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Home Tech: Getting Rid of Wires Without Sacrificing Sound
Wireless home technology still isn't perfect, but new products are giving audiophiles choices
I write about home technology and shopping, and love both. I'm the Tech Girl in Traditional Home magazine and contribute retail coverage to Forbes, Yahoo! and Dealnews, among others.
I write about home technology and shopping, and love both. I'm the Tech... More »
Many of us dream of a wireless home — a place where stereos, speakers and video components all live and work together without the eyesore of ugly wires.
To that end, I have good news and bad news.
There's no such thing as a truly wireless home. Electronics need power. Those running on batteries have to be charged or plugged into an outlet. So, at the very least, there are power cords to contend with.
Then there's the issue of quality and consistency. Most wireless audio and video devices use the same airwaves as cordless phones, cell phones and Wi-Fi networks. When all that data fights for space there are pauses, blips and dead air — like when a video playing on a computer stops and that "buffering" symbol starts spinning.
But new technology allows for increasing degrees of wireless connectivity within the home. At the very least, we can now stream music from different sources to various speakers around the home. It's not perfect, yet, but it's getting much better.
To that end, I have good news and bad news.
There's no such thing as a truly wireless home. Electronics need power. Those running on batteries have to be charged or plugged into an outlet. So, at the very least, there are power cords to contend with.
Then there's the issue of quality and consistency. Most wireless audio and video devices use the same airwaves as cordless phones, cell phones and Wi-Fi networks. When all that data fights for space there are pauses, blips and dead air — like when a video playing on a computer stops and that "buffering" symbol starts spinning.
But new technology allows for increasing degrees of wireless connectivity within the home. At the very least, we can now stream music from different sources to various speakers around the home. It's not perfect, yet, but it's getting much better.
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Homeowners often sacrifice some simple pleasures, like music, for the sake of good design. But for those who don't want to make that trade-off, there are ways to get audio throughout the home without threading wires through a wall, hiding them under molding, or giving in and leaving them to snake across the floor. A room like this should be lived in, and for many of us, that means being able to listen to music or get cinematic surround sound when watching a movie.
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Using wireless technology makes the most sense with home theater systems that typically employ between five and seven speakers positioned around the room. Bose makes several systems that fit the bill. In this photo, it's a single speaker called a Sound Bar. The bar still needs to be plugged in, though.
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A receiver/transmitter that Bose calls the Acoustimass Module uses wireless to transmit sound throughout the room, including to any additional wireless speakers placed on the sides or in the rear of the room.
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| Remember, speakers still need a power source — even tiny ones like those mounted on the ceiling of this room. Wires for speakers mounted on a wall or ceiling still need to be pulled through a wall and come out at the point of connection. |
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Getting great sound from an audio source — as opposed to a TV for a home theater experience — can be a bit more complicated, especially for audiophiles who prize fidelity above all else. But the advent of digital music is making this a lot easier to achieve.
There are a number of ways to stream music from wherever it's stored, including iTunes, a home computer, a server, backup storage or from the Internet. Sonos makes some of the best-reviewed solutions for streaming music from multiple sources. The Sonos Play:5 and new, smaller Play:3 deliver digital music from virtually any source. Connect using the Sonos Zone Bridge (sold separately) and get all music stored on a hard drive, in an iTunes library or on Internet radio stations. You can access virtually any subscription music service like Pandora, Rhapsody or Spotify, and stream it to any set of speakers anywhere in the house.
It's a great way to get music throughout a house, without a custom installer going through the walls and setting up an expensive whole-home system. It's easy to use and a good addition for someone that's either already invested in some basic home audio equipment or starting from scratch. Sonos makes a controller, but you can download an app that turns just about any handheld device into a personal remote control.
Each unit is a speaker. The Play:5 delivers large sound from a larger speaker and the newer Play: 3 is a smaller unit that easily tucks away and out of sight. And it solves the problem of getting sound throughout a home wirelessly. Simply plug them in, load the software, and you've got music everywhere. You can play the same tracks all over the house, or different tunes in different rooms. It really is that easy.
There are a number of ways to stream music from wherever it's stored, including iTunes, a home computer, a server, backup storage or from the Internet. Sonos makes some of the best-reviewed solutions for streaming music from multiple sources. The Sonos Play:5 and new, smaller Play:3 deliver digital music from virtually any source. Connect using the Sonos Zone Bridge (sold separately) and get all music stored on a hard drive, in an iTunes library or on Internet radio stations. You can access virtually any subscription music service like Pandora, Rhapsody or Spotify, and stream it to any set of speakers anywhere in the house.
It's a great way to get music throughout a house, without a custom installer going through the walls and setting up an expensive whole-home system. It's easy to use and a good addition for someone that's either already invested in some basic home audio equipment or starting from scratch. Sonos makes a controller, but you can download an app that turns just about any handheld device into a personal remote control.
Each unit is a speaker. The Play:5 delivers large sound from a larger speaker and the newer Play: 3 is a smaller unit that easily tucks away and out of sight. And it solves the problem of getting sound throughout a home wirelessly. Simply plug them in, load the software, and you've got music everywhere. You can play the same tracks all over the house, or different tunes in different rooms. It really is that easy.
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| One way audio companies are getting around the interference issue is by using airwaves designated expressly for that audio or video signal. That's what Apple has done with AirPlay, and now a great majority of audio products are enabled for AirPlay, meaning they will communicate with each other and access music stored in iTunes. Libratone speakers are new from this Scandinavian company and should appeal to fans of all forms of design. The fabric covers look like felt, and the audio quality should appease some of the most devoted audiophiles. |
by bicom-inc.com
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There are several solutions that plug into a computer or server where music is stored, and then stream it to speakers.
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| The playGo from Bicom does just that with a high degree of fidelity, and comes in white or orange. |
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| Technology is progressing at a pretty rapid rate. One promising product is the MusicLites light bulb speaker. Developed in partnership with Sylvania, these bulbs look like the kind used in overhead can lighting. Just screw them in and sync with a transmitter that plugs into a computer, stereo or mobile device. The sound plays through the lightbulbs, wherever they are in the house. It's a great concept, but there are a few drawbacks to this product in its first incarnation. The bulb looks slightly different than traditional can light bulbs, and doesn't dim in concert with the rest of the lights in the room when controlled through a wall dimmer. It can dim when using the MusicLites remote control, but it doesn't match up perfectly with the lighting level elsewhere. I had trouble syncing the system when I tried it at home. It's a great idea but not quite ready for the mass market. Audio companies know that consumers want wireless products and are developing them as quickly as possible. But achieving a quality product is a lot more difficult than we'd like. As one loudspeaker manufacturer once told me: If wireless worked well, there would be no wired products. More: Making a Media Console Work Speakers Matter — and Can Look Good Too Great Rooms, Great TV Viewing Where to Put the TV |
Ideabook updated on Nov. 9, 2011.
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I had tested the Sonos zone players and more recently a Play:3, and I definitely mixed them up.
For wireless speakers, I'd also add Railtones -- they can be mounted to a monorail lighting system or used independently where a can light would be: http://www.lumens.com/railtones/Search
Thanks for the ideabook! -Sarah
...and Apple Airport Express lets you play music from any of the above devices through your stereo via WiFi because it's also a WiFi transmitter/base station.
And you'd be amazed how good the little speakers are in your iPad2 - no need to use the headset to get decent, portable sound for a small space.
Bose also has a new product called "SoundLink" which uses Bluetooth to stream music from your iPhone, iPad, iTouch for even better portable sound.
When will this have an effect on the way folks design and build houses?
There is a way to use existing home electrical lines to get some whole home systems like audio without going into walls and rewiring. It's called Home Plug, and I'm happy to write about it here...
Cheers!