Sonos recently made big headlines with the launch of its first-ever headphones, the Sonos Ace. It’s surprising that it took them this long, considering their experience in audio products and speakers. With that being said though, the Sonos Ace looks good, sounds good, and boasts all the Sonos features you’d expect. What else do the headphones offer? Let’s take a look.
Unboxing and Design
The headphones come in simple, minimalist packaging that’s easy to open. Inside, you’ll find a carrying case, a USB-C to USB-C cable, and a 3.5mm headphone jack cable with a USB-C connector. The carrying case has a nice soft finish with the Sonos logo subtly embossed, and also includes a pouch to store the cables securely.
In terms of design, the Sonos Ace is minimalist and sleek, available in both black and white with a comfortable matte finish. The headband has a soft foam padding that conforms to a user’s head size and avoids excessive clamping, which is much appreciated for prolonged music sessions. Meanwhile, the ear cups are finished in vegan leather with memory foam underneath for a comfortable fit, and are also easily detachable and come in different colours for left and right sides.
The Sonos Ace headphones are surprisingly lightweight and don’t get too warm over time, except during strenuous activities like running. There are physical buttons on the headphones for power, pairing, volume control (via a content control button), playback controls, and answering calls. The headphones also have a sensor that detects when you take them off your head, automatically pausing your audio.
Features
- 40mm drivers
- Support for lossless audio with Snapdragon aptX Lossless and Apple ALAC
- Spatial audio with dynamic head tracking
- No Wi-Fi connection to the Sonos sound system, although there is a Wi-Fi chip for other purposes
- 30 hours of battery life with Bluetooth and active noise cancellation (ANC) on
- 3 minutes of fast charging provides 3 hours of playback
- True Cinema calibration (coming soon) tailors the sound to your room
- TV Swap allows for Sonos Arc system connectivity
- Eight microphones for ANC and clear phone calls
Sound Quality
As expected from a Sonos product, the sound quality is excellent in general. The voice clarity is crisp, and the bass is well-tuned without overpowering the other instruments. Sonos also does a good job with spatial audio integration, creating a great soundstage that makes listening enjoyable and more immersive. The TV Swap feature likewise works well with minimal lag, which is a rather-welcome convenience.
There are some things to note however – for example, the active noise cancelling is decent but not the best compared to competitors like Bose, which at this point has mastered ANC with their Quiet Comfort line of products. There’s also the issue of missing aptX Adaptive or LDAC at launch, although hopefully Sonos enables this in a future update.
Conclusion
The Sonos Ace is a great pair of headphones with excellent sound quality, a comfortable design, and long battery life. It integrates well with the Sonos ecosystem, especially with the TV Swap feature. While features like aptX Adaptive and LDAC, and Wi-Fi connection to the Sonos system are missing, the overall pros outweigh the cons.
The £450 price point is reasonable for a flagship product, and you’re likely to enjoy using them for a long time. We’d recommend these headphones to anyone looking for a high-quality, comfortable pair with excellent sound quality and integration with the Sonos ecosystem.
