I am setting up some outdoor speakers for my pool area. Additonally, I sometimes also set up a projector outside, plug a chromecast in and stream sports. For audio, I had a 3.5mm cord to connect the projector to a cheap portable speaker. That said, Im hoping to take advantage of the outdoor speakers for audio. I purchased a nice Onkyo receiver, with the plan being to to plug a chromecast to the receiver, have it power the the speakers, and use a wireless hdmi transceiver I own to get video to the projector. THEN someone mentioned Sonos and Im down a rabbit hole and looking for suggestions. My assumption is I still need the receiver bc of the streaming video to the projector part. Using a port to involve the sonos ecosytem (add soundbar that i can move between the projector and my actual home tv) is out it seems bc Im reading there would be a huge delay. Is that correct? Would connecting the outdoor speakers via Amp (not connected to the receiver) then a Port to the receiver (for handling having Sonos "aware" of the video part of the puzzle and get the audio) solve the problem? then i could add more sonos speakers wirelessly whenever I wanted?
receiver, projector, outdoor speaker setup
I think you’re asking that if you used a Sonos Soundbar attached to your projector and grouped it with a Sonos Port connected to your purchased Receiver and outdoor speakers, if there would be an audio delay to the speakers?
The answer to that question is ‘yes’ there would be a 30-75ms delay caused by the grouping of the devices and it would ‘likely’ create an ‘echo’ effect which maybe noticeable to the listener and possibly out of lip-sync with the video on screen.
Had you have not already purchased the Onkyo Receiver, you would likely have had several other options available to you, from a Sonos perspective, to achieve what you were hoping for, with everything working in sync, using either:
- Two Sonos Amps
- A Sonos Soundbar and Amp
- Other options also available (see below info..)
Often these things may depend on the connection ports available via the Projector - here is an example diagram of a Projector setup using a Sonos Soundbar and an HDFury Arcana, to which an additional Sonos Amp and external speakers could also be added (not shown in diagram) for TV surround sound audio that would all work in perfect sync and all could be used for outdoor music audio too, or instead of using a soundbar for the front TV audio channels, that could be swapped-out for a Sonos Amp and outdoor speakers instead.
Arcana would be useful with a Sonos Arc, which I don’t really think is a good idea for an outdoor environment like this. For TV audio with a Sonos Amp, you want to use the HDMI-ARC connection or a optical audio connection.
Currently, you have a chromecast dongle connected directly to your projector. What audio outputs does your projector have? Are you able to wire anything between your projector and whatever amp/receiver powers the outdoor speakers? It sounds like you can’t since you mentioned wireless HDMI. Were you thinking that the chromecast dongle would be inside, connected to the amp/receiver...which I assume means you would need to go inside to control the video? I think that could end up being a problem.
To answer your question about Sonos when using the amp though, you would not need a separate receiver as well. I would probably just get an HDMI splitter with an optical output (for the amp, with HDM-ARC to optical dongle Sonos sells) and HDMI output to connect to the projector (either wired directly or through the wireless HDMI).
Ideally, you want to use the Sonos Amp with a TV that has HDMI-ARC capabilities. Whatever the TV is playing (internal apps or a connected device), audio is sent via the HDMI-ARC connection to the Sonos amp. Of course, projectors don’t normally have HDMI-ARC, and are usually physically located in places that aren’t conducive to running wires.
Thanks for the replies!
Projector only has a 3.5mm audio out port. The projector is only a temporary setup (inflatable screen I pull out for cookouts, football games, etc), hence the desire to go wireless as much as possible. Running extension cord is one thing, 50ft of HDMI through the yard is another. lol Right now, I plug a chromecast into the HDMI port of the projector, and connect a small Sony speaker made for tailgating into the 3.5mm port with a audio->RCA adapter cable. Works OK, but I want to integrate the outdoor speakers into the experience.
My current plan w/receiver is the outdoor speakers are a zone, and receiver is connected to my TV, with my stereo, turntable, ps5,xbox, etc inside all connected. When I want to do the projector setup, I’d just pop the wireless HDMI onto the receiver/projector and keep the Sony speaker plugged in. Chromecast being inside isn’t an issue at all, as it works through Wifi. No need to go inside to control it. This all is fine by me, but someone mentioned “sonos solves this more elegantly” but of course the more I read, the more it seems like not the case, or if it does, it involves thousands more dollars with the benefit just limited to using their app.
So if I forget the receiver completely, my setup would look something like:
Sonos Amp->outdoor speakers
HDMI Splitter (Arcana) with chromecast plugged into the Input, and output going to Amp on one side, wireless HDMI other side.
Sonos soundbar connected to audio out on projector (do they make 3.5mm->optical converters??)
Thanks for the replies!
Projector only has a 3.5mm audio out port. The projector is only a temporary setup (inflatable screen I pull out for cookouts, football games, etc), hence the desire to go wireless as much as possible. Running extension cord is one thing, 50ft of HDMI through the yard is another. lol Right now, I plug a chromecast into the HDMI port of the projector, and connect a small Sony speaker made for tailgating into the 3.5mm port with a audio->RCA adapter cable. Works OK, but I want to integrate the outdoor speakers into the experience.
My current plan w/receiver is the outdoor speakers are a zone, and receiver is connected to my TV, with my stereo, turntable, ps5,xbox, etc inside all connected.
You have a receiver and a ‘stereo’? You might want to explain that a little bit further.
When I want to do the projector setup, I’d just pop the wireless HDMI onto the receiver/projector and keep the Sony speaker plugged in.
I would test the wireless HDMI to make sure it’s reliable for your use before you invest too much in any other part of the plan. All your other options rely on this working. Also, I would not plan on switching HDMI cables on a regular basis. Get an HDMI switch, so you can easily switch between inside TV/outside projector or both, easily. Maybe even a matrix so you can have the xbox outside while ps5 is inside, for example.
Chromecast being inside isn’t an issue at all, as it works through Wifi. No need to go inside to control it. This all is fine by me, but someone mentioned “sonos solves this more elegantly” but of course the more I read, the more it seems like not the case, or if it does, it involves thousands more dollars with the benefit just limited to using their app.
It sounds as if you already have an audio setup for your inside TV that your happy with, and are ok with your outdoor zone (zone 2) running off the same receiver. If you can control everything with that setup, then Sonos doesn’t have a lot to add. Where Sonos would add value is if that level of control didn’t work for you, or you wanted to be able to wirelessly add additional zones in the future.
So if I forget the receiver completely, my setup would look something like:
Sonos Amp->outdoor speakers
HDMI Splitter (Arcana) with chromecast plugged into the Input, and output going to Amp on one side, wireless HDMI other side.
Sonos soundbar connected to audio out on projector (do they make 3.5mm->optical converters??)
Forget the Arcana, it’s not an HDMI splitter per se. It’s really only useful if you were going to use an Sonos Arc. You could use an HDMI Splitter that extracts optical audio for a Sonos amp though, with HDMI going to your projector (via the wireless HDMI setup.
There is no need to have a Sonos soundbar connected to your projector. You are getting the audio to your Sonos amp with optical audio I mentioned earlier. There probably are 3.5mm to optical convertors, but you would have to have a very long (too long) optical cable back to your Amp. Not a good idea...which again, you don’t need.
Just to confirm what Danny rightly says …and that is if not using the Sonos Arc, then a simple audio extractor/splitter will do in place of the Arcana - sorry my initial post should have stated/clarified that one point.
It might have help a little more perhaps, to state the make/model of the projector, but as the Onkyo Receiver has been purchased already (I believe), it makes things quite difficult anyway to suggest a straightforward Sonos solution …and so you may now end up spending a lot more money on top of the hardware you have already purchased.
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