The Sennheiser Ambeo Plus looks like an elegant soundbar though it is heavier than most other products this size that I have handled over the years.
I have always wondered why Sennheiser does not make more speakers and audio equipment. But the fact is that they do in fact have a range of soundbars that uses the Ambeo branding which suggests a 360-degree immersive sound experience. The Sennheiser Ambeo Plus with subwoofer, like a lot of other products from the German brand, aims to catch the top bracket of soundbars in the market by claiming to have the best immersive sound you can buy. But does it live up to these claims?
The Sennheiser Ambeo Plus looks like an elegant soundbar though it is heavier than most other products this size that I have handled over the years. But then, this 7.1.4 channel set up has nine speakers inside and that too Sennheiser speakers. The SubWoofer is a simple vertical box that connects wirelessly with the soundboard but has a power connection of its own. The soundbar comes with all possible audio connection options and works via AirPlay too. You can use the HDMI option to connect to your TV.
There is a remote that lets you control this rig, but you will need the Sennsheiser Smart Control app to set it up. The app is also going to help you configure the speaker for the room it is kept in. This takes a few minutes, but it is quite easy compared to the process in some other soundbars where you need to walk around the room waving your smartphone. Also, this is a wireless speaker that uses Wi-Fi and hence if you are playing songs from the phone, it does not get interrupted by incoming calls or messages. You can also set up the Ambeo Plus to play directly from Spotify and Tidal streaming services. Also, the app lets you configure Alexa or Google Assistant to work on the speakers.
You have exhausted your
monthly limit of free stories.
To continue reading,
simply register or sign in
🌟 Unlock More with an Express Digital Subscription! 🌟 Dive deeper into the stories that matter. Now available at an exclusive, limited-time price.
This premium article is free for now.
Register to read more free stories and access offers from partners.
🌟 Unlock More with an Express Digital Subscription! 🌟 Dive deeper into the stories that matter. Now available at an exclusive, limited-time price.
This content is exclusive for our subscribers.
Subscribe now to get unlimited access to The Indian Express exclusive and premium stories.
My grouse with the Ambeo Plus design is that the soundbar is a bit taller than most others and hence does block the lower part of the TV if it’s on a stand like mine. And this means the soundbar is likely to come in the way of the remote as it did in the case of my OnePlus TV.
The Ambeo branding has been something Sennheiser has been using for products that offer 360-degree sound capabilities. The Ambeo Plus is also a Dolby Atmos-equipped soundbar that can fill your room with sound objects. Since my 65-inch TV conked off soon into the review, I did not get the big screen experience for most of the review days. However, streaming from an iPad or MacBook the audio capabilities of the Ambeo Plus were more than clear.
If you have configured your soundbar well, then the immersive impact is very clear. This soundbar is not about creating a wall of sound in front of the television. Instead, it creates a mesh around the room which is mapped in the calibration process. Watching ‘Kohrra’ on the TV, where the streaming is via the HDMI, you can feel the jeep brake on the gravel, the shots fired reverberate across the room and every dialogue stands out where the character is. On the app, it is best to use the movie mode when you are in a weekend mode and select voice enhance for the best experience. Even while casting from the Amazon Prime Video app, the violence of ‘Sisu’ including all the fine detail you don’t really want to hear got splashed around my room.
But then the Sennheiser Ambeo Plus is not just about movies. I enjoyed so many hours of early morning music thanks to this soundbar. Listening to Agar Tum Saath Ho you feel the bass of the subwoofer resonate across the room, but not suppressing the vocals in any way. Ludwig Goransson’s excellent soundtrack for Oppenheimer too came to life in my living room, with the slow taps of Atmospheric Ignition giving way to a booming crescendo showcasing the range of this setup. Hilary Hahn on the violin slicing through the 6 Sonatas also set my house on fire. But I kept thinking there was some music coming from the other house. That’s when it hit me this was just another note in the composition, playing out from the back of the room.
The remote is convenient and lets you switch modes and the source. I like how there is a night mode that brings the impact down a few notches, very important for people like me who stay in apartment blocks. The remote even has an Amber button, just in case you want to switch off the 360-degree effect. I was wondering why anyone would do that though.
Another aspect I liked about the soundbar is how the wireless connection is very stable and you don’t have to keep looking for it every time you want to play something from the phone. A lot of wireless speakers find maintaining this stability tough, especially when you have a lot of power cuts like we do in India.
At Rs 1,39,990, the Sennheiser Ambeo Plus is among the best soundbars you can bring home. But yes, this is an expensive proposition for sure, especially since the subwoofer is an additional Rs 69,990. And while it has amazing immersive audio for a soundbar, it is still a bit subpar in experience when you compare it with a setup that actually has seven speakers and a subwoofer which might actually cost the same or even lesser. So do keep that in mind while opting for this. And while the Sennheiser Ambeo Plus might tout itself as a soundbar it is actually a full audio hub for the home, thus justifying the pricing to an extent.
