Need help: Multiple set up for whole house solution

  • 5 November 2018
  • 1 reply
  • 2276 views

I am in the process of building a new home and would like to utilize the Sonos system throughout my house and need some guidance.

The first floor family room, kitchen and dining room is a open concept design so sound will travel.

Setup:
Home: 6000 sq ft
All whole house 16-2 speaker wire will be run to the basement to a central location where I will plan to house most of my audio/video equipment.
What type of receiver will I need to run the home? 2 channel with Bluetooth, Airplay, DTS play etc? Besides Spotify and Pandora I cannot think of another source I would like to broadcast throughout the house.
Wired in ceiling speakers: 5 sets (mst bedroom, mst bath, outside, screened porch, and kitchen). I would like to utilize the Sonos app through. 4 independent zones since the outdoor speakers and the screened porch will share a zone.
If I chose to buy an external amp instead of the Sonos Connect Amp how many watts does each channel need? My reason for asking I am trying to determine if it is less expensive to buy an external amp or Sonos Connect Amp(s).

The information below is not included in the 5 sets of speakers above:
I will have a 7.1 home theater in the basement with in wall and in ceiling speakers: is there any reason to incorporate sonos into it? Why or why not?
I will have a TV in the family room with in ceiling speakers and probably a soundbar. Once again any reason to utilize Sonos connect in any way?

If I am completely off with my concept or idea feel free to offer your best set up! I am all ears.

Thank you in advance!

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1 reply

Userlevel 7
Hi Tiger150123

Congrats on your new home!!

The first floor family room, kitchen and dining room is a open concept design so sound will travel.

My first suggestion is to consult a A/V Professional Installer. However read on for my suggestions.

Setup:
Home: 6000 sq ft
All whole house 16-2 speaker wire will be run to the basement to a central location where I will plan to house most of my audio/video equipment. What type of receiver will I need to run the home? 2 channel with Bluetooth, Airplay, DTS play etc? Besides Spotify and Pandora I cannot think of another source I would like to broadcast throughout the house.


Sonos will accommodate Airplay2 via Sonos One and Play 5 speakers. Airplay2 can also be had over a Beam, Playbase and the new Sonos Amp. You can stream Spotify and Pandora (subscription service) to any Sonos via the Sonos app. Sonos will not accommodate DTS in a HT setup nor Bluetooth (BT) *.

You can pair a Sonos speaker to a like speaker t ocreate a stereo pair but you cannot pair different speakers For example pairing a Sonos One to a Play:1 is not possible even though they resemble one another.


If you are interested the following Sonos support Alexa voice services natively: Sonos One and Beam. You can actually command other Sonos speakers on the same network via one of the aforementioned.

* While Sonos does not natively accommodate BT it is possible with certain Sonos products in conjunction with a BT transceiver using the line-in of the following: Sonos Play 5 or Connect.

Wired in ceiling speakers: 5 sets (mst bedroom, mst bath, outside, screened porch, and kitchen). I would like to utilize the Sonos app through. 4 independent zones since the outdoor speakers and the screened porch will share a zone.

You can use 4 Connect Amps (or wait for the new Sonos Amp) to drive the four (4) zones. Master Bedroom / Master Bath/ Outside & Screened Porch / Kitchen. That’s an expensive proposition (i.e. Sonos Amps and speakers).

A less expensive option would be Sonos One’s or Play:1’s in stereo pairs for Master Bedroom / Master Bath / Kitchen_6 speakers max. Those could be ceiling or wall mounted with proximity power outlets to eliminate dangling power cords. You might find that a single Play 5 in the Master Bedroom and one in Master Bath to be adequate. One Connect Amp (or Sonos Amp) to drive the Outside & Porch_max 4 speakers.

Click the link for mounting accessories: https://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/accessories


If I chose to buy an external amp instead of the Sonos Connect Amp how many watts does each channel need? My reason for asking I am trying to determine if it is less expensive to buy an external amp or Sonos Connect Amp(s).

See the specs for Connect:Amp and Sonos Amp at the links. Base your wattage needed based upon the speakers you would purchase. The same would apply for a 3rd party amp.

Connect:Amp_ https://support.sonos.com/s/article/265?language=en_US
Sonos Amp_https://support.sonos.com/s/article/265?language=en_US


The information below is not included in the 5 sets of speakers above:
I will have a 7.1 home theater in the basement with in wall and in ceiling speakers: is there any reason to incorporate sonos into it? Why or why not?


Sonos does not support 7.1 for movies. For music you’d have all the speaker’s you need…you could incorporate a Sonos Connect to stream music through the mail A/V receiver assuming it has an unused RCA input.


I will have a TV in the family room with in ceiling speakers and probably a soundbar. Once again any reason to utilize Sonos connect in any way?

You could use the new Sonos Amp with a Sonos Playbar to drive the in-ceiling surrounds and a sub. Although it would be DD5.1 and not 7.1.


If I am completely off with my concept or idea feel free to offer your best set up! I am all ears.

As I said in the beginning I would consult an A/V Professional Installer to get a good feel for what you need in real time.

As your home is quite large you''ll need a good router for coverage. I highly recommend purchasing a Sonos dedicated Boost module for the following reasons:

1. Establishes the SonosNet which negates many of the issues found on a Wi-Fi (standard configuration)
2. Eliminates using a Sonos speaker or other Sonos product that may not viable based upon the location of your router.

Here's a link on Boost vs Standard (Wi-Fi) setup: https://support.sonos.com/s/article/3235?language=en_US

You have a lot of options with and without Sonos ;)

Cheers!