Sonos or Bose Sound Link 2

[croyde]

I have already bought the Bose which I have owned for over a week and I like the sound and the fact I can have Spotify in the Kitchen blue-toothed from the Computer up in the loft room but I am already a little frustrated by not having any control over what's playing.

On the Sonos site it appears that you can have an app on your phone/tablet to control the music so I just wanted to know what it was like and is the sound the same as the Bose. This is the Sonos 3 I am talking about.

I believe I can return the Bose if I am not happy with it but I did buy it from an Apple store so I am unsure if that changes things.

Thanks for any help, cheers.

[5potTurbo]

There's a thread about 4 down from this one about Sonos

http://pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f...

[croyde]

Cheers I have read that but I wanted to know what people thought of the sound of both of these without hijacking the thread.

I did look at the Sonos 3 today but I noticed that it doesn't have a line in.

[StuH]

Yes, you can get the free (and excellent) Sonos app for iPhone, Android, PC & Mac. I've not heard the Bose but I'm not a huge fan of the Play:3 - I think the real strength of the Sonos system is when you use it as a source with conventional hifi systems.

Apple Store's are about the best when it comes to customer service so I'm sure if you go and get a demo of the Play:3 somewhere where they can do it alongside the Bose (John Lewis) you can easily get it exchanged.

[StuH]

Yes, you can get the free (and excellent) Sonos app for iPhone, Android, PC & Mac. I've not heard the Bose but I'm not a huge fan of the Play:3 - I think the real strength of the Sonos system is when you use it as a source with conventional hifi systems.

Apple Store's are about the best when it comes to customer service so I'm sure if you go and get a demo of the Play:3 somewhere where they can do it alongside the Bose (John Lewis) you can easily get it exchanged.

[StuH]

Yes, you can get the free (and excellent) Sonos app for iPhone, Android, PC & Mac. I've not heard the Bose but I'm not a huge fan of the Play:3 - I think the real strength of the Sonos system is when you use it as a source with conventional hifi systems.

Apple Store's are about the best when it comes to customer service so I'm sure if you go and get a demo of the Play:3 somewhere where they can do it alongside the Bose (John Lewis) you can easily get it exchanged.

[croyde]

Think integrating it into my old system is the way to go. All 1985 bought, NAD amp, tuner, AR18 speakers and a Sony CD player.

[StuH]

croyde said:

Think integrating it into my old system is the way to go. All 1985 bought, NAD amp, tuner, AR18 speakers and a Sony CD player.

Classic gear. Ideal!

[Skyedriver]

Went to try an Arcam Cube this afternoon. Being trying to decide between this and a Ruark R2i for wifes Christmas present.
Was just about decided when the man says "of course there's also the Sonos".
It seems very clever, probably too complicated for my technophobe wife (and me too probably) although the man seemed to think it was easy)
Decisions Decisions
One thought I did have was the sound quality was better on the cube. But my ears are shot!

[talkssense]

There also a spotify remote app for your phone, which lets you control whats playing from the computer from the loft.

Utilises everything you have now, and if not free is very cheap

[kingston12]

I have both the Bose and a Sonos set up. I only really use the Bose when travelling. The Sonos Play 3 sounds better than the Bose and the Play 5 blows it away.

With the Bose, a lot of the £250 you pay goes on miniaturisarion and Bluetooth which makes it ideal for travelling, but at home you may as well stick to Wifi.

[kingston12]

In terms of control, you would be able to operate the Bose via the iPhone/android Spotify app, but this would require having a subscription rather than using the free service. Sonos is controlled by it's own app, but you will still need a Spotify subscription to use it.

If you do want to return the Bose, the Apple Store offer an unconditional 14 say return policy so you should have no problems there.

[kingston12]

croyde said:

Think integrating it into my old system is the way to go. All 1985 bought, NAD amp, tuner, AR18 speakers and a Sony CD player.

I use a Sonos ZP90 to connect to my main system, but the Play 3/5 units are great for extending the system into kitchens/bedrooms etc.

[StuH]

I can't understand the Play:3 - I just think it sounds rubbish. I think the Paly:5 is ok but I'd love a Play:7 that was up the standard of the B&W Zepp or even better A7.

[kingston12]

I know where you are coming from, but I find it hard to enjoy music coming from just one location, so I prefer to use 2 Play 3/5s in stereo mode rather than a single, better speaker like one of the B&Ws.

The little Bose is fine in a hotel room, but for home use I have to have a wider sound. 2 Play 3s are just a neat solution for my kitchen, but the money would have new far better spent on a ZP120 and a pair of bookshelf speakers if it was going in a bigger room.

[thehawk]

StuH said:

I can't understand the Play:3 - I just think it sounds rubbish. I think the Paly:5 is ok but I'd love a Play:7 that was up the standard of the B&W Zepp or even better A7.

With you on the Play:3, terrible sound and for just that little bit extra the Play:5 is an order of magnitude better, even better than the B&W Zepp which is totally over-rated and sounds quite poor I think.

[pmanson]

New Sonos user here.

I've got a Play 3 in the bedroom (and have had it about a week). It's very very good, sound quality for background music is ideal.

However for a larger room i'd be looking at a Play 5 or a Connect/ConnectAmp & Speakers.

I'll be getting a Connect in the next couple of weeks to hook up to my existing hifi in the kitchen.

It's very very good, I use the Andriod app on both my phone and tablet.

Edited to add - the App is clear and easy to use, I have spotify linked into it (pay £10 p/month).

I'd give it a go, looking at the prices on ebay, if you don't get on with it you can flog it for what you've paid for it (in fact I saw a Connect:Amp sell the other day for more than you'd pay for a new one in the shop).

Edited by pmanson on Tuesday 4th December 17:06

[RammyMP]

I bought a play 3 this afternoon, the system itself is so easy to set up and use (with the free Napster) but the sound quality of the play 3 isn't the best at high volume, might have to move it to the bedroom and get a play 5!