When I review audio equipment, sound quality is the most important thing. I know this seems like the most obvious statement in the world, but I say it because many of us buy speakers, headphones and soundbars based on promised features or impressive specs. Because if you can’t go to a store to hear the product in person, what else are you going to do?
This trend is reinforced when we look at two similarly priced products from two different companies, each with a good reputation. Good examples are the Sonos Arc Ultra ($1,099/£999/AU$1,799) and the JBL Bar 1000 MK2 ($1,200/£899). Both are premium Dolby Atmos soundbars with a price difference of $100 from each other.
All in one or future expansion?
The Sonos Arc Ultra is an all-in-one soundbar that can be expanded with the company’s optional wireless speakers and subwoofers.
Aside from the main issue of sound quality, it’s worth first thinking about what you want from a soundbar. Are you looking for a complete solution that allows you to open the box, install the system and never have to think about your home theater sound again? Or are you more progressive and want a great soundbar that you can expand over time as your budget and needs change?
If you fall into the latter category, Sonos is the best option. The Arc Ultra does not have subwoofers or surround speakers, but it is compatible with several Sonos products that can perform these functions. This allows you to choose the right components for your home theater instead of having to use the supplied components.
This is a more expensive route to a multi-speaker, but much more versatile. Bar 1000 MK2 only works with JBL subwoofer and surround sound. If you don’t like the performance or your needs change, you’re stuck.
How much music?
The Sonos app works with almost all music services, including apple Music and spotify.
The main purpose of a soundbar is to provide better tv sound. But if you choose a speaker, it should do more than just play your movies: you can expect it to be a capable music player as well.
Again, sound quality should be the most important factor (I promise I’ll get into that), but you have to think about that as well. If You want to play music. If you’re a Spotify user, you don’t have a personal music collection on a computer and you don’t want to subscribe to other services, then the Sonos Arc Ultra or the JBL Bar 1000 MK2 will suit your needs. You can access both directly from the Spotify app; simple as pie.
On the other hand, if you use multiple services and have a large personal digital music collection, the Sonos platform is more powerful and versatile than JBL’s One app. The Sonos app works with almost all music services, including Apple Music and Spotify, so you can search and stream from different sources in one app. Additionally, you can create playlists from multiple sources and combine songs from each service into one list.
The JBL One app lets you install additional JBL speakers in your home, but it doesn’t have the same multi-room options as the Sonos app.
But savvy audiophiles will remember that Sonos doesn’t support Google Cast and Tidal Connect, which means some music services won’t be able to stream in full quality (at sample rates higher than 48kHz, for example). With the Bar 1000 MK2 you can transmit up to 96 kHz.
What about the rest of your house? Sonos is primarily a multi-room wireless streaming platform. Adding new devices to new rooms in the home takes less than three minutes, and each new speaker can be controlled via the Sonos app. Multiroom is not JBL’s strong point. Installing new JBL Wi-Fi speakers is very easy in the JBL One app. But if you want to control them from an interface, you’ll have to use the Google Home or Amazon Alexa app, which aren’t as easy to use or as powerful as the Sonos app.
Dolby Atmos music
The upward-firing speakers on the Sonos Arc Ultra deliver immersive Dolby Atmos music
One of the best parts of having a Dolby Atmos soundbar is listening to Dolby Atmos music. Both the Arc Ultra and the Bar 1000 MK2 can play Dolby Atmos music, but only the Arc Ultra can play those songs without the need for a smart TV or standalone streaming device like an Apple TV 4K.
If you have an Apple Music or Amazon Music account, you can stream Dolby Atmos songs directly to the Arc Ultra via the Sonos app. Tidal still requires you to use a smart TV or streaming device with the correct version of the Tidal app for that platform.
One voice to rule them all?
The JBL’s multiple HDMI inputs offer greater connection flexibility than the Sonos soundbar, which is limited to a single HDMI eARC port.
Sonos values simplicity. This is a mission I can support, as long as it doesn’t limit what I can do with a product. The Arc Ultra’s connections are as simple as they come: an HDMI ARC/eARC port. That’s all. No HDMI inputs, no analogue inputs and no optical digital inputs (although you can buy an optical to HDMI adapter if needed).
On the one hand, a single connection simplifies things. On the other hand, if your TV only has three or four HDMI ports, you now only have two or three ports available to all devices connected via HDMI.
The Bar 1000 MK2 solves this problem and even increases the number of available ports with its three HDMI inputs. If you’re still using an older TV without Dolby Atmos, this arrangement has a hidden advantage: connect a Dolby Atmos-compatible streaming media player to one of these inputs (instead of a TV port) and you’ll get the best of both worlds: Dolby Atmos with Dolby TrueHD quality and 4K HDR video with Dolby Vision support. Arc Ultra can only work with the audio signal it receives from the TV.
It would have been nice if JBL had made the Bar 1000 MK2’s optical input unobtrusive, but unfortunately it can only be used as an alternative to the HDMI eARC port.
surprising sound
An advanced Arc Ultra system with Sonos Era 300 and Sonos Sub speakers
With the included subwoofer and detachable surround speakers, you’d expect the JBL Bar 1000 MK2 to have better sound quality than the single-speaker Sonos Arc Ultra, but I didn’t find that when comparing these two systems.
The biggest surprise was the low frequency sound. I’m not saying the Arc Ultra can play as deep or as powerful in the bass department as the Bar 1000 MK2’s subwoofer with its massive 10-inch driver, but the Arc Ultra’s dual-diaphragm, quad-motor, dual-amp Sound Motion woofer is incredible.
Even when the windows aren’t shaking, the Arc Ultra’s base is truly cinematic, bringing an immersive experience to action scenes. It’s so powerful that I recommend Arc Ultra owners to buy surround speakers. For Invest in a subwoofer.
Speaking of immersion, there’s no escaping the role two separate speakers on either side of the listening position can play in the movie and TV experience. With the Bar 1000 MK2’s removable units at full volume, I was able to enjoy surround sound moments better than with the Arc Ultra. However, the Arc Ultra does an impressive job with virtual surround sound, and its Dolby Atmos height channel effects are better defined than the Bar 1000 MK2.
JBL’s fully wireless surround speakers connect to the soundbar for charging
Where the Arc Ultra scores two clear wins is in clarity in dialogue and music playback. As I said before, the main function of a soundbar is to provide better sound to the TV. Speech intelligibility is a big challenge these days, especially as streaming services take us from traditional two-channel audio to 5.1 surround sound or better. The Arc Ultra does an excellent job of separating and emphasizing the dialogue from the rest of the soundtrack, making it much easier to listen to than competing systems. This is not to say that JBL’s dialogue is clearer. Poor (it’s actually pretty good) but it’s not as clear as the Arc Ultra.
If you don’t expect to listen to a lot of music through the soundbar, the Bar 1000 MK2 is ideal for casual music, the kind you can listen to in the background while you do other tasks. For dedicated listening, though, it has some issues, as I noted in my review: it struggles with the midrange, and the treble tends to get shrill and shrill, especially at higher volumes.
On the other hand, the Arc Ultra is a better music speaker in almost every way. Dolby Atmos Music on its own is a strong point, and it gets even better when you combine it with a set of wireless Sonos Era 300 speakers as surround speakers. It’s not perfect (I’ve noticed that some Dolby Atmos music can produce an unwanted level of treble if you don’t lower the treble), but overall the Arc Ultra plays two-channel and surround music mixes in typical Sonos style: warm tones, good detail and resolution, with a good balance between frequencies.
Find the right soundbar
Ultimately, the Sonos Arc Ultra and JBL Bar 1000 MK2 are great Dolby Atmos additions to your TV setup. Whether you’re buying your first soundbar or upgrading to a smaller speaker, these systems will impress you with their performance.
But given the Arc Ultra’s advantages in music streaming support, expandability, dialog and music playback, I’d recommend it over the Bar 1000 MK2 unless you’re looking for an all-in-one option that’s easy to set and forget. Then the Bar 1000 MK2 is perfect for you.
