You will need a dual zone receiver to make it work for different rooms. The speakers are good if you just want some good basic sounds.

The speakers are not good. The company was involved in a lot of white van schemes some time ago, not that it was their fault but they also didn't take any action to stop it. The general consensus is that the bass bottoms out very easy and they are OK for the cost but not good. If you are paying to have someone install them, then spend a little bit of extra money and get something decent.

Personally, I spend too much on speakers so I can't really help you there but when I am in the market for cheap electronics Monoprice is the only place to look. They have good quality for an incredibly low price.

I have a similiar setup, used Bose speakers and Onkyo system. I would highly recommend a "smart" system that can be controlled with your smart phone or tablet. I can control all aspects without ever leaving my chair. BTW.....If you are not an expert at installing setting up I would highly recommend hiring someone who is.

Thank you!

I came across these speakers and i think these are the ones that i will be purchasing.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10837&cs_id=1083702&p_id=4103&seq=1&format=2

If i have 10 of these speakers(wall/ceiling) for general purpose music listening, what sort of a receiver/amplifier(s) do i need? I like to have two receivers and connect a Chromecast Audio to each so i can control volume of each zone or combine zones. Of course the receivers need to have a AUX so i can connect the CC.

Any ideas? Can i get away by not buying a 5.1 AVR amplifier?

Do yourself a favor, invest in a Sonos system. Outstand but costly. We have 2 systems now and will be adding a 3rd after house is built. Sonos.com

Do not buy an AVR unless you have extra laying around or find one for cheap. You just need an amplifier and then your sound sources. You need 10 speakers in one room which will be expensive in an AVR. The 5 speakers would be ok but you need to make sure the AVR runs them all at the snake volume and not as surround sound

Hello knightzerox90, i understand the amp has 12 channels but i am a little overwhelmed on how to channel(pun intended) a few speakers to one zone and the rest to a different zone. Can you please help me understand that? I looked at the product below and am confused where the Chromecast would go too. Would it go into where it says 'Line In'

I think my budget prohibits hiring an AV guy so i am going try to DIY this myself. Spent all the money on everything else :(

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003DKVZHQ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=1S49YDT8FIK7C&coliid=I3929HO0GCEV6

Hi Susha,

Sure no problem. First lets understand what I mean by a zone. A zone is any place you want a specific source of music. Let's say we have two zones, A and B. In zone A I would like to hear the radio. In zone B I want to hear music from my chrome cast. Let's make zone A the living room and zone B the kitchen. By having different zones defined and connected to a source, I can plan out how to connect everything.

You can have as many or as few zones as you like with any number of speakers in them. You could have all 15 speakers in one zone that is connected to one source. Remember that a zone is connected to one source only. This situation might be good if you wanted the same music for all 15 speakers.

If you wanted to listen to different sources in different groups of speakers you will need to add more zones.

Decide how many zones you need first. Keep in mind you don't need a new zone for every source of music, only if you want different sources playing at the same time. For example, you can have all your speakers on one zone but connected to a AVR. The AVR might play radio, cd's, pandora, have a chrome cast connected to it, etc...You can switch between these sources using your AVR but all the speakers will play the same sound.

On the amplifier , the back has 6 groups or pairs of speakers, one for left and right speakers. When it says 12 channel, it means six stereo pairs. To get sound to the amplifier, it needs some kind of input. That is usually called line level in. There are many ways to do this, but let's say everything was connected to a AVR. The AVR has OUTPUT connections to feed into something else. You would use these to go to your amplifier. Then just connect the speakers to the amplifier and they will all play the same music.

The amplifier above can take two source inputs and allow you to break the 6 stereo pairs to play some combination of them.

I hope this helps. Thanks.

Sorry, forgot to mention that the amplifier can actually allow you to play 12 speakers with 12 different sources as well if you like or any combination. It's very flexible. Let's say your AVR has a stereo line level outputs which most do. This will be a left and right channel color coded in white and red wires usually. You can plug these in to the BUS level inputs in this amp. Then, select each channel to BUS input 1 ( or 2 depending on which one you used ) and any speaker connected will play music from that input .

also make look at the 1260 version of that amp

http://www.parts-express.com/dayton-audio-ma1260-multi-zone-12-channel-amplifier-60wpc--300-8150

Hello knight, I appreciate your help here and your attempt to help a numbskull like me.
I looked at the product spec sheet and looked at the diagram that they provided and am still a little confused.

My goal is to be able to
1. Have two zones(zone 1-kitchen and zone2- dining, family room)
2. Turn one zone off and keep the other zone on with the help of 2 Chromecast Audio pucks.
3. Combine 2 zones when I have a party.

The 12 channel amp you guided me to has the ability to connect 12 speakers to it which is great but how do I say put 4 speakers in zone 1 and 6 speakers in zone 2? Do I have to daisy chain the 4 speakers in zone 1 together somehow? I am unsure about that and need some direction. Can I not connect two Chromecast dongles directly to the 12 channel stereo amp? The diagram shows there are three options for source for each speaker pair; bus1,bus2 & line in. For instance, I could connect CCA1(Chromecast Audio1 puck used for zone1) in the line in input of zone1(which controls 4 speakers) and CCA2(Chromecast Audio2 puck used for zone2) into the line in of zone 2 (which controls 6 speakers) and achieve my goal, I am guessing.

I would use Sonos if I had the money but it's cost prohibitive for me.

Do you already have the system wired or are you designing the system for a house that isn't built yet?

Hey Andy, thank you! I certainly underestimated the complexity of setting this up. Based on what you said, it certainly doesn't sound like DIY.

However i would still like to take a stab at it and try to make it work with my limited budget. I dislike speakers occupying shelf life and they are a nightmare with little children. I would like to have my speakers either in the ceiling of in the walls. I realize i would be sacrificing audio quality and they are inferior to say a bookshelf/floor standing models but that is okay for my family.

I had another idea that i think would work(not sure). Stereo amplifiers like these(https://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-R-S202BL-Stereo-Receiver/dp/B01EMQI2CU/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1476460376&sr=8-4&keywords=stereo+receiver+amplifier) are fairly inexpensive. I could probably score a similarly used one for slightly less $ and use 2-3 of these and hook the Chromecast Audio to each of these with a 3.5 mm and achieve multi room audio capability for under <$1,000 for say 10 speakers. I plan to use monoprice speakers which are around $50 for a pair. I also would want to hook this up to a in wall impedance matching volume control for each room. This will allow me to control volume not only through my phone but also with the in wall volume knob.

bry911, the home is currently being build and i am trying to design this before the framing is complete(which is a couple of months away)

Actually, I stand corrected and apologize, there is a different product I was unaware of, Chromecast Audio.

https://support.google.com/chromecast/answer/6280276?hl=en

If you really do want to keep it simple, all you need to do is hook your chromecast audio up using a 3.5mm to RCA cable, and then using RCA splitters send the signal to the respective inputs of the various channels on the amplifier. You create the zone based on how you distribute the signal from your sources to the amplifier.

Off the wall question, why 5 speakers in the kitchen?

I did wall speakers for the living room and master bedroom.. heh

Which is where I was going with my question. Lots of speakers will require lots of amplification. I think the OP should consider some beefier and better in-wall speakers that will produce much better sound quality and will simplify the amplification.

Hey Andy, i just read realized that CCA offers a RCA accessory (http://www.techtimes.com/articles/136840/20160227/chromecast-audio-gets-official-rca-cable-and-optical-cable-adapter-now-on-google-store.htm) and i bet i can attach it to one of the BUS connections on the 12 channel amp and toggle it in every single stereo pair. Is that what you meant too?

Russ, i have a small breakfast nook right next to the kitchen(here is a pic), the 5th speaker is for that area.

I came across the Monoprice speakers right here on these forums and from what i read they are pretty good quality. Are you recommending i look some place else for better speakers?

Oh, I just got 8 monoprice speakers in.. wait for the 15% off email.. in fact, I think they have one today. type in GHOUL in the coupon field and hit apply and they are all 15% off today

R

Just checked out the docs for your amplifier, yeah you can just use the bus inputs and toggle the channels. Should do exactly what you're intending.

The Monoprice are fine but move up to the 8" speakers and use two per room in the walls instead of the ceiling. Unless you are going for surround sound then I would change the recommendation a bit.

When I read this post yesterday for the first time I was surprised by the number of speakers you were planning to place. Even at $50/pair, it's going to add up quickly! We just built a house w/Sonos. In our very open floor plan (2600 sq ft main level) we placed 2 speakers in the kitchen, 4 in the great room, 2 in the master and the 2 in Master bath; in the basement we have 4 in the rec room plus 2 on the deck and 2 on the patio below the deck. The system was turned on yesterday and the sound is crystal clear and absolutely beautiful -- I couldn't be happier (and our tv's in 3 of those room are wired in as well. The only speakers you can really see are those that are outside, everything else "disappears" into the vast expanse of the ceiling (speakers can be painted if you have painted ceilings). Cost for everything: <$5000. With all of the equipment hidden from view in an AV closet (except in the rec room where the Sonos box sits on a bookcase near the fireplace), I cam listen to a different station or tv program in each room (not likely in my open floor plan, just as I didn't need to put speakers everywhere and can hear clean & crisp sound from anywhere in the house!) using any of my various android or apple devices. Very impressed w/it, and I was initially a skeptic.

Very interesting and thank you for sharing. Congratulations on your new home! May I ask for some more details please? Can you share with me how what kind of speakers you have and how many Connect Amps you had to purchase to make this work? It seems like you have 18-20 speakers altogether.

Hello folks, i made a little sketch after getting great advice from everybody here. I am a novice and don't know anything about speaker placement. Looks like i would need three zones instead of two. The zone three I am still unsure as i would probably need a 5.1 AV receiver hooked up with a CCA. At the very least i would get the wiring ready and when we have the budget, we would hookup the equipment and get rolling.

Zone 1 - 5 Ceiling Speakers with volume control on the wall

Zone 2 - 4 ceiling Speakers with volume control on the wall

Zone 5 - 2 Ceiling Speakers behind(probably use the same Monoproce 8"), 2 Front L/R Wall Attached Speakers, 1 Center Wall Attached Speakers, 1 Subwoofer.

Would really appreciate some feedback. Thank you.

Honestly I think you're way overdoing it. I think you should put two speakers in the kitchen, none in the dining room, and buy decent equipment for your family room. I can't for the life of me imagine why you need four speakers in the dining room, directly adjacent to the family room and right in the air travel path of the sound coming from your front two speakers, which should be the best sounding speakers in the house. The family room, like it or not, is what will be making the sound for the dining room. You will never want to be listening to one thing in the dining room and another in the family room, it will sound awful for everybody.

If you did this, one benefit would be that you could get a nice two-zone 7.1 amp and be able to control everything from your phone.

Susha what did you end up choosing? I am in your situation right now and have a week to decide what to do.

Just the way I described it. Super easy, cost effective and it works so far!

I am listening to an Apple HomePod located in my kitchen from my living room. We are building and I originally thought about adding speakers during the build, but not after having this HomePod.

https://www.houzz.com/user/sushaphr can you clarify what exactly you purchased and how you installed? I know even less than you did when you started, ha ha. I need to know what wiring I need to install now before insulation is sprayed. Also where I need outlets. Thanks.

https://www.houzz.com/user/andy6382 can you point me to a website that can better describe how and where the speaker wiring, volume control wiring, amplifier location, avr vs amplifier, how to control from my phone vs the avr, and what all of this means? I have a week to figure out how to do this before insulation is sprayed and electrician is gone. I have 3 zones, one for the main floor, one for outside deck, and one for downstairs outside deck. Thanks for any help.

The company that installed my security and camera systems also installed my surround sound and music system. I used SONOS and can play anything I want anywhere I want or don't want. I have 3 areas in my home. My sales rep for the security and sound advised me on the correct receiver unit, bass and specialty remote (for the main TV) to tie the whole system together. I am not highly technical and brought the sales rep down to my rather moderate level of quality interest. I love my SONOS system and it has already been installed for 5 years!

robinhome, i ran a bunch of speaker wires from my intended locations and had home runs to a central AV location. Speaker wire is cheap. You could either do it yourself with a stapler gun or have your electrician do it for you. Once i had them in place the insulation was put over and it and the sheetrockers put a hole in the rock' and left them dangling from the ceiling.