Sonos - What is your set up?

[PixelpeepS3]

Hi all - bought a bungalow that we will be ripping apart in a few months and am just in the planning stages of smart home/multi room audio.

I already have 2 x play:1's and a connect so i am trying to work out if i should go the ceiling speakers route in a few rooms with a separate amp and buy a load of connects or get an assortment of play:1's and 3's on brackets for each of the rooms.

rooms i have:

Kitchen & dining room (being knocked into one)
living room
Family Bathroom
ensuite
master bedroom
guest bedroom
office
garage/garden

So question i have is:

What kit do you have in what rooms and what was your thought process behind your choices.

[dvshannow]

Play 5s in rooms like dining room and kitchen

Playbar in basement

In bedroom a pair of play ones one on each bedside cabinet actually the warm easy sony sound in stereo really works the v relaxing sound

And connects into proper hifis in the lounge and office

[Byff]

Office has a pair of Play:1's and a Connect - used as computer speakers.

Dressing room a Connect:Amp

Lounge has a Connect - plugged into the rooms A/V system

Dining room has a Play:5

A Connect:Amp in the garage with a speaker select switch for either garage speakers or garden speakers.

Also have a Boost so it can reach the garage.

The wife likes Sonos because it's easy to use, she even bought the dedicated remote control despite telling her an iPhone would do the same job. It's tech, so I didn't argue.

[El Capitano]

Bedroom - 2 X Play:1 in stereo pair
Office - 1 X Play:1
Kitchen - 1 X Play:1
Dining room - Play:5
Lounge/TV - Playbar, Sub, and 2 X Play:1 on flexson stands for the 5:1 surround setup.

Works well for me. When guests stay the office Play:1 gets moved to the spare room, so might buy one more Play:1 in the future to set this room up permanently.

[paralla]

Lounge Sonos Connect into a big Dennon 5.1 Amp and KEF T205 5.1 Speaker package
http://www.kefstore.co.uk/t205-system-179-p.asp
Kitchen Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio CP Series ceiling speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/controlled-...
Bathroom Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio CP Series ceiling speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/controlled-...
Roof Terrace Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio Climate CL50 speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/climate/cl5...
Main Bedroom Pair of Play 1's
Spare Bedroom Single Play 1

Best bit of advice I can give is to run Ethernet cables to the places you think you might want to put the Sonos kit. The less traffic on the SonosNet the better. It might seem like running cables is kind of missing the point of a wireless music system but since you are ripping the place apart anyway you might as well and it will help you avoid any wifi issues later on.

I also think a Sonos Connect and conventional surround amp and speakers of equivalent cost to a Sonos PlayBar + Sonos Sub + Play 1's for rears performs much better in your main listening room. That surround stuff from Sonos really adds up quick.

People go on about the high cost of the Connect Amp and pair of ceiling speaker combo but in a bathroom (where you are not supposed to have a plug socket) I think they make perfect sense. The Connect Amp for my bathroom speakers in in a cupboard in the room next to the bathroom with just the speaker wire running through the bathroom ceiling. Its so nice to lay back in the bath with something on quietly or crank it up and have a shower disco, you should see my moves in the double walk in shower in front of the full length mirror behind a locked door!. Solo bathroom disco's are now a thing.

Our house is very clean lines/minimalist so the decision to have the expensive Sonos Connect Amp + ceiling speakers in the kitchen is purely for aesthetic reasons, they are practically invisible. A pet hate of mine is wall brackets for anything, they remind me of TV's in hospital rooms. Our kitchen bench is completely clutter free except for a fancy coffee machine. and grinder.

The Connect Amps drive a single pair of 6 inch ceiling speakers to levels that are more than loud enough, no problem. The outdoor speakers have similar sensitivity to the ceiling speakers but are in free space so I find I have to crank the volume sliders way higher to drive them to similar levels, still plenty loud enough but I think I'll add a subwoofer up there at some point to bolster them (and really get on the neighbours tits).

You mention Sonos Connects and a separate Amp. I considered this but couldn't find a multi channel Amp that I was happy with. I wanted Class D for efficiency and signal sensing turn on/off so it powers down when its not in use. I couldn't find a single one on the market which is why I ended up with three expensive (especially for the modest power output) Sonos Connect Amps.

For a while I used the Kitchen Connect Amp and a cheap speaker switch for both the kitchen and roof terrace speakers, logic being that if we were in the kitchen we were not on the terrace and saved the cost of another Connect Amp. This lasted about a month, bhing and moaning from my partner "the kitchen Soos isn't working again" me "I showed you that you need to change this switch in the airing cupboard from terrace to kitchen, you have been making the neighbours listen to your early obscure disco for hours without knowing it" him "can't we just have a separate zone called Roof Terrace" me "yes we can, it will cost £450" him "OK". I didn't need any more encouragement than that so sprang for the extra amp.

Pair of Play 1's on the bedhead is great, that's also our alarm clock

We love our music and the cost of all this compared to the cost of the house is not worth getting excited about and it makes living there nice. Sonos in every room (except the guest bathroom, its not big enough to dance in) plus a Spotify premium account has all our music needs covered.

.

[Driller]

Ever since Spotify, Netflix et al have established themselves I think a whole house audio system has become pointless.

When media was on a sever in the basement it made sense. Now all you need is a streaming device or smart TV in each area connected to the net and you use your phone as a remote control-which is what you do with a multiroom system anyway.

Identical functionality for a fraction of the cost

[PixelpeepS3]

paralla said:

Lounge Sonos Connect into a big Dennon 5.1 Amp and KEF T205 5.1 Speaker package
http://www.kefstore.co.uk/t205-system-179-p.asp
Kitchen Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio CP Series ceiling speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/controlled-...
Bathroom Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio CP Series ceiling speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/controlled-...
Roof Terrace Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio Climate CL50 speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/climate/cl5...
Main Bedroom Pair of Play 1's
Spare Bedroom Single Play 1

Best bit of advice I can give is to run Ethernet cables to the places you think you might want to put the Sonos kit. The less traffic on the SonosNet the better. It might seem like running cables is kind of missing the point of a wireless music system but since you are ripping the place apart anyway you might as well and it will help you avoid any wifi issues later on.

I also think a Sonos Connect and conventional surround amp and speakers of equivalent cost to a Sonos PlayBar + Sonos Sub + Play 1's for rears performs much better in your main listening room. That surround stuff from Sonos really adds up quick.

People go on about the high cost of the Connect Amp and pair of ceiling speaker combo but in a bathroom (where you are not supposed to have a plug socket) I think they make perfect sense. The Connect Amp for my bathroom speakers in in a cupboard in the room next to the bathroom with just the speaker wire running through the bathroom ceiling. Its so nice to lay back in the bath with something on quietly or crank it up and have a shower disco, you should see my moves in the double walk in shower in front of the full length mirror behind a locked door!. Solo bathroom disco's are now a thing.

Our house is very clean lines/minimalist so the decision to have the expensive Sonos Connect Amp + ceiling speakers in the kitchen is purely for aesthetic reasons, they are practically invisible. A pet hate of mine is wall brackets for anything, they remind me of TV's in hospital rooms. Our kitchen bench is completely clutter free except for a fancy coffee machine. and grinder.

The Connect Amps drive a single pair of 6 inch ceiling speakers to levels that are more than loud enough, no problem. The outdoor speakers have similar sensitivity to the ceiling speakers but are in free space so I find I have to crank the volume sliders way higher to drive them to similar levels, still plenty loud enough but I think I'll add a subwoofer up there at some point to bolster them (and really get on the neighbours tits).

You mention Sonos Connects and a separate Amp. I considered this but couldn't find a multi channel Amp that I was happy with. I wanted Class D for efficiency and signal sensing turn on/off so it powers down when its not in use. I couldn't find a single one on the market which is why I ended up with three expensive (especially for the modest power output) Sonos Connect Amps.

For a while I used the Kitchen Connect Amp and a cheap speaker switch for both the kitchen and roof terrace speakers, logic being that if we were in the kitchen we were not on the terrace and saved the cost of another Connect Amp. This lasted about a month, bhing and moaning from my partner "the kitchen Soos isn't working again" me "I showed you that you need to change this switch in the airing cupboard from terrace to kitchen, you have been making the neighbours listen to your early obscure disco for hours without knowing it" him "can't we just have a separate zone called Roof Terrace" me "yes we can, it will cost £450" him "OK". I didn't need any more encouragement than that so sprang for the extra amp.

Pair of Play 1's on the bedhead is great, that's also our alarm clock

We love our music and the cost of all this compared to the cost of the house is not worth getting excited about and it makes living there nice. Sonos in every room (except the guest bathroom, its not big enough to dance in) plus a Spotify premium account has all our music needs covered.

.

what an awesome post - thank you. You seem to be 'wired' exactly the same as me and my other half.

1) - cabling - we had planned to flood fill cat5e/6 anyway - i hate wireless and would avoid like the plague if i could. I will not use wireless CCTV or intruder alarms...

2) - ceiling speakers to reduce clutter - it was my thoughts too, but wasn't sure if this was the most cost effective route - i guess if you were worried about cost you wouldn't choose sonos in the first place

3) - non-sonos A/V route - i had been heading that way for some time - especially after the sonos price hikes (699+799 just for the soundbar and sub?!) - and the fact that it is still only 5.1 (90's tech?). A nice 7.2 amp with a connect there makes good sense.

4) - very interesting re the connect vs connect:amp - i have only recently started comparing standalone amps and you have just confirmed for me really that for the extra hassle (and standby amp hiss) it would be a better shout going with the standard amp to start with.

5) - bathrooms - i was thinking about having an echo dot fitted in the center of the ceilings for controlling the sonos via voice whilst soaking/showering, apparently they are adding integration later in the year (i know you could do it via aux in but thats just messy...)

thank you everyone for your input.

[PixelpeepS3]

Driller said:

Ever since Spotify, Netflix et al have established themselves I think a whole house audio system has become pointless.

When media was on a sever in the basement it made sense. Now all you need is a streaming device or smart TV in each area connected to the net and you use your phone as a remote control-which is what you do with a multiroom system anyway.

Identical functionality for a fraction of the cost

personally, i am not happy with listening to my music out of TV speakers

also, having the same track playing in the ensuite, bedroom and kitchen in the morning means i can have it on quieter but still hear it whilst getting ready at 6am

[paralla]

Our bedroom Play 1 alarm goes off at 5.45am, we lie in until after the 6am news has finished.

The bathroom Sonos alarm goes off at 6.03am so its ready to listen to while I shave, brush teeth etc.

I haven't done any voice activation stuff yet, I'm not sure I want to incur the wrath from my other half if it doesn't work 100% faultlessly from the off. I don't have any problem using my phone to control it.

[anonymous-user]

paralla said:

Lounge Sonos Connect into a big Dennon 5.1 Amp and KEF T205 5.1 Speaker package
http://www.kefstore.co.uk/t205-system-179-p.asp
Kitchen Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio CP Series ceiling speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/controlled-...
Bathroom Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio CP Series ceiling speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/controlled-...
Roof Terrace Sonos Connect Amp and Monitor Audio Climate CL50 speakers
http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/climate/cl5...
Main Bedroom Pair of Play 1's
Spare Bedroom Single Play 1

Best bit of advice I can give is to run Ethernet cables to the places you think you might want to put the Sonos kit. The less traffic on the SonosNet the better. It might seem like running cables is kind of missing the point of a wireless music system but since you are ripping the place apart anyway you might as well and it will help you avoid any wifi issues later on.

I also think a Sonos Connect and conventional surround amp and speakers of equivalent cost to a Sonos PlayBar + Sonos Sub + Play 1's for rears performs much better in your main listening room. That surround stuff from Sonos really adds up quick.

People go on about the high cost of the Connect Amp and pair of ceiling speaker combo but in a bathroom (where you are not supposed to have a plug socket) I think they make perfect sense. The Connect Amp for my bathroom speakers in in a cupboard in the room next to the bathroom with just the speaker wire running through the bathroom ceiling. Its so nice to lay back in the bath with something on quietly or crank it up and have a shower disco, you should see my moves in the double walk in shower in front of the full length mirror behind a locked door!. Solo bathroom disco's are now a thing.

Our house is very clean lines/minimalist so the decision to have the expensive Sonos Connect Amp + ceiling speakers in the kitchen is purely for aesthetic reasons, they are practically invisible. A pet hate of mine is wall brackets for anything, they remind me of TV's in hospital rooms. Our kitchen bench is completely clutter free except for a fancy coffee machine. and grinder.

The Connect Amps drive a single pair of 6 inch ceiling speakers to levels that are more than loud enough, no problem. The outdoor speakers have similar sensitivity to the ceiling speakers but are in free space so I find I have to crank the volume sliders way higher to drive them to similar levels, still plenty loud enough but I think I'll add a subwoofer up there at some point to bolster them (and really get on the neighbours tits).

You mention Sonos Connects and a separate Amp. I considered this but couldn't find a multi channel Amp that I was happy with. I wanted Class D for efficiency and signal sensing turn on/off so it powers down when its not in use. I couldn't find a single one on the market which is why I ended up with three expensive (especially for the modest power output) Sonos Connect Amps.

For a while I used the Kitchen Connect Amp and a cheap speaker switch for both the kitchen and roof terrace speakers, logic being that if we were in the kitchen we were not on the terrace and saved the cost of another Connect Amp. This lasted about a month, bhing and moaning from my partner "the kitchen Soos isn't working again" me "I showed you that you need to change this switch in the airing cupboard from terrace to kitchen, you have been making the neighbours listen to your early obscure disco for hours without knowing it" him "can't we just have a separate zone called Roof Terrace" me "yes we can, it will cost £450" him "OK". I didn't need any more encouragement than that so sprang for the extra amp.

Pair of Play 1's on the bedhead is great, that's also our alarm clock

We love our music and the cost of all this compared to the cost of the house is not worth getting excited about and it makes living there nice. Sonos in every room (except the guest bathroom, its not big enough to dance in) plus a Spotify premium account has all our music needs covered.

.

I'd echo a lot of that.

Basic rules I had:

- where we had an AV or audio amp, use a Connect as a source wired into the amp.
- for the kids and the guest rooms, use Play 5s or a pair of Play 3s. For convenience and simplicity.
- for the kitchen/dining room, our bedroom and the bathrooms, Connect Amps with ceiling or wall mounted speakers. Speakers of choice are Anthony Gallo A'Diva Tis, with Stradas in the kitchen/diner.

Bathrooms require a 13A power supply outside the room, so you're either running a power cable into the wall/ceiling (for a Play1/3/5) or speaker cable (if you use a Connect Amp outside the bathroom). I preferred the latter as the speakers then can be less obvious; stereo is a given (vs Play 1 x 2, the usual alternative).

We have the Stradas on the wall in our kitchen/dining room, and that's the one area where I might in the future add a Sonos sub on top of the kitchen units. It doesn't need it, but it would be nice. Probably.

We have ethernet cabling thoughout the house, but the top of the house runs Sonos wirelessly simply because the ethernet wall sockets had to go places where the Sonos kit wasn't.

[Original Poster]

I have -

Play 1 in the office
Play 1 in the kitchen
Playbar, Sub and 2 Play 1'son Flexson stands in the living room.

I will at some point put the play 1 from the office into the bedroom and get a play 5 for there. No rush, though.

[Driller]

PixelpeepS3 said:

Driller said:

Ever since Spotify, Netflix et al have established themselves I think a whole house audio system has become pointless.

When media was on a sever in the basement it made sense. Now all you need is a streaming device or smart TV in each area connected to the net and you use your phone as a remote control-which is what you do with a multiroom system anyway.

Identical functionality for a fraction of the cost

personally, i am not happy with listening to my music out of TV speakers

Does anyone use TV speakers these days?

PixelpeepS3 said:

also, having the same track playing in the ensuite, bedroom and kitchen in the morning means i can have it on quieter but still hear it whilst getting ready at 6am

That's exactly the point I was making now that Spotify works so well, no need for a Sonos/multiroom to do that.

(ETA my comments are about multiroom in general, not Sonos bashing)

Edited by Driller on Friday 28th April 07:13

[crmcatee]

Two CONNECT:AMP's in a cupboard upstairs connected to the network hub. They feed KEF ceiling speakers installed into the ceiling of the kitchen and also one of the bathrooms all hidden cabling running between floors. (CAT5 Cabling works a treat).

Sonos CONNECT in the living room connected to my main hifi (Linn/Naim etc).

Sonos CONNECT in the dining room connected to the little valve amp there which in turn feeds ceiling mounted KEF 130iq speakers.

Play:5 in the bedroom which gets pulled outside in the summer.

Play:1 in the sauna outside which is marginally reached from the wifi network so there's a SONOS Boost in the rear bedroom to provide additional reach.


All streaming from a 6Tb network drive.

Works a treat.

[mikeiow]

PixelpeepS3 said:

Hi all - bought a bungalow that we will be ripping apart in a few months and am just in the planning stages of smart home/multi room audio.

I already have 2 x play:1's and a connect so i am trying to work out if i should go the ceiling speakers route in a few rooms with a separate amp and buy a load of connects or get an assortment of play:1's and 3's on brackets for each of the rooms.

rooms i have:
<snip>
So question i have is:

What kit do you have in what rooms and what was your thought process behind your choices.

My thought choices were "where do we mostly listen to music/radio?" - you can spend a LOT of money, & I could (personally) not justify 'wasting' hundreds (thousands!) on speakers for wet rooms we spend minutes in, plenty of other things to spend on.....clearly that is everyone's personal choice, so you decide!

We haven't bothered with bathrooms or guest room or even kids bedrooms. Guests don't visit us to have a music experience in their bedroom, however funky that might sound!

Play:1 in bedroom and study (I often work from home, used a lot)
Pair of Play:1s in 6m x 4m kitchen...used a lot.
Play:5 in sunroom - used mostly for parties. This and the kitchen ones also "cover" the small lounge we often sit in (although that is mostly TV usage - couldn't justify sub/bar for that, it is a small room we already have DVD surround sound wired for)
Play:Connect to ancient AV system in main lounge (actually less used these days).

Ours is all on Sonosnet - I've let myself down by having no cat5/6 wires plumbed in at MikeiowTowers!

We didn't think the Play:3 sound was worth it over Play:1. The 5 can fill a fair space, on the other hand.

Good luck!

[paralla]

I have a NAS full of music connected to the router, I used it the day I set it up and not once since. Its way easier to find whatever I'm looking for on Spotify. Spotify music quality set to extreme is good enough quality (320kb/sec) for me.

[malks222]

I dont think I'm doing this right, my sonos set up is.......

1x play 1 in kitchen/ dining room

to be fair, I only bought it last week much to the gf's annoyance, but it has been used for 3/4hours every night and think more could be on the horizon.

what would you reccommend for hooking up to the tv (samsung 42" thing about 4 yrs old). is the play bar the way to go or better with a play 5 with play 1's? and how much would this really improve the tv sound?

[LLCool_K]

Sonos Connect:Amp with a decent pair of ceiling speakers such as Bowers & Wilkins CCM683 while expensive, outperforms the all in one players, in my experience.

Bluesound (with a Tidal Hi-Fi account) in a similar set-up takes it to the next level.

In my house we have a mixture.
Sonos Playbar in the TV room
Play:3 in the kitchen
Play:3 in the bedroom
Bluesound Node 2 in the den with a Rega Elicit-R amp, Rega turntable and Bowers & Wilkins CM series floor standing speakers.

The sound in the den is sensational from Tidal MQA. Used to have a Sonos Connect and Spotify, the difference is night and day.

If I was in a position (i.e renovating) to fit ceiling speakers in the other rooms, I would not hesitate to do so - despite the increased expense over all in ones - mainly for the discreet looks, but also, sound quality is better than even stereo paired Play:5s indeed if using the right kit.

[VEX]

Connect in the living room, Optical to Yamaha Amp and a pair of floor standers
Connect Amp in the Girls Den
Play:1 Pair in the Kitchen / Diner
Play:3 in the Office
Play:5 (Gen2) in the Study
Connect Amp in Master Bed
2 x Play:1's in the 2 x Girls Bedrooms
Play:5 (Gen1) for the Garden/Patio

But then I do sell the stuff.

Comments on the other stuff above said;

Yes Connect and seperate amp or even seperate external DAC, Amp, Speaker is an amazing pairing.

Yes, Wire where you can, makes a big difference to performance when your system gets extended and bigger, if you can find the instructions to perminently turn off the WIFI option, otherwise in bigger systems you can get a horrid network loop and it just grinds your network to a holt. Took ages to find this out on a 20 zone project of ours! Now it is standard for us to wire and disable WIFI.

Be cautious. There are issues with timing if you group together Play and Connect devices. Because you have added an aditional processing step in the Connect / DAC / Amp stage there is a delay when you group everything together. To the extent I am looking to move to the Yamaha Music Cast system, because it is built into my amp, so there should be no processing delay between that and the equivelent Play option (although I am still waiting to test it)

V.

Edited by VEX on Friday 28th April 22:20

[JimmyCauty]

Set up built over the last few years as follows:

Lounge: Playbar & sub. (will soon be adding 2 x Play 1s). Find the quality and volume is terrific for most movies/TV shows/music types. Had various stand-alone AV set-ups over the years, but for simplicity and intergration, i'll probably not ever consider another non-Sonos product for TV sound in the future.

Kitchen/Diner: Play 5. (Soon to be replaced by a Playbar and Sub). Did think about ceiling speakers, but as there is a bedroom directly above the speaker positions, and my experience with this set-up has shown that it's never possible to completely stop sound being heard in the room above a ceiling speaker. Reason for the Playbar & sub is due to the sheer amount of time that the kitchen TV is watched in comparison to the other screens. I guess it must be at least 60-70%, with the remaining 30-40% shared between the other rooms.

Terrace/decking: Connect amp with Origin Acoustics outdoor speaker. Pleased with the sound from a single stereo speaker so far.

Garage: Connect with Marantz Amp and KEF bookshelf speakers.

Downstairs WC: Connect Amp with Origin Acoustics ceiling speaker.

Master Bedroom: Play 5. Great sound for a bedroom.

Master en-suite: Connect Amp with Origin Acoustics ceiling speaker.

Bedrooms: 2 x Play 5s and 1 x Play 3. More than sufficient for bedrooms.

Control: 2 x CR200. Love these devices. They're always on, and have only one purpose. No unlocking phone, opening app etc...

Totally agree with previous posters about hard-wiring components where practical. Any issues I have had over the last few years have always been down to wireless devices.

Only advice I would give would be to think about the amount of time you spend in particular rooms before going overboard on kit that will hardly ever be used.

JC.

[Welshbeef]

I have a Sonos one.


One question how do you turn it off? Is it a case of unplugging it each time or do you simply leave it permantly on (if so it's constantly warm burning electricity).

Many Thanks in advance.