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New Sonos OS Will Enable Hi-Res Audio, New Features

hifinutt

hifinutt

hifinutt
Wireless speaker pioneer Sonos has announced plans to a release a new operating system (OS) and app in June that will enable hi-res audio and other new features on all but a handful of its oldest products.

Details were scant, but the forthcoming Sonos S2 OS update will bring “usability updates and more personalization” in addition to an unspecified level of high-resolution sound.

The company said most of its products will be compatible with the new OS but noted that to download the new app, all products in a system must support S2.

Sonos owners will receive a notification in June when the S2 app is available for download; existing speaker settings and preferences will update automatically.

“Some of our oldest products, previously referred to as ‘legacy’ products, will not support the advances of S2 due to their memory and processing power,” Sonos said in a statement.

To avoid another misstep like the faux pas in January that prompted a public apology by CE Patrick Spence, Sonos was careful to point that owners of older products “can continue to use your system as you do today.”

S2-compatible Sonos products include Play:1, Play:3, Play:5 (Gen 2), Playbase, Playbar, Connect (Gen 2), Connect:Amp (Gen 2), One (Gen 1), One (Gen 2), One SL, Beam, Amp, Port, Boost, Symfonisk, Move, Sub (Gen 1), and Sub (Gen 2).

The following older products will not be compatible with S2: Zone Players, CR200, Bridge, Connect (Gen 1), Connect:Amp (Gen 1), and Play:5 (Gen 1).

Owners of wireless systems that include a mix of old and new Sonos speakers will have the option of not updating to the new S2 operating system so they can keep using the system as is they do now. The current app will be renamed the Sonos S1 Controller and continue working with existing music and voice services.

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/new-sonos-os-will-enable-hi-res-audio-new-features
 
Is it not still hindered by the hardware? My understanding was the flexibility is great but overall sound was lacking?
 
agracie said:
Is it not still hindered by the hardware? My understanding was the flexibility is great but overall sound was lacking?
Click to expand...
Sonos speakers sound great for what they are, the new ‘connect’ device will integrate your hifi into the system, good news if you have existing devices.
 
Yeah, I was always on the fence about Sonos and ended up with RPi’s as felt it was less of an investment for streaming platform (although have probably spent a fair penny on them since then what with the different hats). I’m happy with the multi room system I have using the RPi’s. I always preferred the flexibility of my own speakers and a Sonos connect in each room would have been considerably more was my understanding.
 
Not so flexible if new products after May 2020 (S2 only) cannot connect/group with S1 legacy kit, however as a long term user (10+ years) I am also waiting for more S2 details from Sonos. ONe thing they'll need to get right is support for WAV if they want to do 'hi-res' well; currently this is 'ooor' and though I don;t expect full idv3 support at least thry could (re-)introduce the ability to FF or REW, or select a track position. If they get most thignts right I may even stretch to the Sonos amp for the lounge/TV system (driving wall-mounted B&W DM302's)

Let's see....

PS how to identify 'Gen 1' kit isn't exactly clear on the website, either! EDIT I have just logged onto my Sonos account via the web and it shows what kit you have and whether it's S1 or S2. Also, when looking to buy, for example, an 'S2 Connect', apparently 2015 was the year S1 became S2 and the month/year of manufacture is next to the serial number underneath the device.
 
Just moved part of our system to Naim (Atom and QB2) away from Sonos - the step up in sound quality is striking - but the family (excl me) find Sonos app and system much easier to use.....
 
LostAtSea said:
Not so flexible if new products after May 2020 (S2 only) cannot connect/group with S1 legacy kit, however as a long term user (10+ years) I am also waiting for more S2 details from Sonos.
Click to expand...

sorry was referring to the rpi system being more flexible than Sonos. Due to the multiple OS’s there are available to suit my needs. I always saw Sonos as highly inflexible.
 
sorry agracie, I wasn''t responding to your comment!! it was just a general moan about Sonos not pandering to my home streaming needs :) am also an rPi user and agree that the ecosystem does almost anything you can conjure up!
 
LostAtSea said:
Not so flexible if new products after May 2020 (S2 only) cannot connect/group with S1 legacy kit, however as a long term user (10+ years) I am also waiting for more S2 details from Sonos. ONe thing they'll need to get right is support for WAV if they want to do 'hi-res' well; currently this is 'ooor' and though I don;t expect full idv3 support at least thry could (re-)introduce the ability to FF or REW, or select a track position. If they get most thignts right I may even stretch to the Sonos amp for the lounge/TV system (driving wall-mounted B&W DM302's)

Let's see....

PS how to identify 'Gen 1' kit isn't exactly clear on the website, either! EDIT I have just logged onto my Sonos account via the web and it shows what kit you have and whether it's S1 or S2. Also, when looking to buy, for example, an 'S2 Connect', apparently 2015 was the year S1 became S2 and the month/year of manufacture is next to the serial number underneath the device.
Click to expand...

Good that Sonos are finally moving this way. I too am a I user and have found the Picoreplayer ecosystem better suits my aims. With their well received amp and this news they may become a more tempting proposition to many.
 
I notice that Sonos have a Beta stream; just wondered if anyone has tried the new OS etc...

Still, only a few days to wait now.
 
I have a couple Sonos Amps and use the line-in to listen to my LP12. I’m curious if the inclusion of hi-rez will improve the capability of the A/D conversion, if that is possible.

Looking forward to the improvement in keeping grouped rooms defined.
 
Available now. Looks rather pretty but time will tell...............

Not the easiest to find though (iOS). The old app updates to Sonos S1 and you then need to go into the App Store, find S1 and scroll right down to fine "More from Sonos"
 
By definition - we are not the target market for Sonos. As I spend silly money on hifi friends etc assume I'm an expert and ask me what they should buy. I just say "Sonos' and they are all happy - from my local pub, to my builder who went from one to a houseful over a year. He won't care about hi res, as he's happy just to have music wherever he goes, and Sonos just works.
 
I thought HD was coming with S2 but even if it does, it is unlikely to change anything sound wise.
It has to be an exercise in "ticking a box" for Sonos.

Sonos is great for TV, good for streaming, multi-room etc. but as Jem said, no hifi pretensions at all.
 
JemHayward said:
By definition - we are not the target market for Sonos. As I spend silly money on hifi friends etc assume I'm an expert and ask me what they should buy. I just say "Sonos' and they are all happy - from my local pub, to my builder who went from one to a houseful over a year. He won't care about hi res, as he's happy just to have music wherever he goes, and Sonos just works.
Click to expand...

There are some days when I think I could strip it all down to 2x Sonos 5's on stands (My wife would say should rather than could). I'd then be at least a couple of hundred £s a month better off together from whatever I'd get from my kit, records and CDs.... it'll never happen though ;)

I've installed the upgrade and think it has a little more depth and presence on the single Sonos 5 we have in the lounge but, having upgraded and therefore deleted the previous iteration, any comparison is via a very unreliable memory.
 
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