Sonos has just taken the wraps off the Beam Ultra, a new Dolby Atmos soundbar that sits between the entry-level Beam Gen 2 and premium Arc Ultra.
One of the coolest things about the Beam Ultra is that, unlike the Beam Gen 2, it has dedicated up-firing speakers for a more involving Dolby Atmos delivery.
Dolby Atmos isn't the only 3D audio format in town, though. DTS:X is a serious alternative, and one that's particularly popular with home cinema enthusiasts, yet Sonos has resolutely refused to support it on any of its speakers.
Given the chance to speak with Brandon Holley, Sonos’s Senior Director of Product, ahead of the Beam Ultra’s launch, we asked about that.
“Beam Ultra doesn’t support DTS:X at this time”, he said.
But could it (and other Sonos speakers) do so one day?
“It’s definitely a question that we ask ourselves, and it’s one of the many features, codecs and partnerships that we’re constantly entertaining. The door isn’t closed to any of those particular things”.
I realise that all seems a bit "nothing to see here", but I actually took some encouragement from the way Holley said it, and I genuinely believe this is a discussion that Sonos is having regularly.
It’s always seemed slightly odd to me that Sonos – a brand that has had format and service agnosticism at its core from its inception – would support Dolby Atmos and not DTS:X.
Sure, DTS:X is comparatively niche, but so are a large number of the streaming services that the Sonos ecosystem supports.
I wouldn't be surprised if DTS:X eventually found its way onto Sonos speakers. The more pressing question, though, is whether the Sonos Beam Ultra is any good in its own right.
We intend to answer that question by putting it through our comparative review process just as soon as possible.
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