wireless speaker recommendation

MarcusP12

Hi guys,

Looking for a recommendation for a wireless speaker from 200 to 300 euro.I want to stream music from iTunes preferably butbalso need to be able to stream radio easily!a buddy has the sonas play 1 and raves about it.he's on his second and mentioned that he got free deezer for a year which is tempting (not sure if sonas offer or store offer at the moment).however I'm very interested in the monitor audio ones especially the s100 as it has Bluetooth also.but do the MA work off apps like sonas.

What would you recommend for sound quality,ease of use and flexibility....thanks guys.....

Richersounds.ie: Kenny

Hi Marcusp12 sorry for the delay in reply. Unfortunately the Deezer promotion on Sonos has finished.  The Sonos is a very good system however if this was the sort of thing you were looking for I would recommend the Denon Heos system, it sounds much better and in my opinion looks better

http://www.richersounds.ie/p-12828-heos-3-black.aspx

Denon are currently running a 20% off promotion and a 90 day trial, where you can try the unit for 90 days and if you are not happy return it for a full refund


Regards Stephen

MarcusP12

Thanks Stephen....I assume the price shown on line doesn't include the 20%? But I could avail on line if I went for it?

I am very interested in the monitor audio s200 and s300 also..I like the way it has airplay and in the casebook the s200,Bluetooth also....but how do they compare sound wise to the heos or sonas and all round ease of use and flexibility?

Note I got a denon ceol with monitor audio bx2 speakers so have no doubt of the quality of either....

Cheers...

Richersounds.ie: Kenny

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Thanks Stephen....I assume the price shown on line doesn't include the 20%? But I could avail on line if I went for it?

I am very interested in the monitor audio s200 and s300 also..I like the way it has airplay and in the casebook the s200,Bluetooth also....but how do they compare sound wise to the heos or sonas and all round ease of use and flexibility?

Note I got a denon ceol with monitor audio bx2 speakers so have no doubt of the quality of either....

Cheers...

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you.  while the s200 and 300 sound excellent, i believe the Heos has the edge but only slightly.  However as far as multiroom experience goes the Heos wins hands down, because it has a specific app written for it moving music between zone is as simple at press on icon on your phone / tablet. 

Regards Stephen

MarcusP12

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you.  while the s200 and 300 sound excellent, i believe the Heos has the edge but only slightly.  However as far as multiroom experience goes the Heos wins hands down, because it has a specific app written for it moving music between zone is as simple at press on icon on your phone / tablet. 

Regards Stephen

Hi Stephen,am I right in saying the heos only operates at ios 6 and above or something?I have the ipad 1 which doesn't go beyond 5.something or other! Where does that leave me in terms of a recommendation?I would like Bluetooth and airplay.....is the Samsung m5 any good...I reckon I'll get a Spotify subscription as some stage so ease of use with this and also access to a radio app would be good...WiFi might be dodgy so if it had internal WiFi or bluetooth that would be handy....cheers...

Richersounds.ie: John

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you.  while the s200 and 300 sound excellent, i believe the Heos has the edge but only slightly.  However as far as multiroom experience goes the Heos wins hands down, because it has a specific app written for it moving music between zone is as simple at press on icon on your phone / tablet. 

Regards Stephen

Hi Stephen,am I right in saying the heos only operates at ios 6 and above or something?I have the ipad 1 which doesn't go beyond 5.something or other! Where does that leave me in terms of a recommendation?I would like Bluetooth and airplay.....is the Samsung m5 any good...I reckon I'll get a Spotify subscription as some stage so ease of use with this and also access to a radio app would be good...WiFi might be dodgy so if it had internal WiFi or bluetooth that would be handy....cheers...

I don't think that the HEOS app is restricted to IOS6 and above but to be honest I cant check as all our devices are later versions, but honestly I don't think so ( I'll pop Denon the query and see what they say today tho')

If you want BT and Airplay you can still use Heos but you would have to use an external dongle like the QED Uplay:
https://euro.richersounds.ie/p-10646-uplay.aspx

This wont work for portable use as the QED needs a power source but will be an interesting combo if you use it at home because as with any input into the Heos system the Bluetooth signal from the QED Uplay when received into any Heos device then becomes available across the Heos network!

On a Radio App - you can use Tunein radio and it integrates well with the Heos app and has 10,000's of stations.

On the 20% on your first Heos purchase, I will have a voucher code up soon, but in the meantime if you would like to purchase just drop us your contact number and one of the guys will sort you out - finally of course they do a '90 days to be amazed' promo - which means that you can actually purchase any Heos and try it for 90 days and then return for a full no quibble refund ( once of course the product is in good nick with most of its packaging)

Thanks again and keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew
Keep us posted,

MarcusP12

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

I don't think that the HEOS app is restricted to IOS6 and above but to be honest I cant check as all our devices are later versions, but honestly I don't think so ( I'll pop Denon the query and see what they say today tho')

If you want BT and Airplay you can still use Heos but you would have to use an external dongle like the QED Uplay:
https://euro.richersounds.ie/p-10646-uplay.aspx

This wont work for portable use as the QED needs a power source but will be an interesting combo if you use it at home because as with any input into the Heos system the Bluetooth signal from the QED Uplay when received into any Heos device then becomes available across the Heos network!

On a Radio App - you can use Tunein radio and it integrates well with the Heos app and has 10,000's of stations.

On the 20% on your first Heos purchase, I will have a voucher code up soon, but in the meantime if you would like to purchase just drop us your contact number and one of the guys will sort you out - finally of course they do a '90 days to be amazed' promo - which means that you can actually purchase any Heos and try it for 90 days and then return for a full no quibble refund ( once of course the product is in good nick with most of its packaging)

Thanks again and keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew
Keep us posted,

Thanks John and co....I do like the look of the denon and I love my denon ceol butbwhat slightly concerns me is that the general reviews on line whilst not bad,are not as good as others and crucially seems to lose out on face offs with sonos.however you guys seem keen on it which I respect so can you tell me why I should go for it over the sonos,the monitor audio s200 (which I like cuz of airplay and Bluetooth and the v good reviews generally but disappointed by lack of app or remote) or even the Samsung m5.how would you rank these or which would u recommend amongst them or anything else u stock for around 250 mark.

I organise my music through iTunes, needs ease of use with radio app and I'm looking into getting Spotify premium so what would be best for all that in practice? How do th e non airplay speakers deal with iTunes? Sound quality is important but I don't need anything too booming.....

Looking forward to the advice as I'd like to pull the trigger soon...

galljga1

Marcus, I have a pair of sonos play 1 speakers and also a sonos connect which is linked to my main system. I have to say I am impressed with the speakers for their size. I mainly stream FLAC from a stand alone media player using the sonos app. It also links to my itunes library or any other library that is available on my network. It is pretty easy to setup. I find I only use itunes on the go. I would also recommend deezer instead of spotify: same price similar library size but streams lossless while spotify is 320 kbps (I won't get into the argument of whether you need batlike hearing to notice the difference). Deezer also intigrates better into the sonos app. Just my tuppence worth.

Richersounds.ie: Kenny

Hi MarcusP12.
 
Its hard to compare both for myself.
The Heos does have the better sound over the Sonos options.
But I feel the Sonbos app flows and operates better.
 
If you could come to our store we could let you here them running side by side and let you judge for yourself.

We have all the different units connected for this very reason.
With so many others also trying to do their versions, the Heos and the Sonos are by far the front runners.

Originally posted by MarcusP12

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

I don't think that the HEOS app is restricted to IOS6 and above but to be honest I cant check as all our devices are later versions, but honestly I don't think so ( I'll pop Denon the query and see what they say today tho')

If you want BT and Airplay you can still use Heos but you would have to use an external dongle like the QED Uplay:
https://euro.richersounds.ie/p-10646-uplay.aspx

This wont work for portable use as the QED needs a power source but will be an interesting combo if you use it at home because as with any input into the Heos system the Bluetooth signal from the QED Uplay when received into any Heos device then becomes available across the Heos network!

On a Radio App - you can use Tunein radio and it integrates well with the Heos app and has 10,000's of stations.

On the 20% on your first Heos purchase, I will have a voucher code up soon, but in the meantime if you would like to purchase just drop us your contact number and one of the guys will sort you out - finally of course they do a '90 days to be amazed' promo - which means that you can actually purchase any Heos and try it for 90 days and then return for a full no quibble refund ( once of course the product is in good nick with most of its packaging)

Thanks again and keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew
Keep us posted,

Thanks John and co....I do like the look of the denon and I love my denon ceol butbwhat slightly concerns me is that the general reviews on line whilst not bad,are not as good as others and crucially seems to lose out on face offs with sonos.however you guys seem keen on it which I respect so can you tell me why I should go for it over the sonos,the monitor audio s200 (which I like cuz of airplay and Bluetooth and the v good reviews generally but disappointed by lack of app or remote) or even the Samsung m5.how would you rank these or which would u recommend amongst them or anything else u stock for around 250 mark.

I organise my music through iTunes, needs ease of use with radio app and I'm looking into getting Spotify premium so what would be best for all that in practice? How do th e non airplay speakers deal with iTunes? Sound quality is important but I don't need anything too booming.....

Looking forward to the advice as I'd like to pull the trigger soon...

MarcusP12

galljga1 wrote: »

Marcus, I have a pair of sonos play 1 speakers and also a sonos connect which is linked to my main system. I have to say I am impressed with the speakers for their size. I mainly stream FLAC from a stand alone media player using the sonos app. It also links to my itunes library or any other library that is available on my network. It is pretty easy to setup. I find I only use itunes on the go. I would also recommend deezer instead of spotify: same price similar library size but streams lossless while spotify is 320 kbps (I won't get into the argument of whether you need batlike hearing to notice the difference). Deezer also intigrates better into the sonos app. Just my tuppence worth.

Thanks galljga1...Sent you a PM with further queries on your experience...

Richersounds.ie: Kenny

Hi MarcusP12.

Once have done some more thinking or have any more questions just drop us a post

MarcusP12 wrote: »

galljga1 wrote: »

Marcus, I have a pair of sonos play 1 speakers and also a sonos connect which is linked to my main system. I have to say I am impressed with the speakers for their size. I mainly stream FLAC from a stand alone media player using the sonos app. It also links to my itunes library or any other library that is available on my network. It is pretty easy to setup. I find I only use itunes on the go. I would also recommend deezer instead of spotify: same price similar library size but streams lossless while spotify is 320 kbps (I won't get into the argument of whether you need batlike hearing to notice the difference). Deezer also intigrates better into the sonos app. Just my tuppence worth.

Thanks galljga1...Sent you a PM with further queries on your experience...

MarcusP12

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

Hi MarcusP12.

Once have done some more thinking or have any more questions just drop us a post

MarcusP12 wrote: »

galljga1 wrote: »

Marcus, I have a pair of sonos play 1 speakers and also a sonos connect which is linked to my main system. I have to say I am impressed with the speakers for their size. I mainly stream FLAC from a stand alone media player using the sonos app. It also links to my itunes library or any other library that is available on my network. It is pretty easy to setup. I find I only use itunes on the go. I would also recommend deezer instead of spotify: same price similar library size but streams lossless while spotify is 320 kbps (I won't get into the argument of whether you need batlike hearing to notice the difference). Deezer also intigrates better into the sonos app. Just my tuppence worth.

Thanks galljga1...Sent you a PM with further queries on your experience...

Thanks Kenny, I'm located in dublin so much and all as i'd like to, dropping in to sample each isn't really an option. Just to remind, this was become a requirement because we're doing an extension which means the main stereo will be at one end of the open plan area which doesnt suit the dining room/kitchen zone so its something to listen to at this end that we're interested in but that can tap into my itunes music.

I was talking to someone today who came up with an interesting option that i thought i'd run by you as the experts. what was suggested to me by a buddy was to install ceiling speakers to the extension (where we want the sound) and get them wired back to my denon ceol (the one with the cd player instead of the piccolo) via a speaker switch. we could then operate the unit from the denon app as normal and similar in theory to how you would operate the sonas. the switch could switch between the ceiling speakers and the main speakers or both?

so, do you guys think that this could work based on what you know of the denon? in the event that it is possible to wire things up as i've described can you give recommendations on the following:
- How many speakers would i need for the extension area which would be about 5m long by 7m wide? Would a pair be enough, e.g. one either side of the roof apex (kitchen on one side of the apex and one speaker to cover here and then another on the other side in the dining area)?
- Can you recommend a ceiling speaker which will provide good sound for that kind of area? 
- For the bits and bobs to link things, i.e. speaker cable and the switch itself, can you recommend this also. Does the switch affect the sound quality?

Is this a mad plan? or am i better off just starting off a sonos set up instead and keeping things above ground rather than integrated......

Cheers and apologies for the change in direction.....for the record, i'm thinking along the lines of the sonos if the ceiling speaker and ceiling speaker plan doesnt work out......

Richersounds.ie: Kenny

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

Hi MarcusP12.

Once have done some more thinking or have any more questions just drop us a post

MarcusP12 wrote: »

galljga1 wrote: »

Marcus, I have a pair of sonos play 1 speakers and also a sonos connect which is linked to my main system. I have to say I am impressed with the speakers for their size. I mainly stream FLAC from a stand alone media player using the sonos app. It also links to my itunes library or any other library that is available on my network. It is pretty easy to setup. I find I only use itunes on the go. I would also recommend deezer instead of spotify: same price similar library size but streams lossless while spotify is 320 kbps (I won't get into the argument of whether you need batlike hearing to notice the difference). Deezer also intigrates better into the sonos app. Just my tuppence worth.

Thanks galljga1...Sent you a PM with further queries on your experience...

Thanks Kenny, I'm located in dublin so much and all as i'd like to, dropping in to sample each isn't really an option. Just to remind, this was become a requirement because we're doing an extension which means the main stereo will be at one end of the open plan area which doesnt suit the dining room/kitchen zone so its something to listen to at this end that we're interested in but that can tap into my itunes music.

I was talking to someone today who came up with an interesting option that i thought i'd run by you as the experts. what was suggested to me by a buddy was to install ceiling speakers to the extension (where we want the sound) and get them wired back to my denon ceol (the one with the cd player instead of the piccolo) via a speaker switch. we could then operate the unit from the denon app as normal and similar in theory to how you would operate the sonas. the switch could switch between the ceiling speakers and the main speakers or both?

so, do you guys think that this could work based on what you know of the denon? in the event that it is possible to wire things up as i've described can you give recommendations on the following:
- How many speakers would i need for the extension area which would be about 5m long by 7m wide? Would a pair be enough, e.g. one either side of the roof apex (kitchen on one side of the apex and one speaker to cover here and then another on the other side in the dining area)?
- Can you recommend a ceiling speaker which will provide good sound for that kind of area? 
- For the bits and bobs to link things, i.e. speaker cable and the switch itself, can you recommend this also. Does the switch affect the sound quality?

Is this a mad plan? or am i better off just starting off a sonos set up instead and keeping things above ground rather than integrated......

Cheers and apologies for the change in direction.....for the record, i'm thinking along the lines of the sonos if the ceiling speaker and ceiling speaker plan doesnt work out......

Hi MarcusP12.

The issue may be running more than one set of speakers at a time from the Denon.
Its really only designed to run just one pair and over driving it could cause to damaging it.

If they were not all on at the same time the speaker switch would work for running the extension.

You could purchase a Sonos connect amp and run the in-ceiling speaker via it and a play 1 or 3 in the kitchen. These would tie in together and allow for running the same or different music in both rooms.

In-ceiling speakers start with the Monitor Audio CT165 priced at £105.00 each (I could offer at £95.00 each)
http://www.richersounds.ie/p-11974-ct165.aspx

Let me know what you think on the above.

Any questions please ask.

MarcusP12

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

Hi MarcusP12.

The issue may be running more than one set of speakers at a time from the Denon.
Its really only designed to run just one pair and over driving it could cause to damaging it.

If they were not all on at the same time the speaker switch would work for running the extension.

You could purchase a Sonos connect amp and run the in-ceiling speaker via it and a play 1 or 3 in the kitchen. These would tie in together and allow for running the same or different music in both rooms.

In-ceiling speakers start with the Monitor Audio CT165 priced at £105.00 each (I could offer at £95.00 each)
http://www.richersounds.ie/p-11974-ct165.aspx

Let me know what you think on the above.

Any questions please ask.

Thanks forth reply Kenny, so am I right in saying that my denon ceol n8 will be ok to hook up to the ceiling speakers as long as the switch is just to toggle between the ceiling speakers and the table top speakers?just want to be sure about that before investigating any further...

For the record I went for the monitor audio s200 (and s300 as it was a great deal) so I'm sorted one way other....ceiling speakers would be nice though..what would they be in euro?

Richersounds.ie: Kenny

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

Hi MarcusP12.

The issue may be running more than one set of speakers at a time from the Denon.
Its really only designed to run just one pair and over driving it could cause to damaging it.

If they were not all on at the same time the speaker switch would work for running the extension.

You could purchase a Sonos connect amp and run the in-ceiling speaker via it and a play 1 or 3 in the kitchen. These would tie in together and allow for running the same or different music in both rooms.

In-ceiling speakers start with the Monitor Audio CT165 priced at £105.00 each (I could offer at £95.00 each)
http://www.richersounds.ie/p-11974-ct165.aspx

Let me know what you think on the above.

Any questions please ask.

Thanks forth reply Kenny, so am I right in saying that my denon ceol n8 will be ok to hook up to the ceiling speakers as long as the switch is just to toggle between the ceiling speakers and the table top speakers?just want to be sure about that before investigating any further...

For the record I went for the monitor audio s200 (and s300 as it was a great deal) so I'm sorted one way other....ceiling speakers would be nice though..what would they be in euro?

Hi MarcusP12.

The Monitor Audio S200 and S300 sound amazing I have to say.

As long as it was only running one pair of speakers at a time you would have no problems. It would most likely be able to cope with two sets but I need to say its not recommended. Then if you forgot to turn of the switcher and you had another two pairs in-ceiling, that would be 3 pairs in total on an amp only really designed to run 1 pair. I wouldn't want to to damage the N8.

The CT165 are a very popular in-ceiling speaker and have great sound quality. In Euro coming in at 130 Euro each.

Richersounds.ie: John

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: Kenny wrote: »

Hi MarcusP12.

The issue may be running more than one set of speakers at a time from the Denon.
Its really only designed to run just one pair and over driving it could cause to damaging it.

If they were not all on at the same time the speaker switch would work for running the extension.

You could purchase a Sonos connect amp and run the in-ceiling speaker via it and a play 1 or 3 in the kitchen. These would tie in together and allow for running the same or different music in both rooms.

In-ceiling speakers start with the Monitor Audio CT165 priced at £105.00 each (I could offer at £95.00 each)
http://www.richersounds.ie/p-11974-ct165.aspx

Let me know what you think on the above.

Any questions please ask.

Thanks forth reply Kenny, so am I right in saying that my denon ceol n8 will be ok to hook up to the ceiling speakers as long as the switch is just to toggle between the ceiling speakers and the table top speakers?just want to be sure about that before investigating any further...

For the record I went for the monitor audio s200 (and s300 as it was a great deal) so I'm sorted one way other....ceiling speakers would be nice though..what would they be in euro?

Hi MarcusP12.

The Monitor Audio S200 and S300 sound amazing I have to say.

As long as it was only running one pair of speakers at a time you would have no problems. It would most likely be able to cope with two sets but I need to say its not recommended. Then if you forgot to turn of the switcher and you had another two pairs in-ceiling, that would be 3 pairs in total on an amp only really designed to run 1 pair. I wouldn't want to to damage the N8.

The CT165 are a very popular in-ceiling speaker and have great sound quality. In Euro coming in at 130 Euro each.

We could prob sneak you a deal on the 165's ...

Keep me posted..

John Mc

MarcusP12

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

We could prob sneak you a deal on the 165's ...

Keep me posted..

John Mc

When you say deal,what are we talking for 2? I'll be honest and declare that my builders electrician can get ceiling speaks wholesale so I'll find out what he can get and at what price and stay in touch with you but if you want to let me know whats the best deal you can do for those ones then at least I know what I'm dealing with....thanks a million...(anxiously keeping an eye on the front door for my monitor audio speakers!!should be here very soon which would be mighty impressive!)

Richersounds.ie: John

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

We could prob sneak you a deal on the 165's ...

Keep me posted..

John Mc

When you say deal,what are we talking for 2? I'll be honest and declare that my builders electrician can get ceiling speaks wholesale so I'll find out what he can get and at what price and stay in touch with you but if you want to let me know whats the best deal you can do for those ones then at least I know what I'm dealing with....thanks a million...(anxiously keeping an eye on the front door for my monitor audio speakers!!should be here very soon which would be mighty impressive!)

Whatever you do check out what brand of speakers your sparks is getting - there are some woeful 'speakers' out there available from Electrical Wholesalers that shouldn't be installed in a kennel!!

Keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew  

MarcusP12

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

Whatever you do check out what brand of speakers your sparks is getting - there are some woeful 'speakers' out there available from Electrical Wholesalers that shouldn't be installed in a kennel!!

Keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew  

Yeah no, I wont put up any rubbish, builder was talking about Bose speakers alright but I need to see what the costs are and what spec hes proposing...ill keep in touch with you guys on it....speakers arrived...s200 up and running already....fabulous clear sound...thanks for another great service experience!

Richersounds.ie: Kenny

MarcusP12 wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

Whatever you do check out what brand of speakers your sparks is getting - there are some woeful 'speakers' out there available from Electrical Wholesalers that shouldn't be installed in a kennel!!

Keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew  

Yeah no, I wont put up any rubbish, builder was talking about Bose speakers alright but I need to see what the costs are and what spec hes proposing...ill keep in touch with you guys on it....speakers arrived...s200 up and running already....fabulous clear sound...thanks for another great service experience!

Hey MArcusP12.

glad you have the S200 up and running. It really does sound excellent :D

Let us know once you get any pricing.

Have a good weekend.