Will I be happy with a 3 or do I "need" a 5? :)

I've not checked out the Sonos system since I've been so happy with the Bose. Has anyone that uses Sonos seen a decline in their wireless capabilities with so many devices in so many rooms? We have quite a few tablets and phones in the house and stream TV in several locations. Do you see any issues with your wireless?

Our Sonos is in the ceilings through speakers, which are controlled by individual amps in the basement that "talk" to an app via our wireless network. We can have folk in one room, rock outside, jazz in a bedroom, etc. The POs were super into music. We have a sound studio in the basement :0 What I like about the Amazon Echo is I don't need an app - I can change the music without having to wash my hands and find my phone/laptop. When I walk into the kitchen on the side without switches, I can say "Alexa, light on," and I get a light over the sink to come on. When we are rocking out and chopping and dicing and the phone rings - "Alexa, off." Silence! It is a bit of magic and the way I see our tech world going.

Bbtrix. We have Sonos and may devices and have no issues with cable internet.

beenzmail- it depends on the size of the room. We have a 5 in our garage and that puts sound out into our yard pretty well.

Also - The Sonos Play 1 is resistant to humidity - and can be used in a bathroom. Sometimes my boys take it in their bathroom when they take a shower.

We have only had the Sonos system for about 6 months. We also have a JamBox - which is fine - but can't compare at all to Sonos with regard to sound.

We have a very expensive built-in home theater system in our basement - and I must confess, that our Sonos sounds just as good.

Do they make wireless speakers for regular stereo equipment? We have a receiver in the LR, but it would be nice to have movable speakers for the kitchen, BR, porch, etc. We don't have wi-fi, Bluetooth, IPad, Ipod, smart phones, or any of that stuff. My cell phone is a ... phone.

http://www.sonos.com/en-ca/shop/connect

I believe you'd want the Connect to work with an existing stereo, but it would require WiFi for the speakers to be moveable. Without WiFi I presume they would have to be wired or would just not work.

You might be better off buying a Bluetooth dongle for your stereo and then a Jambox/Bose/Beats/other Bluetooth enabled portable speaker.

We have an Echo, too. I play music from Prime all the time, so I don't even have to own the songs. I also use it as a timer and alarm several times a day. And I listen to the weather and news. I have one in my bedroom, too.

I have a jam box and Amazon Echo and like the echo more. Also love that I just have to speak without touching it, plus it does do a lot more than music. Very handy for to do list, shopping list, news, prime member free music, games, timer, questions, turns lights on and off etc.. It really is handy.

We have the speakers in every ceiling in our 11 yr old house that operate with a tuner.

i never have figured out that dam* tuner. Don't do it.

dd has the Bose speaker in her kitchen that I lust after.

Red--You can hook your speakers to Sonos Amps. Really easy. Would you like a photo of our system?

Bbtrix - if I understand correctly, your setup with the Bose isn't using wifi, just Bluetooth to the dedicated iPod, correct?

We have to use a mobile hotspot for Internet at the new house so streaming is going to be off limits until they decide to run cable here. Any other options anyone is using that don't require wifi?

I had no idea about Sonos or Alexa, those look awesome!

Hmm.. kinda leaning toward the echo now. Does its sound compare to a Bose? When doing shopping lists and such can it connect to my iphone somehow?

Does either/both play music from my itunes library? Can Alexa do this by me just talking to her?

I have an iphone but don't like to take it out of my purse. Looks like Alexa can do more without using an app?

Can I listen to streaming on my local radio station from the echo or the sonos? Thanks.

We have the Bose Soundlink and it's great for what it is (great sound for such a little device at a small price). But it's not a Sonos system, which has excellent sound. Farmdrmer, the Bose Soundlink is Bluetooth, not WiFi.

Nightowl..I don't know what Sonos Amps are but I would love a picture. Thanks!!

As long as we're talking setting up a Sonos system, would those of you with Sonos sound bars please comment? We have a great room (kitchen, living and dining rooms are all one room). The only room that "closes off" in our loft is the MBR. The two upstairs rooms are open (half-walls). We watch a lot of TV in the great room, and for the moment, don't really need "remote" speakers (i.e. in the other rooms). What pieces would we need for both TV sound and for music? The room has a direct sightline to the wifi router.

Thanks sjhockey for confirming! Now off to see if our old iPod has Bluetooth..... Otherwise I think I'm stuck with an old fashioned undercounter radio lol! I'd love to surprise my husband with something when we move in, we debated installing speaker wire but decided against. We are casual music listeners, I think we would use it if convenient but not sure how convenient anything will be I can't stream. I love Pandora!

Sjhockey, a soundbar can be for both tv and music. If you want surround sound for the tv, you could add smaller speakers and the subwoofer. It's up to you how much sound you want- I would check out the website.

We have just the soundbar for our tv and it's all we need for our game room.

Check out Definitive Technologies too. Sound quality is much better than the really good Sonos system but the phone app isn't yet so smooth

Sjhocky. My DH loves sound so we have the sound bar and a subwoofer but it depends on how you like base.

re: Sonos in our house.

All the rooms have ceiling speakers (very good ones) with wires that run to the basement. Sonos amps are required to get sound to them as each speaker doesn't have it's own power source. The amps are not cheap. We also have to have what is called a bridge, which is about $50. Just one of those. For the ceiling speakers, theoretically, we could hook them all to just one amp and the same music would play all over the house. We paired a few to save $. One is attached to the kitchen and great room. One is attached to outside speakers and if we want music in the basement, we switch the outside speaker wires out and put in the basement speaker wires. We lent out 2 amps to a friend to try, so those are missing, but they feed the upstairs and study. We control them via a Sonos App on our laptops, Ipod, Ipad, phone, or probably other things are out there to control. It was quite easy to set up. Just had to read the manual and press a few buttons so the amps were recognized and could talk to the bridge. No regrets

The sonos stuff is the white boxes. The bridge is on top and the amps are the two below.

You control each amp separately. So, I can tell the app to have them all play, select a few to play. They can all play the same music or each amp can play something different.

You can set timers and alarms - so you can program them to turn off and on at different times.

farmdrmer "if I understand correctly, your setup with the Bose isn't using wifi, just Bluetooth to the dedicated iPod, correct?" The Bose only connects to the device via Bluetooth, but the device it connects to needs either wifi or cell service to stream Pandora or other internet music services. So, if you have your music collection on the device or choose to use your cell service for Pandora, you are good to go without wifi.

nightowl great work. Sonos is best from the other.

Maybe I'm old school. I like installed speakers. We're doing in wall since the quality for price is better than ceiling. Sadly the best place to put them is still lathe and plaster so we will work up the nerve soon I hope! Hooks up to our amp which also controls ou lr speakers. We do have an apple AirPlay so we can stream music etc. not familiar with Sonos though since we've had the apple system for awhile now.

Wow- Some of those systems are expen$ive! The Bluetooth ones only have a range of 30,' which wouldn't work on the porch, and might not even work in the kitchen.

I bring the iPod or phone along wherever I put the Bose so they are within range.

Nightowl, your media closet is intense! Love it. And thanks for introducing me to the Amazon Echo- I've been reading about it since you mentioned it and I have to get one. What fun, and for the whole family! I'm a little nervous about the speaker quality compared to my sonos, though. I don't have a large kitchen, and don't blast music- can you tell me how the speaker does with music?

We don't have any portable devices, so the Bluetooth transmitter would be shackled to the receiver in the LR.

I think the Echo speaker is very good. That said, while I enjoy good sound, I am not an expert ear. I would think there are reviews by internet people that will be more responsive to your question.

re: Jambox and bluetooth distance -- True the distance is a limiting factor, but most people have a phone on them to work it these days.

As I said, I have the Bose Soundlink. It's good sound, fine for general listening to Pandora and radio, but it isn't the quality an audiophile would be looking for.

There is really at least 2 sorts of Sonos systems. First, they have their own speakers that plug into an outlet and communicate via wireless for the sound. For those, you don't need the amps. However - if you have speakers in the ceilings and walls, it is just wires that all lead to a central (most likely) area. From that area, you hook a receiver to them to power the sound. If you hook all of them to one receiver - they all play the same thing. Many receivers now are wireless, so that is a less expensive option.

With Sonos amps, you can play different things in each room and turn some on and some off if you have amps connected to different speakers. For example, we have the outside wired in two areas. Sometimes we want only the porch on as the neighbors don't need to hear the music. Sometimes, we sound up the whole yard when we have people over. Our kitchen and great room are together. Because we didn't want to spend the $$$ for two amps, we combined them. But, if we had an amp connected to each separately, we could have two different things going, or just something in the great room or just something in the kitchen.

" I love it when something or someone listens to me. My family sure doesn't."

my dog does that... not that she minds if it's something regarding her behavior ...

Love our Echo (Alexa). Also great for asking weather forecasts before you head out the door and getting NPR news headlines read to me for the day as I wait for my coffee to perk. It replaces most of what I would have wanted a TV for in my kitchen. If you are an Amazon Prime member, your access to free music, recipes and audio books is endless! Plus, it's pretty sleek looking and takes up a very small footprint of counter space since it's vertical.

Alexa is great at kitchen math. Me - "Alexa, how many cups is 15 tablespoons?" Alexa - "15 tablespoons is" 0.94 cups."

I feel like Wilma Flintstone with my phone/tablet and Bluetooth speaker. I had never even heard of Alexa or Sonos. And Alexa does math to boot? I'm now full of lust.

I'm with ya, funkycamper. I connected via bluetooth my little Sony speaker with my phone to play Christmas carols during the holidays and was feeling pretty proud of myself. Sheesh! I'm so behind the times. I think I need to meet Alexa!

I love Alexa, it's the first thing I do when I come into the kitchen in the morning. Alexa, play the black keys on Pandora. Alexa, what's the forecast today. Alexa, set a timer for 15 minutes. Alexa, add cream to my shopping list. I love it, if you can tell.

For me, the sound quality is perfect. I sit in my family room one room away and jam out.

Wow, check this out. "Smart lighting meets premium sound". It's a self adjusting LED light that changes according to the sun's patterns during the day from 2700 K to 5000 K that's also a Bluetooth speaker! Plug multiples in and it synchronizes sound throughout your house! I'd love to find a place where these are on display! Love technology! BTW, great thread and sharing!

Ok, one more question about sonos...if I just got the wireless speakers and bridge (no wired speakers or amps) can I still play different music on the different speakers? And can I turn them on with the app or do I have to manually turn on the speakers? (Ok, that was TWO questions!)

I'm totally getting an Alexa :) The hands free shopping list sold me. Now I just read it tells jokes and calls out bingo numbers. My kids will love her as much as I will!!

For sonos- yes to both questions. They can play different music and you use your app. All you need is wifi.

Icsk - yes. If you get the one's with plugs, you don't need the amps. I don't think you even need the bridge. Not 100% on that though.

I just asked - "Alexa, tell me a joke." why do ghosts make good cheerleaders? Because they have so much spirit."

"Alexa, make me a sandwich." "I wish I could. Cooking is beyond me at the moment."

Other Echo Easter eggs https://www.reddit.com/r/amazonecho/comments/2v15fx/list_of_known_easter_eggs_for_amazon_echo_so_far

wow. and I just ordered a cell phone. maybe in 10 yrs I'll be ready for this other stuff. If I even remember who I am then...

Just be careful if you're prone to swearing! I can just imagine what Alexa might add to the shopping list LOL!

For those of you with Sonos questions this link is helpful to understand how to get started, what equipment you need and how to add components.

http://blog.sonos.com/news/introducing-an-even-simpler-sonos

I've been googling around and it seems that Sonos speakers don't play the audio if you're watching movies on a tablet from Netflix, Hulu, etc. Is that true? Would I still need my bluetooth speaker for that?

Can Alexa do that?

No help here - we don't have the sonos hooked up to any of our TVs. I am interested in the answer though as we were considering the Sonos sound bar and play 1s for the great room TV.

Funkycamper that is true for wireless and iPads with Hulu/Netflix for sure but there is an audio input on the Sonos so you connect with a cable

There is an alternative to the Sonos ecosystem called DTS Play Fi. It allows you to stream audio from apps and amps and there are numerous speakers available-- some better and some worse than Sonos. One advantage over Sonos that some of the Play Fi speakers has is that they can also use bluetooth so the same speaker can work for hi Fi wifi and lower sound quality Bluetooth from any app like Hulu/Netflix/HBOGo etc

i think echo is also Bluetooth capable and has all those other cool advantages but the sound quality for music isn't on par with Sonos or many of the Play Fi speaker options.