New Restaurant Speakers - What to order

  • 6 January 2023
  • 4 replies
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  • Contributor I
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We are nearing the end of construction for our new restaurant and I wanted to get some help on what to order. 

It will be one unit, about 3,000 square feet, divided into two units. There will also be a small outdoor patio.

We are thinking to do 2 indoor speakers inside the larger part of the restaurant, and 1 on the smaller side, with two on the patio. We have 6 Sonos SL at our other restaurant (4 inside and 2 on patio) with a boost, and we have had a lot of issues with them. Speakers cut out and resetting them is so difficult. The boost isn't in a space that is provides much help. This new location will have more flexibility on what we get and where to put things. 

So my question is: What speakers would work best in this space, if we wanted one speaker to be separate from the other 4, and to avoid frequency/bluetooth issues, that require climbing up on a ladder and resetting each speaker and pairing and all that nonsense? 


4 replies

I would go with wired ceiling (or wall) and outdoor/patio speakers with three Sonos Amps to cover the areas mentioned. See these links:

For new construction I recommend wiring everything. Humans are basically bags of water. Water absorbs WiFi energy. As the restaurant fills with water bags, wireless performance degrades.

I also recommend bringing in a pro with restaurant experience. Home audio equipment, regardless of quality, is not well suited for restaurant duty.

Userlevel 7
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I’d also put the Sonos on a private network, one your customers do not have access to.

If you bring in a professional designer don’t rule out swapping the suggested Amps for Ports and using the pro’s recommended amplification.

Make sure all the electronics are in a grease free environment and get plenty of cool air.

And if you’re in the US, you’re using an approved music source, else ASCAP will sue your pants off. 

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