Why the Sonos Rocks (part 1)
Can I tell you that the Sonos sounds great (we currently own a Play:5, Sub, and 2 Connects), and is simple enough that everyone in the family enjoys it? Once you attach a few services to it (Spotify, MOG, Pandora) that people listen to and discover more music than you'd expect. We have had so much fun over the last year that I believe our music-awareness kicked it up a notch. In fact we're splitting this into 2 parts - part 1 (this one) describing in big hand-waves, the system, and the next one (part 2) when you unleash a family with a history of practical jokes upon Sonos with every family member in the household having a remote control for it ....
Has it replaced the main system? No.
Could it? No way.
Does it sound great? Yes.
What's my major beef with it? It doesn't play a large chunk of my computer music collection that is higher than CD Quality (24 bit at a sample rate of either 96kHz or 192kHz). As in - it shows it as available, let's you select it and then unceremoniously skips right over it like the worst tease in High School. Frikkin' Tease. If someone only had CD level [16bit/44.1kHz] or MP3 they would want for little else.
 |
| High res need not apply to the Sonos World |
But let me go back a couple of years. Kathy and I were getting together - I had proposed to her and by this point we were spending a lot of time together. She mentions in passing when we were skimming over a magazine that had an ad for Sonos "I always wanted one of those."
You see, Kathy improvised a "whole house audio" system at her house. She had two wireless speakers - the kind that has a FM transmitter that plugged into your computer, or other source, and then it broadcast to the stereo pair of speakers wirelessly. She stuck one in her bedroom and flicked the "mono" switch on the other speaker which was in the kitchen perched on top of her fridge. So when she played iTunes or Pandora, she instantly had a houseful of music. Brilliant! (Why, thank you, dear. Nice to know you recognize brilliance. :) In addition, I had two battery operated, "outdoor" speakers that I could bring outside when I was doing yard work and putzing in the flower garden. I really don't like wearing earbuds or headphones when I am bent over weeding, hence the speaker.)
 |
| Sonos GUI: More intuitive that it looks from where you are sitting. |
But also no style at all. None.
A speaker pair, and two outdoor speakers, each with a transmitter, all for under $500, and you expect style? Sheesh! I was just happy to have my iTunes playlists and streaming audio in the bedroom while sorting laundry, or outside in the yard! Not to mention that I got them well over a decade ago. Man are you picky!
Anyway.
We went and got the simplest thing, the "Connect" and hooked it up to the main rig. Getting it to see the iTunes library we had, as well as the audiophile files we had was very straightforward. It has a place to hard-wire Ethernet or hook up by WiFi. One component must be hard wired and if the room you listen in isn't so endowed, you can buy a "bridge" for $50 that you can place right at your router. When we grabbed one, we got an added bonus that it seemed to work smoother - so we highly recommend one even if you don't think you need it. Every so often, big box retailers will have a "sale" that includes a bridge with a Play:3 or Play:5 rather than discounting those components. Keep an eye out for it.
The setup of the components is really intuitive and easy. In fact, I'd bet nearly anyone who can surf the web will feel like an expert installer getting all the controllers and components set up in a matter of minutes. THIS moment is what you are paying for when you buy it. You will be spending most of your time enjoying house-wide music, and less time fussing around being the IT support guy for your family. They play at the Apple level league for ease of use if you want an analogy.
 |
| Sonos Gear |
The controllers are also a snap to set up - it can be a smartphone (Android and iOS), a tablet (really the way to go, in my opinion - and a perfect excuse to get one!) or your computer (which you will never use, BTW, so grab that tablet). Download an App and sync it to the Sonos with a button press and away you go. And if you read the above and the WAY above ... you are now arming everyone in your family with a remote control to your music collection and whatever services you sign up for (and absolutely do sign up). Mayhem? The good kind, yes.
Once the setup was done, we then could stream any of the usual non HD fare right through the stereo. Cool. It sounded like a CD which for an audiophile is damning with faint praise, but the important thing is that it was simple and intuitive to use - so it gets used by everyone - and in many ways that's the point. Right now I cannot think of an audiophile brand that makes it easy this way - and it is a shame. And not that Sonos is doing anything wrong, since audiophilia is a niche in a niche as far as computer audio goes - they would earn my undying loyalty if they would just let me play my high rez stuff! The price of entry for them has removed a zero from the typical prices charged once an audiophile company has "improved" the sound.
I am going to interrupt again to make a point. Our philosophy, if you haven't figured it out by now, is that music belongs to the whole family, and shouldn't be hidden away and inaccessible to the non-audiophile members of the tribe. It is quite possible that you don't want the kids (or the spouse) fiddling with things in your rack, but why should you hold the music itself hostage? Systems like Sonos allow your 8 year old to play The Biebs or One Direction in her room or in the playroom. At the same time, your better half could be playing some fabulous music (like Trick of the Tail by Genesis) in the kitchen while cooking. And no one has to touch the buttons on the expensive stuff. Do you see the beauty in that yet? Say it with me: no one touches your stuff!
In the Sonos universe, playback of those CD-level files is the best option for sound quality. But, frankly, that's also its most boring feature. Stuff-we-already-own discovery it isn't nearly as much fun as music discovery - which this thing enables as well as a computer. Once you discover that you can use Spotify or Pandora (or MOG) - it is doubtful you will be using it for streaming the music you have downloaded. In fact, I think the family will have so much fun with it - and it is so easy to use - you and they will be discovering more music than you ever thought you would, and hence will be buying LP's, CD's and downloads in great qualities. You have been warned...
I'm not going to delve into the sound quality of this box, suffice it to say that it is adequate to pretty good in the grand scheme of things. If you hook up a DAC to it, it'll be about as good as the DAC - which is to say - if you get a connect, get a DAC to go along with it - and you won't be sorry. We have used with with a Rega DAC, Schiit Bifrost, NAD M51, Berkeley Audio Alpha DAC2 all with great results.
 |
| The Sonos Play:5 |
I think Sonos is, in a nutshell, a great way to get whole house audio, encourage music exploration, music discovery in a package that will appeal to peaople regardless of their level of tech savvy. It is easy enough to set up, that you will feel powerful and capable - and whoever in your family handles computers and technical issues will feel this adds nothing to their workload and adds a great deal of enjoyment.
It gets a big thumbs up from us.
Psst... and with Sonos (or something like it) no one will or will want to touch the doodads and knobbies and buttons you have so carefully configured in the rack!
(Note: We have no affiliation with Sonos other than as a satisfied customer)
Comments
Post a Comment