[roastbeef]

sup dudes. let me preface this by saying that i'm not an audiophile by any stretch, but i want something better quality (and no hassle) than a blu tooth speaker i have to lug around and charge.

that being said, i want speakers wired underneath the overhang of my house in the backyard, and speakers wired into the garage. i don't need them both to be operating at the same time, but if i'm in my backyard (or garage), i want to just be able to open an app, connect, and hit play, and be able to control the volume with my phone.

is there a bigger advantage to wifi or bluetooth?

is there anything out there like that? it doesn't have to be super cheap, but i'm not looking to blow a bunch of money, either.

[HFW003]

I’ve used Sonos throughout my house, they are also portable so you can move them around should you like. They are operated by an app on the phone and whilst they’re not the best speakers in the world the certainly do me and I am a music lover not an audiophile.

[2000cs]

Another vote for Sonos- I believe they just announced an outdoor enclosure too.

[lsturbointeg]

most of the newer receivers have blutooth capability so it's pretty easy to play music using your phone. I do it all the time. as far as speakers you could get outdoor wireless speakers that way you don't have to run wires to both outside your house and your garage. check out avsforums.com. plenty of talk about the variety of speaker choices you can go with along with the receivers to support them

[dsad1]

New receivers have an Ethernet port or wireless, you can download an onkyo, Yamaha denom app. But if you are not an audiophile sonos is the easiest

[roastbeef]

i don't mind wiring speakers... the whole point of wiring them is so i don't have to worry about charging them.

[Grumpy Old Man]

I actually ran extension cords under my eves and hung a pair of Sonos 1's up there permanently for the back yard. I tucked them up really close so they are kept dry. The Sonos 1's are humidity protected so you can use them in the bathroom. I've had them out there two years and they work great. My back yard is 60' wide and about 40' from the back of the house to the neighbours fence. They won't give you concert volume but work really well for the space. I have another set on the covered front porch. Great sound and Sonos software is really easy and versatile I've attached a couple of pic so you get the idea. The mounting brackets are available at Best Buy and are made for Sonos and work great. Pics are aren't great, sorry.

I've included a close up of one of the speakers and the plastic case I used to run the wires, it can be painted I just haven't gotten around to it. Also included a pic of the brackets I used. I like them because they can tilt and swivel for optimum placement.

I like the Sonos 1 because they can be used in pairs for stereo which I've done on the front porch and back yard.

[2000cs]

Sonos is not wireless - they don’t need speaker wire which helps with placement but they do need power (AC).

[Grumpy Old Man]

Originally Posted by 2000cs

Sonos is not wireless - they don’t need speaker wire which helps with placement but they do need power (AC).

The OP has said he doesn't mind wiring them to avoid having to charge them. Whether you run speaker wire or AC is really moot.

[roastbeef]

wiring is fine. all i want is to be able to crack a beer in my backyard, pull out my phone, and have some tunes/podcasts going with a couple quick taps.

i looked on the sonos website for outdoor speakers, and it looks like what they have is "coming soon." so maybe they are between versions of speakers?

[Grumpy Old Man]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

wiring is fine. all i want is to be able to crack a beer in my backyard, pull out my phone, and have some tunes/podcasts going with a couple quick taps.

i looked on the sonos website for outdoor speakers, and it looks like what they have is "coming soon." so maybe they are between versions of speakers?

The sonos outdoor speakers will no doubt be very good, but they are expensive. I can provide a link with pricing, they are about $700 US if I'm not mistaken.

The other option if you want to run speaker wires is the Sonos Connect or Connect Amp if you don't have a home audio system with a second set of speaker outputs for your outdoor speakers. You can use regular outdoor speakers this way and use the Sonos system to control them. That was my previous set up and worked great. Honestly though for the money the Sonos Play 1 are excellent and as long as you have them tucked up under the eve or so they are out of the weather they work great. We get -20 degrees here and they haven't been bothered, and we get up into the high 90's with humidity in the summer. Like I said, over 2 years now and zero issues.

[2000cs]

For that you can just get a decent Bluetooth speaker and plug it in to the usb charger. Then take your time deciding what you want.

We use Sonos because that was about the only good wireless (again speaker wireless, not power wireless) option when we started, and we’ve kept staying with them as our system has grown. The app is good, can stream anything on our computers or phones, and can stream several dozen radio stations too. Also can connect to speaker output from TV to be either surround or just have tv sound throughout the house (sports).

[roastbeef]

there is a small overhang in the backyard, but its about 2', so nothing super sheltering- just enough to keep them from getting soaked.
i figured i would have to get an amp to run the two sets of speakers i had in mind, i just want them to be selectable. $700 might be a little more than i wanted to spend on speakers alone...

[2000cs]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

there is a small overhang in the backyard, but its about 2', so nothing super sheltering- just enough to keep them from getting soaked.
i figured i would have to get an amp to run the two sets of speakers i had in mind, i just want them to be selectable. $700 might be a little more than i wanted to spend on speakers alone...

You don’t need an amp to run Sonos. Just plug them in, set up using the app, and you’re listening to whatever. They do seem expensive (to me), but the are very versatile.

[Grumpy Old Man]

Originally Posted by 2000cs

You don’t need an amp to run Sonos. Just plug them in, set up using the app, and you’re listening to whatever. They do seem expensive (to me), but the are very versatile.

So if you go the Sonos route, you'll need the controller, the Play 1's are a seriously good deal at about $150 US each. The controller is about $350 US, you not cheap but it will give you what you want, the sound is really good and works well outside.

[2000cs]

Originally Posted by Grumpy Old Man

So if you go the Sonos route, you'll need the controller, the Play 1's are a seriously good deal at about $150 US each. The controller is about $350 US, you not cheap but it will give you what you want, the sound is really good and works well outside.

Not sure about the controller - we don’t use one. Just the speakers and the phone app. We have one Play5 which has an audio-in jack so that can take stereo output from our old wired system and push it to the Sonos speakers (great for using the turntable, or playing CDs). But mostly we just stream from the phone to the speakers.

We have a few Play1s, a pair of Play3s, a pair or of Play5s, a sound bar and a sub. We moved a year ago and the new house has a wired system in several rooms, so we used the Sonos to extend that to other rooms. Don’t need the sub and sound bar so they are in storage - this house had surround system already wired/installed.

[Grumpy Old Man]

Originally Posted by 2000cs

Not sure about the controller - we don’t use one. Just the speakers and the phone app. We have one Play5 which has an audio-in jack so that can take stereo output from our old wired system and push it to the Sonos speakers (great for using the turntable, or playing CDs). But mostly we just stream from the phone to the speakers.

We have a few Play1s, a pair of Play3s, a pair or of Play5s, a sound bar and a sub. We moved a year ago and the new house has a wired system in several rooms, so we used the Sonos to extend that to other rooms. Don’t need the sub and sound bar so they are in storage - this house had surround system already wired/installed.

You could be right there, I have the connect because I got that before I used the speakers, I use it with my home system for streaming and using the phone control.

[roller84]

Sonos has not announced any AC (aka active) powered outdoor speakers. What they have announced are passive outdoor speakers which would require low voltage wiring to a Sonos Amp. They partnered with a speaker manuafacturer called Sonance to sell their outdoor rated passive speakers. They will retail for $799/pair and will require that you power them with a Sonos Amp at $599 via speaker wire.

https://www.crutchfield.com/S-cryded...SABEgLCIfD_BwE

[Grumpy Old Man]

Originally Posted by roller84

Sonos has not announced any AC (aka active) powered outdoor speakers. What they have announced are passive outdoor speakers which would require low voltage wiring to a Sonos Amp. They partnered with a speaker manuafacturer called Sonance to sell their outdoor rated passive speakers. They will retail for $799/pair and will require that you power them with a Sonos Amp at $599 via speaker wire.

You're correct, I got an email from Sonos a while back, I quickly lost interest when I saw the price. The Play 1 works well for me outdoors for a fraction of the price.

https://www.sonos.com/en-ca/shop/out..._rid=111905570

[2000cs]

Originally Posted by roller84

Sonos has not announced any AC (aka active) powered outdoor speakers. What they have announced are passive outdoor speakers which would require low voltage wiring to a Sonos Amp. They partnered with a speaker manuafacturer called Sonance to sell their outdoor rated passive speakers. They will retail for $799/pair and will require that you power them with a Sonos Amp at $599 via speaker wire.

https://www.crutchfield.com/S-cryded...SABEgLCIfD_BwE

I like the “grumpy” solution. If you want to be even more flexible, just take a Play1 or two outside when you want them, and bring them back in when you’re done.

[Dog Face Pony Soldier]

The SONOS app interface is far better than any AV receiver app.

Putting a SONOS Play1 outside is definitely not recommended by SONOS. It may work, but be aware that you're coloring outside the lines.

I usually recommend utilizing a mono signal for outdoor audio installations (if possible). Because you're not usually even remotely centrally located between the speakers, and usually relatively far from the speakers, stereo separation can do more harm than good. Even if you were to use multiple Play1s, I'd still keep them as individual units rather than pairing them up.

Someone has already mentioned this, but I'd suggest a SONOS ConnectAmp with a pair or two of outdoor speakers.

[P1]

I have recently switched over to 100% Sonos. I have close to 10 zones, with a range from Play 1s, Play 5s, a few Sonos Amps and built-in ceiling speakers and outdoor speakers. Works well.

The cheapest way for you to get started is probably just buying a Sonos Connect (you can picked them up used for $200+ or so) and hooking that up to an amplifier you have lying around. Hook that amp up to your outdoor and garage speakers and off you go.