Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 vs Sonos Roam/Roam SL

Which Speaker Is Better?

Products

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2
Sonos Roam/Roam SL

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Jun 20, 2025 05:20 PM

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Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Nov 11, 2024 07:27 PM

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Our Verdict

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2

Sonos Roam/Roam SL

The Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 and the Sonos Roam/Roam SL are similar speakers with different strengths. The Bang & Olufsen has better directivity, resulting in a wider-sounding soundstage. Also, it has lower Bluetooth latency with iOS and Android devices, making it more suitable for watching movies and videos. The Sonos offers a slightly better-balanced sound profile and fantastic voice assistant support with its Roam variant. It's also Wi-Fi compatible and supports Apple AirPlay 2, which is ideal for Apple users.

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Variants

  • Beosound A1 Gen 2 (Black)
  • Beosound A1 Gen 2 (Gold)
  • Roam (Lunar White)
  • Roam SL (Lunar White)

Check Price

Black
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Lunar White
Roam
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Gold
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Lunar White
Roam SL
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Green
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Olive
Roam
Amazon.com
Grey Mist
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Shadow Black
Roam
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Pink
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Shadow Black
Roam SL
Amazon.com
 
Sunset
Roam
Amazon.com
 
Wave
Roam
Amazon.com

Main Differences for
Music

Threshold 

0.10

Music 
 

6.5
6.3

Soundstage 
 

7.4
6.1

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.4
6.7

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Style Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Style Photo
Compare High-Res
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Style Photo

RGB Lights  

No
No
Show Text 

Portability 
 

9.3
9.4

Dimensions Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Dimensions Photo
Compare High-Res
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Dimensions Photo

Volume 
 

46 in³ (749 cm³)
39 in³ (632 cm³)

Weight 
 

1.1 lbs (0.5 kg)
0.9 lbs (0.4 kg)

Power Source 
 

Battery & USB
Battery & USB

One-Hand Carry 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Build Quality 
 

8.3
8.5

Build Quality Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Build Quality Photo
Compare High-Res
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Build Quality Photo

Material Quality 
 

Great
Good

Water Resistance 
 

Submersible (IPx7)
Submersible (IPx7)

Dust Resistance 
 

Dust-Proof (IP6x)
Dust-Proof (IP6x)

Impact Resistance 
 

No
Yes (IK rating unspecified)

Floats In Water 
 

Unspecified
Unspecified
Show Text 

Controls 
 

8.9
8.0

Controls Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Controls Photo
Compare High-Res
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Controls Photo

Controls Photo 2 
 

Compare High-Res
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Controls Photo 2
Compare High-Res
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Controls Photo 2

Ease Of Use 
 

Great
Great

Feedback 
 

Good
Great

Music Play/Pause 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Call Answer/End 
 

Yes (Physical)
No

Volume Up/Down 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Track Next/Previous 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Microphone On/Off 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Additional Controls 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 In The Box Photo
Compare High-Res
Sonos Roam/Roam SL In The Box Photo
Show Text 
Sound

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.4
6.7

Frequency Response Graph  

 Preview Graph
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Frequency Response Graph
 Preview Graph
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Frequency Response Graph

Slope 
 

-0.25
-0.06

Std. Err. 
 

3.95 dB
3.58 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

62.6 Hz
62.6 Hz

High-Frequency Extension 
 

13.5 kHz
18.0 kHz
Show Text 

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw Frequency Response Graph  

 Preview Graph
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Raw Frequency Response Graph
 Preview Graph
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Raw Frequency Response Graph

Binaural Recording @ 1m 
 

Binaural Recording @ 2m 
 

Soundstage 
 

7.4
6.1

Directivity Graph  

 Preview Graph
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Directivity Graph
 Preview Graph
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Directivity Graph

Directivity Index 
 

1.09 dB
3.49 dB

Stereo 
 

No (mono)
No (mono)
Show Text 

Dynamics 
 

5.8
5.4

Dynamic Range Compression  

 Preview Graph
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 Dynamic Range Compression
 Preview Graph
Sonos Roam/Roam SL Dynamic Range Compression

SPL @ Max Volume 
 

84.2 dB SPL
83.8 dB SPL

DRC @ Max Volume 
 

3.33 dB
4.26 dB
Show Text 
Active Features

Battery 
 

3.2
5.4

Battery Life 
 

4.6 hrs
5.1 hrs

Charge Time 
 

4.9 hrs
3.4 hrs

Power Saving 
 

No
Yes

Charging Port 
 

USB-C
USB-C

Battery Powered 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Voice Assistant 
 

10
9.4

Alexa 
 

Yes (Requires Smartphone)
Built-in (Wi-Fi Only)

Google Assistant 
 

No
Built-in (Wi-Fi Only)

Speakerphone 
 

Yes
No

Siri 
 

No
No

Voice Assistant 
 

Yes
Yes

Voice Activation 
 

Yes
Yes

Microphone Mute 
 

Yes
Yes

Far-Field Performance 
 

Excellent
Excellent

Ambient Noise Performance 
 

Excellent
Great
Show Text 

App 
 

6.0
9.3

App Picture 
 

Compare High-Res
Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 App Picture
Compare High-Res
Sonos Roam/Roam SL App Picture

App Name 
 

Bang & Olufsen
Sonos S2

iOS 
 

Yes
Yes

Android 
 

Yes
Yes

EQ 
 

Presets
Bass/Treble

Stereo Pair Mode 
 

Yes
Yes

Party Mode 
 

No
Yes

Multi-Room 
 

No
Yes
Show Text 
Connectivity

Wired 
 

Aux Input 
 

No
No

USB Audio 
 

Yes
No

Other Ports 
 

No
No
Show Text 

Bluetooth 
 

8.3
7.3

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth Version 
 

5.1
5.0

Bluetooth iOS Latency 
 

104 ms
117 ms

Bluetooth Android Latency 
 

160 ms
201 ms

Bluetooth Range 
 

334.6 ft (102.0 m)
334.6 ft (102.0 m)

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

2 Devices
No
Show Text 

Wi-Fi 
 

0.0
8.3

Wi-Fi Version 
 

No Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 5

Wi-Fi Frequency Band 
 

No Wi-Fi
2.4GHz & 5GHz

Wi-Fi 
 

No
Yes

Apple AirPlay 
 

No
Yes

AirPlay Latency 
 

N/A
-2 ms

Google Chromecast 
 

No
No

Chromecast Latency 
 

N/A
N/A
Show Text 

Check Price

Black
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Lunar White
Roam
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Gold
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Lunar White
Roam SL
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Green
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Olive
Roam
Amazon.com
Grey Mist
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Shadow Black
Roam
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Pink
Beosound A1 Gen 2
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Shadow Black
Roam SL
Amazon.com
 
Sunset
Roam
Amazon.com
 
Wave
Roam
Amazon.com

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2

Sonos Roam/Roam SL

Comments

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Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 vs Sonos Roam/Roam SL: Main Discussion

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