Sonos Ace test: a first headset to attack Apple

Known for their soundbar, Sonos recently released its first Bluetooth headset with an undisguised ambition: to compete with Apple and its famous AirPods Max. Discover our test of the Sonos Ace headset.

Sonos, you know ? If you have nice audio and visual equipment in your living room, it is likely that you have already seen or even own an object from the brand. Sonos is a specialist in portable speakers and soundbars that can be used with your TV. More recently, the company surprised its audience by unveiling its first Bluetooth headset, the design of which is reminiscent of Apple's AirPods Max.

Is a very good soundbar manufacturer capable of making good quality Bluetooth headphones? ? This is what you wanted to check with our Sonos Ace test.

© Julian Madiot/Linternaute

A plastic design but so pleasant for everyday use

The Sonos Ace comes with in a very beautiful cardboard box which displays the color you have chosen (white or black). For this test, we had the white color. This box contains the headset, user instructions, a carrying case, a USB-C/Jack cable and a USB-C cable. A beautiful set whose cover proves to be very durable. both practical on a daily basis and above all much more useful than "covers" supplied with the Apple headset for example.

The Sonos Arc presents itself as a headset with With a completely hard plastic covering and equipped with a headrest and soft pads. The latter also have different colors in order to quickly differentiate the side of the item. left side right and benefit from audio spatialization which we will not return to further in this test.

The Sonos Ace is very comfortable to wear on a daily basis. While the plastic coating may seem a bit “cheap” compared to the AirPods Max, this design provides much more comfortable everyday wear, particularly in terms of weight. The Sonos Ace weighs around 65g less than the AirPods Max and this is clearly felt in use. Whether you're wearing it on the street or at In the gym, wearing the Sonos headset is pleasant and you never feel a certain heaviness or discomfort even after hours of use.

On the side On the left of the Sonos Ace, we find a single button: the one dedicated to à power supply and Bluetooth equipment. Just press it to turn the headset off or on, and hold it to make it discoverable for your Bluetooth-enabled devices. Nothing complicated. Just below, we find the USB-C port that you can use to recharge the headset or plug it into a jack.

The side The right side of the Sonos Ace is a little more extensive. There is a button to alternate between noise reduction and transparency modes as well as a more prominent button allowing you to control ;ocirc;l music, calls and their volume.

© Julian Madiot/Linternaute

Generally speaking, the different buttons on the Sonos Ace are rather well thought out. well &agrav; our different interactions and fall well under our fingers or thumb without us having to constantly look for them. A great lesson in ergonomics.

A decent sound, but lacking in intensity

It is often said that the first impression is a good one and this is often true when testing audio equipment. If we had in particular been é impressed from the first use of the AirPods Max or the recent Nothing Ear headphones, the surprise did not really come. té there with the Sonos Ace headphones.

Let's be clear: the sound produced by the Sonos Ace is good. The different tones are rather carefully transcribed. Thus, the mids are well balanced and the highs fall just right. However, we will criticize a slight lack of bass on certain well-marked music such as "Bad Guy" by Billie Eilish,  "Another One Bites The Dust" by Queen or "Seven Nation Army"< /em> of the White Stripes. If this music remains very pleasant to listen to; Listening with the Sonos Ace, we can complain about a slight lack of power or character in the restitution of the different, lowest tones of certain passages.< /p>

He is à Note that the Sonos Ace is compatible with the aptX Lossless codec which guarantees lossless listening for your different music. Unfortunately, this coded is not yet supported by many devices or smartphones. In particular, it is only found on certain smartphones from Vivo, Asus, Sony, Nubia or Motorola & the time when we write these lines. We are therefore far from the biggest representatives of the industry.

Use During video game games, we did not notice any problems. no particular latency è using the Sonos Ace. Games requiring responsiveness are ideal for use with the Sonos Ace. audio such as online FPS such as Call of Duty Mobile remain fully playable without denoting any delay between the action in progress and the sounds reproduced by the Sonos Ace.

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The microphone on the Sonos Ace headset also seemed good to us. of good quality. The calls we made by telephone or via applications like Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp did not pose a problem. no problem during our weeks of testing and our interlocutors understood our discussions perfectly despite the delays. surrounding noise.

Very good noise reduction and an effective transparency mode

The Sonos Ace headphones offer a noise reduction mode that can be activated directly in the Sonos companion application or quickly with a button located on the headset. on the helmet. This mode allows you to attenuate surrounding noise in order to “cut yourself off from the world”. and hear more sounds from your headphones.

The noise reduction of the Sonos Ace is simply excellent. Used in the middle of a room full of discussions or close to a square crowded with people, we had no trouble getting there. fully enjoyed our music or our telephone conversations which were fully audible. The only exceptions remained vehicle horns or certain Paris metro alerts.

It's easy to switch between noise reduction and transparency mode. © Julian Madiot/Linternaute

You don't like to isolate yourself so much and prefer to stay at home. Listen to the sounds around you ? Sonos Ace's transparency mode lets you continue to enjoy your music while still hearing the sounds around you. The latter are amplified in a way that is very precise. be audible despite the noise your music or your conversations and turn out to be quite faithful. Some wireless earphones or headsets sometimes produce quite artificial results when their transparency mode is activated, but the Sonos Ace gets away with it without difficulty. on this segment.

A fairly basic companion application

Nowadays, many wireless headphones and earphones have a dedicated application to personalize your listening experience. The Sonos Ace is no exception to the rule with an application simply called “Sonos” and available on both the Google Play Store and the App Store.

More focused on connection and customization around the brand's speakers, the Sonos application now integrates the company's first portable headset and has a few additional features. In particular, it is possible to control active noise reduction, transparency mode and the headset equalizer to adjust the bass, mids and treble according to your preferences.

And… That's generally all that we can talk about about the companion application of the Sonos Ace. This latter' Egrave also allows you to pair the headphones with other speakers from the manufacturer, but we did not have one available for this test and therefore cannot judge the headphones. ;integrates correctly into the Sonos ecosystem.

Decent autonomy for a recharge… Adaptive ?

The brand's official website mentions up to 'à 30 hours of battery life for the Sonos Ace. We were able to use our review copy of the headset for an entire weekend, from Thursday evening until Sunday and take full advantage of it until the end of the day. until its battery finally reaches 0%. A very correct autonomy therefore and which allows the Sonos Ace to be used in different environments. for two &agrav; three long days without worrying about the battery.

Once our helmet is emptied; of its battery, it's time to test its recharge! We plugged in our Sonos Ace à using the cable included in its box and here are our different readings:

• 2:15 p.m.: 0%
• 2:25 p.m.: 25%
• 2:35 p.m.: 53%
• 2:45 p.m.: 65%
• 2:55 p.m.: 85%
• 3:30 p.m.: 90%

We therefore observe a very rapid charge which allows the Sonos Ace to fill half of its capacity. of its battery in just 20 minutes. Past After this big push, the headset seems to charge more slowly and it will take a little over an hour to refuel. Ideal for recharging quickly for an evening or a day without the risk of damaging the battery by pushing it too hard. agrave; bottom.

Our conclusion to the Sonos Ace test

The first nomadic headset from Sonos is a real success. The firm succeeded in achieving this goal. create a helmet with a very pleasant and comfortable design. wear everyday and practical &agrav; carry with its included cover. This is the best point of the Sonos Ace: its all-plastic design which makes it very light and so comfortable to carry. ; wear, even for long hours (unlike its competitor from Apple).

On the side good points, we will also note its ease of use. instructions for use and connection. Once the headset is connected  à your device via Bluetooth, it is very easy to use it on a daily basis.

The quality Audio from the Sonos Ace is also very good. The different tones of our music remain generally good even if we criticize a slight lack of bass on certain sounds. On this point, we would rather trend &agrav; go to the side AirPods Max see AirPods Pro 2.

Overall we therefore retain a very pleasant helmet & use on a daily basis, but whose sound quality is perhaps a bit disappointing compared to the price requested. of 499 euros. If you already have of an ecosystem from Sonos, the purchase of the Sonos Ace turns out to be a little more logical.