Comparison

Surround Speaker Check vs SonosTalk

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Surround Speaker Check

Test and optimize your Dolby Atmos home theater system. This app provides over two hours of spatial audio content to verify surround sound decoding, speaker configuration, and enjoy immersive audio experiences on compatible soundbars and headphones.

Highlights
  • Verify Dolby Atmos decoding
  • Test speaker configuration
  • Evaluate height channels
  • Subwoofer test suite
  • Manual speaker troubleshooting
  • Spatial audio demos
  • Dolby Atmos test tracks
Features
Read full description

Surround Speaker Check is a fun and entertaining utility to help you set up and enjoy Dolby Atmos on your home theater gear! Also works as great way to test spatial audio on Dolby Atmos-compatible sound bars and headphones! Surround Speaker Check is more than just the world’s most popular AV utility app - with over 2 hours of content, it’s now THE best way to experience Dolby Atmos spatial audio like you’ve never heard before! SURROUND SOUND TESTING - Verify your system is properly decoding Dolby Atmos surround sound audio - Confirm your speakers are properly configured - Hear and evaluate your surround speakers in isolation (including height channels) - Tune your room, test your sub with the new Subwoofer Test Suite - Use the Manual Speaker Check feature to help troubleshoot and fine-tune your system - Confirm your Apple TV is properly set-up for surround sound playback DOLBY ATMOS TEST TRACKS - True Dolby Atmos audio support provides an accurate and complete test environment - Supports up to 7.1.4 speaker layouts - Works with Atmos-compatible soundbars SPATIAL AUDIO PLAYGROUND - Over two hours of spatial audio demos and Dolby Atmos test tracks - Regularly updated Dolby Atmos demos experimental spatial audio content - Enjoy spatial object scenes designed to unleash the full potential of your home theater Uses specially-produced Dolby Atmos surround tracks with on-screen 3D graphics Designed by guitarist and immersive audio producer Jeff Perrin as a means to confirm the integrity of various surround systems while producing surround sound music tracks. NOTE: Playback of test content on speakers requires an Apple TV (or similar AirPlay-compatible streaming device) connected to a Dolby Digital-compatible home theater system. Spatial audio support over headphones requires compatible iOS device with Dolby Atmos-compatible AirPods or Dolby Atmos-compatible headphones. When played back over an optical connection or non-Atmos devices, surround content will fold down to Dolby Digital 5.1 or stereo 2.0 format, depending on device capabilities. In all cases, a fast internet connection is highly recommend. *Playback of Dolby Atmos content on non-Apple devices requires that the device supports multichannel audio (ie. Dolby Digital 5.1 or Atmos) over AirPlay 2. Please check your device specifications. Please try out the free included test tracks so as to ensure compatibility with your hardware before making any purchases. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

SonosTalk

Transform your iOS device into a voice intercom for your WiFi speakers. Speak or broadcast messages directly through compatible systems like Sonos, Bose, and HEOS. Enjoy features like message voice modification and speaker grouping.

Highlights
  • Speak through WiFi speakers
  • Broadcast messages via WiFi speakers
  • Support message voice change
  • Support grouping WiFi speakers
  • Support restoring playback
  • Support mic reverb effect
Features
Read full description

Speaking into iPhone / iPad microphone on SonosTalk, SonosTalk can play voice through WiFi speakers like a voice intercom. Sending message on SonosTalk, SonosTalk can broadcast the message through WiFi speakers. Main Features: • Speak through WiFi speakers • Broadcast message via WiFi speakers • Support restoring playback • Support start tone • Support Mic reverb effect • Support message voice change • Support grouping WiFi speakers • Support dark mode • Support family sharing service SonosTalk supports WiFi speakers based on DLNA / UPnP, e.g., Sonos, Bose SoundTouch, HEOS, etc. Please kindly let us know (support@FrontierApp.com) if you have any question, suggestion or find a bug (crashes, unable to play sound, etc). Any feedback is welcome and we will try our best to improve SonosTalk!

Screenshots

Surround Speaker Check4 screens
SonosTalk4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: SonosTalk at 4.3 against Surround Speaker Check's 3.8. SonosTalk also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 4 months) and review sentiment (73% vs 53%). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Surround Speaker Check sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per year and SonosTalk sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SonosTalk holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 40 and 23 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 53% of Surround Speaker Check's written reviews are positive against 73% of SonosTalk's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Surround Speaker Check ships an update every 4 months, SonosTalk every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 9, 2026 and August 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Surround Speaker Check versus SonosTalk: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSurround Speaker CheckSonosTalk
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (40 ratings)4.3 (23 ratings) — better
Positive reviews52.9% of reviews73.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings40 — better23
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple TViPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS16.614.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size177 MB32 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJeff Perrin Music LLCFrontier App Limited

Customer experience

Surround Speaker Check

All ratings40 ratings
Positive65.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews34 reviews
Positive52.9%
Neutral11.8%
Negative35.3%

SonosTalk

All ratings23 ratings
Positive82.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative17.4%
Written reviews97 reviews
Positive73.2%
Neutral1.0%
Negative25.8%

Bugs and requests

Surround Speaker Check

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

SonosTalk

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • App cannot find Sonos speakers after updates
  • Stops working with iOS 18.2.x and later
  • S1 controller compatibility broken
  • Speaker detection fails on WiFi networks
  • Broadcasting stops working after first or second message
Show 4 more
  • Requires speaker reboot to restore functionality
  • Incompatibility with newer iPhone models
  • App becomes unusable after paid subscription activation
  • Glitchy and slow performance

Requested features

9 requests
  • Pre-recorded voice or music with scheduled playback
  • Additional start tone options
  • More mic reverb effect variations
  • Saved speaker groups in settings
  • Manual IP address input option
Show 4 more
  • Multi-language text-to-speech support
  • Calendar event integration
  • Weather message announcements
  • Customizable alert sound before messages

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Surround Speaker Check

Subscriptions2
  • Unlimited Access$19.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access$24.991 Year
One-time2
  • Subwoofer Check$0.99
  • Center Speaker Check$0.99
1 purchases

SonosTalk

One-time1
  • IntercomWiFi Lifetime Service$0.99

Questions

Is Surround Speaker Check free?
Surround Speaker Check is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SonosTalk free?
SonosTalk is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Surround Speaker Check or SonosTalk?
SonosTalk is rated higher. Surround Speaker Check averages 3.8 out of 5 from 40 ratings, while SonosTalk averages 4.3 from 23 ratings.
Do Surround Speaker Check or SonosTalk have ads?
Neither Surround Speaker Check nor SonosTalk shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Surround Speaker Check or SonosTalk?
Surround Speaker Check ships an update every 4 months, and SonosTalk every 3 weeks. Most recently, Surround Speaker Check was updated on September 9, 2026 and SonosTalk on August 26, 2026.

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