[KingOfJericho]

For a plug-and-play whole house system without breaking the bank, I think Sonos does a great job. Is it overpriced? It is, in the same way an Apple notebook is. They charge more because it's easy to use and comes in an attractive package.

I am certainly not an audiophile but I don't like shit-quality stuff either. I have Martin Logan ESLs and legacy B&K amps powering them (w/Marantz brains behind it all) in my TV room but I don't listen to any music there. I actually spend most of my listening time on the train with my B&O H6 headphones which I adore. It's my hour of zen.

All that said, my in-home music listening is almost exclusively through the Sonos speakers. They're not going to blow your skirt up but they are phenomenal for a little background music when hanging around the house. I also have the Sonos Amp hooked up to a pair of DefTech AW6500 outdoor speakers for the back yard. Sonos gives me the ability to kick off those outdoor speakers in an instant. It's a very cool party trick...

Sonos gets two thumbs way up from me.

The snobs in here really crack me up. This must be how the guys on the Ferrari forum feel when someone comes in saying they love their BMW M4...

[zx10guy]

I also want to throw out there since there has been some discussion about ear buds, noise canceling, and sound quality. The better combination is noise isolating in ear monitors with custom molded ear pieces.

[davis449]

My dad has a full Sonos system (3-4 speakers, the "subwoofer", and sound bar for the TV). For music around the house, sure, if you can light some money on fire, why not? It's ok stuff and the SQ is passable. The app (mobile and desktop) is great, I won't even try to deny it's ease of use appeal. It sucks for HT use. There are WAY better sound bar\subwoofer combos out there. For me, it's full 5.1 or bust.

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Well, I don't know about the worst stuff because their noise cancelling earphones/headphones work better than any of the current offerings and they have pretty decent sound quality.

I beg to differ. Yeah, their ability to cancel noise is excellent, but their sound quality is utter shit. I borrowed my dad's on a flight recently and I was SO disappointed (and disgusted considering the price), I immediately went back to my $80 noise isolating Sony earbuds...SO much better. And I keep trying them pretty much every time I'm in Best Buy trying to figure out what the hell the draw to them is.

[zx10guy]

I love the sound of electrostatic speakers. But they're really finicky on room acoustics and placement. That's why I haven't gone with a set. I remember hearing a set of Apogee Stages a long time ago...simply heaven.

[KingOfJericho]

Originally Posted by zx10guy

I love the sound of electrostatic speakers. But they're really finicky on room acoustics and placement. That's why I haven't gone with a set. I remember hearing a set of Apogee Stages a long time ago...simply heaven.

Yes they have their advantages and drawbacks for sure. I have marks on the floor where they need to be placed and a specific listening seat on the couch. The best part about them is how incredibly sturdy they are. My kids have knocked the shit out of these things and they still sound exactly the same. No dust caps to push in or surrounds to tear. The narrow listening band is also great because the sound doesn't really leave that zone. I can watch movies without bothering anyone else in the house (well, the sub usually blows my cover...).

[Dekansnowman]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

There is nothing "elitist" about informing someone that the "incredible" sound they hear is only perceived because they are used to TV speakers.

Sonos IS overpriced for what you get.

Their fake 5.1 system is 2 *tiny* speakers, a garbage sub, and a soundbar for $1,800.

I have the Sonos Playbar, Sub, and a Play 5 for use wherever I want it. The Bar and Sub are for my Living Room TV and do just fine and provide pretty good sound. The 5 usually pulls garage duty when I'm playing around in there.

Now, for those Elitists that shit on Sonos but turn around and praise Bose, please take a second to understand you're talking down on one manufacturer for using a gimmick while you praise another for doing the same. Don't be Elitist and speak from a pedestal that is just on the top of what Best Buy and Fry's sells.

I've demoed B&W in my media room and I REALLY liked their stuff. Their center channel was one of the only ones I tried where in the movie Inception you could hear the grain of the wood that the top was spinning on at the end of the film. Pretty fascinating when you really sit there and plug an old Polk Audio speaker and can't tell it's there because you only hear "Time" by Hans Zimmer taking over.

With that said, I also heard a set of HSU Research bookshelf speakers and without knowing their brand only listening, fell in love. The B&W sounded great, and price didn't bother me at all because I want great sound and expect certain frequencies to be hit. I expect a certain sub-bass note in the form of "Wubwub" to happen when Optimus Prime stomps around, and the feeling of my capsule shearing apart when watching Interstellar as they go through the Black Hole.

HSU did that, and at a stupid cheap cost. Many people have tried them out and not looked back. Even experts doing a blind test have picked their stuff over 6-figure setups.

[davis449]

Now, for those Elitists that shit on Sonos but turn around and praise Bose, please take a second to understand you're talking down on one manufacturer for using a gimmick while you praise another for doing the same. Don't be Elitist and speak from a pedestal that is just on the top of what Best Buy and Fry's sells.

Now THIS I can get on board with. And Sonos > Anything Bose..in all respects. The sound, specifically, from Sonos is way better. If I'm gonna set some money on fire and those are my choices...Sonos all day long.

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by davis449

I beg to differ. Yeah, their ability to cancel noise is excellent, but their sound quality is utter shit. I borrowed my dad's on a flight recently and I was SO disappointed (and disgusted considering the price), I immediately went back to my $80 noise isolating Sony earbuds...SO much better. And I keep trying them pretty much every time I'm in Best Buy trying to figure out what the hell the draw to them is.

Yes, it's not the best in terms of SQ but like I said, it does what it's supposed to and the SQ is decent. It's not unbearable, at least to me. I'd prefer to have better SQ but unfortunately it's just not going to happen.

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Let's just say you're their target audience...

If you want easy setup, no wires, and n00b sound quality, Sonos is for you.

Get yourself some Bose noise cancelling headphones and you'll be the poster child for mainstream audio.

Spoiler alert: Compared to any real home theater system, it's garbage. You think it sounds good because you're probably used to watching movies with TV speakers.

You were tagged as an elitist and you were just speaking the truth. Look at your message from another perspective:

Spoiler alert: Compared to a Ferrari, BMWs are garbage. We think they drive good because we used to driving Camrys.

So, should you sell your beautiful E92 and go buy a Ferrari? I didn't think so.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by sygazelle

You were tagged as an elitist and you were just speaking the truth. Look at your message from another perspective:

Spoiler alert: Compared to a Ferrari, BMWs are garbage. We think they drive good because we used to driving Camrys.

So, should you sell your beautiful E92 and go buy a Ferrari? I didn't think so.

Sonos still isn't a BMW, so not a good analogy. It's an even worse analogy because a traditional 5.1 setup could be had for the same money as the Sonos setup I mentioned (around $2,000). The 5.1 setup will blow away the Sonos. Also, speakers don't really have the same prestige factor/style a car does. Most speakers look pretty similar (Black with grills) and the bigger question is, do they sound good?

Sonos is expensive for what you get and even spending the same money for a traditional 5.1 setup gives you a better result.

A better comparison would be my setup versus an ultra high end setup.

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Sonos still isn't a BMW, so not a good analogy. It's an even worse analogy because a traditional 5.1 setup could be had for the same money as the Sonos setup I mentioned (around $2,000). The 5.1 setup will blow away the Sonos. Also, speakers don't really have the same prestige factor/style a car does. Most speakers look pretty similar (Black with grills) and the bigger question is, do they sound good?

Sonos is expensive for what you get and even spending the same money for a traditional 5.1 setup gives you a better result.

A better comparison would be my setup versus an ultra high end setup.

Sonos is like Apple. It's not the best but is simple to use and does what people need without being to technical. As long as the package is good they can charge a high price and people will buy. Many phones are much better than iPhone yet so many people prefer Apple over Samsung, LG, etc.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Sonos is like Apple. It's not the best but is simple to use and does what people need without being to technical. As long as the package is good they can charge a high price and people will buy. Many phones are much better than iPhone yet so many people prefer Apple over Samsung, LG, etc.

I'd argue Sonos isn't like Apple, at least from the iPhone perspective.

Apple still has the fastest phone on the market, despite not having 6GB RAM because their OS and RAM Management is still so brilliant. To me, there really aren't "many" phones better than iPhone, because you'll be running Android with most of those with poor hardware management.

Then you have the endless Android vs iOS argument.

Again, speakers are pretty much about sound. If you just have to have wireless, I guess you're a Sonos guy...but wireless and real speakers are essentially apples and oranges. There is literally no upside to Sonos besides it being wireless.

Apple has a lot of upside to Android, both objective and subjective.

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

I'd argue Sonos isn't like Apple, at least from the iPhone perspective.

Apple still has the fastest phone on the market, despite not having 6GB RAM because their OS and RAM Management is still so brilliant. To me, there really aren't "many" phones better than iPhone, because you'll be running Android with most of those with poor hardware management.

Then you have the endless Android vs iOS argument.

Again, speakers are pretty much about sound. If you just have to have wireless, I guess you're a Sonos guy...but wireless and real speakers are essentially apples and oranges. There is literally no upside to Sonos besides it being wireless.

Apple has a lot of upside to Android, both objective and subjective.

Put aside being the fastest argument and you're left with ease of use in a presentable package and you have the iPhone. I don't have Sonos but just from reading this thread it's obvious that people like it because it is easy. How many people do you think actually pay attention to how fast the iphone is? No, they buy it because it is simple to use and reliable (that's how their computers got started too).

People sacrifice all out features for convenience and ease of use. They don't care if it's not the best sounding speakers. As long as the product does what it promises to do it will sell. Even if Android phones are the fastest on the market right now, I'd still stick with iPhone because it does what I need it to do reliability. In car sense, you can have an M2 which is plenty fast. An M4 is more powerful and is technically faster but does anyone really care that much? Past a certain point you just care about the minium viable needs being satisfied. Just my 2 cents.

[zx10guy]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Sonos still isn't a BMW, so not a good analogy. It's an even worse analogy because a traditional 5.1 setup could be had for the same money as the Sonos setup I mentioned (around $2,000). The 5.1 setup will blow away the Sonos. Also, speakers don't really have the same prestige factor/style a car does. Most speakers look pretty similar (Black with grills) and the bigger question is, do they sound good?

Sonos is expensive for what you get and even spending the same money for a traditional 5.1 setup gives you a better result.

A better comparison would be my setup versus an ultra high end setup.

That's your opinion. This is a BMW enthusiast board and many on here are car aficionados. If you go to any audio enthusiast boards, there are people there who would rank prestige among speaker manufacturers above car makers.

There are speakers out there which cost the same or more than most BMWs. Look at the Nautilus speaker from B&W...composite housing fabricated by an Formula 1 outfit with painting done to automotive standards. Wilson Audio has some extremely pricey speakers in the high 5 and into the 6 figures. The most expensive speakers I've auditioned at length were a pair of Meridian Audio DSP 8000 speakers coming in at $80,000 a pair.

But I agree with you...sound is more important versus price tag. I've always liked the sound of B&Ws...particularly in the mids. The highs were always to me a bit bright/sharp/forward. I've fixed that issue with having acoustical treatments in my listening room. The owner of the shop where I bought my Meridian and Bryston gear from looked at me like I had two heads when I wasn't impressed with the Dynaudio Contour speakers he just got in. Speaker sound is one thing, but many people ignore the other big contributing factor to sound....the room and proper speaker placement. I've seen people shove $30k speakers into custom built ins or shove them into a corner of a room. Clearly these people just bought the speakers because they have more money than sense and also for the prestige factor you say isn't there with speakers. I get attacked when I call them out on it from others that just bow down to someone that just throws cash out for exotic speakers.

[AIRPOWER]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Look at my setup. I am not an expert, but I'm not an audio "n00b" because I suggested Airpods. He wants wireless earbuds...Airpods are good for that.

Apple's build quality is great, products are easy to use, and most importantly, they work.

I'm also an Apple investor, so my suggestion may have been slanted, but audiophile audio quality and wireless earbuds are 2 different things. I really do think Apple makes the best TRULY wireless earbuds at the moment.

I tried both the BeatsX and AirPods and have to say I have the exact opposite opinion.

The AirPods fit the same in my ear as the wired ones that come with every iPhone and those FIT like crap. They fall out and I can't ever get them positioned right for the best base/sound quality.

BeatsX on the other hand fit and SOUND the same as the wired URBeats - deep bass/good meds/crisp highs.

Opinions are just like assholes, everybody has one.......

[Reborn_]

Originally Posted by AIRPOWER

I tried both the BeatsX and AirPods and have to say I have the exact opposite opinion.

The AirPods fit the same in my ear as the wired ones that come with every iPhone and those FIT like crap. They fall out and I can ever get them positioned right for the best base/sound quality.

BeatsX on the other hand fit and SOUND the same as the beats URBeats - deep bass/good meds/crisp highs.

Opinions are just like assholes, everybody has one.......

Ugh, Agree with you. I only use apple headphones to make calls in my beater and they barely stay in my ears.

[EyeGuy]

No highs, no lows, must be Bose.
5.1 over Sonos all day for home theater use.

[m630]

I believe that Sonos is great for a few use cases, firstly for wifi connectivity, then for specific situations, followed by casual sound users.

I've been using sonos for about 7 years now and mostly for the wifi aspect, if you are in an existing house and want full house sound without ripping your home apart, sonos technology is the way to go. My system was designed and installed by hi end audio company and when it was installed in 2010 I had never heard of them. I wanted a full 7.1 home theatre plus full house sound so the two options were to rip the house open from top to bottom as well as outside, or look for new tech based on wifi- which is where they excel,the ability to connect zones via wifi rather than traditional method using a centralized controller/amps and dedicated on wall controllers. This can't be beat and had nothing to do with sound quality. Using their control units either powered or just for the wifi control works perfect with just about all needs. The connect amps are perfect for powering two speakers of your choice, or where needed using simply the connect module to connect to a dedicated amp to drive your speakers.
While my home theatre does not rely on sonos, I've added a connect zone to the home theatre setup to allow me to share my tv content with all zones both inside and out which is great for listening to the games out back when nice, or up in the kitchen / dining room when cooking/hosting.

The ability to expand over time is great, and since the initial of the home theatre I've further added a sonos sub to my kitchen / dining room to provide some low end sound. I was easily able to add sound to my master bath using a sonos control module up in the attic and connects to an in ceiling stereo speaker. Then for the master bedroom tv I added a sonos soundbar which I believe provides great sound and connectivity vs anything in the same price range.

So it all depends on the use case and what you want to spend, most won't spend 20k on full home theater setups with great speakers and power subs like some of us may, and if one likes sound but is just a casual listener, I think sonos systems and speakers are a good option.

[fecurtis]

Originally Posted by BayMoWe335

Let's just say you're their target audience...

If you want easy setup, no wires, and n00b sound quality, Sonos is for you.

Get yourself some Bose noise cancelling headphones and you'll be the poster child for mainstream audio.

Spoiler alert: Compared to any real home theater system, it's garbage. You think it sounds good because you're probably used to watching movies with TV speakers.

For someone in the market for noise canceling headphones, got any recommendations? Was potentially leaning towards Sennheiser.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Put aside being the fastest argument and you're left with ease of use in a presentable package and you have the iPhone. I don't have Sonos but just from reading this thread it's obvious that people like it because it is easy. How many people do you think actually pay attention to how fast the iphone is? No, they buy it because it is simple to use and reliable (that's how their computers got started too).

People sacrifice all out features for convenience and ease of use. They don't care if it's not the best sounding speakers. As long as the product does what it promises to do it will sell. Even if Android phones are the fastest on the market right now, I'd still stick with iPhone because it does what I need it to do reliability. In car sense, you can have an M2 which is plenty fast. An M4 is more powerful and is technically faster but does anyone really care that much? Past a certain point you just care about the minium viable needs being satisfied. Just my 2 cents.

But it's apples and oranges. Again, speakers are about sound...Sonos doesn't sound good for what you're paying.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by fecurtis

For someone in the market for noise canceling headphones, got any recommendations? Was potentially leaning towards Sennheiser.

Yes, they make some good stuff. Some of the best value out there are Audio Technica.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by EyeGuy

No highs, no lows, must be Bose.
5.1 over Sonos all day for home theater use.

He gets it...