Chewbacker Posted August 30, 2012 Posted August 30, 2012 please correct me if im wrong What prompted this is my step daughter informed me that her new hubby had sonos installed thro the house. I realize it is a form of wireless digital music streaming but is it over priced for what it does ?
Guest Hensa Posted August 30, 2012 Posted August 30, 2012 (edited) I don't think so. Sonos, like Logitech, were early on the scene when there were the beginnings of a demand for the ability to stream music to multiple locations. I don't believe they have ever tried to position themselves as competing with the 'high-end' or even the mid-end of the hi-fi market. Rather, they've positioned themselves to have the potential to be allied to any system from low to high end and add the major convenience of being able to access your music from pretty much anywhere. It's for that reason we haven't seen Sonos come out with any so called "high end" Dacs to improve their systems - they've been happy to let the rest of the industry create a DAC (and other ancillaries) boom in support of their (and others') streaming systems. If they had started coming out with a multitude of other fanciful products, claiming high-end status, perhaps they could be categorised with Bose. The reality is they provide a very good quality solution to many music lovers' needs. All in my humble opinion of course.. Edited August 30, 2012 by Hensa
firefly0071 Posted August 30, 2012 Posted August 30, 2012 If you look at the pricing of Sonos products, it's all affordable.
alistairm Posted September 4, 2012 Posted September 4, 2012 My brother in law has a Sonos - pretty good option for putting music through the house. He has a little mono unit (I think it's mono anyway), that sits on top of a bookshelf and sounds surprising good.
Jake Posted September 4, 2012 Posted September 4, 2012 Sonos is excellent, and does a lot more than first impressions may give. And the sound is really quite good IMO (when fed to a DAC).
rantan Posted September 4, 2012 Posted September 4, 2012 Sonos is purely and simply a very easy way to have streamed music anywhere you are in your house and in that respect I think it works very well indeed. I do not presonally have an interest in or a need for it but I can see how valuable it would be for something like a family living in a large house or for those who entertain frequently. I doubt that the makers ever had any illusions of it being high end and it is clearly not aimed at that demographic. It is a convenience product and a damn good one, but is/was never aimed at the music enthusiast and it needs to be judged that way. The question of its pricing is really in the eye or ear of the beholder, but I very much doubt that its target market would consider it over priced. If I had a need or desire for a Sonos system I would buy it without hesitation and its ease of use and flexible functionality is beyond question IMHO. YMMV.
Jake Posted September 4, 2012 Posted September 4, 2012 [snip]...but is/was never aimed at the music enthusiast and it needs to be judged that way. I beg to differ. I think you mean it was never aimed at audiophools.
rantan Posted September 4, 2012 Posted September 4, 2012 I beg to differ. I think you mean it was never aimed at audiophools. I agree, although it is somewhat semmantical in nature. I think music and audio enthusiasts can often be interchangeable terms and I have no wish to call any enthusiast a phool,or even a fool. If we felt that way we wouldn't be here 1
Guest AV Domain Posted September 18, 2012 Posted September 18, 2012 Sonos doesn't do anything that you can't do using multiple aps for less outlay. What it does do very well though is make it easy. It brings everything together into one easy to navigate system and this is what you are paying for. As far as performance goes, it does pretty good for the price but does even better when you add the sub, pitty it's an extra grand. Personally I think it's worth it simply because it is just so easy to use.
GSpot Posted September 18, 2012 Posted September 18, 2012 I purchased a sonos from the classified's here not long ago. It's possible the only I.T. product that I have ever purchased that works properly. When I say properly, I mean the actual definition of properly. Not the watered-down I.T. industry/generation-y/close enough/we'll fix it later with new firmware/stop your whinging old man properly. The only reason I purchased it was because of it's reputation for working as it's supposed to. It's a sad state of affairs when a product that works as it's supposed to, stands out from the rest because of that reason. Sonos for PM. And yes, I like to use any opportunity to bag the cancer that is the I.T industry. 2
firefly0071 Posted September 18, 2012 Posted September 18, 2012 IT issues are the plague of computer audio and holds this frontier back from average non-technical people.
ayou2 Posted September 18, 2012 Posted September 18, 2012 the Sonos sub / sat system is a marvellous bit of gear, absolutely in a different class to the Bose equivalent. Really would give a few "proper" hifi rigs a fright.
troykm Posted November 5, 2012 Posted November 5, 2012 Sonos doesn't do anything that you can't do using multiple aps for less outlay. I just bought a sonos set up for my lounge room and i have to contradict this statement. Sonos does one very important thing that sets it apart. Its platform agnostic!! In a world where your being locked in to an OS like IOS or ANDROID and their ecosystem, sonos is a breath of fresh air. And that, IMO, is something that makes it very much worth it. Yes, you can get an apple tv to stream your music library but what if you don't want to use iTunes? Well to bad as the apple tv only works with iTunes. What if you don't want to turn your computer on to access your music? Sonos does not need your pc to be on if your using a NAS. What if your music is in FLAC? What about accessing streaming services from the one app and that can be played on ANY system you have connected not just the ones with airplay. What if your partner wants to play a different song in the bedroom than the one your listening to in the lounge? iTunes can not do that, you would need a second pc. I don't need to worry about which streaming music service i can use because they are all on there. I got sonos not just for the convenience, but because i want to get away from apple. I am a apple fanboy and yet even i can see the walled garden is getting out of hand. i want music on my terms, not theirs. Sonos offers flexibility that other options don't even begin to address. And the ease (and i do mean ease) of how it all works its amazing. AFAIK sonos has no real threat yet, im going to build my sonos system over the next few months :-) 3
Jake Posted November 5, 2012 Posted November 5, 2012 I have 6 zone players, and will soon be setting them up in my new house as a priority. The system is brilliant.
troykm Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 I have 6 zone players, and will soon be setting them up in my new house as a priority. The system is brilliant. I just set up my NAS drive on my network, got the music on it :-) love it. Music anytime and not a pc or mac turned on. That joined with spotify and I'm in heaven :-)
Roumelio. Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 People like to put Sonos on a higher pedestool than say an Airport Express, Extreme or an Apple TV, it's really not, it's a good multi-room extender if you want one, but nothing to expect a premium price from.
Jake Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 People like to put Sonos on a higher pedestool than say an Airport Express, Extreme or an Apple TV, it's really not, it's a good multi-room extender if you want one, but nothing to expect a premium price from. How many zones do you have RL? You can't have too many!
troykm Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 (edited) People like to put Sonos on a higher pedestool than say an Airport Express, Extreme or an Apple TV, it's really not, it's a good multi-room extender if you want one, but nothing to expect a premium price from. They are good options if you want to use iTunes. I don't. Edited November 6, 2012 by troykm
Roumelio. Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 (edited) Just two zones at the moment, but now I'm fully in the Apple ecosytem its tempting to keep going with more ATVs around the place, just tell my iPhone, or my iPod touch to Airplay into a room, it really is simple and usefull. I've been getting up to date with things latelly with streaming TV and catch up services being able to Airplay iView, or SBS on Demand into the TV/speakers in each room is really nice. I have to say it makes things really simple. They are good options if you want to use iTunes. I don't The biggest issue with iTunes is people who complain about their shitty quality untagged media downloaded from channel BT, FACT! it really is not an iTunes problem. We should really know better than this on an audio forum. Edited November 6, 2012 by Raving Lunatic 1
troykm Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 (edited) Just two zones at the moment, but now I'm fully in the Apple ecosytem its tempting to keep going with more ATVs around the place, just tell my iPhone, or my iPod touch to Airplay into a room, it really is simple and usefull. I've been getting up to date with things latelly with streaming TV and catch up services being able to Airplay iView, or SBS on Demand into the TV/speakers in each room is really nice. I have to say it makes things really simple. The biggest issue with iTunes is people who complain about their shitty quality untagged media downloaded from channel BT, FACT! it really is not an iTunes problem. Um.... I don't pirate. Not a thing. I just don't like being trapped. And that's exactly what apple is doing with iTunes, they are trapping you into a platform that you can't get out of. I can see it and I don't like it. Bit if your happy with it, enjoy. I'll keep enjoying the freedom sonos gives me and my music Edited November 6, 2012 by troykm
Roumelio. Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 (edited) I agree it's not ideal, you will complain about it until you're inside of it and then you will realise that it just works and that they are very decent quality multizone/range extender solutions. It's kind of like you might not initially like the way Apple is showing you how to do it, but once you get over the initial, I don't wanna do it like that, it does actually provide you with a very elegant solution. Edited November 6, 2012 by Raving Lunatic
troykm Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 I was inside it. Have an Apple TV, iMac, iPhone, and AirPort Extreme base station. And i got tired of the constant upgrades and software changes and new features designed to force you to upgrade bla bla bla. I don't want the mac on all the time just so the Apple TV can stream music. I want the play a different song in my room while my partner listens in the lounge to something different. You can't do that with apple products unless you have multiple macs or pcs.
rantan Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 Hey guys. I am nobody around here but can't we just accept that different things works for different people in different circumstances. There is no single correct answer, it's just whatever works for you Just sayin' is all 2
troykm Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 Hey guys. I am nobody around here but can't we just accept that different things works for different people in different circumstances. There is no single correct answer, it's just whatever works for you Just sayin' is all Of course your right :-) as long as there is music playing its all good
Roumelio. Posted November 6, 2012 Posted November 6, 2012 (edited) This is true, if people want to go out and buy Sonos gear more power to them, I think the question really is are they over priced average equipment like BOSE. Well, as compared to what? An Airport Express or an Apple TV yes to that extent for a product that many people can replicate the use of for around $100 or less, yes... But then there will be some people who need the extra capability of the Sonos for some regards. All I can say is that the Apple ecosystem works fine for me and from that extent, yeah Sonos is over priced for me, but I also recognise I am not everyone. Edited November 6, 2012 by Raving Lunatic
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