Why Sonos thinks you’re ready for a $500 speaker in your home

Posted on 29/09/2015 by Nathan Ingraham

Sonos faces a unique challenge on the eve of launching the most important products it has developed in years. The company's mission statement is simple to sum up: It wants to make it easy to listen to high-quality music anywhere in your home. And i...

Sonos Sub review

Posted on 19/06/2012 by Jon Fingas

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Every audio product Sonos has delivered so far has worked on the assumption that you would never need anything else after you bought it, whether it's linking to a sound system you already owned or an all-in-one system that Sonos built itself, like the Play:3 or Play:5 (born as the S5). The newly released Sub, by its nature, is entirely dependent on having one of the two Play speakers, and shows the company is becoming more of a traditional audio brand with a full ecosystem. A primary Sonos component can now be just the first step in a growing collection that improves as you expand it -- much as you'd buy a basic stereo, then better speakers, then more at a high-end audio shop. The Sub's $699 price certainly catapults any Sonos system into high-end territory, however, and sets some decidedly lofty expectations for how it will perform. We'll find out after the break if the sheer power and a few clever tricks are enough for the Sub to be an essential ingredient of a wireless home audio setup.

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Sonos Sub review originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jun 2012 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sonos’ wireless Sub adds extra thump to your Sonos system for $700 (ears-on)

Posted on 22/05/2012 by Joe Pollicino

Although we generally raved about the performance of Sonos' Play:3 wireless HiFi speakers, one of our chief complaints rested in their slightly muddy bass output. Folks who've felt similarly should be pleased to know that the company has unveiled its first subwoofer, dubbed Sonos Sub. This $700 bass-dropper works wirelessly with your existing Sonos speakers, requiring a quick a setup within the app to ensure it's in-phase and putting out an adequate level of volume. You'll only find a single cable and switch for power on the outside, while looking through its center reveals a duo of "force-cancelling" drivers. Two internal air-ports also flow from top to bottom to aid in the unit's bass reproduction.

We gave a pre-production unit a very brief listen with a stereo array of Sonos Play:3s and came out fairly impressed. The speakers are no slouches on their own, but there's no denying the extra power a sub can add to the HiFi boxes. Measuring in at 15.8 x 6.2 x 15 inches (402 x 158 x 380mm) the Sub dwarf's even the larger Play:5, but a Sonos rep let us know it ensures it'll cover a range of spaces -- not mention folks using the Connect:Amp with their own HiFi speakers (Sonos' Connect, ZP90 and ZP80 aren't compatible, however). We got pleasing results from our unit planted on a table a few feet away from any walls, and the system didn't show any signs or shaking or rattling. The Sub can thankfully rest sideways for placement under some couches, but you'll likely want to "set it and forget it" since it weighs about 36 pounds. Our only displeasure rests in the glossy finish -- a magnet for fingerprints and dust -- but we're told a non-gloss version will be offered later for $100 less. You'll be able to pick up this wub-maker come June 19, so check out the video and press release after the break for more info in the meantime.

Gallery: Sonos Sub (eyes-on)