Today I want to confess that I have never reviewed a Sonos product before. I have no acceptable excuse other than the opportunity has never occurred and a part of me was resistant to the hype surrounding this hugely popular range of wireless speakers that appears to have taken the audio world by storm.
All that changes today with my Sonos Era 300 wireless speaker review. This mid-range speaker is part of the next generation of smart speakers from Sonos that encompasses a new era in sound and design innovation.
The Era 300 is an unusual-looking wireless speaker in black or white. It’s been designed to deliver the best experience with spatial audio using Dolby Atmos. The Sonos Era 300 can be stand mounted and a pair of Era 300 would make an excellent pair of front or rear speakers for a home theater setup. However, my review considers the Era 300 for use as a general-purpose wireless speaker for playing music.
The Era 300 are the first speakers built to Sonos’ new responsible design standards. The product is designed to give long-term serviceability, has energy-efficient technologies and is made using recycled plastic.
Despite being a single speaker, the Era 300 has six powerful drivers that pump the sound out in all directions to create a sense of space when playing Dolby Atmos soundtracks or albums so that the listener can feel at the heart of the sound, whether that be a classic album remastered for Dolby Atmos or the latest movie soundtrack.
The Era 300 has an unusual hourglass shape and feels beautifully made. The housing is moulded and shaped to enhance the sound coming from its six drivers. Setting up is a complete joy and the Sonos app leads you through the process and makes everything flawless. Once the system is set up and logged onto your home Wi-Fi network, the speaker offers to start its Trueplay technology to customize the Era 300 to suit where in a room it is sited. The process takes a few seconds and the sound offers a foretaste of what the Era 300 is capable of.
As briefly mentioned, a pair of Era 300 speakers can be paired to make a stereo pair. Two Era 300s would make an excellent sound system for any room, especially if they are mounted on the custom Era stands that Sonos sells.
Sonos claims that it has worked closely with a community of leading artists and creators – including Sonos Soundboard members – to fine-tune Era 300 so that listeners can experience the sound the engineer and artist in the recording studio get to hear. That’s no idle boast as the clarity produced by the Era 300 is nothing short of astonishing. The midrange is about as clear as I’ve ever heard from a speaker of this size.
All six drivers inside the Era 300 produce a beautifully balanced sound close to perfect. Four tweeters and two woofers are each powered by their own Class D digital amplifier. The drivers are angled to create a spatial sound, but there is a slight lack of bass on certain tracks, depending on the original mix.
With Dolby Atmos tracks, the Era 300 comes into its own, filling the room with sound that seems to come from everywhere. It’s a revelation and incredibly exciting to hear, especially from such a relatively small cabinet.
While the Era 300’s sound is exemplary, the Sonos app is superb. Managing a multi-speaker system with the app is child’s play and the settings offer a good range of customization options, including EQ adjustments. Streaming services are easily accessed and with support for Apple AirPlay 2 and Bluetooth, there is the option to stream from almost any app running on a smartphone.
And now we come to the inevitable criticisms that come with every product. Sonos has chosen not to support Google Chromecast and when it comes to voice commands, you will have to opt for Amazon’s Alexa. That’s not a problem for me, but some people committed to Google Home will be disappointed. If you want to attach an analog device using a line-in input or prefer Ethernet instead of Wi-Fi, the Era 300 requires a separate adapter at an extra cost. I don’t see that as a drawback, but we all have our preferences.
Along with the smartphone app control, the Sonos Era 300 has touch controls built in for quick adjustment of the volume levels, paying and pausing the music, plus skipping and repeating tracks. I’d like to have seen a few touch presets for favourite radio stations or playlists, but the app can be used for that, or you can simply ask Alexa.
Verdict: The Sonos Era 300 is nearly as perfect as any wireless speaker can be. The spatial audio performance is fantastic. I suspect the two Era 300 speakers in a home theater setup with a Sonos soundbar and sub would make for one of the most accomplished movie sound systems on the market. Sonos appears to have the multiroom wireless speaker market sewn up with its unique combination of advanced technology and superb user experience. If there is a criticism of the Era 300, then the lack of Chromecast support would make this excellent speaker near perfect. Do yourself a favor! Get down to your nearest Sonos dealer and give this remarkable speaker an audition. Highly recommended.
Pricing & Availability: Sonos Era 300 is available now and costs $449 / £449 / €499.
More info: www.sonos.com
Tech Specs:
- Amplifiers: Six class-D digital amplifiers.
- Tweeters: 4.
- Woofers: 2.
- Microphones: Far-field microphone array with beamforming and multichannel echo cancellation.
- Microphone switch: Yes.
- Adjustable EQ: Yes. Bass, treble and Loudness adjustment via Sonos app.
- Trueplay acoustic customization.
- Bluetooth: Version 5.0.
- Apple AirPlay 2: Yes.
- Google Chromecast: No.
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax) on 2.4GHz and 5GHz
- App: iOS and Android.
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 160 x 260 x 185mm.
- Weight: 4.47kg.
- Finish: Matte black or white
- Voltage: 100 – 240V 50/60Hz internal power supply.
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