Beam Ultra and Ace Ultra: the two new members of the Sonos 27 platform

The Beam Ultra soundbar and the Sonos Ace Ultra headphones didn't arrive on the same day by coincidence. They form a deliberate pair -- a soundbar built for compact home cinema, and a headphone designed to extend that same system to your ears. Both are engineered from the ground up to take full advantage of Sonos 27, the new platform version launching alongside them.

For existing Beam (Gen 2) or Sonos Ace owners, the natural question is whether the upgrade is worth it. The answer depends above all on your needs and how you use your system, but it's clear that both new versions bring substantial changes.

Beam Ultra: when the compact soundbar gets real Atmos

The Sonos Beam Gen 2 carved out a strong position in the mid-range soundbar market, valued for its compact footprint and versatility. But there was always a ceiling to what it could do with Dolby Atmos -- not just because of its size, but above all because it lacked dedicated vertical channels. Height effects were simulated in software rather than projected physically. That's exactly the gap the Beam Ultra closes.

A completely redesigned architecture

The Beam Gen 2 was built around five drivers. The Beam Ultra expands on that foundation with four additional drivers, for an architecture comprising a center tweeter, two side tweeters for stereo separation, two upward-firing tweeters, and four woofers. The two upward-firing channels combined with the additional woofers make all the difference. By projecting sound toward the ceiling, the Beam Ultra generates true height channels rather than simulating them -- delivering a genuine 7.1.2 Dolby Atmos soundstage without expanding the enclosure. The Beam Ultra remains just as compact as its predecessor.

The center channel has also been redesigned to improve dialogue clarity -- a persistent weakness in compact soundbars that limits how cleanly voices separate, particularly in dialogue-heavy content. These physical improvements are paired with an AI-powered speech enhancement feature (AI Speech Enhancement) with 4 levels adjustable from the app, and a Night Sound mode (Night Sound) that significantly reduces bass output for late-night listening without disturbing the rest of the household.

A soundbar built to grow

With Sonos 27, the Beam Ultra also becomes the ideal foundation for portable surround sound. Two Move 2 or two Sonos Play speakers can be configured as wireless rear channels for movie nights, then reassigned as standalone speakers in another room afterward. It's a smart way to build a real home cinema setup without permanent installation -- or the added cost of dedicated surround speakers. Wired surrounds like the Era 100 and Era 300 remain compatible as well, but the ability to simply move rear channels around the house without worrying about power outlets is a genuine value-add.

Beam Ultra vs. Beam Gen 2 -- at a glance

Sonos Ace Ultra: what a Sonos headphone was always meant to be

The original Sonos Ace, launched in 2024, marked an important first for the company. For the first time in its history, Sonos expanded its lineup by introducing a Bluetooth headphone. But that first version had a significant limitation that many pointed out at launch: its connection to the Sonos system was partial, limited to the TV Audio feature with select soundbars only. The Ace Ultra corrects that fundamentally.

Headphone Engine 2: the connection everyone was waiting for

Headphone Engine 2 is the heart of the Ace Ultra. It's a new Wi-Fi hardware system that allows the headphone to connect directly to the full Sonos system. It's no longer a matter of connecting to just one soundbar -- the Ace Ultra links to any compatible speaker running Sonos 27: Arc Ultra, Ray, Beam (Gen 2), Beam Ultra, Five, Era 100, Era 300, Move 2, Play, Roam 2. A press of the control button on the right earcup shifts whatever is playing in the room directly to the headphones. Press it again and the audio returns to the speakers -- no interruption, seamlessly.

That's precisely what was missing from the original Ace, and what we had expected from a Sonos headphone -- great sound combined with wireless flexibility, throughout the home, for all your content.

Redesigned acoustics, stronger ANC, longer battery life

Beyond connectivity, the Ace Ultra has also been redesigned acoustically. Sonos developed a new in-house 40mm driver, tuned by the Sonos Soundboard -- a group of music and film professionals, including Grammy Award winners -- to reproduce sound as it was recorded. Active noise cancellation now uses ten microphones (versus eight on the original Ace) for twice the effectiveness. The Adaptive ANC system can also continuously adjust the level of noise reduction based on the surrounding sound environment, while Adaptive EQ compensates for imperfect fit around the ear for a consistent result -- a particularly useful feature for glasses wearers.

Battery life reaches 35 hours with noise reduction active (versus 30 hours on the original Ace), and a 3-minute quick charge delivers three hours of listening. Without active noise reduction, battery life can extend to up to 50 hours. The aptX Lossless codec is supported over Bluetooth, and a USB-C wired connection provides native 16-bit/48 kHz audio.

When the headphone is linked to a compatible Sonos soundbar, TrueCinema calibrates the sound to the room's acoustics -- the same logic as Trueplay for speakers, adapted for headphones.

Ace Ultra vs. Ace -- at a glance

What connects them: Sonos 27

The Beam Ultra soundbar and Ace Ultra headphones represent two ends of the same experience. An evening might begin with the Beam Ultra at the center of the living room, filling it with the mood of your choice. The next morning, the Ace Ultra picks up exactly where the speakers left off -- no interruption, no reaching for the phone, without waking the rest of the household.

That's the concrete promise of Sonos 27: an audio system where products share sound rather than contain it. Both devices benefit from Trueplay, over 100 streaming services, AirPlay and Bluetooth -- and like all Sonos products, they'll continue to evolve with platform software updates. What you buy today is built to be even more capable and powerful tomorrow.

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