I want to make two irrefutable statements of fact:
1) Sonos is the best wireless speaker system in the world with a very intuitive app that makes wireless audio amazingly simple.
2) Sonos management cares little about customer feedback and is leaving millions on the table.
While that might sound kind of harsh, consider that the Sonos Community has viewed a thread over 46,000 times and I've seen online blogs begging for an outdoor speaker FOR YEARS! How many millions of dollars could Sonos have made by simply delivering on this request? I've personally looked for weatherproof enclosures for both the Connect Amp and Play speakers and nobody has an elegant solution.
It's completely aggravating when I come to the Sonos website after over a year of owning my system and still there is no answer to the community by management letting us know: A) when a weatherproof speaker is coming, or 😎 why it will never come. And I'm late to the party, which means others were ignored for over five years before me!
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Love the Sonos product! In my last house I wired speakers throughout the whole house and outside. My new house is bigger and multiple stories and wiring speakers was looking like a daunting project. No worries... in comes Sonos and all is solved! LOVE the product and the ability to easily play other music on some speakers to easily adjust volume on different speakers. LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT... Now get busy and MAKE OUTDOOR SPEAKERS PRONTO!!!!!! (Thank you!)
Personally, I wouldn't get an outdoor Sonos speaker if they offered one. Price wise, I can't imagine in would be less than $250 per speaker. I would need at least 4 speakers in my yard, so that's $1000. It is cheaper to get a connect amp, plus 2 $150 pair outdoor speakers, plus wire. If there is any issue to the system due to weather, all I have to replace is the passive speakers, not the entire system.
My yard is also wide, but not very deep. Therefore it was preferred to put speakers along the back fence line then, sound coming in, then attached to the house, pushing sound to the neighbors. So my speakers are completely exposed to the elements. I wouldn't want to do that to Sonos speakers.
Besides that, I kind of enjoyed the wiring project. It's great that setting up Sonos is easy, but sometimes I missed having to do a little work.
My yard is also wide, but not very deep. Therefore it was preferred to put speakers along the back fence line then, sound coming in, then attached to the house, pushing sound to the neighbors. So my speakers are completely exposed to the elements. I wouldn't want to do that to Sonos speakers.
Besides that, I kind of enjoyed the wiring project. It's great that setting up Sonos is easy, but sometimes I missed having to do a little work.
Over a year later and still no traction that i am aware of on true outdoor sonos speakers. Bose offeres a solution via a wifi speaker at roughly $900. Would really prefer sonos though. Any one aware of any updates?
AM-1 explore some nice outside speakers bowers and Wilkins
Do they? Link please.
something new is in the pipeline from sonos but no idea what - could be outdoor or something completely different...
https://en.community.sonos.com/wireless-speakers-228992/new-product-showing-on-fcc-s15-6773941
we'll know more by 27 August when the restricted documents become available or more likely the product is launched !
https://en.community.sonos.com/wireless-speakers-228992/new-product-showing-on-fcc-s15-6773941
we'll know more by 27 August when the restricted documents become available or more likely the product is launched !
Anyone figure out a way to put a Play 1, 3 or 5 in some sort of water proof enclosure?? I am not buying a Connect Amp and speakers because I'm not a millionaire.
https://en.community.sonos.com/wireless-speakers-228992/new-product-showing-on-fcc-s15-6773941
we'll know more by 27 August when the restricted documents become available or more likely the product is launched !
I don't think that's related to an outdoor speaker at all. More likely voice command control. BUT, I would LOVE outdoor speakers. I'd immediately purchase 2 or 3 if they released them. I've been waiting almost a decade for them.
You have not had music outdoors while waiting the decade?!
ugh! Just left my play 3 outside after party and it got caught in rain... Good news. It still works. Bad news would love some outdoor sonos!!!
I just ordered a cover from https://www.beyondthewake.com/outdoor-speaker-covers.php Will see if good, but figure if it can protect in a marine environment, under my porch should also be good 🙂.:?
I wouldn't trust those speaker covers, at least not to the point where I'd leave my PLAYs outside. The speakers they cover in a marine environment are surely waterproof. The cover is just added security. And their warranty clearly states that if their product fails, then they cover the cost of the cover, not the speaker.
Besides that, I'd think the effort it takes to take the speakers in and out every time you want to use them isn't much more than having to cover and uncover these speakers.
All that said, I do have some outdoor speakers that are exposed to the elements where this might be useful. However, I can't justify a $45 cover for a $100 speaker. I'd rather just replace if it fails. And a cheap drawstring backpack covers them and keeps some of the water out for cheap.
Besides that, I'd think the effort it takes to take the speakers in and out every time you want to use them isn't much more than having to cover and uncover these speakers.
All that said, I do have some outdoor speakers that are exposed to the elements where this might be useful. However, I can't justify a $45 cover for a $100 speaker. I'd rather just replace if it fails. And a cheap drawstring backpack covers them and keeps some of the water out for cheap.
I was hoping to keep the covers on the PLAY5's even while playing them, maybe I mis-judged them and will need to take them off. Either way they will be mostly under a patio and will have to just protect from fog and humidity and dust. Moving the speakers is something I'm hoping to avoid, maybe for the San Diego rainy season of 2 months.
I agree completely that these guys are missing a "EPIC" opportunity as many satisfied Sonos owners crave an outdoor weatherproof connection! Someone is asleep at the switch!!!!!!
Complacency at it's finest!!
What's your estimation on how many of these speakers could be sold in year 1, year 2, year 3, and year 5? And the estimated cost of spinning up a new manufacturing line? And the additional support needed? And liability insurance on manufacture of an electrical device designed to be used in a wet environment? And add another 20% for other costs I've not thought of...marketing, etc
I'm not slamming you, I'm truly interested. The best way to make your case for such a speaker is to run these numbers, and show if there's a financial interest for the company to do this. I don't know what the numbers are, but am assuming that Sonos does, and it's why they haven't done it (yet...who knows what they're planning, they certainly don't tell us). I hope I'm wrong, and that they are working on it. Or even if they'd just announce it.
I'm not slamming you, I'm truly interested. The best way to make your case for such a speaker is to run these numbers, and show if there's a financial interest for the company to do this. I don't know what the numbers are, but am assuming that Sonos does, and it's why they haven't done it (yet...who knows what they're planning, they certainly don't tell us). I hope I'm wrong, and that they are working on it. Or even if they'd just announce it.
another option is for Sonos to partner with or create independently a water "resistant" cover or case that can be played through (not have to be removed to play them). Doesn't even have to be water proof, just mostly resistant. If Sonos is not interested you would think a company like Sanus may be.. Maybe the market is just not there yet.
A cover won't work because getting it to be weather proof AND acoustically transparent is close to impossible. And then there is still the unsolved problem of getting mains power in a way that is safe.
Surely there can be a simple way to make a weatherproof Sonos power box that plugs into an exterior GCFI receipt much like a low voltage lighting transformer. This ain't "rocket surgery":D
I am sitting on my patio listening to Sonos at this very moment. YES...I realize that this won't work for everyone. BUT...if you can spend an hour running speaker wire from inside your house to your yard, there is a spectacular solution already. And you may already have the hole in your wall (just check where your TV cables come in).
Anyhow, if you can run wires:
1) Connect Amp safe and sound in your home. No electrical/water worries, and as a bonus close to your wifi source.
2) Speaker wire...I used low-voltage wire that is made for outdoor use (you can get at a home store in the outdoor lighting area.
3) A pair of TRUE REAL OUTDOOR DESIGNED speakers. Mine have been outdoors in upstate New York winters for 3-4 years now and work 100% perfectly.
Again, I know that running wire is not going to be possible for some people. But if it is in your case, this is a perfect solution to keep electrical equipment where it belongs...INDOORS.
Anyhow, if you can run wires:
1) Connect Amp safe and sound in your home. No electrical/water worries, and as a bonus close to your wifi source.
2) Speaker wire...I used low-voltage wire that is made for outdoor use (you can get at a home store in the outdoor lighting area.
3) A pair of TRUE REAL OUTDOOR DESIGNED speakers. Mine have been outdoors in upstate New York winters for 3-4 years now and work 100% perfectly.
Again, I know that running wire is not going to be possible for some people. But if it is in your case, this is a perfect solution to keep electrical equipment where it belongs...INDOORS.
You know that the transformer is the easy part, right? The speaker probably isn't that hard either, since it's been done a lot already. The hard part is essentially the on board computer. It's a bit more complicated that your landscape lights. Probably a bit more than a Bluetooth speaker has as well.
I think it's actually more comparable to a ruggedized laptop.
I, too, want an outdoor speaker option from Sonos without a great deal of creative engineering to get there. I've owned a Sonos system for 5+ years and must say I'm getting impatient with the lack of a solution offered by Sonos. At some point I'll be interested in expanding or upgrading my system other than buying additional Play 1s, 3s, 5s. At that point, I'll probably go with Bose. I don't want to, but they offer more comprehensive solutions now that weren't available when I originally bought Sonos. It's not a threat, it's just an observation that I will eventually cease to buy Sonos if they don't keep up with my / our needs. And there's less of a clear advantage of Sonos over Bose these days. And clearly some disadvantages.
Well, If you switch to Bose, you wouldn't be expanding your system, you be purchasing a second system.
I don't want to, but they offer more comprehensive solutions now that weren't available when I originally bought Sonos. It's not a threat, it's just an observation that I will eventually cease to buy Sonos if they don't keep up with my / our needs. And there's less of a clear advantage of Sonos over Bose these days. And clearly some disadvantages.
Although Bose does offer outdoor speakers, they don't offer outdoor multiroom speakers (as far as I know). They aren't going to sync up with other Bose in your house. You're options are either a Bluetooth speaker that you're going to have to recharge and take in and out, or you have passive speakers. If passive, you can use Sonos as your source, and power if you want, just as easily as anything else.
Thanks, agree with your observations. I have considered the option of using Sonos as the source under the passive option, but had read somewhere that there was a lag in the transmission, thereby causing an annoying echo. Anyone been able to do that successfully? Again, still not sure why Sonos just can't offer a weather resistant speaker. I'm not going to leave it outside in the weather year-round.
There is no lag with a Connect:Amp in regards to other Sonos speakers. The lag only applies to the line-in source, and it is only in regards to the original source of the line-in. Also, you can experience lag due to a receiver putting DSP effects on the output of a Connect. Neither of these apply to powering a pair of outdoor speakers.
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