Finding the Best Sonos Home Cinema Setup for Your Budget
If you're working with a budget of around £1000 and looking to build a Sonos home cinema system, you might be stuck choosing between two standout options: the premium Sonos Arc Ultra or the Sonos Beam Gen 2 & Sub Mini bundle. With only a slight price difference, it's important to weigh up which setup delivers the best performance and value for your space.
Since its 2022 release, the Sonos Sub Mini has offered an affordable access point to high-end bass performance, making it a great support act for the Sonos Beam (Gen 2). This pairing changed the face of the Sonos product landscape, forcing many of us to reconsider which soundbar setup offers better value for money.
Now, following the release of the Sonos Arc Ultra, the decision becomes even more interesting. With enhanced bass, a more immersive audio experience and of course an increased price tag, is it worth the upgrade, or does the Beam and Sub Mini bundle still provide the best bang for your buck?
Please Note: Prices are correct at time of publishing. Check product pages for most up-to-date prices.
Need To Knows:
Sonos Arc Ultra
Released in 2024, the Sonos Arc Ultra is Sonos’ most advanced soundbar to date, designed to deliver a truly premium home cinema experience. Perfect for larger rooms and open-plan spaces, it features an upgraded 14-driver array with dedicated front, side and upward-firing drivers that help deliver an exceptionally wide soundstage and truly immersive Dolby Atmos height effects.
Thanks to SoundMotion™ technology, the Arc Ultra is also capable of delivering deeper, more precise bass without the need for an external subwoofer, a huge leap forward from its predecessor. It's also better at delivering mid and high frequencies, improving dialogue clarity and overall balance. However, with its higher price point, it may not be the best fit for every setup.
Sonos Beam (Gen 2) & Sonos Sub Mini Bundle
The Sonos Beam Gen 2 & Sub Mini bundle is a fantastic alternative for those with smaller to medium-sized rooms who still want immersive, bass-rich sound.
Unlike the Arc Ultra, the Beam (Gen 2) features virtual Dolby Atmos that uses clever digital processing to simulate height effects without the need for dedicated upward-firing drivers. While this works well in most spaces, it doesn’t provide quite the same sense of height and depth as the Arc Ultra’s dedicated height channels.
The Sub Mini compensates for the Beam’s bass limitations, delivering clean and tight low-end frequencies that's brilliant for bringing some rumble to blockbusters or TV Audio. It’s a more affordable and compact solution than the Sonos Sub 4, and that's why we see it as one of the ideal pairings for the Sonos Beam.
So, which is the better setup? Well here are some key things to consider.
Room Size & Layout
When picking the perfect Sonos home theatre setup, the first thing to think about is your room’s size and layout. As a general rule, the Sonos Arc Ultra is ideal for larger, more open spaces, where you want big, cinematic sound that fills the room. The Sonos Beam and Sub Mini, on the other hand, are a great match for smaller to medium-sized rooms, giving you impressive audio without overpowering the space.
That said, there’s more to it than just room size. In our own testing, we were surprised by how well the Beam and Sub Mini held up in our open-plan showroom. When sitting directly in front of the TV, the experience was really solid, with clear dialogue and deep bass that made TV shows and movies sound great.
When we moved to a wider seating position, we started to notice a slight drop in impact. The sound was still good but didn't feel quite as immersive in the outer areas of the room. This is where the Sonos Arc Ultra really shines, delivering a much wider and more engaging soundstage that makes a difference if you are sitting off to the side.
So if you usually watch from directly in front of the TV, the Beam and Sub Mini could be all you need. But if you want a more spacious, room-filling sound, the Arc might be the better choice.
Real-Life Practicality Matters:
Something that often gets overlooked when choosing a setup is how well it fits within your space. When you are spending big on a product, you naturally want it to blend seamlessly into your home rather than feeling like an awkward addition.
In our experience, if you have a 48-inch TV or smaller, adding an Arc Ultra underneath might look out of place and dominate the setup. On the other hand, if your TV is 75 inches or larger, the Beam may look undersized, and more importantly, it might struggle to deliver a wide enough soundstage to match the visuals.
It's also worth thinking about where you are going to place your soundbar. Will you be wall mounting it? If so, do you have enough wall space for the Arc Ultra? If you're placing it on a TV stand, is the stand wide enough for a larger soundbar? And what about a Sub Mini? Do you have room for it without it getting in the way?
These are all things to keep in mind when deciding which setup is right for you. A great sound system is not just about performance, it's also about how well it integrates into your space and daily life.
Sound Performance
As mentioned earlier, the Sonos Arc Ultra delivers a wider soundstage and more room-filling performance than the Beam (Gen 2). While the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) does a solid job, it simply can't compete with the sheer physics of the Arc Ultra’s larger build and additional speaker drivers. So if you have a wide seating arrangement or want an expansive soundstage, the Arc Ultra is the best choice.
Dolby Atmos Performance:
When it comes to Dolby Atmos effects, the Arc Ultra has a significant advantage thanks to its dedicated upward-firing drivers. However,, the Beam does cope considerably well, especially when you add the extra layer of immersion with the Sub Mini.
Because Sonos subwoofers are designed to take the load of the lower frequencies when paired with a soundbar, it frees up the Beam to focus more on mid and high frequencies, improving vocal clarity and overall performance. Dialogue becomes crisper, and sound effects feel more precise, making a noticeable difference in movies, TV shows, and even music playback.
That being said, while the Beam and Sub Mini combination delivers impressive Atmos performance for its size, the Arc Ultra remains the better choice for a truly cinematic surround sound experience. If overhead Atmos effects and a wider soundstage are priorities, the Arc Ultra is the way to go. But if you are working with a smaller space or want a more budget-friendly setup, the Beam and Sub Mini still offer an incredibly immersive experience.
Bass Performance:
With the introduction of its SoundMotion™ Woofer, the Arc Ultra delivers a noticeably deeper and more controlled low-end performance than its predecessor. The low end is deeper, tighter, and more controlled, which for a lot of people, might be enough on its own.
However, while the Arc Ultra holds its own in the bass department, a dedicated subwoofer always makes a difference. If you’re after the full-bodied low-end experience, the Beam and Sub Mini remain a seriously solid alternativethe Beam (Gen 2) paired with the Sub Mini is still a very strong contender that stands up surprisingly well against the Arc Ultra’s upgraded low-end performance.
Budget
Another factor we think is worth considering when choosing which soundbar setup to go for is budget. Not necessarily your budget right now due to their similar price points, but your long-term funds. Are you going to want to spend more in the future on your setup? Do you want to upgrade and add more units over time? Or are you looking to make your purchase now and stop there?
You might want to add a Sonos Sub 4 to the Sonos Arc Ultra to maximise performance and add two Sonos Era 300 Rears too for enhanced surround audio. This full surround sound bundle of a Sonos Arc Ultra, Sonos Sub 4 and 2 x Sonos Era 300's would cost you £2,696 (RRP).
Whereas, if you decided to add a pair of Era 100 rears to your Beam and Sub Mini bundle you would only be looking at an additional cost of around £498 so, £1,376 (RRP) all in for a Sonos Beam (Gen 2), Sonos Sub Mini and 2 x Sonos Era 100 bundle.
Our Verdict
Based on everything we’ve covered, it’s difficult to give a clear-cut recommendation without speaking to every single person about what they want from their audio equipment, their homes or their plans for the future. However, we’ve come up with three soundbar setup scenarios that may help you to break the decision down and come to an answer that suits your needs...
Scenario One:
Meet Ben. He lives in a 3-bed house with a medium-sized living room. He watches a lot of Netflix, likes films, and also listens to music regularly at home. He’s not planning on moving to a much bigger space any time soon. He wants a good soundbar setup and has got a budget of around £1000. But he is not looking for something to invest further down the road. He wants a setup that’s going to make movie night more immersive and be a big step up from his TV speakers.
🏆 We would recommend that he buys the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) and Sonos Sub Mini.
Scenario Two:
Meet Sophie and Alex. They’ve just bought their first house together. They’ve got a 65” TV and they’ve got a medium-sized living room too. They dream of having a larger, open-plan space and may move house to accommodate this in the future. They’ve only got a budget of £1000 right now, but they both love movie night and hosting parties so they’re happy to keep investing in their system over time when they can afford to do so.
🏆 We would suggest they buy the Sonos Arc Ultra.
Scenario Three:
Finally, Meet John. He’s serious about audio. He likes the best of the best and he’s got the money to go for it. He knows he’s going to invest more into his setup over time but he wants to be sure he’s getting a premium experience, a premium setup, and doesn’t mind spending more to get it.
🏆 It’s a no-brainer for John, he’s gone for the Sonos Arc Ultra.
Which Scenario Do You Fall Into?
Are you Ben, are you Sophie and Alex or are you more of a John? Of course, there are plenty of other factors that you may need to consider. But hopefully, this has given you the starting point to work from.
Hopefully, this comparison has helped you gain a better understanding of whether the Sonos Arc Ultra or the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) & Sonos Sub Mini is a better solution for your soundbar setup. If you feel like you’re still unsure and would like more personal advice, then feel free to reach out to our expert team of tech guides who would be more than happy to help!
Other Useful Content
Blog: Sonos Era 100 vs. Sonos Era 300: Which Speaker Is Best?
Blog: The Best Sonos Speakers to Buy in 2025
Blog: Sonos Arc Ultra Review: The Dolby Atmos Soundbar To Beat?
Blog: Best Dolby Atmos Soundbars 2025: The Complete Buyer's Guide
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