Best Sonos alternative?

hoogie

hoogie

hoogie

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18 Dec 2003
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327
Hi All,

I currently have a single Sonos Play 3 system and I am looking to buy invest in getting a multiroom setup in place.

Originally I had just intended to buy another Play 3 and a Play 1, however I am getting fed up with Sonos being a closed system and would like to be able to play my content direct from their apps (Audible, Podcasts, Spotify etc).

What is the best alternative system to Sonos for a multiroom setup like this?

Would it be a Googlecast speaker system? If so which one is considered to be the best?

Thanks
 
Price, convenience, reliability, compatibility. Wireless speakers are a trade-off between all of those aspects.

Google Chromecast is not a multiroom speaker system - it is an adapter that connects to speakers and shows up as a selectable output in Android/certain iOS music apps.
 
I've gone for a Chromecast Audio, plus one of these amps, and a normal set of speakers.

I've not actually set it up in situ yet, but on testing it works well casting from various devices/apps
 
It really depends on what your interface device will be. I have a couple of methods for wireless audio and video. By far the best is Spotify connect which is built into my Onkyo amp, however Apple TV is a pretty close second and now I've got a Macbook it's seriously straightforward to use.

Once you decide how you will be interacting with the system at your end, you need to decide on what you want to run in your setup in terms of audio equipment. Are you looking to have an all signing all dancing home cinema setup which runs off a central server using ripped files, or are you after playing music in the bath?

I deliberately didn't go for a Sonos setup as I wanted more flexibility for the actual audio kit. If you're after discreet speakers which stay out of the way and look OK, then Sonos is a pretty good option.
 
I use the Panasonic All system and really like it. I have the ALL70T, All2 and All1. Great sound quality and can use directly through the app (spotify, allplay radio)

Take a look :)
 
hoogie said:
What is the best alternative system to Sonos for a multiroom setup like this?

Would it be a Googlecast speaker system? If so which one is considered to be the best?
Click to expand...

I've now got 4x Chromecast Audio and various cobbled together speakers around the house... group setup for "House Party!" and then each individual CC too.

Just works and the casting is brilliant. Spousal acceptance factor was much easier than Sonos (she tried them) and it's been incredibly useful for various shindgids we've had, and when people are in different rooms/zones in the house.

Plan to get another added to the garden at some point, once I've sourced reasonably priced outdoor sound kit.

I realise Sonos is brilliant, but the cost advantage and flexibility of the Chromecast kit is fantastic.
 
Do you ever have issues with the chromecast audios disappearing from your network?

I have three and from time to time some or all of them disappear and I need to either reboot the chromecasts or occasionally my router for them to appear.
 
If you have an iOS device, you could use AirPlay plus whatever audio hardware you fancy. It doesn't do proper multiroom though.
 
valve90210 said:
Do you ever have issues with the chromecast audios disappearing from your network?

I have three and from time to time some or all of them disappear and I need to either reboot the chromecasts or occasionally my router for them to appear.
Click to expand...

There were issue with a certain revision of the virgin superhub and chromecasts, cant remember which hub though. I only have 1x CC Audio and and 1x Cc but neither have ever disappeared from the wifi (sky hub)
 
Tunney said:
If you have an iOS device, you could use AirPlay plus whatever audio hardware you fancy. It doesn't do proper multiroom though.
Click to expand...

It will, but you need a computer running iTunes rather than a tablet or iphone. If by multiroom you mean playing the same thing in all zones that is. If not, you can use as many devices as you like and airplay to separate devices to your heart's content! This reminds me, I need to get my apple TVs set up properly so I can have house party mode!
 
undergroove said:
I've now got 4x Chromecast Audio and various cobbled together speakers around the house... group setup for "House Party!" and then each individual CC too.

Just works and the casting is brilliant. Spousal acceptance factor was much easier than Sonos (she tried them) and it's been incredibly useful for various shindgids we've had, and when people are in different rooms/zones in the house.

Plan to get another added to the garden at some point, once I've sourced reasonably priced outdoor sound kit.

I realise Sonos is brilliant, but the cost advantage and flexibility of the Chromecast kit is fantastic.
Click to expand...

sorry to butt in the thread but that sounds ace! I may try that too! What source do you use? i.e. music stored locally on your phone, or on a server, or a cloud service like Spotify?
 
james.miller said:
There were issue with a certain revision of the virgin superhub and chromecasts, cant remember which hub though. I only have 1x CC Audio and and 1x Cc but neither have ever disappeared from the wifi (sky hub)
Click to expand...

I've got a basic Thompson router which plusnet gave me about 3 years ago, I think it might be on it's last legs as the wifi is getting a bit weak and rubbish at the moment, this could be causing my issues.

steinooo said:
sorry to butt in the thread but that sounds ace! I may try that too! What source do you use? i.e. music stored locally on your phone, or on a server, or a cloud service like Spotify?
Click to expand...

I personally have my music on a NAS which runs a upnp server (twonky I think), and then set up playlists etc using Bubble upnp on either my phone or one of my tablets. I currently have 3 chromecast audios set up and another 2 which I'll get running in the near future, and have set up various groups and have to say it works remarkably well with the exception of a few issues I'm having (mentioned above) which I think are related to my wifi...
 
sonos will be opening up it's system to spotify (ie so that you can stream directly from the spotify app) from october. I was planning to sell my 2 sonos play 1's until i heard this...
 
valve90210 said:
Do you ever have issues with the chromecast audios disappearing from your network?

I have three and from time to time some or all of them disappear and I need to either reboot the chromecasts or occasionally my router for them to appear.
Click to expand...

Very occasionally, but as others have said, it's likely my WiFi setup that plays up (Apple Airport Extreme as bridge, connected to EE fiber router). EE router sometimes strops out and I've not moved DHCP off it, so that's usually what knocks them out. Otherwise, they're rock solid.

steinooo said:
sorry to butt in the thread but that sounds ace! I may try that too! What source do you use? i.e. music stored locally on your phone, or on a server, or a cloud service like Spotify?
Click to expand...

Mostly Google Music on a family sub, but if it's got a Cast feature and we (or guests) want to listen, then those apps too. My local collection's backed up, archived and physical versions stored away now... realise I've gone digital lock-in effectively, but I've fallback if required.

Great thing about the CC Audio is that it can be shoved in a void behind a flush mounted wall speaker, effectively hiding the physical parts of the sound system.
 
snow patrol said:
sonos will be opening up it's system to spotify (ie so that you can stream directly from the spotify app) from october. I was planning to sell my 2 sonos play 1's until i heard this...
Click to expand...

This is great news for Sonos users. The number of people using streaming services will only rise!
 
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