“Works with Sonos” receiver recommendations

I use an Onkyo 686, which works OK. When I first bought it I tried out the ‘works with Sonos’ bit, but that’s all it does - switches on and selects Sonos. Can’t remember about volume control, but it was probably OK.

TBH, I’m perfectly capable of switching a receiver on when I need it, and it’s set by default to Sonos, so I was very underwhelmed by the whole thing and turned it off. 

Thank you for the honest reply. 
 

Do you use it with a TV as well? I would think that would involve some switching between inputs when going from TV to music from Sonos?

Also, we actually mainly start our music by Alexa but I could of course also get a receiver that supports Alexa. Does the 686 have Alexa suppport?

Actually just looked into the 696 and Alexa was added with a subsequent firmware-update. Looks like a great allrounder so definitely at the top of my list. Thank you for heading me in that direction!

Yamaha home theater receivers don’t have a “works with Sonos” feature, but they have “Scenes”. A Scene stores all of the current listening parameters, such as Input, Surround Mode, Volume, Equalization, etc. One button press will store or fetch a Scene.

Interesting. Any other upside to go with Yamaha?

I saw a recent update (2020) of the Pioneers and Onkyos now also gives full volume contro via Sonos so seems like a complete integration now as that was the only real complaint on the implementation. 

Did you check out Denon receivers? I have the same use case as you. I control my tv and music via voice assistant. Denon was recommended but I haven’t pulled the trigger yet. Probably going to buy a denon and several Sonos ports to control whole home audio. I really want to make sure all inputs automatically switch both directions between video and audio. 

Hello,

I would like to update the conversation from this thread, which is over two years old. I bought a house with a built-in 5.1 Bose speaker system. They left me an old Onkyo Receiver that doesn't power on, probably fried. So I am on the hunt for an AV receiver that will interact with my Multi-Room Sonos system (5 rooms already). I also have 2 outdoor speakers that are wired to the same spot near the Receiver, but I don't think relying on Zone 2 is a good idea for it, I'll probably get an Amp or whatever I can find second hand, so I can control them from outside without fiddling with the Receiver
 

Obviously, it's important for me that the AV receiver plays nicely with Sonos. I see the new Onkyo receivers have a native integration (https://www.onkyousa.com/sonos-onkyo/), but it still requires a Sonos Port/Connect, so I am not sure it's even worth it (they are pricey).

@jec6613: not sure you will see this, but I would love your opinion if there are new models I should look at.

@radyohead  Any 3rd party receiver you use is going to require a Sonos Port/Connect in order to send audio from Sonos in to the receiver.  The are other Sonos devices with line in, but the Port/Connect is the only device with line out.  There isn’t any 3rd party device that natively receives Sonos audio.

If you want to use Sonos to power your Bose speakers without a 3rd party receiver, you would need two Sonos amps, one for front left/right and one for rear left/right.  You would have a phantom center channel.

@melvimbe yes, but I would lose the 5.1 surround dimension if I go that way, isn't it?

I think I am ok purchasing a new AV receiver, I just want to make sure that I pick one that will let me switch the input and control the volume from the Sonos app (I would like to avoid having to manually switch inputs on the Receiver first before I can listen to Sonos content). Likewise, that's why I don't think I will use Zone 2 on the receiver to control the outside speakers.

Seem like only the Onkyo and Pioneer "works with sonos” receiver models can do that, isn’t it?

Actually the question might be which one isn't out of stock right now… looks like there is a shortage and they aren't available anywhere at the moment.

It appears that Onkyo, Integra & Pioneer are now distributed by Klipsch in the U.S. Probably explain why you can’t find them in stock. Puts a damper on the ‘Works with Sonos’ feature as these were the only receivers with that. Maybe when Klipsch gets the supply chain figured out, we will start seeing options again.

Anyone have more specific Sonos experiences with receivers that do NOT have ‘Works with Sonos’ function?

Here’s the press release from July of 2020...

https://www.klipsch.com/news/klipsch-and-onkyo-corporation-to-expand-distribution-alliance-to-the-americas