Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[pqcgebxm]

Hi Everyone,

I'm researching audio systems for my new apartment, and am wondering if Sonos wireless speakers are a good option. I envision using speakers for three purposes.

1. As speakers in the lounge room as a home theatre (i.e., 5.1) to watch TV/movies
2. As main speakers for playing audio/music, also in the lounge room
3. As remote speakers elsewhere, like bedrooms, which I'll occasionally use.

This is the setup I'm considering:

1. An A/V receiver (as a central hub audio/video and as a radio)
2. A TV connected to the receiver via HDMI
3. A dedicated media PC (a NUC, probably) running MediaCenter, also connected to the receiver via HDMI
4. A Sonos Playbar + woofer + rear speakers (5.1). My understanding is that everything connects through the playbar, which I'll connect to the receiver via optical audio cable.
5. Other Sonos speakers elsewhere, such as bedrooms.

So, my question is, how does MediaCenter see the various Sonos speakers in this setup? Will the 5.1 system just appear as if it is a single 5.1 channel audio output? And can MediaCenter see the remote Sonos speakers, which I can setup as separate zones?

Are there better (maybe cheaper) options?

[pqcgebxm]

So, after looking into this a bit more, I *think* the answer to my own question is that MC will see the Sonos system as a single output device, and will not be able to interact with the remote speakers separately. The connection to the Sonos Playbar is via a TOSLINK connector (or via HDMI, if I use an A/V receiver), so it's treated as one device. Unfortunately, it appears that Sonos only supports Dolby Digital, and not DTS, which I think makes this unsuitable for my movie collection.

So, I'm now considering the Denon HEOS system instead. Anyone have any experience with this?