Echo Studio or Sonos 1 as Stereo Pair?

Witterings

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A friend who I definitely wouldn't describe as a HiFi enthusiast is looking for a small footprint step up from an Echo Dot for a reasonable size kitchn / living area.
I was thinking either a Sonos 1 or Echo Studio would be am improvement but if it still wasn't enough buy a 2nd of each and use them as a stereo pair.
Interested if anyone happens to have tried either or just opinions on whether they'd work well or not?
I did see one comment when researching saying as the Studio is Omnidirectional (guessing the Sonos probably is as well) wouldn't be great as a stereo pair.

I have tried convincing him he'd be better off with a decemt pair if Active speakers but unless the're quite a bit bigger which he doesn't want he's not going to see a huge jump in sound.

Any thoughts appreciated.
 

t1no

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A friend who I definitely wouldn't describe as a HiFi enthusiast is looking for a small footprint step up from an Echo Dot for a reasonable size kitchn / living area.
I was thinking either a Sonos 1 or Echo Studio would be am improvement but if it still wasn't enough buy a 2nd of each and use them as a stereo pair.
What phone or tablet does your friend use? And what streaming service (if any) do they use? If not an Apple device it could rule out using the Apple homepod.

Generally speakers that can be stereo paired would give a more realistic sound, but there are good single units with multiple drivers that can give a fairly decent soundstage. Something like the Technics Ottava C30/C50 might be the ticket. Other speakers from Yamaha, Denon might also be candidates.

Sony also do a 360 reality sound speaker but not heard them and reviews are mixed.
 

Witterings

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What phone or tablet does your friend use? And what streaming service (if any) do they use? If not an Apple device it could rule out using the Apple homepod.

Generally speakers that can be stereo paired would give a more realistic sound, but there are good single units with multiple drivers that can give a fairly decent soundstage. Something like the Technics Ottava C30/C50 might be the ticket. Other speakers from Yamaha, Denon might also be candidates.

Sony also do a 360 reality sound speaker but not heard them and reviews are mixed.
He does use an iPhone but isn't deeply into the Apple Eco System so I don't think that'd be the best option as they're not the most compatible with other services.
I think 90% of the time he just uses voice commands with the Echo Dot he currently has and I don't really see that changing, he may possibly sign up for Amazon Music Unlimited though.

His daugher is as likely to use it and cast playlists if they were having a family occasion, this could be done by BT so I was thinking it'd cover most bases.
Personally I think he'd be better off with a 1//2 decent pair of Active speakers and either plugging the 3.5mm out from the Dot into them or I have a WiiM mini he could have but I think he's sold on a single speaker ... guess I'm trying to cover bases in case he doesn't find that enough and wanted to add a 2nd speaker later on.

I'll take a look at the others you suggested (y)
 
Last edited:

lostwin

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We have a pair of Sonos 1 in our large family room. They pair together to create a proper stereo set up. They sound excellent for what they are, punchy and with surprisingly good imaging. The app is one of the best too. Recommend.
 

Witterings

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We have a pair of Sonos 1 in our large family room. They pair together to create a proper stereo set up. They sound excellent for what they are, punchy and with surprisingly good imaging. The app is one of the best too. Recommend.

Cheers for that .. I think it's what he may end up with.
 

DT79

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Although we naturally tend to recommend people go the ‘proper hi-fi’ route and it can be painful to when people don’t ‘get it’ I’ve learned that it’s pointless trying to educate anyone who doesn’t have that innate interest. I don’t mean any disrespect by this, in some ways they’re the lucky ones, but many people just can’t hear or appreciate what it is we spend so much time, energy and money striving for.

A pair of Play 1s is all that most people will ever need or care to pay for.
 
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Sumdumgi

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Cheers for that .. I think it's what he may end up with.

We have a Sonos One (Gen 2) paired with an SL in my wife's art room/studio. Excellent quality build, good sound, and Spotify works well through Alexa and the link to my NAS is rock solid - I think the Sonos App is superb. Highly recommended. (I've also a couple of Play 1's about the house and a Play 3 outside in the summerhouse.)
 

Three sheds

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We also have in our decent sized kitchen a Sonos One with Alexa built in. My wife uses it everyday mostly to play Internet radio.
I've toyed with getting another to pair it with but to be honest it's absolutely fine just on its own for general listening.
 
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Lawrence001

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I have an echo dot in the bedroom and while it's not Hifi it has its uses. If you're popping in for 2 minutes to get changed you don't want to double the time it takes by fiddling with a setting up a Bluetooth connection for another 2 minutes when you can just say Alexa play radio 3 or whatever.

Ditto popping in the kitchen to make a cuppa.
 

Witterings

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I have an echo dot in the bedroom and while it's not Hifi it has its uses. If you're popping in for 2 minutes to get changed you don't want to double the time it takes by fiddling with a setting up a Bluetooth connection for another 2 minutes when you can just say Alexa play radio 3 or whatever.

Ditto popping in the kitchen to make a cuppa.

Yes they do have ther uses for sure, I've got 4 dotted around the house (No pun intended :) ), one in the kitchen not wired in for alarms, reminders, weather forecast etc. and others in groups wired into hifi systems for easy multiroom where I'm not too concerned about quality and one in my study as I'm a nightmare with a diary so constantly set reminders for client calls ... it's also wired into a stereo so use it for radio as well and easy to stop if my work phone rings.

I wouldn't want one though as my only source of music in a large ish area where you have "gatherings" which soak up the sound and a patio area right next to that room that would be nice to at least get some sound to in the summer whilst sitting outside aand hence why he's looking for something with a bit more "meat" to it.
 
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Jubal

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Another Sonos vote here. I have stereo 1s in two rooms as casual listening. They work well with Alexa so the WAF is high too. I have loudness turned on in the settings as they’re a bit “light” otherwise. I also like the app. Which is a good thing as “casting”from other apps doesn’t always deliver best sound quality. Overall, you’d be surprised at how good they are.
 
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Burdy

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I have two previous generation Echo speakers (the cylindrical ones) set up as a stereo pair. I have been quite surprised at the sound quality - a lot better than expected. These previous generation echos have an aux input which is handy for non-streaming sources. A cheap solution too - a pair should not cost more than £50 and plenty to be had. For a bigger room add an Echo sub and set it up as a 2.1 system. In the Alexa App this is called home theatre.
 

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