Sonos Ace vs Apple AirPods Max :
Sonos is a brand that has a lot in common with Apple, beautiful products with a very developed ecosystem, but rather closed to market standards, and Sonos has just released a headset for the first time, as was the case remember a few years ago with Apple’s Airpods max.
At Sonos the headset is called Ace, so I love the brand, but I admit that I didn’t really expect a headset, because headphones today are a market that is rather saturated, then next to the bosses Sony and Apple, who all make amazing headphones that Sonos, can bring if not a product that could work with the brand’s ecosystem.
And when using a sonos multichannel audio system, which a headset can bring into this existing set.
So the Sonos Ace, is a headset that is both WiFi Bluetooth 5.4, with the APTX HD codec, allowing it to listen to sources in lostless quality, therefore lossless, and wirelessly.
It is compatible with SBC AAC, and Dolby Atmos it comes with two cables a USB cable, to mini jack 3.5 and a USB cable, to USB type C to recharge it, but this USB type C cable, on both sides can also be used, to listen to audio transferred by USB, so we can have a perfect 100% digital connection, to listen to high quality content, from platforms.
Offering ires audio, its even if officially the Sonos Ace, is not labeled ires audio, so the Sonos Ace is therefore super versatile.
Because it can be used for home theater listening, from a smartphone or from an IF channel, the application works on iOS and Android, and the functionalities will be the same on both platforms.
Ace offers an autonomy of 30 hours, with noise reduction activated, and which can be increased up to 40 hours, when the ANC is deactivated it also offers the possibility of charging for 3 minutes, to have 3 hours of listening guaranteed.
And for the sound part it is equipped with 40 mm diameter transducers, so for those who do not know the transducers, they are speakers.
And so the first good surprise you see, the design is really very successful, the helmet is beautiful, so it comes in white and black, at the top there is a padded headband, which is very comfortable with steel uprights, to adapt the height to the shape of your head, and the helmet does not cause fatigue on the head.
Even after several hours of listening, where an Airpods max quickly becomes heavy, on the head when watching a movie, but this is normal because there is a big difference in weight: 312 g for the Sonos Ace against 384 g for the Apple Airpods max.
On the other hand, it is heavier than the other two headphones in the same range that I like, the Sony W1000 xm5 and the BZ QC ultra which each weigh 250 g.
Then on each side of the big headphones, with removable cushions which are held, as you see by a demon system.
So they will be very easy to change, and then there is a peculiarity you can also see, there is a different color inside each earphone, to remember the right side and the left side.
So the Sonos does not have a touch control, but it makes room for many physical buttons, on the back left, there is a first button that allows you to turn on, and turn off the headphones and start Bluetooth pairing.
A nice detail, the Sonos Ace is multipoint, so it can be connected to several devices at the same time, and the sound will switch from one to the other instantly, as soon as you start the sound, on either of your devices.
On the back right, there is another button that allows you to switch from active noise reduction mode, to conscious mode, so the transparency mode and then even if it is not activated by default, you can from the Sonos application activate a third function on the button which is the deactivation of the NC.
However I do not recommend it, because the sound is far from being as good, when the noise reduction is disabled above.
The last button is multifunction, you press it once to start playback, or pause it two or three times, to skip to the next song, or go back to the previous song, this will also allow you to take and end audio calls, and on this same button there is also a slider, which allows you to increase or decrease the volume, by sliding up, or down.
So I find on the other hand that the buttons are a little chippy huh from sonos, I expected a slightly more upscale finish, so I was talking to you about the sonos ecosystem, and therefore when you have an installation based on a soundbar, a subwoofer and a sonos.
The headphones can take control of these elements, to continue listening to your movie, in the best conditions, for example in the evening, so as not to disturb the neighbors or the family.
So I specify that it only works with two soundbars, sonos the arc and the beam gen 2, but it would be possible that this functionality would be extended to other products of the brand,e as for example the beam Gen 1 or the Reay the small sonos soundbar.
So already if you have one of the two soundbars, which I told you about at Sonos, this headset might interest you for this aspect, but outside of this Sonos ecosystem it is also a headset that offers active noise reduction, which works via wired wifi and Bluetooth.
So I’m going to give you my opinion on the Sonos Ace, because I’ve been using it on a daily basis for a month now and obviously it’s impossible to give you my opinion, without comparing it with the one I also know by heart, the Apple Airpods max.
We will say, that the sonos headset is how to say different, the sound is excellent there are super nice deep bass, the stereo image is very wide, but there are two details that really disturbed me, during my test.
Basically I have the impression that the sound is a little more contained, that on the Airpod max everything seems a little less clear, so on the app I told you it’s pretty basic, you can access an equalizer, but it’s not really one, it’s just a basic adjustment of the treble, and the activation or deactivation of the loud don nest, which reinforces the bass, and it’s actually the only way to intervene on the color of the sound.
So at Apple there is no such adjustment, but for me the sound is already perfect, but it’s a real shame because we really would have liked to be able to correct this frequency curve, which may not please everyone.
So with Sony headphones, and its application we can do it in great detail, but not on sonos headphones, so and it’s a pity I also tested while watching movies, and I found exactly the same differences, and therefore the same flaws on the sonus Ace, compared to the airpon max excellent sound beautiful opening sound.
But still these high frequencies behind, but it’s dental so at home sonos, is also known for its ability to broadcast wifi, on all its speakers, and have an even better quality than Bluetooth.
There is also the multiroom aspect obviously, this is very important at sonos with the possibility of listening to different music, for example on this or that speaker of the set with sonos headphones, I thought wow that’s great on.
I choose to listen on the speakers on the soundbar, on the headphones with the same music, or a different music each time, well no it’s not really possible.
We can’t stream Wii on this headset, so the only advantage of seeing this headset at the heart of a Sonos ecosystem is to switch from an arc soundbar, or beam gen 2, while listening to music, or watching a movie to headphones and vice versa, and that’s where the Wii is used on this headset.
The connection between the soundbars and the headphones is a proprietary wifi, but without these soundbars you will not be able to listen to streaming services, via the Wii at the same time.
It is a Bluetooth headset and in this case it is directly competing with the Apple headset, but also with the Sony and BZ headsets, which are much cheaper.
But the Sonos Ace also offers active noise reduction, and that I have tested for a long time, and frankly I must tell you that I really had a hard time telling which is the best, between the Sonos Ace and the Apple Airpods max.
Because the ANC on the Sonos headset is really amazing, it is exactly on the same level as that of the Airpod Max, which until today was my reference headset for the quality of the NC.
With the Sonos Ace, we are at exactly the same level of insulation quality, it’s simple I still haven’t been able to say which is the best, between the two and so for all the unpleasant noises such as work, traffic, the roar of a microwave, music playing on a speaker next to you, it’s really super effective.
The sound is very well filtered, you will be really isolated in an acoustic bubble, which will allow you to enjoy your music, in exceptional conditions.
I tested phone calls, so in a rather quiet environment it works very well, in both directions, on the other hand it is a little different in bad conditions, I tested for example on the side of a highway, there was noise and then there was especially a lot of wind, and if you still hear your interlocutor perfectly, even with a lot of noise around, and even with a lot of wind around, for him on the other hand it is a slightly different story, your interlocutor will hear you quite badly sometimes will hear just one word out of three.
We did exactly the same test with the Airpod max, there it is better that your interlocutor hears you correctly, but the voice remains a little degraded by the isolation of the voice.
In summary, the wind remains in my opinion the biggest challenge, which remains to be met for the designers of headphones with active noise reduction such as Sonos, and others, and especially for the work of the microphones, and the post-processing of the voice, making it possible to isolate the voice from noise noise pollution.
Then there is something that I found really very successful on the Sonos Ace, it is the transparency mode which is called the conscious mode on the Sonos application, frankly between the Sonos Ace, and the Apple Airpods max, again very difficult to say which is the best, I just think that on the Sonos Ace.
I have the impression of having a little too much amplification of external noises, while on the Airpod max you just have the impression of not wearing headphones at all, when the transparency mode is activated and the purpose of this is precisely the transparency mode, is to allow you to hear external noises, as if you were not wearing headphones.
And again on the Sonos Ace the transparency mode is really excellent, and to conclude on this test I must obviously tell you about the price, the Sonos Ace is sold for € 499.
The headsets are very similar, but if you already have sonos elements at home you can manage the speakers, and the headphones with the same application, but the Sono,s application is not a successful ergonomics model, I told you and then there are finally quite few adjustments on this headset, if you don’t have a Sonos Arc Bimgen 2 soundbar.
Frankly, I would find it difficult to tell you to go ahead and buy the Sonos Ace, and in this case look instead at the BZ or Sony headphones, which are practically as good, and especially much cheaper.
On the other hand, it is excellent in terms of sound on noise insulation, on call quality except when it is very windy, as I told you, and then there is an aspect in which it is still better, than the Apple Airpods max, and that is that it is much lighter, and more comfortable to wear.
But here I would tend to compare it with Sony and Boss headphones, which I know well and which offer the same kind of comfort, but for much less money.
I spent a lot of time writing down, everything I wanted to tell you about the Sonos Ace, for a first Sonos audio headset, is really a success on many points.
But i am still quite disappointed that Sonos has not offered more interaction with the other products in its ecosystem.
Conclusion :
But you never know, it could be the case thanks to a software update of the headset, we will see that in the coming weeks or months.
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