I had a chance to test and compare two models: Yamaha MusicCast BAR 400 vs Sonos Arc and this review should help people who are looking for a good soundbar. The Yamaha MusicCast BAR 400 was rated 8.2, while the Sonos Arc has a rating 7. The soundbars are equipped with a different number of buttons, power, volume down, volume up, input, mute for the MusicCast BAR 400 and volume down, volume up, play/pause, microphone for the Arc.
Each of the models under consideration has active amplification type. The built-in subwoofer is not implemented in any of these models. An external subwoofer can be connected to any of the units in this comparison. Rate 7 out of 10 received the Yamaha MusicCast BAR 400 for audio features and specs, but the Sonos Arc received 5 out of 10.
AirPlay 2 supported by both soundbars. Each of the competitors can play content from Spotify.
Both models have a wireless Wi-Fi interface. Soundbars from this comparison have Bluetooth support. There are 1/1 HDMI inputs/outputs in the Yamaha MusicCast BAR 400 versus 1/0 HDMIs in the Sonos Arc. As in the MusicCast BAR 400, so in the Arc there is the HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC). We rated the connectivity of the MusicCast BAR 400 at 8 out of 10, while the Arc was rated 7/10.
Both devices have integrated voice control via Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant. The manufacturer of the Arc provides a device control application. The soundbars in this review are equipped with a microphone. The Yamaha MusicCast BAR 400 may become part of a multiroom system.
Dolby Atmos audio decoder is onboard the Arc. Devices from this comparison cannot process surround sound due to lack of DTS:X. The MusicCast BAR 400 was rated 6/10, while the Arc received a mark of 4/10 for multichannel surround.