WiiM is moving deeper into the living room with the WiiM Bar, its first soundbar and its most direct home theater play so far. The new model is available for pre-order at Crutchfield for $479, putting it right in the same general price range as the Sonos Beam Gen 2, one of the most recognizable compact Dolby Atmos soundbars on the market.

That comparison is not accidental. WiiM has built much of its reputation around streamers, amps, and wireless audio products that focus on flexibility and app-based control. With the WiiM Bar, the company is trying to bring that same approach to TV sound, but with a few home theater-specific features that stand out on paper.

The WiiM Bar is a 3.0.2-channel Dolby Atmos soundbar with an eight-driver layout. That includes three front mid-woofers, three front tweeters, and two top-firing full-range height drivers, along with four passive radiators for added low-end support. WiiM lists total system power at 135 watts, with support for Dolby Atmos, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, LPCM, AC3, DTS, and DTS:X.

That last part is important because DTS support is not always guaranteed in this category. For users with Blu-ray collections, local media libraries, or devices that output DTS-based tracks, having DTS:X in addition to Dolby Atmos gives the WiiM Bar a bit more format flexibility.

Key specs include:

• 3.0.2-channel configuration, expandable to 5.1.2
• Eight-driver system with dedicated up-firing height drivers
• Dolby Atmos and DTS:X support
• HDMI eARC, optical, line-in, USB disk input, Ethernet, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.4
• 2.1-inch full-color touch display
• RoomFit auto-correction, Clear Voice, AI dialogue enhancement, and Night Mode

One of the more unusual design choices is the small round display on the front of the soundbar. It can show album art, playback info, EQ settings, presets, clock faces, and source controls. That makes more sense when you think of the WiiM Bar not just as a TV speaker, but also as a music system. Still, some home theater users may prefer a soundbar that disappears visually once the movie starts. The display can be turned off, however, which should help in darker rooms.

Streaming is also a big part of the package. The WiiM Bar works through the WiiM Home app and supports more than 20 services, along with Spotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, Qobuz Connect, Google Cast Audio, Amazon Music Cast, DLNA/UPnP, LMS, Qplay 3.0, and Roon. One notable omission is Apple AirPlay, which may matter for households built around iPhones, Apple Music, or Mac-based playback.

The Bar can also grow into a larger WiiM home theater setup. Out of the box, it works as a standalone 3.0.2 soundbar, but WiiM says it can be expanded to 3.1.2 with a WiiM Sub Pro or to 5.1.2 with compatible WiiM wireless speakers as surrounds. That gives buyers a way to start simple and add pieces later, without running speaker wire around the room.

The Sonos Beam Gen 2 is the obvious comparison because it is compact, widely available, and built around the same simple TV-and-music idea. The Beam Gen 2 features include Dolby Atmos, HDMI eARC, Trueplay room tuning, Apple AirPlay 2, voice control, TV remote sync, and touch controls. It uses processing to create phantom height channels for Atmos content rather than dedicated up-firing height drivers.

On paper, the WiiM Bar has a few technical advantages:

• WiiM Bar has dedicated up-firing drivers; Beam Gen 2 uses virtual Atmos height processing.
• WiiM Bar supports DTS:X; Beam Gen 2 focuses mainly on Dolby Atmos and Sonos ecosystem playback.
• WiiM Bar has more physical inputs, including optical, line-in, Ethernet, and USB disk support.
• Beam Gen 2 supports Apple AirPlay 2 and has deeper Sonos ecosystem integration.

The Beam Gen 2 is also much smaller, measuring 25.63 inches wide, while the WiiM Bar is about 41.7 inches wide based on its listed 1060 mm width. That makes the Sonos easier to place under smaller TVs, while the WiiM looks better suited to medium and larger screens.

The choice may come down to ecosystem. A Sonos household will probably still lean toward the Beam Gen 2 because it fits neatly with Sonos speakers, Subs, Trueplay, AirPlay 2, and voice assistant support. A WiiM user, or someone who wants more input flexibility, DTS:X, Roon support, Qobuz Connect, and dedicated height drivers at this price, may find the WiiM Bar more interesting.

The bigger question is how it performs in real rooms. Specs are useful, but soundbars live or die by dialogue clarity, bass control, height effects, app reliability, and how well they handle everyday TV watching. The WiiM Bar has a strong feature list for $479, but the real test will be whether it can turn that hardware and software mix into a smooth living-room experience when it arrives in August.