A year later, the Sonos Ace is finally fulfilling its potential

Engadget

5 days ago

2024 was an awful year for Sonos. Its long-awaited entry into a crowded headphones market was eclipsed by a bungled app launch which had a knock-on effect that impacted everything the company had planned to do for the rest of the year. Plus, those Ace headphones were missing a major feature.
One year later, that TrueCinema spatial audio enhancement is finally ready . And with that update, Sonos added a few more improvements to the Ace, including two-person TV Audio Swap, adaptive noise cancellation and better calls. I spent some time testing every aspect of the update that arrived in June to determine if Sonos' headphones really are better after the tweaks.
The first time I tried the Ace at a press event last spring, TrueCinema was one of the main parts of the demo. From the jump, Sonos was clear this wouldn't arrive when the headphones first went on sale, but I also didn't expect the company to take a full year to have it ready.
As a refresher, TrueCinema is a feature for the Ace that takes into account the acoustics of the room where one of its soundbars is located. It then creates spatial audio for the headphones based on that info when TV Audio Swap is active. According to Sonos, it supposedly 'understands the dynamics of your space, acoustically treats it and makes it sound like you have a beautifully tuned 3D audio system right in your headphones.' It's similar to the company's TruePlay tuning that calibrates its soundbars to your living room or home theater space.
Sonos has championed TrueCinema as a more realistic listening experience. Since it simulates the characteristics of the room, it's supposed to make it seem like you aren't wearing headphones at all. I'm not convinced on that point, but the feature does significantly enhance the spatial audio capabilities of the Ace for TV Audio Swap.
For example, subtle details in movies — things like footsteps, as well as various beeps, clicks and taps in Rogue One — are a lot more obvious with TrueCinema. There's more overall depth and direction to the sound as well, which makes this the optimal mode for watching TV or movies with Sonos' headphones. I'm confident my review score would've been higher if this was part of the original package since it makes such an obvious improvement to sound quality. Billy Steele for Engadget
The marquee feature for the Sonos Ace for the last year has been TV Audio Swap. This allows you to send the sound from a compatible Sonos soundbar to the headphones for an individual listening experience. Of course, this means you can watch an action flick at full volume after your family goes to bed or to tune in to a sporting event without annoying your partner. This has worked well for me both during my review and in the time since.
Unfortunately, I don't have a second pair of the Ace, so I can't vouch for how well TV Audio Swap now works with a companion. But since the ability to send soundbar audio to two sets of Ace headphones is one of the main items in the recent software update, I can't discuss the overall state of the device without mentioning this feature's availability.
Another aspect of the Ace's update is improved active noise cancellation (ANC), but not in the way you might expect. The company didn't figure out a way to block more noise per se, but it does account for any sound leaks that may impact performance. Sonos says its refined ANC setup can adapt to changes in fit caused by hair, glasses and hats in real time using the sensors inside the Ace. With that tweak, I noticed the slightest difference in ANC performance when sunglasses or a hat kept the ear pads from sitting flush on my face, but it's not quite as good as a tight seal. I'd characterize this update as a modest improvement, but it's still an improvement nonetheless.
Sonos also claims that this software update offers an improved call experience thanks to higher resolution audio. The company also added Sidetone, or the ability for you to pipe in your voice during calls when ANC is enabled. Plenty of companies have this, to varying degrees, and the effectiveness depends on how natural the sound is and whether or not you're able to make any adjustments. In the case of the Ace, Sidetone acts as an enhanced ambient mode, and it definitely improves the call experience. Since I could speak normally and didn't feel the need to shout to hear myself, video and voice calls felt more natural.
A year after their debut, the Sonos Ace is living up to the lofty expectations the company set when the headphones arrived. After spending time with this batch of updates, I'm convinced the Ace would've benefitted from having all of this ready at launch, especially TrueCinema. Since one of the Ace's main functions is personal living room listening, taking so long to deliver the feature that would boost sound quality this much is another misstep.
On the other hand, it's good to see Sonos is still working to improve the Ace. When you consider the company spent most of 2024 fixing a majorly botched app redesign , it would have been understandable if Sonos left the Ace to languish until it was time for version 2.0. The company had to delay products last summer , and according to a report in March , it even canceled another entirely. When CEO Patrick Spence resigned in January , interim chief executive Tom Conrad expressed the need for 'getting back to basics' (Conrad was named permanent CEO on July 23). Improving a major new product that was overshadowed by a poor run of form is certainly one way to reclaim some of your reputation. It also doesn't hurt that the Ace is currently available for $149 less than its original $449 price. If you buy something through a link in this article, we may earn commission.