Clear TV voices for a small room, without bothering the neighbors

Sonos Ray

Name: Sonos Ray
SKU: PG18SND006
Price: 219 USD
Rating: 8.7 (1 reviews)

8.7/10high confidenceLast checked Jun 19, 2026

Er

Reviewed by

Eran Yorkovsky · Founder, PickGrade

The small-room pick. At 22 inches it tucks under a modest TV and delivers the crisp, forward dialogue most people want, at volumes that won't carry through walls. It's optical-only, so no HDMI or Atmos and bass is light, but for an apartment those are the right trade-offs.

The Ray is the compact pick: short enough for a small TV stand or a bedroom, with sound quality and dialogue clarity well beyond its size and a profile that won't dominate the room. It's the apartment-friendly choice — clear at low and moderate volumes where you're not trying to shake the walls — and like all Sonos it can grow, pairing with a Sonos Sub Mini and Era rears down the line. The honest limits: it connects by optical rather than HDMI eARC (so no one-remote ARC convenience or passthrough), and there's no Atmos or built-in bass thump. For small spaces and considerate listening, that's the right set of trade-offs.

$219

Buy →

PickGrade may earn a commission from purchases made through links on this page, at no extra cost to you. This never affects our grades. Full disclosure.

Last reviewed Jun 13, 2026

AI grade·Refined by real owners

What we like

✓Compact — fits small TVs, bedrooms, and apartments
✓Clear sound and dialogue at low volumes
✓Neighbor-friendly without losing clarity
✓Expandable with Sonos Sub Mini and rears
✓Tidy, unobtrusive design

Trade-offs

−No HDMI at all - optical only, so no eARC and no Dolby Atmos
−Narrow soundfield - not very positional or immersive
−Limited deep bass without the optional Sub
−No Bluetooth; Trueplay tuning is iPhone-only

Best for

Small rooms, bedrooms, and apartments: a compact, genuinely good-sounding bar that won't disturb neighbors and starts a Sonos system.

Avoid if

You want big bass or Atmos — the Ray has no subwoofer out and no height channels; choose the Beam or a 2.1 bundle if bass matters.

The three lenses

How we grade →

Value & Longevity · Eran Yorkovsky
8.8/10

Score breakdown

ease9.0/10
fit8.8/10
value8.8/10
quality8.4/10

Specs

size: 22 x 3.5 x 2.8 in; 4.3 lb; black/white
type: Compact 2.0 soundbar (no sub, no Atmos)
price: ~$219 (MSRP $279)
drivers: 2 tweeters + 2 midwoofers; forward-firing
formats: Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS Digital Surround (no Atmos)
features: Sonos app, Trueplay tuning (iPhone), IR remote learning
expandable: Add Sonos Sub + rears later
connectivity: Optical in + Ethernet; Wi-Fi, AirPlay 2 (no HDMI, no Bluetooth)

How we know

High confidenceLast checked Jun 19, 2026

The Sonos Ray is the apartment and small-room pick: Sonos's most compact and affordable soundbar, built to clarify TV sound without overwhelming a small space or your neighbors. At just 22 inches and 4.3 pounds it fits under a 40-something-inch TV or on a shelf, and despite its size it delivers the thing most people actually want — crisp, clear, forward dialogue that reviewers single out as its standout strength. Four forward-firing drivers (two tweeters, two midwoofers) with split waveguides throw a wider, punchy sound, and a 2025 software update tightened up its bass. You get the full Sonos experience: dead-simple app setup, Trueplay room tuning, Wi-Fi and AirPlay 2 streaming, and the option to grow into a Sub and rear speakers later. The honest caveats: there's no HDMI at all — it connects by optical only, so there's no eARC and no Dolby Atmos (it handles Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS); the soundfield is fairly narrow and not very 'positional'; deep bass is limited without the optional Sub, though that restraint is a plus in an apartment; there's no Bluetooth; and Trueplay tuning needs an iPhone. For clearer TV speech in a small room on a budget, it's an easy, neighbor-friendly upgrade.

Compare Sonos Ray with the top alternates side-by-side.

Compare picks →