Bluetooth speaker recommendations

3,542 Views | 23 Replies | Last: 3 yr ago by Ragoo
cityagboy
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AG
I am going to buy a new speaker for our living room. We have an open kitchen/ living room. Currently have the bose mini but I want something with a little more power.

What should I look at?
NPH-
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AG
I've heard good things about the sonos stuff. Cousin-in-law has one and its absolutely amazing at his place.

Only downside of the typical sonos setup is how expensive it is.
Claude!
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You could also look into Audioengine, based out of Austin. I have a pair of their speakers for my desktop and have been reasonably pleased with them.
cityagboy
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AG
What about sound bars with Bluetooth and subs? $300ish...
Swope McGee
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AG
I just got the Sonos Move amd it's awesome. It can connect via WiFi or Bluetooth and is portable. It's not as portable as a speaker I'd take to the lake, but it's ideal if you want to move it from the kitchen to the patio. It charges via a rubber ring so you just lift it off and move it.
G Martin 87
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AG
A Sonos One is your best bet. Great sound with full Alexa/Google support. Start with a single and add more later as needed. (I have one in my kitchen and a second in the master bath. Will get a Move next so I can set it up in the game room and take it on the patio when needed.) Some shopping decisions are tough. Not this one.

https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/sonos-player/
agracer
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AG
Do you have to have the sonos App on your phone/tablet to make it work? I really don't want another App and LOGIN on my phone...I feel like the 50 I have are enough... (I know, first world problems)...
Jasomania
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AG
agracer said:

Do you have to have the sonos App on your phone/tablet to make it work? I really don't want another App and LOGIN on my phone...I feel like the 50 I have are enough... (I know, first world problems)...
Yes and no. You would need the app to set it up and for grouping speakers but if got the Sonos One with Alexa you could use voice commands for most of your music. There are some services that don't have Alexa support you'd have to run through the Sonos app like Tidal or Soundcloud but Amazon Music, Spotify and Apple Music should all work via voice. Even then if you use spotify you don't need to use the Sonos app, you can use spotify connect within the spotify app. And they have Airplay support so you can always beam stuff directly through that.

Regardless if this is going to be a speaker that you keep in one room Wifi Speakers such as Sonos (or Heos / Bose / Amazon Echo / Google Home Max) are the way to go. Sonos is like chromecast so it is playing the music via the speaker it self, not your phone so if you get a notification or call or step out of range it doesn't interrupt the music. You can even shut your phone off completely and the music would keep playing.
agracer
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AG
Jasomania said:

agracer said:

Do you have to have the sonos App on your phone/tablet to make it work? I really don't want another App and LOGIN on my phone...I feel like the 50 I have are enough... (I know, first world problems)...

Regardless if this is going to be a speaker that you keep in one room Wifi Speakers such as Sonos (or Heos / Bose / Amazon Echo / Google Home Max) are the way to go. Sonos is like chromecast so it is playing the music via the speaker it self, not your phone so if you get a notification or call or step out of range it doesn't interrupt the music. You can even shut your phone off completely and the music would keep playing.
Oh, good to know. I was wondering why they were set up that way and did not have bluetooth.

Looks like I can get a Sonos Play 1 and utilize it for music (pair at Costco is $229 on sale), but to use them for a TV or surround sound I'd need a Sonos Beam or Playbar to link the TV/Apple TV to the surround speakers (since the Play 1 does not have airplay).

Sonos One SL does have AirPlay...which seems ridiculous that's a $25 add for what seems to be the same speaker! Costco has them for $339....maybe I'll wait until they go on sale so I have the option to hook them to the Apple TV in the future.
CrawfordAg
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AG
Not pretty to look at but damn it fills a room...


https://www.amazon.com/Aiwa-Exos-9-Portable-Bluetooth-Speaker/dp/B00WF78GS4/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=3JJ9YKW8IEPB4&keywords=aiwa+exos-9&qid=1578522234&sprefix=aiwa+exos-9%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExMlFQQjQzN1lZUzVYJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzQ4Nzg3M05TU1RWVFdPNFVSNCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTk5OTM5MzFSS0IyNE4wMUIxTyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=
Jasomania
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AG
I was looking at the Sonos Beam and a potential downside is it seems to only have 1 HDMI input and no pass through so if you connect it to your TV via the Arc connection you'll lose video functionality from that port. It may not be that big of a deal but HDMI ports can be a precious commodity.
jay040
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Might be worth holding off till products with Bluetooth LE are released?
DonaldFDraper
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AG
I recently upgraded to Sonos from an Amazon Echo centric set up and could not be happier.

I had a Polk Command bar, Echo, and a couple Echo Dots with external speakers. I was constantly having to reset speakers and configurations to get whole home audio.

Now I have a Beam, Sonos One, and Move. The audio quality is a significant upgrade and the software/integration works flawlessly. I can easily manage everything from my phone between the Sonos app and/or within apps natively like Spotify or Apple Podcasts. O and it is as fully capable as an Alexa device as any of the Echos; handles voice commands, smart home features, etc. exactly the same.

Sonos isn't cheap but the quality is top notch.

I am planning on building out the rest of my inventory slowly. Potentially, I'd like to add a sub to the Beam and a few other speakers. I have a traditional AV system in the media room; I doubt they will but I wish Sonos would come out with an affordable Chromecast audio or Echo Inout type device to integrate existing speakers.

Ikea and Sonos came out with a speaker lamp and bookshelf speaker recently that are intriguing...

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/search/products/?q=Sonos
Philo B 93
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CrawfordAg said:

Not pretty to look at but damn it fills a room...


https://www.amazon.com/Aiwa-Exos-9-Portable-Bluetooth-Speaker/dp/B00WF78GS4/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=3JJ9YKW8IEPB4&keywords=aiwa+exos-9&qid=1578522234&sprefix=aiwa+exos-9%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExMlFQQjQzN1lZUzVYJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzQ4Nzg3M05TU1RWVFdPNFVSNCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTk5OTM5MzFSS0IyNE4wMUIxTyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=


That monster looks beautiful to me. I looked at that before buying a JBL Boombox. I highly recommend the Boombox, but I wonder how it compares to that Aiwa.
agdoc2001
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AG
Look at the SVS prime wireless

https://www.svsound.com/collections/prime-wireless
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AGGIEZ99
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AG
DonaldFDraper said:

I recently upgraded to Sonos from an Amazon Echo centric set up and could not be happier.

I had a Polk Command bar, Echo, and a couple Echo Dots with external speakers. I was constantly having to reset speakers and configurations to get whole home audio.

Now I have a Beam, Sonos One, and Move. The audio quality is a significant upgrade and the software/integration works flawlessly. I can easily manage everything from my phone between the Sonos app and/or within apps natively like Spotify or Apple Podcasts. O and it is as fully capable as an Alexa device as any of the Echos; handles voice commands, smart home features, etc. exactly the same.

Sonos isn't cheap but the quality is top notch.

I am planning on building out the rest of my inventory slowly. Potentially, I'd like to add a sub to the Beam and a few other speakers. I have a traditional AV system in the media room; I doubt they will but I wish Sonos would come out with an affordable Chromecast audio or Echo Inout type device to integrate existing speakers.

Ikea and Sonos came out with a speaker lamp and bookshelf speaker recently that are intriguing...

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/search/products/?q=Sonos

Hope you kept your receipt...

https://www.the-sun.com/lifestyle/tech/297859/sonos-reveals-plot-to-make-its-old-speakers-obsolete-and-they-may-stop-working/

TAMUallen
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AG
Philo B 93 said:

CrawfordAg said:

Not pretty to look at but damn it fills a room...


https://www.amazon.com/Aiwa-Exos-9-Portable-Bluetooth-Speaker/dp/B00WF78GS4/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=3JJ9YKW8IEPB4&keywords=aiwa+exos-9&qid=1578522234&sprefix=aiwa+exos-9%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExMlFQQjQzN1lZUzVYJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzQ4Nzg3M05TU1RWVFdPNFVSNCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTk5OTM5MzFSS0IyNE4wMUIxTyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=


That monster looks beautiful to me. I looked at that before buying a JBL Boombox. I highly recommend the Boombox, but I wonder how it compares to that Aiwa.


JBL Boombox certainly fills a room if centrally placed. Outdoors it seems weak unless cranked all the way up. Outdoor bass dissipates quickly. I think the boombox could be great and loud with 2 boomboxes on a baseball field but a single leaves it lacking across the stands, infield, outfield but is still nicely audible anywhere if there are no other active speakers. If there was a great sale and you could buy a unit behind homeplate, first and third it would make a beyond great portable outdoor sound system
DonaldFDraper
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AG
I saw that. All of my system is newer generation fortunately. But a bit concerning going forward.

The response seems overwhelmingly negative so maybe they'll reverse course.

https://www.engadget.com/2020/01/23/sonos-legacy-devices-will-still-work/
SWLAg
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AG
Donald, I'm looking at doing the almost exact same set up. I'm assuming you can play music from your phone via Sonos app or air play to the beam, one(s), and move all at the same time correct? Also what about TV audio like for a game? I know I can pair the ones (I'll probably do 2 of those) with the beam for a 5:1 surround directly from the TV via HDMI Arc but curious about the move. Looks like the app has a Tv portion and will be doing either DirectTV now or YouTube live once our home construction is complete. Basically want to sync up all the speakers (beam, 2-ones, and move) to have a game on while people are over.
adamsbq06
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AG
If you're in San Antonio I can help. I have a small AV venture and Sonos is one of the product groups I sell.

Andy@andrewadamsav.com
SWLAg
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AG
Unfortunately I'm not, not even Texas anymore. Do you know if they will work for what I'm wanting?
adamsbq06
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AG
Yeah the beam works pretty seamlessly. when you play music from the app it works great then when you say pick up your Apple TV remote to switch to watch a movie it just switches over. controls are pushed through via ARC over HDMI.
DonaldFDraper
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AG
Sorry. Just saw this.

You can easily do this through the Sonos app. Start playing the game on the TV connected to the Beam then go to the Sonos app on your phone, hit "Group", then you can select what speakers you want that content played on.
Builder93
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AG
Aiwa Exos-9. Thank me later..

https://smile.amazon.com/Aiwa-Exos-9-Portable-Bluetooth-Speaker/dp/B00WF78GS4/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=BL2GMJ5AF776&dchild=1&keywords=aiwa+exos-9&qid=1585087424&sprefix=aiwa+%2Caps%2C176&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUE3NFFLRUVKNTU5SFQmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA5NjE4OTcyU0FIWVlGVzIxQUdEJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA1OTk5MzkzMVJLQjI0TjAxQjFPJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==
Ragoo
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AG
https://www.jbl.com/bluetooth-speakers/JBL+LINK+10.html?dwvar_JBL%20LINK%2010_color=Black-USA-Current&cgid=bluetooth-speakers#mrkgadid=959677583&mrkgcl=741&mrkgen=gtext&mrkgbflag=1&mrkgcat=brand&utm_campaign=Con%7CText%7CBrand&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=Google&utm_term=jbl_speakers&utm_content=Home%2BAudio%7CSpeakers&device=m&network=g&matchtype=e&locationid=%7Bloc_phyiscal_ms%7D&creative=367911360846&targetid=kwd-16444292&campaignid=1498407814&adgroupid=57201107439&kxconfid=unnmhyek8&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrsiB7rPR6AIVvf_jBx3exwMZEAAYASAAEgJxNPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&start=1
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