Opinions on Playbase/Sub/2 x One for listening to music

Well I have to say I am very impressed with the setup I ordered. (Playbase, Sub, 2x Ones.)

It all arrived today and I wasted no time with the installation.

Your descriptions of the sound were spot on Chris & Melvimbe.

For listening purely to music It does lack the true separation you get from a pure stereo hi-fi set up.

But it isn’t an unpleasant sound and those Ones certainly punch above their weight. I am amazed at the sound quality from such small speakers. For most people sat in our awkward shaped room the music will sound better than the old stereo set up as that was optimised for just one seating position. (mine!!!) 

My TV doesn’t pass any 5.1 audio through to it’s optical output, but after connecting the optical lead directly to the PS3, I was bowled over with the 5.1 sound stage when playing a BluRay of Phantom of the Opera in DD5.1.

I have ordered a three way optical splitter so I can take the optical outputs from the TV, PS$ and PS3 directly to the Playbase and maximise the DD5.1 playback opportunities.

I am glad I bought the Sub as although the bass response is pretty good from the Playbase, the Sub takes the audio experience to a different level, particularly when watching films.

After much searching on the web, I was able to find how to access the secret “Hotel” menu for my old Panasonic Plasma TV and through this could set the max TV volume to zero. There is no setting on the TV to disable the internal speakers, unless a Panasonic Viera Link Amp is used. With the internal speakers limited to zero volume, I could then program the existing remote to control the volume and mute functions on the Playbase.

Next step is to get to grips with the rest of the App functionality. I think I am going to set it all up on an old iPad air mini and have that sitting on a stand in the room.

Thanks again for all the previous replies and info.

You’d already commuted to purchase when I saw this thread, but I fully agree with your comments. I’ve come to Sonos from a Linn system, and started with the Playbase. The narrow soundstage took a bit of getting used to, but with the One rears and the Sub it’s a great setup! 

I’ve just spent an hour listening to more of my old favourites downloaded from Spotify at the highest quality setting.

I have also loaded the Sonos App on the old iPad mini and used the Trueplay tuning. The sound is certainly different when listening to the same tracks as before. More spatial is probably the best way to describe it.

I have the Ones set to “Full” on music playback rather than “Ambient” as I think they improve the sound quality for music when set in this way. I just need to let my brain adjust to the fact that the main guts of the music is coming more from the sides and not the front.

But it really is impressive sound and plenty loud enough when cranked up. I don’t think I will be availing myself of the 100 day trial return .

It is also so convenient not to be messing round with CD’s and to have access to so much music on Spotify. I’m interested to see how things develop with S2 and higher definition audio.  

It really is a marvelous experience, delighted to read about you going through it.

It’s been a week now since my Sonos equipment arrived.

The more I listen, the more I am impressed! As a surround sound Playbase system I don’t think it will ever replace the true stereo effect from a quality music hi-fi system, but it does a pretty good job. It has transformed the TV experience though when watching  films with a 5.1 soundtrack.

The 3 way optical splitter with remote arrived yesterday, so I am now able to connect the TV, PS3 & PS4 through their optical outputs to the Playbase. It was only a cheap one so the remote is pretty flimsy but it all works OK. At some point I will change the TV and I will make sure that there is pass through to the TV optical out, or an HDMI ARC output that I can get the 5.1 optical signal without the need for a splitter.

I spent many hours over the weekend ripping my entire CD collection (close to 3000 tracks) into FLAC format and have saved all the files on a cheap NAS drive. These are now accessible through the Sonos Music Library and complement other music that I have through my Spotify account.

Hoping this feedback may be helpful to anyone else contemplating a similar move to Sonos.

Quick update : Sonos Connect (Gen2) now added to the system 

I picked one up in really good condition from fleebay and it arrived today. 

As I type, I’m listening to John Illsley’s Never told a soul on LP. There’s something about LPs that I still find enjoyable even though most of my LP collection got duplicated by CD’s over the years.

You might want to keep the optical splitter even if you do get a tv with DD 5.1 pass through. My tv has passthrough but it introduces a very slight delay between picture & sound so I still use the optical splitter (I have a playbar not playbase).
 

I also bought a cheap optical splitter but it works fine & I programmed my harmony remote so I don’t need to use the flimsy remote that came with the splitter.

Further update :

After listening to more music over the past few days, I’m afraid I have concluded that I’m not 100% happy with the audio experience.

There is no doubt when watching movies that the Playbase/Sub/2x One works very well in providing an immersive audio experience. 

But for music on its own, I’m finding the Sub to be overpowering and the One’s lacking a depth of sound. I have tried dialling down the Sub volume and playing around with Trueplay and the EQ settings, but I just can’t find a sweet spot.

I am a convert to Sonos and love the concept so I am going to persevere with it.

I am going to return the Sub and Ones under the 100 day trial arrangement and replace them with a pair of Fives. I have watched some movies with the Sub removed from the system and I’m not missing the low down bass of the Sub that much. I’m hoping the Fives will add back in some of the bass missing from the Sub, but will provide a much better audio experience when listening to music on its own. If the Fives are overpowering when viewing movies I can always reduce the sound level to them as surrounds.

I gather there could be a Gen3 Five being released any day now, so I will wait before placing an order.

I will report back once the revised kit arrives.