We know that Sonos can be expensive, and whilst it’s worth every penny there are a few pro installer tips to help you save some cash without affecting the performance of your system.
Below you’ll find five pro tips with real world scenarios where we are regularly saving our customers money and in some cases making the system better and easier to use in practice.
1. Speaker Distribution Switch For Larger Areas
You can connect two pairs of 8 ohm speakers directly to a Sonos AMP. However with open-plan spaces becoming the norm it’s not unfeasible to need 6 or 8 speakers to cover bigger areas. Rather than buying 2 or 3 expensive Sonos AMP’s you can simply buy a zone expansion pack consisting of an impedance matching speaker selector switch and a few more pairs of speakers.
The selector switch lets you connect more than two pairs of speakers safely.
2. Bedroom / En-Suite As One Zone
Another way to save some money, and also keep things a bit more user friendly is to consider the bedroom and en-suite as one zone, using one Sonos AMP rather than two. You can then simply install a three way speaker selector switch in the bedroom.
With this in wall selector switch you can have the bedroom on and the en-suite off, the en-suite on and the bedroom off or both rooms playing music together.
You can also connect your bedroom TV to the Sonos AMP and listen to the television whilst in the en-suite.
3. Add Music To The Patio
If you’re doing the kitchen with a pair of speakers and have some doors leading out to a patio area you can easily add a second pair of speakers to the outside, powered by the same Sonos AMP. Then simply install an in-wall three way switch (same as the bedroom/en-suite scenario) which will allow you to enjoy music in the kitchen only, the patio only or both areas at the same time.
Great cost-effective way to add some music outside without the need for another £500 Sonos AMP!
4. Single Source Multi Room System
Whilst it defeats the object of Sonos to a certain degree there are plenty of occasions where you want music in multiple rooms but you don’t really care too much about playing different music in different rooms. In this instance you could use a single Sonos AMP and connect it to one of our speaker distribution kits which you’ll find here.
The speaker packages consist of multiple ceiling speakers, a speaker selector switch and in-wall volume controls. Each room has the ability to adjust the volume down from the master volume or OFF. You have full control of the music from your smartphone or tablet via the Sonos app however you only have a single source so all rooms can only play the same music.
This can be a really great system that works well and is quite cost effective, we’ve had many happy customers doing this. You can always upgrade at a later date by simply adding more Sonos AMP’s at the central location. This option also works really well if you use Pro tip number 5.
5. Bluetooth Ceiling Speakers For Guest Rooms / Kids Rooms
Multiroom is great, but it is also relatively expensive and often it’s completely unnecessary for spare bedrooms or guest rooms. So why not consider installing Bluetooth Ceiling Speakers in guest rooms, kids bedrooms etc.
They are single room standalone solutions that let anyone connect any Bluetooth enabled device and stream music. You can still stream TuneIN radio, Spotify, Deezer, YouTube and much more. The user doesn’t require an app or access to your WiFi which is great for guest rooms and the kids won’t be able to log onto the main Sonos system and play Barbie Girl in whole-home party mode!
In comparison a single bluetooth ceiling speaker for a kids bedroom is £199 whereas a Sonos equivalent would cost you nearer £600 and likely not get used to its full potential. Are you ever going to want to sync your kitchen to your kids bedrooms? Not likely, so definitely consider saving yourself some hard earned cash by using Sonos for the main areas and Lithe Audio Bluetooth Ceiling Speakers for the kids and spare rooms.
Conclusion
I hope you’ve found these pro installer tips useful in choosing and designing your Sonos Ceiling Speaker system.
For further help and advice with your system please feel free to email, live chat or call us on 02393 190955
