Should I buy Sonos
Discussion
I have had a Sonos Play 3 for about 5 years with no problems at all so I was thinking of buying a number of other speakers including
Sonos Beam and two Sonon one's for the living room
5 as the main speaker in the dining/kitchen
Move the 3 upstairs
The whole lot comes in around £1k which is pretty much my budget.
I have just been reading a load of reviews all of which all are 1 star and slating Sonos. I can't figure out if these are because of dicontinuing the old products or because the new system is very bad.
I am not a techie at all and just want a simple system that I can stream Spotify in different rooms around the house.
I don't want voice activation.
Is Sonos still the best solution for my needs and how have people found Gen II?
Thanks
Sonos Beam and two Sonon one's for the living room
5 as the main speaker in the dining/kitchen
Move the 3 upstairs
The whole lot comes in around £1k which is pretty much my budget.
I have just been reading a load of reviews all of which all are 1 star and slating Sonos. I can't figure out if these are because of dicontinuing the old products or because the new system is very bad.
I am not a techie at all and just want a simple system that I can stream Spotify in different rooms around the house.
I don't want voice activation.
Is Sonos still the best solution for my needs and how have people found Gen II?
Thanks
I have a load of Sonos stuff and it all works fine and sounds good to me, if you already have one then you know what to expect with the interface etc.
A lot of people did get upset about them not supporting older products, but I am not sure many tech companies do support things forever.
A lot of people did get upset about them not supporting older products, but I am not sure many tech companies do support things forever.
If you watch blu-ray discs, I would say not to buy Sonos.
Sonos gear will never play DTS soundtracks (which most BDs use), so you end up watching your lovely HD films... in fecking 2.0 stereo. It's an absolute disgrace, and probably the reason for quite a few of those 1 star reviews.
I bought Beam, 2x Ones and a sub as a, and I quote, Cinema Package, and I would gladly ram the whole bloody lot up the Sonos CEOs backside. Sonos' response to the issue is that it's a music system, so they won't pay the DTS license costs required to include support. I say if it's a music system, why the feckering feck is it called the "Cinema Package"?
If you only ever play music or watch streaming TV (which is mostly DD5.1), Sonos gear will be fine. But I wouldn't give them another penny of my money.
Sonos gear will never play DTS soundtracks (which most BDs use), so you end up watching your lovely HD films... in fecking 2.0 stereo. It's an absolute disgrace, and probably the reason for quite a few of those 1 star reviews.
I bought Beam, 2x Ones and a sub as a, and I quote, Cinema Package, and I would gladly ram the whole bloody lot up the Sonos CEOs backside. Sonos' response to the issue is that it's a music system, so they won't pay the DTS license costs required to include support. I say if it's a music system, why the feckering feck is it called the "Cinema Package"?
If you only ever play music or watch streaming TV (which is mostly DD5.1), Sonos gear will be fine. But I wouldn't give them another penny of my money.
Haters are gonna hate, and Sonos made a few enemies with the forced obsolescence/bricking and subsequent U turn. I’ve got a few bits of their kit around the house, and love it for ease of use and sound quality, without trying to be a Hi-fi. The app is as simple as it comes, and setup just the same. Currently have 3x5s in the kitchen/lounge with a sub. 2x1s in bedrooms and a connect in thenTV room to hook up the surround sound for ‘whole house’ party mode.
Audicab said:
I have had a Sonos Play 3 for about 5 years with no problems at all so I was thinking of buying a number of other speakers including
Sonos Beam and two Sonon one's for the living room
5 as the main speaker in the dining/kitchen
Move the 3 upstairs
The whole lot comes in around £1k which is pretty much my budget.
I have just been reading a load of reviews all of which all are 1 star and slating Sonos. I can't figure out if these are because of dicontinuing the old products or because the new system is very bad.
I am not a techie at all and just want a simple system that I can stream Spotify in different rooms around the house.
I don't want voice activation.
Is Sonos still the best solution for my needs and how have people found Gen II?
Thanks
Sonos is what I class as idea for 'convenience audio'. Its reliable, the app is reasonably intuitive so will suit the bill for those who just want music and are not hung up on the best quality. If you're not using Spotify premium, you're limited the lower quality audio with 160 kbps anyway. Sonos Beam and two Sonon one's for the living room
5 as the main speaker in the dining/kitchen
Move the 3 upstairs
The whole lot comes in around £1k which is pretty much my budget.
I have just been reading a load of reviews all of which all are 1 star and slating Sonos. I can't figure out if these are because of dicontinuing the old products or because the new system is very bad.
I am not a techie at all and just want a simple system that I can stream Spotify in different rooms around the house.
I don't want voice activation.
Is Sonos still the best solution for my needs and how have people found Gen II?
Thanks
We have hundreds of customers happy with Sonos, yes some have not been impressed by the discontinuation of support and having to use a S1 & S2 app when they've installed new products but generally, it works and is pretty bullet proof. I think we've returned 2 Sonos amps out of many hundreds ... one was full of pidgeon s
t and the other had clearly had a drink spilled into it. 
Depending on the size of the room I’d be cautious about the Beam. It’s not terribly big so unless it’s a smallish room I’d say the Arc sounbar is a better bet and a better match for the sub (which was designed to work with the original sound bar.
Also, it’s a convenient way of getting surround sound, but doesn’t do the fancy Dolby stuff and won’t we as impressive as dedicated system (but that would need wiring in, big boxes etc)
Also, it’s a convenient way of getting surround sound, but doesn’t do the fancy Dolby stuff and won’t we as impressive as dedicated system (but that would need wiring in, big boxes etc)
I use a Beam and 2 x One’s for my LG C9 in a small back room.
It’s plenty loud enough for a small room but you might be better off with the Arc for a larger room.
I’m not an audiophile and even though it may not support DTS, as long as the source material is good quality the sound is more than good enough for me. App is easy to use too.
Don’t bother with the Sub unless your house is detached.
It’s plenty loud enough for a small room but you might be better off with the Arc for a larger room.
I’m not an audiophile and even though it may not support DTS, as long as the source material is good quality the sound is more than good enough for me. App is easy to use too.
Don’t bother with the Sub unless your house is detached.
JEA1K said:
it works and is pretty bullet proof. I think we've returned 2 Sonos amps out of many hundreds ... one was full of pidgeon st and the other had clearly had a drink spilled into it.
My Sonos Playbase had a fault and they replaced it within a couple of days, coupled with the Sub it gives really good sound from the TV to my untrained ears.t and the other had clearly had a drink spilled into it. That deal posted is a good one, the sub makes a massive difference to watching tv and also for music in the living room , it’s good stuff, I’ve changed to S2 which is the same as S1 .
I have a decent sized room with a beam and it’s plenty loud enough. The neighbour let me know at 1am and it’s a detached house 10m away from his
If you can find a used play3 they really sound good in stereo pair . I think much than a Single play5g2 .
I have a decent sized room with a beam and it’s plenty loud enough. The neighbour let me know at 1am and it’s a detached house 10m away from his
If you can find a used play3 they really sound good in stereo pair . I think much than a Single play5g2 .
I wouldn't just based on the obselete kit behaviour, they only changed tack because they were humiliated into it not because they really changed their minds but needed to save the company.
It really depends upon what you want in the way of sound, their view that the contents of the basket is 5.1 is just laughable in my book but YMMV.
It really depends upon what you want in the way of sound, their view that the contents of the basket is 5.1 is just laughable in my book but YMMV.
I have 2x Play Ones, the Beam, and the Sub. Sound to my ears is pretty good, even without the sub just the little play ones on their own punch well above their size. Netflix shows like the Haunting of a Hill House are pretty cool in 5.1 especially when it’s dark & you hear a squeaking door etc. opening behind you, the jump scares are something else! What makes it for me is the software, dead easy to tune, set up, add/remove speakers etc with minimal wires for the mrs to complain over and it also works pretty seamlessly with Spotify.
Lack of DTS support is occasionally frustrating, but a fairly minor issue to be honest as most stuff these days is in 5.1.
If you’re into tidal masters you’ll probably want something else.
Ymmv, etc.
Lack of DTS support is occasionally frustrating, but a fairly minor issue to be honest as most stuff these days is in 5.1.
If you’re into tidal masters you’ll probably want something else.
Ymmv, etc.
We've got the Beam and 2 x Sonos One in our lounge and I'm happy - it's a massive improvement on the built in speakers on the TV, but definitely not a cheap solution. I can't imagine the cost of the sub would be justified though.
As a system I love Sonos - particularly for the Airplay support as there are now 4 of us in the house with iDevices; I've got Sonos Ones in my study and we've got the Ikea version in the dining room and kitchen - they are great for wall mounting but don't have voice support; they're also about half the price with a pretty decent sound. (Every room has pairs - I tried just one speaker in my study and hated it, which I found odd as we'd had a single Amazon Echo in the dining room for months and it didn't bother me)
In my teens I was really into top notch audio and would have the best amp and speakers I could afford mounted in a perfect position with me in the perfect position to appreciate the sound. These days convenience and practicality trumps almost everything else; teenage me would be appalled that I've sold out whereas I'm delighted with the convenience.
The Sonos speakers seem to turn up 20% off in the John Lewis sale, but that won't be until January now.
As a system I love Sonos - particularly for the Airplay support as there are now 4 of us in the house with iDevices; I've got Sonos Ones in my study and we've got the Ikea version in the dining room and kitchen - they are great for wall mounting but don't have voice support; they're also about half the price with a pretty decent sound. (Every room has pairs - I tried just one speaker in my study and hated it, which I found odd as we'd had a single Amazon Echo in the dining room for months and it didn't bother me)
In my teens I was really into top notch audio and would have the best amp and speakers I could afford mounted in a perfect position with me in the perfect position to appreciate the sound. These days convenience and practicality trumps almost everything else; teenage me would be appalled that I've sold out whereas I'm delighted with the convenience.
The Sonos speakers seem to turn up 20% off in the John Lewis sale, but that won't be until January now.
I'm very happy with Beam, Sub, and 2 stand-mounted Ones behind me - use it for both TV (via Apple TV) and music (Apple Music via the same 6 button remote for TV).
I'm no audiophile, but I listen to more music than when I had a lots of 'audio' separates and monster floor speakers. And I can't find fault.
I'm no audiophile, but I listen to more music than when I had a lots of 'audio' separates and monster floor speakers. And I can't find fault.
JEA1K said:
Sonos is what I class as idea for 'convenience audio'. Its reliable, the app is reasonably intuitive so will suit the bill for those who just want music and are not hung up on the best quality. If you're not using Spotify premium, you're limited the lower quality audio with 160 kbps anyway.
We have hundreds of customers happy with Sonos, yes some have not been impressed by the discontinuation of support and having to use a S1 & S2 app when they've installed new products but generally, it works and is pretty bullet proof. I think we've returned 2 Sonos amps out of many hundreds ... one was full of pidgeon st and the other had clearly had a drink spilled into it.
Impressive to know that even the "failures" were avoidable by the end user in those examples!We have hundreds of customers happy with Sonos, yes some have not been impressed by the discontinuation of support and having to use a S1 & S2 app when they've installed new products but generally, it works and is pretty bullet proof. I think we've returned 2 Sonos amps out of many hundreds ... one was full of pidgeon s
t and the other had clearly had a drink spilled into it. I wish more products and tech worked as consistently well as Sonos has the 7+yrs I've had it
It’s funny how everyone loves to Sonos - bash re support!
I’ve had some of my kit (zp100’s) since 2005 and they’re still going strong alongside some of the modern kit (beam / sub / move etc)
What other company still has tech that is 15 yrs old working in absolute harmony with brand new stuff!
The sound is very good and the control is excellent. I’ve looked at options many times over and there is still nothing to touch Sonos if you have built in speakers and independent single unit speakers
I’ve had some of my kit (zp100’s) since 2005 and they’re still going strong alongside some of the modern kit (beam / sub / move etc)
What other company still has tech that is 15 yrs old working in absolute harmony with brand new stuff!
The sound is very good and the control is excellent. I’ve looked at options many times over and there is still nothing to touch Sonos if you have built in speakers and independent single unit speakers
Gassing Station | Home Cinema & Hi-Fi | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff