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We have been anticipating the Sonos Sub Mini for months. It was rumored to launch earlier this yr, however numerous setbacks pushed the discharge to the autumn. These delays are behind us, and it’ll begin arriving on October 6.

A small-ish design

Sonos Sub Mini is on the market in two colorways — white and black. Each characteristic a matte end which, in our opinion, is much extra preferable than the previous shiny finishes Sonos used to make use of.

In our case, we opted for the white model due to its smooth two-tone look. The open heart channel is black, offering a wealthy distinction with the outside.

The woofer is a roughly foot-tall cylinder that is not precisely tiny however is about common. It is what we might count on for those who had been getting a subwoofer bundled with a soundbar.

Discovering a house to your subwoofer may be tough, and the spherical form would not assist the state of affairs. That form makes it a bit wider than your typical field woofer that might match neatly towards a TV cupboard.

The optimistic is that we do like how the Sub Mini seems to be. Our TV stand is an elongated portion of the hearth in our front room, so the Sub Mini sits subsequent to it.

Within the center are the twin force-canceling woofers, measuring six inches every. They face each other, and the opposing forces cancel out, decreasing total motion and rattle. Apple makes use of the identical tech in its laptop computer audio system.

“Sonos” is printed on the highest in the identical coloration because the speaker, mixing in, so that you virtually do not see it. The speaker is barely elevated, possibly half an inch, leaving means for the cables to path to the ports on the underside.

You should use the speaker wirelessly — it helps each 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks — however there may be an Ethernet port on the underside for those who select to go wired.

Not such as you would want them, however there are not any bodily controls on the Sub Mini besides a Sonos sync button on the decrease again.

That streamlined Sonos setup

For those who’ve arrange a Sonos speaker not too long ago, you recognize what to anticipate with the Sub Mini. It is the identical.

We plugged the speaker in and opened the Sonos app. It routinely found the Sub Mini and walked us via the setup course of.

The Sonos app prompted us to carry our cellphone close to the speaker so it may switch Wi-Fi credentials through NFC. It then requested which soundbar or speaker we wished to pair with the Sub Mini.

It took just some minutes, and we had been able to go. Properly, virtually. There was, after all, a software program replace wanted to run earlier than we could possibly be off to the races.

As soon as we completed the setup, we reran the TruePlay tuning to make sure all the things was adequately calibrated for our room. Thus far, TruePlay tuning remains to be an iOS unique — which is an additional benefit for iPhone customers.

Placing the Sub Mini to the take a look at

We have been testing the Sonos Sub Mini for the previous few weeks in three major classes — films, video games, and music. The additional bass advantages TV too, however films are rather more well-known for his or her scores than the newest episode of Regulation & Order.

For video games, we have been enjoying fairly a little bit of Subnautica on our PS5. It is an incredible sport that takes place primarily underwater with large creatures that may emerge from the darkness to assault you.

The Sub Mini pulled us nearer to the motion by permitting us to fairly actually really feel when a monster would out of the blue seize our submarine with out discover. The Arc does a great job with out the sub, however music would not resonate in your chest the identical means.

The music was a bit much less spectacular. Whilst we turned up the quantity on the Beatles Come Collectively that has a considerable bass line, it did not hit as arduous because it did with the sport or like the flicks.

Motion pictures had been essentially the most enjoyable to check and gained essentially the most from the Sub Mini. In our case, we examined this primarily with the Sonos Arc soundbar, however we additionally tried it with the Beam and Ray.

Sonos advises that the Sub Mini is greatest used with the Beam and Ray — its mid and low-tier soundbars — and for those who use it with the Arc, Sonos says to not max out the quantity. That is good recommendation for any audio system, although.

The Sub mini is not designed for giant rooms, and Sonos is evident about that. And, even when Sonos says the Arc would not profit as a lot from the Sub Mini, we observed a distinction immediately. As quickly as we turned on the current Thor: Love and Thunder, the bass was obvious.

We disconnected the sub, and waited for the system to self-correct and transfer the sub-driven frequencies again to the sound bar. As you’d count on, the audio was notably flatter by comparability.

We do not doubt the full-sized Sonos Sub sounds higher. Most is best than none, although, and we’re happy with the additional oomph the Sub Mini gives with out the excessive price ticket.

Must you purchase the Sonos Sub Mini?

The Sub Mini is a little bit of a bizarre product. With a price ticket of $429, it sits slightly below the Sonos Beam soundbar and healthily above the Sonos Ray soundbar. These are priced at $449 and $279, respectively.

For those who personal the Sonos Ray, it is arduous to advocate you spend almost twice as a lot simply so as to add extra bass. It is extra palatable when you think about the Beam or Arc, however nobody is right here to say the Sub Mini is affordable.

Regardless of the Sub Mini being labeled by customers as a “price range” product, Sonos has retained its typical match and end right here, because it applies to all its high-end merchandise. It is well-polished and sounds unbelievable for its dimension.

We fortunately use this with our Arc, understanding its limitations. If you’re trying to increase the efficiency of your Beam or Arc and do not need to shell out the $749 for the full-sized sub, the Sub Mini is a superb — and your solely — choice.

Sonos Sub Mini professionals

• Smaller and extra inexpensive than common Sonos Sub
• Provides substantial bass to films and video games
• Smooth, minimal look
• Pressure-cancelling woofers scale back vibrations on flooring or cupboard
• Simple setup and TruePlay tuning
• Wi-fi connectivity

Sonos Sub Mini cons

• Not as efficient with music
• Almost as costly because the soundbars it’s meant to pair with

Score: 4.5 out of 5

The place to purchase the Sonos Sub Mini

Prepared to select up the Sonos Sub Mini? The compact subwoofer retails for $429 and may be bought from Sonos immediately, in addition to from B&H Picture and Adorama.com.