Sonos is getting back on track
TV Audio Swap for two and TrueCinema finally available for Sonos Ace headphones
Is Sonos finally putting its worst year behind? The audio firm — now under an interim CEO after a botched app rollout led to the resignation of CEO Patrick Spence — went all-out to repair its reputation last month with interviews with major publications like Bloomberg and The Verge.
Sonos also launched a major update for its Sonos Ace headphones this month. You know, the same headphones that could have sunk the company last year. Well, almost a year since its debut, the Sonos Ace finally gets the long-awaited TrueCinema feature. What this does is to analyse the room to create a more immersive home theater audio experience for those using the TV Audio Swap feature, which transfers the audio from a compatible Sonos Arc Ultra/Arc/Beam/Ray soundbar to the headphones.
When I first tried TrueCinema over the weekend, I was floored. For just a split second, it felt like I wasn’t wearing the Sonos Ace headphones at all. The sound just seemed so open and wide. I could almost believe that I was hearing the soundbar directly instead. However, this moment was fleeting — the weight of the headphones and the warmth of the ear cups soon banished the illusion.
To set up TrueCinema, you’ll need to sit at your usual listening spot on the couch, and complete a tuning process. Of course, you’ll also have to finish the Sonos Ace update in the first place. It’s a bit lengthy, but it’s definitely worth it. Aside from TrueCinema, the update also enables the TV Audio Swap feature to work for two headphones at the same time.
This was probably one of the most requested improvements for the Sonos Ace. It made perfect sense since most folks are probably not watching TV alone. In any case, Multiuser TV Audio Swap worked flawlessly in my testing. Not only does it ensure that my kids are not disturbed by my late-night movie viewing, it also meant that my wife and I each get to control the volume for our own headphones. And that’s a big deal. I usually prefer to turn up volume for a more cinematic feel, but my wife is sensitive to loud noises. So now, we get to have our own ideal volume. It’s like having separate blankets in bed.
There are also other improvements, such as adaptive ANC that claims to improve performance for people wearing glasses. I couldn’t quite tell the difference since the ANC on the Sonos Ace is already excellent. In short, if you own a pair of these over-ear headphones, you’ll want to update them to the latest 3.9.7 version as soon as possible.
Also, now that I have tried the latest Sony WH-1000XM6, I would say that the ANC for the Sonos Ace remains competitive. And given that the Sonos Ace headphones are often discounted from its S$699 retail price, while the Sony has gone up in price relative to its predecessor, I think the updated Sonos Ace is a very solid alternative to the Sony WH-1000XM6, especially if you already have a Sonos soundbar.
This week, we checked out Hideo Kojima’s latest blockbuster game, Death Stranding 2, tested Sony’s latest WH-1000XM6 wireless headphones, and gave our verdict on a mainstream laptop from Asus.
Death Stranding 2 can be, like all Hideo Kojima games, rather divisive. While the gameplay remains one of its standouts, the plot is bloated, and feels padded out, especially near the end. It’s also filled with moments that make no sense. But there’s plenty of meat in the gameplay, which can easily take up to 100 hours to complete.
The new Sony WH-1000XM6 brings back a foldable hinge design that makes these wireless headphones more compact than before. There’s also a nice carrying case that uses a magnetic clasp. But more importantly, these headphones still offer world-class noise cancellation, and a consumer-friendly sound profile.
The Asus Vivobook S14 is a competent workhorse laptop that’s suited for both office workers and students. And thanks to its AI-capable processor, it also has some AI features such as live captions and the Copilot AI assistant. More importantly, the price (S$1,599) is reasonable for what you get.