Sonos - Heads Up

[jonnyb]

I have just sold my Play 3 in favour of an Amazon Echo. Ok the sound isn't as good but it's not far off, and I never have to use that hateful Sonos app again.

[benz0]

I had a play1 a couple of years ago and always planned to eventually get a connect amp and then after cover my whole house. But i could never get over the cost and inflexibility/poor functionality of fhe connect and connect amps and as soon as Chromecast audio came out i bought three of them and sold the play 1.

[paulrockliffe]

TheGuru said:

I've got a house full of Sonos, including the sound bar and sub for the TV. I still don't think there is a competing system that ties it all together so nicely and simply. Especially when sharing it with 3 other family members who use it all the time too.

Another benefit of Sonos is it plays independently, unlike other methods like bluetooth. I can play my music and still use my iPad or phone for games or other sound source without it stopping playback.

Chromecast is as well tied together, you just need to add a £20 Chromecast to whatever source you want then setup whatever groups you need. Plays perfectly well with soundbars etc. It would be better tied if you could add a video CC to an Audio group so you can use your TV speakers, but that's a very niche use I'd think.

How well it works for multiple users depends on the App, I presume it's the version of the CC bit that's baked into the App. But for example playing music will put a remote control and allow messing with the playlist by any Android device with the Google Home app installed that is on the WiFi network.

It also plays independently, I'm not sure why Bluetooth is being mentioned, as it's not even on the same page as Sonos, Chromecast etc. You can use the Google Home app to cast the device audio, rather than the app audio, so that the sound tracks what you're doing on the phone, so you have the option to have that work both way.

[chasingracecars]

Currys have just emailed me and some Sonos is being sold at £50 off including player and sub. Now really is the time to buy!

[fadeaway]

chasingracecars said:

Currys have just emailed me and some Sonos is being sold at £50 off including player and sub. Now really is the time to buy!

Looks like John Lewis are matching them

[MountainMutant74]

More like Curry's were expensive and have dropped down to th JL price.

I've just bought a soundbar,sub and 2 play 5s today. Prices jumping by quite a bit on 23rd Feb.

[AmiableChimp]

Just a further heads up on this, it hits tomorrow.

I bought a Play3 yesterday - got the last one in the Richer Sounds shop for £239 - sounds a good bit better than my Play1.

[skilly1]

Does anyone know if the Panasonic System can stream Amazon music, can't find out anywhere?

[dmsims]

skilly1 said:

Does anyone know if the Panasonic System can stream Amazon music, can't find out anywhere?

???

From the Panasonic website:

"Can I stream to my ALL Series from the Amazon Music service?

The Amazon Music service is not currently compatible with Qualcomm technology, so streaming from the Amazon Music service is not possible yet. When it becomes available, it will be added to the application."

[R8Steve]

Hmmm,

As i'd mentioned in my other thread i was strongly considering sonos (about 2k worth all in) so suppose i need to make my decision today as i'll not be paying an extra £500 for it tomorrow.

[anonymous-user]

R8Steve said:

Hmmm,

As i'd mentioned in my other thread i was strongly considering sonos (about 2k worth all in) so suppose i need to make my decision today as i'll not be paying an extra £500 for it tomorrow.

Well, if it helps either way: I'm now maxxed out with 14 zones and couldn't be happier. I have a mix of Amps, Connects, 5s and 3s. OTOH I've had some bumps on the way, all of which in truth have been down to my LAN setup and some IP conflicts. I've now worked out what they were and how to cure them and they shouldn't be coming back (hoho).

[aberdeeneuan]

Greg66 said:

R8Steve said:

Hmmm,

As i'd mentioned in my other thread i was strongly considering sonos (about 2k worth all in) so suppose i need to make my decision today as i'll not be paying an extra £500 for it tomorrow.

Well, if it helps either way: I'm now maxxed out with 14 zones and couldn't be happier. I have a mix of Amps, Connects, 5s and 3s. OTOH I've had some bumps on the way, all of which in truth have been down to my LAN setup and some IP conflicts. I've now worked out what they were and how to cure them and they shouldn't be coming back (hoho).

Indeed. I bought another Connect Amp in John Lewis last week which I've put off for ages to provide sound in the bathroom. When we had it fitted out 5 years ago we had the speaker installed and never got round to adding the amp. So now have a ZP120 for the kitchen ceiling speaker, a Connect Amp for the bathroom (both hidden in a cupboard), two Play 5, one for the lounge and one for the dining room. With 2 young kids, it's ideal with no buttons to fiddle with and no big speaker to prod fingers into. In the loft bedroom, I run an old Sony stereo which is at least 15 years old, connected to ceiling speakers, with a Chromecast Audio for Spotify. The room is the guest room and mainly used as my study so it was a cost effective way of getting the same effect as it also has an iPod dock in it.

Only issue I had was a wireless issue when we first installed it, spoke to Sonos support who then talked me through the resolution. Very nice American in San Fransisco if I recall correctly.

[chasingracecars]

R8Steve said:

Hmmm,

As i'd mentioned in my other thread i was strongly considering sonos (about 2k worth all in) so suppose i need to make my decision today as i'll not be paying an extra £500 for it tomorrow.

Don't do it if you haven't got Sonos already, there are other just as good cheaper alternatives.

[mattyn1]

chasingracecars said:

Don't do it if you haven't got Sonos already, there are other just as good cheaper alternatives.

I have done some web research on alternatives.... everything I seem to see is miles more expensive. What is out there that is as flexible, better (or at least as good in your opinion) and cheaper?

[dvshannow]

Sonos is the biz i have finally decided after first buying a muso and 2 b&w a5s.

Muso is good but too expensive to be no
Modular and connection is not stable.

B&w a5s dont know what i was thinking airplay sucks they are used now with echo dots.

Have 2 sonus play 5s a playbar and 2 play 1s in bedroom all work together seamlessly. Also have a connect linked up to a naim dac 1 and sounds good enough

[R8Steve]

Well, walked round to John Lewis after work last night and bought everything i needed -

Sonos play:1 x 6 (bedroom, spare room x3, hallway, garage)
Sonos play:3 x 2 (master bedroom & kitchen)
Sonos playbar x 1 (living room)
Sonos sub x 1 (living room)
Sonos connect:amp x 2 (bathrooms)
Sonos:boost x 1

I've plugged a couple of them in just to see what they are like and i'm really happy with the decision i made to be honest. It all does exactly what i want and sounds great, worst case situation if i don't get on with it it's all probably worth more second hand now than i paid for it!

[anonymous-user]

^ That's a lot of Sonos in one hit! I've spread my cost over a few years now. Seems less painful that way...

[R8Steve]

Greg66 said:

^ That's a lot of Sonos in one hit! I've spread my cost over a few years now. Seems less painful that way...

It is and it wouldn't have been by ideal choice but it would have been a lot more painful today, the same package today would cost me an extra £600+

I spoke to the manager in John Lewis and they were aware they would be a price increase but wasn't sure how it would affect current stock. I checked this morning and sure enough all sonos has been updated with the new prices.

[Type R Tom]

R8Steve said:

It is and it wouldn't have been by ideal choice but it would have been a lot more painful today, the same package today would cost me an extra £600+

I spoke to the manager in John Lewis and they were aware they would be a price increase but wasn't sure how it would affect current stock. I checked this morning and sure enough all sonos has been updated with the new prices.

Did they offer any discount? About £3k worth?

[R8Steve]

Type R Tom said:

R8Steve said:

It is and it wouldn't have been by ideal choice but it would have been a lot more painful today, the same package today would cost me an extra £600+

I spoke to the manager in John Lewis and they were aware they would be a price increase but wasn't sure how it would affect current stock. I checked this morning and sure enough all sonos has been updated with the new prices.

Did they offer any discount? About £3k worth?

Not much at all i'm afraid. I got the sonos boost for half price after pushing them a bit, with the knowledge of the incoming price rise available i wasn't in the best of bargaining positions though. The same kit would cost me over £4k today though so i feel i've done ok.

I had an 8k budget in my head for the full house so that leaves me with 5k for projector, screen, av receiver, home control, CCTV and any other bits i need so i think i'll come in under budget once all is done. My girlfriend loves the sonos so that's the main thing!

I'll be getting in touch with the two pistonheaders that kindly reached out to me this week to see if they can assist with the rest of my requirements.