Multi-room audio: What is it and how do you get it?

(Pocket-lint) - Multi-room audio is arsenic the sanction suggests, audio successful aggregate rooms. It's a conception that has been astir for galore years, with Sonos possibly being the pioneer. 

While the precise thought of pumping euphony astir respective rooms successful your location is present easier than ever, choosing the close strategy tin beryllium incredibly tricky. There are not lone aggregate companies offering assorted systems, but determination are galore platforms too, each offering antithetic experiences and compatibility with antithetic euphony services. 

We've compiled each the champion options disposable connected the marketplace to assistance you determine which multi-room audio strategy is for you.

What is multi-room audio?

Multi-room audio, enactment simply, is the quality to perceive to euphony successful respective rooms. Depending connected the strategy you choose, you'll either beryllium capable to play antithetic songs successful antithetic rooms astatine the aforesaid time, the aforesaid euphony successful each rooms, oregon conscionable a mates simultaneously.

Music played crossed a multi-room audio strategy tin travel from streaming services specified arsenic Spotify oregon Apple Music, oregon your ain idiosyncratic euphony postulation whether that beryllium connected a NAS (Network Attached Storage) drive, your computer, a CD oregon adjacent vinyl - with the close setup.

Multi-room audio systems thin to beryllium wireless and controlled utilizing an app, truthful speech from ensuring a powerfulness proviso is adjacent and you person your smartphone ready, speakers tin beryllium positioned wherever you similar successful your home. Naturally, you'll request astatine slightest 1 talker successful each country you privation to perceive euphony in.

How does multi-room audio work?

A multi-room strategy tin comprise a bid of speakers, whether they beryllium accepted wireless speakers, a soundbar oregon soundbase, oregon adjacent immoderate different AV equipment. You tin besides adhd a nexus strategy to a existent hi-fi setup with passive speakers, to crook it into a modern time philharmonic marvel. 

Different systems follow antithetic platforms and these platforms not lone find idiosyncratic acquisition and however each multi-room strategy works, but they besides dictate which speakers and systems enactment unneurotic and which don't. 

Sonos uses a closed mesh web for example, which initially connects to your location Wi-Fi, but past creates its ain network, truthful you're not utilizing your ain Wi-Fi erstwhile utilizing it. While galore trust connected the Wi-Fi acquisition alone, immoderate speakers besides connection further connectivity similar Bluetooth, this is recovered connected products similar the Sonos Roam and Bose Portable Home Speaker.

While multi-room audio has traditionally been dominated by hi-ii companies, specified arsenic Denon, Bose, Sony, Panasonic and Yamaha, the tech giants of Google, Amazon and Apple person present entered the fray excessively with their ain speakers.

In the bulk of cases, erstwhile you've chosen your multi-room system, you're tied into it. This means you can't premix and lucifer assorted speakers and expect them to enactment with each other.

However immoderate platforms, specified as Apple AirPlay 2, volition let you to prime and take whichever speakers you privation (so agelong arsenic they're compatible) and person them enactment successful harmony with 1 another. 

Whichever strategy you choose, erstwhile it's up and moving you tin usage an app connected your telephone oregon tablet to power it, oregon you tin adjacent present usage your dependable acknowledgment to Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri. 

What multi-room strategy should I buy?

Multi-room euphony systems travel successful assorted shapes and sizes, truthful choosing the champion 1 for you and your location tin beryllium a demanding task. We've compiled a database of the main players successful the multi-room audio game, from the all-conquering Sonos, to multi-room astute speakers and adjacent the small Google Chromecast Audio dongle. You're definite to find thing to suit you.

Sonos

Sonos is perchance the biggest and astir well-known subordinate successful the multi-room audio market. Sonos traditionally uses its ain Wi-Fi mesh web alternatively than Bluetooth, truthful the transportation isn't interrupted by different radical utilizing your broadband. The objection present is the Sonos Roam and Sonos Move, which incorporates Bluetooth, portion inactive integrating into the Sonos network.

You power everything via the Sonos app, compatible with Android and iOS - oregon the Sonos Controller app for Mac. Through the app, you tin adhd caller Sonos devices arsenic good arsenic motion into immoderate euphony services you subscribe to.

• Which Sonos talker is for you?

Denon Heos Home Speakers

Denon has its ain multi-room audio strategy called Heos. It's been astir for a agelong clip present and portion it has a akin talker lineup to Sonos astatine its core, Heos arsenic a level is disposable crossed a overmuch larger scope of products from some Denon and Marantz. Denon's Heos enabled speakers are person been rebranded arsenic Denon Home, but the underlying tech is the same, and they are inactive compatible with older Denon Heos models.

Like Sonos, Denon Heos uses a mesh Wi-Fi web truthful you tin lone link Heos-enabled products - which fortunately determination are galore of. Everything is controlled via the Denon Heos app, which is compatible with Android, iOS and Amazon.

• Which Heos talker is champion for you?

Bose

Bose is simply a large subordinate successful the audio world, truthful it's nary astonishment that it excessively has a scope of multi-room speakers. Falling nether the Bose Smart Home branding, Bose has 3 speakers and a assortment of location cinema options.

Bose Smart speakers link to Wi-Fi, but Bluetooth is besides supported, thing not each different systems successful this database tin offer. The speakers are controlled via the Bose Music app but determination is dependable power via Google Assistant oregon Alexa, arsenic good arsenic carnal controls connected the speakers themselves.

Compatible euphony services see Spotify, Deezer, Amazon Music, iTunes and Internet Radio. But with Bluetooth onboard, you tin watercourse virtually immoderate audio from a Bluetooth device. 

• Bose Portable Home Speaker review: Sound importantly beyond its size

Bang & Olufsen

Bang & Olufsen speakers nary longer connection multi-room capableness done BeoLink oregon the BeoMusic app, alternatively opting to see conscionable AirPlay 2 and Chromecast for integrated multi-room.

Bang & Olufsen besides typically includes Bluetooth and line-in truthful compatibility remains wide, but those looking for an each successful 1 multi-room solution whitethorn privation to look elsewhere.

• Which B&O Play talker is close for you?

Samsung

Samsung doesn't person arsenic overmuch of a absorption connected multiroom these days but it antecedently offered the R-series, with 360-degree dependable output, that proved precise fashionable particularly among Samsung devotees.

The R-series of speakers is present discontinued, but was comprised of the R1, R3, R5, R6 and R7. These speakers trust connected their ain mesh web to speech to each different and play euphony without being interrupted. 

• Samsung Wireless Audio 360: R6 and R7 speakers shingle up multi-room

Google Chromecast

Google is precise overmuch a protagonist of multi-room audio and its Chromecast built-in level tin beryllium recovered connected galore wireless speakers. The tech elephantine besides has its ain Chromecast Audio dongle that tin beryllium plugged into speakers, whether they beryllium Bluetooth oregon portion of a hi-fi strategy via a 3.5mm connection, turning them into Wi-Fi enabled multi-room speakers instead. 

The Chromecast built-in level is wholly open, truthful each compatible speakers volition enactment with 1 different and the fig of supported services is vast. You tin reflector the audio from a web browser oregon YouTube too. 

• Chromecast Audio explained

Apple AirPlay 2

Apple announced AirPlay 2 astatine WWDC 2017 and with it, introduced multi-room audio. Naturally, it's lone supported by Macs and iOS devices and you tin lone watercourse the aforesaid opus to aggregate speakers and rooms, alternatively than play antithetic ones astir the home. Manufacturers person been speedy to clasp the technology, either updating erstwhile speakers oregon releasing caller ones. 

• Apple AirPlay 2: What is it, however bash you get it and what devices are supported?

Writing by Britta O'Boyle. Originally published connected 14 January 2016.