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Era 100 placement or alternative speaker

  • 13 November 2023
  • 7 replies
  • 683 views
J

Hi. Looked through the forums but haven’t really found a similar dilemma, if there is a similar thread i’d be glad to be linked to it.

So I’m looking to purchase a speaker or 2 for my entrance /kitchen area. The problem I have is that I need something that serves both the living room and kitchen area. Right now I have a Era 300 placed in the most top left red circle, on the 1.5m shelf. It works fine if you’re sitting at the table but is sounding abit distance if you are standing in the kitchen area. I’m planning on moving the era 300 in to the living room anyway to pair with my other 300 in there and arc to make a surround system.

I’ve been perhaps looking at buying 2x era 100 and placing one where the era300 is (top left circle) and the other one on the window board (top right circle in kitchen area) and maybe paring them stereo. However i’m unsure how the sound experience will be in the kitchen if they are paired as stereo since there is a wall that kind of blocks one speaker from the other. 

The area where most time is spent listening to music is when seated at the table, and secondary in the kitchen when cooking. The 3 red circles are really the only placed i can place them on a flat surface without mounting to wall/buying stand which i’d prefer not to.

 

EDIT. Worth mentioning that its not a giant area. probably 15-18 square meters all together

Thankful for any help and recommendations on what you would do, cheers!
 


 

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7 replies

J

Placing a speaker on the pink cabinet is a option, but its not the most stable, and its 2m tall.
Also an option placing it on the kitchen table, but there is a risk I will have to move it everytime I want to open the window, which doesnt seem good

A
Userlevel 2
Badge +2

If you can get either the era 100 and 300 as pairs to try them out  you should as that’s the only way you will know for certain what works for you but for now some food for thought based on my experience in my setting  :

 

  1. The  era 300 would definitely fill your space better than the 100 … you can turn down the volume on the 300 but you can’t turn up the volume beyond it’s max for the 100.  From my own experience of the 300s and 100s , I would go for the 300 if room filling sound is important .. plus better bass
  2. When you pair up the 300 , I think the outer speakers are reduced in output to reinforce the imaging ( someone can correct me if I got this wrong). They need a clear line between them for the stereo to be most effective … in your scenario if you went for the 300s you won’t get that..
  3. You do however get the “disappearing” affect with a singular era 300 and will likely fill both sections if you don’t set them up as stereo pairs but instead group them together for same output to come on at the same time. Because of the number of drivers in the era 300 it fills a room better than the 100..plus better bass.
  4. Trueplay is most effective if you can minimise/ remove the obstacles that hinder proper stereo imaging .. in my experience , the era 300 sounds better if you are below or just at ear level. The same applies for the 100.. These are my experiences so might be different for you ..
  5. Some people didn’t take to the 300 so personal preferences play a part … if you order from Sonos , no risk of making a costly mistake if they are not your you whichever one you don’t prefer..

 

A
Userlevel 2
Badge +2

Also … didn’t mention if you prefer spatial audio in those spaces .. in which case the decision is probably made for you ..

AjTrek1
Userlevel 7

Hi

My recommendation is to purchase two Era 100’s and place one in the circle where you now have the Era 300 and the other in the kitchen area. Do not stereo pair them as they are two far apart. Name each one as a different room and group them when you want both to play in-sync to fill the area. 

Move your Era 300 to work as a surround with the Arc.

Together Everyone Achieves More = T.E.A.M.
J

If you can get either the era 100 and 300 as pairs to try them out  you should as that’s the only way you will know for certain what works for you but for now some food for thought based on my experience in my setting  :

 

  1. The  era 300 would definitely fill your space better than the 100 … you can turn down the volume on the 300 but you can’t turn up the volume beyond it’s max for the 100.  From my own experience of the 300s and 100s , I would go for the 300 if room filling sound is important .. plus better bass
  2. When you pair up the 300 , I think the outer speakers are reduced in output to reinforce the imaging ( someone can correct me if I got this wrong). They need a clear line between them for the stereo to be most effective … in your scenario if you went for the 300s you won’t get that..
  3. You do however get the “disappearing” affect with a singular era 300 and will likely fill both sections if you don’t set them up as stereo pairs but instead group them together for same output to come on at the same time. Because of the number of drivers in the era 300 it fills a room better than the 100..plus better bass.
  4. Trueplay is most effective if you can minimise/ remove the obstacles that hinder proper stereo imaging .. in my experience , the era 300 sounds better if you are below or just at ear level. The same applies for the 100.. These are my experiences so might be different for you ..
  5. Some people didn’t take to the 300 so personal preferences play a part … if you order from Sonos , no risk of making a costly mistake if they are not your you whichever one you don’t prefer..

 

Thank you for the response! 
Yes the era 300 I have on the top left red circle does a good job filling the rooms, but inorder to feel fully immerse in the music when standing in the kitchen I need to crank the era 300 really loud, otherwise it is quite noticeable that the speaker is playing on the other side of the wall, even with dolby atmos content.

J

Hi

My recommendation is to purchase two Era 100’s and place one in the circle where you now have the Era 300 and the other in the kitchen area. Do not stereo pair them as they are two far apart. Name each one as a different room and group them when you want both to play in-sync to fill the area. 

Move your Era 300 to work as a surround with the Arc.

Thank you for the response!
Yea that’s been my thoughts aswell. So you think there is no chance that pairing them stereo would work? The distance between the two speakers would be roughly 3.5meters (although with a thin wall inbetween them) and also forming a almost perfect triangle between the 2 speakers when seated at the table (which is mostly where music is listened from in that area). I guess I will be able to try and test it out and just unpair them and play them individually if I don’t like it.

AjTrek1
Userlevel 7

Hi

My recommendation is to purchase two Era 100’s and place one in the circle where you now have the Era 300 and the other in the kitchen area. Do not stereo pair them as they are two far apart. Name each one as a different room and group them when you want both to play in-sync to fill the area. 

Move your Era 300 to work as a surround with the Arc.

Thank you for the response!
Yea that’s been my thoughts aswell. So you think there is no chance that pairing them stereo would work? The distance between the two speakers would be roughly 3.5meters (although with a thin wall inbetween them) and also forming a almost perfect triangle between the 2 speakers when seated at the table (which is mostly where music is listened from in that area). I guess I will be able to try and test it out and just unpair them and play them individually if I don’t like it.

Hi

As you say you can try the Era 100’s in stereo pair and decide if it makes sense.

Enjoy your Sonos 😀

Together Everyone Achieves More = T.E.A.M.
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