As previously announced in columns (see our Sonos Era 300 and Era 100 news, Dolby Atmos multiroom surround speakers, etc.), the Sonos Era 300 and Era 100 can be used as surround speakers, combined with Sonos Arc soundbars or Sonos Beam Gen 2.
Sonos Era 300 and Sonos Era 100 for a Dolby Atmos Home Cinema setup
In the presence of a pair of Sonos Era 300 and a Sonos Arc, the sound system will thus offer extremely immersive Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 sound with true Height channels in the front and rear. Precision, the Sonos Era 300 Dolby Atmos support Spatial Audio titles available on the Amazon Music service. Other good news, contrary to initial rumours, the Spatial Audio titles offered by the Apple Music service will also be part of the party, for a listening experience that still focuses on immersion.
For their part, the Sonos Era 100 do not have height channels, even if they can of course be used as surround speakers.
Sonos Era 300 and Sonos Era 100, main specs
As a reminder, the Sonos Era 300 and Sonos Era 100 multiroom speakers will be equipped with Wi-Fi 6 Dual Band, AirPlay 2 and Bluetooth 5.0 technologies, not to mention the USB-C input that can be used as an Ethernet port or line input with the appropriate adapters. And as sensed by our colleagues from the site The Verge Google Assistant is not there due to an ongoing lawsuit between the two parties at the time of writing these lines, while Amazon Alexa and Sonos Voice are in the game. Finally, in addition to voice control, the integrated microphones allow the environment to be analyzed to optimize the audio rendering with the exclusive Trueplay calibration process.
Sonos Era 300 and Sonos Era 100, acoustic package! !!!
The Sonos Era 300 speaker has four tweeters, one of which is in the Up-Firing position for the Height channel, plus two ovoid-shaped broadband loudspeakers (see photo above). For its part, the Sonos Era 100 has two front tweeters placed at around 45° from the central axis plus a midrange-boomer which radiates frontally (see photo below). As usual, it is of course possible to combine two Sonos Era 100 or Era 300 to configure a real stereo system. Namely, the Sonos Era 100 is a mono speaker and the Sonos Era 300 is a stereo speaker.
The word to Giles Martin, vp Sound Experience at Sonos
“Like the transition from mono to stereo, spatial audio is the next evolution in listening, creating a sound experience that envelops you in the heart of the music. As creators and major streaming platforms embrace spatial audio for music, now is the perfect time to create a powerful listening experience that harnesses the full potential of this fabulous creative format.â€
Release date announced for March 28. Indicative prices: €279 for the Sonos Era 100, €499 for the Sonos Era 300.
Reminder of the key characteristics of the Sonos Era 100 speaker:
• Type: 1.0
• Tweeters: 2
• Medium-Boomer: 1
• Power: nc
• Sensitivity: nc
• Connections: 1 USB-C port for a line-in adapter or Ethernet port
• Certification: Hi-Res Audio
• Bluetooth 5.0 compatibility
• AirPlay 2 compatibility• Wi-Fi 6 compatibility
• 192 kHz/24-bit DAC
• Multiroom: yes
• TruePlay calibration function
• Dimensions (L x D x H): 120 x 130.5 x 185 mm
• Weight: 2.02 kg
Reminder of the key features of the Sonos Era 300 speaker:
• Type: 2.0
• Tweeters: 4
• Boomers: 2
• Power: nc
• Sensitivity: nc
• Connections: 1 USB-C port for a line-in adapter or Ethernet port
• Certification: Hi-Res Audio
• Bluetooth 5.0 compatibility
• AirPlay 2 compatibility
• Wi-Fi 6 compatibility
• 192 kHz/24-bit DAC
• Multiroom: yes
• TruePlay calibration function
• Dimensions (W x D x H): 260 x 185 x 160 mm
• Weight: 4.47 kg
