When comparing Sonos Playbar vs Sony HT-CT390, the Slant community recommends Sonos Playbar for most people. In the question“What are the best soundbars?” Sonos Playbar is ranked 1st while Sony HT-CT390 is ranked 8th. The most important reason people chose Sonos Playbar is:
This system's combination of nine individually amplified speakers creates a very detailed and clear sound. It has great soundstage and instrument separation, which is quite beneficial for music listeners (and also film watchers too).
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Great for playing music
This system's combination of nine individually amplified speakers creates a very detailed and clear sound. It has great soundstage and instrument separation, which is quite beneficial for music listeners (and also film watchers too).
Pro Wall mountable, with automatic calibration
This soundbar is wall mountable and has a position sensor to recalibrate the soundbar if the position is changed from horizontal to vertical.
Pro Supports digital surround signal
The Sonos supports digital surround signal, like Dolby Digital.
Pro Very upgrade friendly
Most people will find this soundbar’s audio output to be sufficient, but if you want to add extra bass or surround sound, it’s possible to do so by adding Sonos speakers. Furthermore, setting them up is easy to do, as the Sonos mobile and PC applications will recognize the new speakers and will automatically recalibrate everything for optimum sound quality.
Pro Easy to set-up and use
This soundbar is made for simple use, with a very straightforward setup. It has just one optical input port for sound and two Ethernet ports for network use. All you need to do is connect the optical cable to your TV, an Ethernet cable to your router and install the Sonos Controller app on your smartphone or a PC. The app will help you go through all the necessary steps to pair your TV remote with the system, add additional speakers, sort your music library in the network or connect the soundbar to an existing Sonos multi-room setup.
Pro Wi-Fi support
The Sonos supports Wi-Fi, for music streaming.
Pro Sleek and compact design
Measuring 35 x 2 x 5 inches, this soundbar is thin and doesn’t take up a lot of space in front of your TV. The slim profile makes an especially good fit when mounted to the wall as it will not seem much thicker than an average TV.
Pro Good wired connectivity
The soundbar has an HDMI ARC port, an optical port and an analog connection on the back. The inputs slots are easy to reach even when the soundbar is mounted on the wall. There is a USB port on the side of the soundbar that allows you to play music from an external USB storage.
Pro Very well suited for dialogue
This soundbar's excellent central channels ensure spoken dialogue will always sound clear and well distinguished. This makes the HT-CT390 especially well suited for content with a lot of dialogue, such as talk shows, news or sports.
Pro Controlable via smartphone
You can download a smartphone app called Songpal that allows you stream music and control the soundbar.
Pro Wall mountable
This soundbar comes with easy to install wall mounts included.
Pro Can help avoid disturbing the neighbors
There is a Night Mode that softens the overall sound, to prevent disturbing the neighbors.
Pro Bluetooth support
This soundbar supports Bluetooth, so you can stream music wirelessly.
Pro Wireless subwoofer
The included subwoofer is wireless and can be placed horizontally or vertically.
Cons
Con Expensive
The Sonos is a quite expensive soundbar, definitely not aimed for those on a budget.
Con Limited connectivity
The soundbar only has one dedicated optical input to connect external devices.
Con Aluminum parts can get warm
The aluminum used in the unit’s body works as a radiator for the speakers, so the aluminium pieces can get warm.
Con No support for high resolution audio formats
This soundbar does not support high resolution audio formats, like Dolby TrueHD. You can work around this limitation by streaming the signal in a different format to the soundbar, but this degrades quality.
Con Lacks bass power
The Sonos lacks the room-shaking bass effect that's essential for action packed movies. For that, you’ll need to buy an external subwoofer.
Con It noticeably lacks power
While its overall sound is clear and distinguishable, you may feel that this soundbar does not provide sufficient power and sound depth. Because of its slim speaker design, it struggles with mid-lows. Despite having a subwoofer, it still sounds subpar and lacks the power needed for a fully enjoyable experience.
Con No Wi-Fi support
The HT-CT390 has no Wi-Fi support.
Con Remote control is easy to lose
The included remote is small and easy to lose.
