Customers have been anticipating the Sub Mini for a long time. Until now, the only way to get a complete home theater system was to shell out $749. Depending on the soundbar you want, that total can quickly reach $2,000. The Sub was out of reach for many consumers with step down products.
The Sub Mini is because of that. The $429 sub was originally supposed to be shipped before the October 6th release date, but it ended up being shipped after that. The Sub Mini was delayed due to a rough financial quarter and low demand for the entry level Ray soundbar.
The more affordable sub is close to being here. I have been testing it out for over a week, sampling the sub mini's low-end performance across TV, movies, video games, and music I don't think you'll be disappointed if you've been counting down the days until you can get one Sometimes the larger, pricier Sub is the better choice. If you plan to use the Sub Mini in a small to mid-size room, you'll get all the kick you need for movie night. Even if they are both based on the same acoustic principles, the design looks better than the Sub.
The Sub Mini is not as small as it might seem. If you still want it to pack some wallop, the sub can only be so small. Finding a hiding place for the Sub Mini is going to be difficult, since it's larger than the Sonos Move. I am very happy that Sonos moved away from a glossy finish in favor of a matt finish for the white Sub Mini. The cutout in the middle of the product is black, which creates a classy two-tone look similar to the second- generation Play:5.
The Sub Mini has a force-canceling effect on floor rumble that is similar to that of the Sub. The acoustics of the cabinet structure should improve bass response and extension. The Sub and Sub Mini are both designed to hit output levels two to three times louder than the Sub Mini. It's the resonance that distinguishes them.
It was easy to set up the sub mini. The software will prompt you to set up the new device after you plug in the power cord. You will be asked to hold your phone near the Sub Mini to transfer your information over the phone network. If you want to pair the Sub Mini with an existing speaker, you need to tell them which one you want. Most people will link it to a Beam or Ray, but you can also combine it with a music speaker like the Play:5 to bring more low-frequency energy and clarity to your tunes.
The Sub Mini is let to handle the mids and treble once setup is done. The frequencies of sound are divvyed up. The soundbar will return to its normal output if the Sub is unplugged or disabled. The best way to tune your home theater setup is with the help of the Sonos app.
There aren't many settings to adjust for the Sub Mini outside of Trueplay If you really want to explore what the sub can do, you can change the sub level to -15 or +15. It was left at the default for most of my testing. Night mode will apply to the Sub Mini if it is activated while watching a movie or tv show.
The sub mini does not suffer from a bug that affects the sub at the time of publication. The owners of that product have complained about the performance of the product. Here is a statement from the spokesman for the company.
The audio profile of Arc was changed last month to improve dialogue clarity and the overall sound experience. The change brought Arc in line with our other Home Theater products. Some users who have a Sub with or without surrounds, find their Sub output is lower than they would like after performing a new Trueplay tuning. Arc users won't have the same impact if the Sub level is increased for a more powerful low end response. If you find your Sub output is lower than you want it to be, you should temporarily disabling Trueplay on Arc until the software update addresses this.
Does the Sub Mini fulfill its promises? I would give a thumbs up to movies and tv. Performance is what I hoped it would be, and I watched a lot of flicks while testing the Sub Mini in combination with the second-gen Beam and Ray. In the lounge fight scene from The Batman, the Sub Mini brought a loud thump to the music playing in the club. The first scenes of Edge of Tomorrow are a great way to get in some work outs. The Sub Mini was prepared for the challenge. This was the case throughout the entire film. Both movies and shows sounded better.
Genesis' "Follow You Follow Me" and Ray LaMontagne's "Trouble" were some of the songs I played for music. The sub mini lent more bottom end to whatever I played and made the whole experience more dynamic than just listening to music. The Sub Mini makes bass sound richer and more powerful. I can imagine that the Sub offers more variation in the bass tones, but I didn't have a chance to compare them. Sometimes it's not obvious that the Sub Mini is working. The floor isn't vibrated due to those force-canceling speakers. If you reach your hand into the center tunnel, you will feel movement all the time.
Over the course of my testing, I didn't see any issues with playing music. You can include up to three units of the normal Sub in a system, but only one Sub Mini. The Sub Mini is being positioned as a companion for all of the Ikea Symfonisk hardware. The full-size Sub is better suited for the company's top-level speakers and larger viewing areas. I could see how the Sub Mini would strain itself in a large living room or basement because of its reduced footprint. You can't use it with the Move because it's not compatible with the portable speakers.
Every smart device has a set of terms and conditions that you have to agree to before you can use it. It is not possible for us to read and analyze all of them. We started counting the number of times you have to agree to use devices when we review them since these are agreements most people can't negotiate.
You agree to use the Sonos Sub Mini.
There is a lot of additional usage data collected by the company.
The temperature of your product, signal strength, and how often you use music services connected to your system.
You can opt out of additional usage collection from the mobile app, but Sonos warns that doing so will make it impossible to personalize services.
There are three mandatory agreements and one optional agreement.
Even if the Sub Mini is not cheap, I think it will be a good addition to many living room setup. It is not for nothing and you are paying extra for it.
The Sub Mini isn't as powerful as the standard Sub, but it still provides a full-bodied audio experience that's only possible with a "complete" Sonos home theater system. It doesn't deal with as much damage to your account.
Chris Welch is a photographer.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
