A sound bar is an instant home theatre upgrade, and choosing one from all of the brands and options doesn’t have to be difficult. There are a lot of different options and price points, and you’ll find some sound bars packaged with a subwoofer, others that offer multi-room audio, and others that simply and effectively boost your volume. In the simple and effective range, the Sonos Ray sound bar is one of the best options available.
I just tested out the Sonos Ray and I was very impressed with the audio from this small, sleek sound bar. I think it would be a great fit for anyone with a smaller TV or someone who would like a sound bar in a bedroom or rec room. If you have an optical out port on your computer, I also think it would be a fine upgrade for your PC’s audio too.
Features of the Sonos Ray sound bar
The Sonos Ray is a small sound bar measuring 22 in (55.88 cm) W x 2.49 in (7.09 cm) H x 3.74 in (9.5 cm) D. It’s very light, weighing only 4.29 lb (1.95 kg). If you could pop the top off the Sonos Ray you’d see a group of forward-facing speaker components designed to direct sound straight at you. It has a pair of tweeters, mid-woofers, and bass ports.
Sonos Ray sound bar specfications
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- Compact sound bar with two tweeters and two woofers for crystal clear audio
- Supports Stereo PCM, Dolby Digital 5.1, and DTS Digital Surround
- Speakers are forward-facing to best project audio and dialogue
- Anti-distortion technology boosts dialogue and adds bass to your movie soundtracks, TV shows, and music
- Will plug into any TV with optical out port
- Connects to Sonos app for volume control and Speech Enhancement options
- Night sound setting so you can enjoy video content at night
- 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connection and AirPlay 2
- Can be mounted under your TV using Sonos Ray wall mount
The Sonos Ray sound bar has a nice sleek design. It’s small, light, and I love how you can choose between black or white. It’s even packaged in a really nice way, and you have to unwrap the sound bar like a gift when you unbox it.
Setting up the Sonos Ray sound bar
The Sonos Ray sound bar has one of the easiest sound bar set ups I’ve experienced, but it’s also slightly different than I’m used to. It is packaged with an optical cable, and to connect it to your TV you have to connect the included digital optical cable to your TV’s digital optical out port.
Most TVs have a digital optical out port. I’ve never even noticed where the optical out was on my TCL Series 6 TV until I connected the Sonos Ray. The only sound bars I’ve used have had an HDMI connection, but plugging into the digital optical out was just as easy as connecting to HDMI. The included cord is 1.5m so there’s enough cord to move the sound bar around under your TV. Beyond the digital optical out and the power port, the back of the Sonos Ray has an Ethernet port and a reset button.
To use the Sonos Ray you’ll need to add it to the Sonos app. I plugged in an Ethernet cable so I didn’t have to worry about Wi-Fi, and the sound bar paired instantly with the app. You can control the sound bar via the app or turn the volume up and down on the top of the device.
Mounting the Sonos Ray sound bar
I didn’t mount the Sonos Ray on my wall but I did try the Sonos Ray sound bar mount, which you will have to purchase separately. The mount is a sturdy bracket the sound bar will slide onto, and it includes the screws and wall anchors you’ll need to mount it on the wall. It only takes two screws to mount it, and you’ll just slide the sound bar onto the mounting bracket. It’s nice to have the option of a mount, especially if you don’t have a lot of room on your entertainment unit or you’re using the Sonos Ray with a flush mounted TV.
Sound quality of the Sonos Ray sound bar
Looks are appealing, but sound bars are all about sound. This sound bar can produce big sound despite it’s small size and the fact that it doesn’t connect via HDMI.
I’ve always found my TV to be lacking in the dialogue department because audio, no matter what’s playing, is projected too evenly across the internal speakers. If I’m watching a movie and there is a lot of action, the action audio will be louder than the dialogue. You can hear a car crash but you can’t really hear what someone is saying.
From the second I plugged in the Sonos Ray, I noticed how great it was for projecting and enhancing dialogue. There’s a Speech Enhancement setting in the app you can use to boost it even more, but it’s very crisp and clear without any sort of app enhancement. I didn’t have to turn it up really loud to hear everything. Instead, audio felt as though it was projected at me where I sat on the couch, and I could also get the same experience if I moved to another chair beside the TV.
Music sounds great on the Sonos Ray too. I used AirPlay to connect to my iPhone and stream my playlists and I really enjoyed listening to everything on the sound bar. You can use the Sonos Ray as part of a multi-room set up as well. You just have to connect your other Sonos speakers in the Sonos app.
The only thing I found lacking was deep bass. I like to hear bass in sound effects or music, and without a subwoofer the Sonos Ray can’t really hit those very low tones. It does have a bit of bass on board so it’s not completely absent, and I’ve read that they may add a subwoofer for use with the Sonos Ray in the future.
Sonos Ray sound bar controls
The Sonos Ray sound bar has volume control right on the top of the device. You can tap it to turn it up, down, or turn it off. You can also control volume via the Sonos app, and there are a few other custom settings in the app that you can use to adjust your audio.
You can pair your TV’s remote control with the Sonos Ray sound bar, but keep in mind that not all TV remotes will work. I tried several times to pair my TCL Roku Series 6 remote control with the Sonos Ray and it wouldn’t work at all. That meant any volume adjustments needed to be made on the sound bar itself or via the app. That’s fine if your sound bar and TV are on the same Wi-Fi network, but my home’s Wi-Fi is a bit convoluted.
To adjust the volume I had to make sure I was connected to the same Wi-Fi the sound bar was connected to or the app wouldn’t find it. It wasn’t a big deal, but it’s much easier to adjust volume and options via a remote control.
Should you choose the Sonos Ray sound bar?
There are a lot of different scenarios where the Sonos Ray sound bar would be a great choice for your home. If you just want to boost the volume on your TV or want an easy-to-use sound bar with audio adjustments when you’re in the mood to switch things up, the Sonos Ray will be a prime addition.
If you’d like to add a sound bar to a bedroom TV or use it with a PC that has a digital optical port, it’s also an ideal choice from a dependable brand. The price point is a lot lower than some sound bars with more features, and you have the option of adding extra Sonos speakers if you’d like to create your own surround sound system or you want to enjoy multi-room audio.
Overall, the Sonos Ray sound bar has a very sleek, compact design, it’s nice you have the choice of white or black, and I love that you can use the wall mount to tuck it away. The only downside is that I can’t get it working with my TV’s remote control, but the sound quality and the design outweigh that one small issue.
You can find the Sonos Ray sound bar at Best Buy right now.
I would put it in the family room because that is where we usually gather to do some serious movie/tv viewing and this product would give us some serious sound quality!
We live in a one bedroom apartment, so I’d put it in the main room, our living room!
In the living room to go with my TV
Be great in the living room for everyone to enjoy
I would enjoy using this in my living room, I would love hearing my music using the Sonos sound bar while I do my housework.
The Sonos Ray would fit perfectly in our living room. It’s a small area, the television is compact, and the Sonos Ray would merge seamlessly and improve our sound quality immensely.
The only room that would work is the basement, because there is no other room that would work
perfect for our family room because we dont have surround sound there
I would pair this with the TV in my family room. I would keep it for myself.
I’d put it in the living room because that’s where my TV is.
I’d put the Sonos Ray Sound bar in my husband’s (Mike) home office, so he could enjoy music or movies when he’s “working”.
I would place it in my living room where it would get the most use.
i would put it in my living room to enjoy movies more
I’d put the Sonos Ray in our TV room so we could really enjoy a full audio experience!
If I won this Sonos Ray Sound bar I would put it in my wife’s new office to make it the best sounding and looking room in the house ;).
In the living room to get great sound when I watch hockey.
I would place it in the living room to get a movie sound experience.
Melanie would get this gift because she loves her music
In the living room because that is where my tv is
I would put it in our den where we have out tv and sound system, this would a great addition
I would use this in my family room as that is where we spend most of our time.
The sonos ray is going in my livingroom. It is our main TV and the room is the right size for this sound bar.
I would put the Sonos Ray in the living room.
This would be great in the exercise room to have better sound while working out
I would put the Sonos Ray in the living room.
If I win a Sonos Ray, I’ll be putting it into the den / mancave. Pump up the volume on some movies, but especially some games!
I would put it in my living room cause my basement has the surround sound but nothing is setup for the livingroom
I would put it in my living room.
The living room as that is where we spend most of our time as a family
I would use it in the living room, since that is the only room in which I have a T V. It is also where I stream everything, so that’s the only place it could go.
i would put this in our living and gift it to my parents because they are my primary caregivers
The sonos ray is going in my livingroom. It is our main TV and the room is the right size for this sound bar.
I’d put the Sonos Ray in my theatre room, this would be a present from me to me.
I would put the Sonos sound bar in the living room.
Basement, small area good for sound bouncing. would be an immersive sound experience.
I would put this in our upstairs living room. Our basement needs a full surround sound setup, but the upstairs current just runs on the TV speaker
I would put it in our den where we have out tv and sound system, this would a great addition
I’m putting it in my bedroom a private retreat where I can listen to music or watch tv or just ambient sounds, Thank you!
I would put this in the basement. It’s a small area, so this would be perfect.
I would use this in our living room as that is where we spend most of our time and it has our TV.
I think that i would put this soundbar in my bedroom. just got a new tv and I think this is what it is missing! the speakers in the tv dont really work that great for me as I have a hearing loss and it’s not very clear
I would love to upgrade my current home theater system and I’m not sure which direction to go. I would try this sound bar out there first and my backup plan would be to set it up in my bedroom.
I would use this in my family room as that is where we spend most of our time.
I would use it with my computer because the audio is not that good at the moment.
I would put the Sonos Ray in the living room. We have a smaller TV in that room and a bar for the size of the room would be much better than the speakers we currently use. There’s nothing wrong with the speakers but they don’t really fit the room. The Sonos Ray would.
The only room that would work is the basement, because there is no other room that would work
This would go in the living room with the main TV for all my TV watching and video game playing.
In the living room where the whole family comes and watch movies.
I would put this in my sewing room so I can hear over my sewing machine.
If I win this amazing Sonos Ray sound bar, I will put it in my living room so I can pair it with my existing Sonos speaker for an amazing sound experience.
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