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Sonos BU130 - Wireless Multi-Room Music Streaming System - ZP100 & ZP80 Bundle Pack
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Average customer review:
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #67828 in Consumer Electronics
- Brand: Sonos
- Model: BU130UK
- Released on: 2007-04-27
Editorial Reviews
What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision Review
This system is a paragon of performance and usability – and now it’s cheaper than ever – what’s stopping you?
Manufacturer's Description
If you're looking for a simple, powerful, and stylish way to play your favorite music all over the house, look no further than the Sonos BU130 digital music system bundle, which includes everything you need to set up the audio system of your dreams. The system gets you started with two Sonos ZonePlayer units (one ZP100 and one ZP80) and a Sonos controller, enough equipment to cover two rooms with full digital music access. When you're ready to expand your wireless, multi-room digital music system, simply add more ZonePlayers and controllers as needed.
 With speaker outputs, analog RCA inputs and outputs, and a subwoofer out, the included ZP100 makes all the right connections. View larger. |
 With optical and coax digital outputs as well as analog RCA inputs and outputs, the included ZP80 is just as versatile. View larger. |
 The bundle also includes the powerful Sonos controller (view larger). |
 Put a ZP100 on your nightstand... View larger. |
 ...and a ZP80 in your home office. View larger. |
 And don't forget the workshop! View larger. |
 The bundle ships with Sonos Desktop Software, which makes system setup a snap, while also giving you complete control of your music system. View larger. |
With the ZP80 you can wirelessly stream the music you have stored on your PC or Mac to your home audio equipment -- your home theater receiver, stereo system, powered speakers, and more. Just connect a ZP80 to any amplified audio device in any room, and that device is instantly and seamlessly part of your wireless music system. You can even play the same song in different rooms or different songs in different rooms.
With up to 32 ZP80s set up in your home, you can use the full-colour Sonos Controller to wirelessly control all those devices from the palm of your hand. Sonos liberates the digital music that's stored on your PC, Mac or network attached storage (NAS) box and wirelessly streams it to any ZonePlayer in any room. You can access music stored on up to 16 devices on your home network, plus Internet radio, subscriptions to online audio services, and even music coming from an external audio source, like your favorite CD player.
You can also use a ZP80 to retrofit a conventional multi-room audio system with home-run speakers or as a wireless extender to increase the wireless range of your Sonos system. No matter where or how you use the amazingly compact ZP80, the digital and analog outputs will deliver superior sound to every room. And because it's designed to minimize noise and distortion, the music you hear will sound virtually identical to the original.
The ZP80 features optical and coax digital outputs for superior audio quality, so it's ready to connect to your high-end home theater or stereo system. There's even an analog audio input for connecting a CD or MP3 player directly to the ZP80, and you can listen to that music on all the other ZonePlayers in your house.
The ZonePlayer 100
The ZP100 brings great-sounding music to any and every room in your house, regardless of where your music collection is stored. That's because the ZP100, with its built-in amplifier, communicates wirelessly with your PC or Mac and sends the music directly to any connected pair of speakers. You can even play the same song in different rooms or different songs in different rooms.
With 50 watts per channel of power and a guaranteed total harmonic distortion of less than 0.02 percent, you can count on superior audio quality playback--without hisses, crackles, or hums. The first ZP100 connects to your broadband router, but you have total freedom with each additional ZonePlayer. You can put one in the basement, garage, kitchen, and anywhere else, as long as you also connect a pair of speakers. You can even connect the ZP100 to your favorite CD or MP3 player and listen to that music on all the other ZonePlayers in your house. Connectivity is easy, as the ZP100 features spring binding post speaker terminals, RCA-type line-in and line-out jacks, and a subwoofer out jack.
Simply put, the ZP100 is ready for any setup you have, large or small. You can even match the ZP100 with a pair of Sonos' very own SP100 loudspeakers, which are aesthetically and acoustically designed to complement your Sonos digital music system.
Sonos in Depth
The Zoneplayers are just one part of a complete Sonos digital music system. To make your system complete, you'll need access the Sonos controller (included in the bundle). The wireless Sonos controller gives you instant control over your entire digital music collection, along with Internet radio, subscriptions to online audio services, and even music from your favorite CD or MP3 player. You can turn off the upstairs music while you're downstairs. You can change the song in the kitchen from the den. Plus, the controller's full-colour 3.5-inch screen lets you see album art, browse playlists, get detailed track info, and more. To start listening, just pick a room, pick a song, and hit play. The controller even lets you queue the right tunes for the right moment; you can build, edit, and save playlists right from the palm of your hand.
The system supports up to 32 Sonos ZonePlayers throughout your home--from the bedroom to the backyard. Expansion options include additional ZP100s, or you can choose additional ZP80s, which don't have a built-in amplifier but instead connect directly to your home theater or stereo systems. You can also add more Sonos controllers to give more people access to your music library.
Sonos Setup and Software
You don't need to be a professional installer to set up a Sonos system, or a technical wizard to use it. Sonos was designed to work right out of the box. All you need is a high-speed Internet connection and a router to get started. Then, unpack your components, lay them out in your home, and the result will be music to your ears.
Sonos offers desktop software for PCs and Macs that's as simple to use as the Sonos controller. Designed with a user interface that accommodates a larger screen, the Sonos Desktop Controller software guides you through both setup and music sharing. It offers the exact same functionality as the Sonos controller, but instead of being in the palm of your hand, it's all on your desktop. You can also use it to set up music folders on your hard drive or to add and edit Internet radio stations.
Box Contents
Customer Reviews
Simple genius
It took a long while before I took the plunge with the quite pricey Sonos kit - but I have never regretted it for a millisecond. This is a simply brilliant product, which does exactly what it says it does and more.
Installation: a doddle. I'm running through a router and NAS box - no issues with setup, wireless or software.
Reliability: breathtaking. I've had no more than 2 or 3 wireless glitches in all the time I've had the kit (9 months), and they were no more than barely noticeable 'jumps' or pauses. Once in a while the controller locks up, but clears itself after a minute or two. Once and only once did it lock up utterly, but the reset sequence rebooted it and all was well.
Music performance: immaculate. Quality is stunning. I'm running a ZP80 into a Nad 350 with some decent interconnects, and out through Epos M12s and I have zero issues. I'm ripping CDs to minimum 256kb VBR MP3s and I can't tell the difference between them and CDs. For downloads, I'm only taking E-Music or Audio Lunchbox high bit rate VBRs. If you are daft enough to buy something from the rancid nonsense that is iTunes, you will hear the difference - sound quality is crap and the Sonos will prove it. I've tried lossless, but I'd have to work hard to convince myself there was any difference between them and my MP3s.
Controller: just great. Simple, fast, efficient (better features than an iPod), a joy to use. The charging cradle works fine (I plug it in about once a week).
Updates: I've already had a couple of software updates, which have added minor but useful functionality. All installed without any issues.
Extras: if you are into radio or streaming Internet audio, this is the kiddie for you. Just loads and loads of radio stations and the like. I occasionally use it to listen to Test Match Special!
Summary: I left my CD player in place when I bought the Sonos kit, meaning to buy another couple of interconnects and get it working. It never happened - there is absolutely no point. The only place I listen to CDs now is in the car. Sonos is utterly brilliant, and has revolutionised my music listening. Combined with great download sources like E-Music, I'm listening to music like I used to when I was 20! For sheer ease of use, it's unbeatable
Yes, it's not cheap, but it's worth every single penny, not something I usually say about a product of any type.
wow
Simply the most impressive technology I've ever seen. Plug and play simplicity together with great form and function. The quality of the amplifier on the ZP100 is well worth the £100 premium over the ZP80.
As well as the well documented "ipod for the home" element allowing your digitised files to stream all over your current home hifi, you can also pass your cd / tape / etc player through any of the zoneplayers to stream that audio source throughout your networked house.
The simplicity of the setup is well discussed but still quite amazing, plug in the first zoneplayer, connect it to your router or computer, install the software, locate your shared music folder, allow the zonplayer to index your music, and the sonos does all the rest! adding more zoneplayers simply involves plugging them in. The zonecontroller is also plug and play, with lovely features like motion detection to switch on, and an intuitive interface. The primary PC also has a software version of the controller.
The sonos system becomes effectively less expensive the more rooms it is used in, and one of the best features is the way in which the same music can be streamed to every room in the house, at specific volumes for each room.
If only all technology was this good.
Simplicity defined
It took me less than 15 minutes to unpack, plug in, install the software, index my music collection and start playing. Clear and simple user interfaces on both the PC application and the controller made getting the system up and running very easy.
I have had a number of networked media players in the past, they all worked, but most were rather clunky and required a good understanding of networking to get them to work correctly. No so with the Sonos system. The only network knowledge you need is the address of the server holding your music collection.
I am not using a PC to hold my music, but a Buffalo TerraStation - there were no problems with this, I just entered the address of my TerraStation and everything just worked.
Selecting tracks to play is simplicity itself. I was a bit concerned that navigating through over 6000 tracks would be problematic, or slow. It is neither. It goes to show that a decent user interface can make or break a product.
The multi-room capabilities are rather impressive. It is possible to link "zones" together so that they all play the same music.
The only thing to note is that this bundle does not include the controller charging cradle that is shown in the picture. I suppose it doesn't actually say it is included, but I was expecting it.
