Sonos Move 2 sounds awesome, but… 🤔
Reviewed by Aaron - 30th Nov 2023
This is the Sonos Move 2. We’ll be talking more about what are the improvements over the previous model, some other aspects of its sound quality including something that I think is missing, and ultimately whether you should buy the Sonos Move 2.
It’s got some pretty substantial improvements over that first model, like the inclusion of AirPlay 2, so if you have a bunch of Airplay speakers at home you can group them together, instead of relying on the Sonos app.
Also, this one supports Bluetooth 5.0 compared to 4.1, and double the battery life compared to the previous model. It also has a volume groove so you just slide along it to adjust volume, a small but nice improvement to the IU. And it now also has one mid woofer and two tweeters instead of just one so now it’s possible to actually get some stereo separation, making it sound bigger than it looks. A bit more about that later. Having listened to the Move 2 myself, I think it sounds great, but it is missing a bit of something. But before I tell you what it is, have a listen to the samples.
Sound Quality
On the guitar track there was a hefty timbre to the strings, and I thought every twang sounded crisp and airy. Not bad. On more “busy” tracks like the pop song I played, I think it handled that pretty well too in terms of track separation, and overall it sounded quite fun. But, remember I said there was something missing? I think it needs a bit more emphasis in the upper mids and highs. We’re talking between 3khz to 10khz. Because somehow the music, and vocals in general, sounded a little veiled. So I went into the Sonos app and bumped the treble up to +5, which made a huge difference to me.
But maybe you do prefer a more mellow, laid back sound, and you’ll be happy with just the default tuning. That’s okay, because as it is, it sounds awesome playing lofi hiphop in the background.
In terms of stereo separation, well, it did kind of produce a stereo effect, but the left and right channel phases were kind of hovering about 3-inches away from the speaker. So if you were thinking that it’s going to produce wide and open spacious stereo, this doesn’t. But yes, it does sound more spacious than it looks.
I think its bass has lots of gravity. It sounded deep and impactful, without sounding muddy, because it did preserve the vibrato of the bass drops. If you’re a bass lover, the Move 2 is enjoyable indeed. In fact its bass response sounds very similar to the OG Sonos Move, which came out 4 years ago
AirPlay 2 vs Bluetooth streaming difference?
Is there a difference between streaming Bluetooth audio and AirPlay 2? Well, yes there is. The volume is a little lower on Bluetooth by about 1.8 dB, and you miss out a bit of the highs and mids compared to AirPlay. But that’s the kind of thing that most people won’t notice unless they’re like me, and like to record stuff to compare side by side. I’m weird, I know.
Pros and Cons?
My thoughts about the Move 2 is kind of similar to when I reviewed the OG version four years ago. At that time, that product was a very big deal for Sonos, because it was the first Sonos speaker that came with both multi-room connectivity over WiFi AND Bluetooth connectivity, something that Sonos has rejected doing for years.
The OG Move was also built to be rugged, with a rubberized bottom and IP56 dust and water resistance. And it's designed to sound good anywhere you put it, because it also was the first to come with automatic TruePlay tuning. So wherever you place the speaker, it uses a microphone to listen to the room’s acoustics from that position, and automatically calibrates itself so that you get the best balance in terms of bass, mids and treble.
Overall thoughts
I like it, but I felt that if I really wanted something more mobile, this is a bit too large and heavy. I mean, you can bring it around the house, the yard, throw it in the backseat and drive to a beach with it, but it’s not a “pack it in a backpack” style of portable.
Back then there was also some concern about its price. It seems quite expensive, more costly tha most portable speakers. Right now it’s just a little less than buying two of the basic Era 100s which you can pair them in stereo, for even better, and wider, stereo separation. And you can also integrate them into a Sonos home theater, as rear channel speakers or left and right channels, something that you can’t do with the Move 2.
But if you want a Sonos speaker that is not tethered to a single location, something that goes anywhere and adapt its sound automatically, something that’s louder than the Era 100 and produces more bass, I recommend looking at the Move 2. You can take it anywhere that’s convenient, indoors or outdoors, and after that just dock it back into the charging bass. Or you can also charge it over USB-C. (Just make sure that you’re using the included adapter).
So that’s my take on the Sonos Move 2. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. In the meantime, you can check the latest Amazon prices of the product through the link below.
Check latest prices
Sonos Move 2 - https://amzn.to/3uMgq72
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