its small cabinet limits how much height it produces, and reviewers rate the Sonos higher for outright sound quality. Against the Sony HT-A3000 it offers richer streaming and voice features but similarly modest low-end.

Sonos Beam Gen 2

The Sonos Beam Gen 2 trades the physical up-firing height drivers of the Samsung HW-Q800D and LG SC9S for clever virtualization, which keeps it far more compact but limits true overhead mapping. Unlike the Samsung HW-Q800D it ships with no external subwoofer, so it gives up deep bass, but it beats the Sony HT-A3000 for dialogue clarity and out-of-the-box Atmos convincingness, and adds the Sonos multiroom ecosystem the Bose Smart Soundbar can't fully match.

Specs side-by-side

SpecBose Smart Soundbar (Dolby Atmos)Sonos Beam Gen 2
ChannelsDolby Atmos (with up-firing drivers)5.0 (virtualized Atmos)
Width27 inches25.6 inches
Up-firing Drivers2 (Atmos height)None (virtualized)
Audio FormatsDolby Atmos, Dolby DigitalDolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, DTS Digital Surround
ConnectivityHDMI eARC, Optical, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, AirPlay 2, Chromecast, Spotify ConnectHDMI eARC, Optical (adapter), Wi-Fi, AirPlay 2
Voice AssistantAmazon Alexa built-inAmazon Alexa, Sonos Voice Control
Dialogue TechA.I. Dialogue Mode—
SubwooferNone (optional Bose Module)None (optional Sonos Sub)
Room Calibration—Trueplay
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