Home Theatre speaker selection question

Hi @Matt_Bates 

Welcome to the Sonos Community!

With Sonos, you need a Home Theatre device first which connects to the TV and does all the work. This would be an Arc, Beam or Amp.

Then, you can look into surround options. I would recommend the in-wall speakers over in-ceiling speakers, as surround speakers are not supposed to be above you. To power them, you’d need a Sonos Amp. The smaller speakers (Sonos Ones and Ones SL) you saw in the kit are what we’d recommend and a good bit cheaper than getting the Amp plus 2 in-wall speakers. Either are viable options, however.

Then you can also add a Sub for bass.

The Sub and Amp/Ones would connect to the Arc via high-speed, dedicated WiFi link, so no wires are needed (though the Amp would need to be connected to it’s speakers with wire).

If the surrounds are only ever going to be surrounds for enjoying movies and the like, then I would recommend a pair of One SLs, as come in the kit.

If, however, you want some more oomph when playing music, then the in-wall speakers may be a bit more desirable. Note that once set up as surround speakers, the Amp will not play music without the Arc playing too - but this can be done with the TV off.

Although it’s tempting to hide the Amp for a clean look, you would need to make sure it’s within WiFi range of the Arc or connect both Amp and Arc to ethernet.

With an Arc running the show, you have the option of stereo, 5.1 Dolby Digital, or 5.1.2 Atmos sound. 5.1 McLPCM is also available, with 7.1 McLPCM downmixing support coming soon. Dolby Digital and Atmos are available over ARC from your TV in a compressed format, and lossless Atmos and McLPCM are available over an eARC connection. 

I hope this helps.