Sonos Beam (Gen 2) review: Best Smart Soundbar

The Sonos Beam Gen 2 is the compact entry to the Sonos ecosystem: 5.0 channels from four elliptical mid-woofers and a centre tweeter, driven by five Class D amplifiers, with three passive radiators handling the low end. It measures 25.6 inches wide and costs around ₱34,000 as of August 12, 2026.

What is it actually for?

Two things. It is a good-sounding soundbar for a small or medium room, and it is a node on the Sonos platform. The second part is the real argument. If you want the TV, the kitchen speaker and the bedroom speaker to be one synced system controlled from one app, Sonos does that better than anyone, and the Beam is the affordable way in.

If you only want the TV to sound better, this is expensive for what it does.

How real is the Atmos?

Processed, and Sonos is fairly open about it. There are no up-firing drivers. Height comes from psychoacoustic processing across the driver array, enabled by a CPU roughly 40% faster than the original Beam’s. It creates a convincing sense of space and height for a bar of this size, and it is a genuine step beyond stereo.

It is not, however, the physical overhead effect you get from the Sony HT-B600 or the TCL Q75H, both of which cost less and have real height drivers.

What about bass?

Limited by physics. 5.0 means no subwoofer, and while the three passive radiators get more from the cabinet than you would expect, a 25.6-inch box cannot move much air. Sonos designs around this by selling the Sonos Sub separately, which is the intended upgrade path and another significant purchase.

By comparison, the TCL S55H includes a wireless subwoofer at a fraction of the price.

Where it does win

Format support is broad: Dolby Atmos, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus and DTS Digital Surround, over HDMI eARC. Size is a genuine feature, since most capable bars are 40 inches or wider and look absurd under a 43-inch TV. And the app and multiroom experience is the best in this roundup.

Is it worth the price?

At around ₱34,000 as of August 12, 2026, it costs more than the TCL Q85H, a complete 7.1.4 system with rear speakers and a subwoofer. On hardware alone that is difficult to defend. The case rests entirely on the platform and the compact form factor, which are real but specific benefits.

Across five years of daily viewing, around ₱34,000 is about ₱570 a month. The Sonos platform is the part that ages well: the bar keeps receiving software updates and can be joined to other Sonos speakers later, so the five-year assumption is on the cautious side if you stay in the ecosystem.

Who the Sonos Beam Gen 2 suits

Buy this if you have a small or medium room, you want multiroom audio across the house, and you value a polished app over channel count. It is our Best Smart Soundbar pick in the best soundbars in the Philippines roundup. Our soundbar buying guide covers when an ecosystem is worth paying for.

If the Sonos Beam Gen 2 is not right

If you want the Sonos platform without the compromises on height and bass, the Sonos Arc Ultra is the flagship. If the platform does not matter to you, the Sony HT-B600 gives you real up-firing drivers and a wireless subwoofer for considerably less.