In The Who’s The Song is Over, Pete Townshend wrote,

…I’ll sing my song to the wide open spaces

I’ll sing my heart out to the infinite sea

I’ll sing my vision to the sky high mountains

I’ll sing my song to the free, to the free…

What Mr. Townshend couldn’t have known when he composed this rather prophetic song was the dawning of a new way of enjoying music. You can now listen to your downloaded and internet music where you want it, when you want it. It is called the Sonos Multi-Room Music System, and it may be the key for opening the door to the next generation in the home theater industry. For those who desire an innovative, effective, and attractive wireless home theater, this is worth a second look.

Upon disassembling the components included in this system, otherwise known as a “bundle pack”, it seemed that looking up the number for the Geek Squad was the first step necessary to setting up the system. Don’t let the intimidating packaging fool you, however. Once I took a deep breath and dove in headfirst, I was pleasantly surprised at the truth to their claims for a “quick and easy setup”. The instructions were clear and concise, and will lead even the most novice computer user through the set up without need for outside assistance. For those who do get easily frustrated, 24/7 help is advertised as being only a toll-free phone call away, which is prominently posted in the instruction manual. If you are anxious about risking aesthetics by introducing new components to your current system, this was well-thought out by Sonos also. The Sonos’ compact and contemporary design nullifies any chance of it clashing with the most upscale home theater. It will not only complement, but will enhance any decorating scheme you currently enjoy.

The Sonos bundle pack, known as the Bundle 150, includes two zone players, two speakers, a full-color remote control with charging base, a zone bridge, necessary cables and software. This is a good start in setting up your new system, as it allows you to enjoy music in two rooms of your house, or “zones”, without the need for wires. To listen to music in more rooms or floors, simply buy more zone players either from the Sonos website, Sonos.com, or various electronics stores. They retail from $250 to $500 depending on whether or not they have built-in amplifiers. I bought an extra zone player at Best Buy to have the ability to listen to music to all three floors of my house, hooked it up to an extra set of speakers I already had, and was set up to hear music in a third zone in less than ten minutes.

For your Sonos system to get started, the minimum requirements are a home theater consisting of a receiver and a set of speakers. To optimize its full capabilities, however, it will play the digital music files stored on your computer via the zone bridge. Your PC must have Vista, Windows XP, or Macintosh OS X, and a router with a DSL/cable modem. The compact zone bridge comes with cables to connect it from your PC to your router. Additionally, the system also includes software to make the setup simple and quite fast. Once I realized that my Windows firewall needed to be programmed to allow me to setup a Sonos, I was enjoying my new system within an hour of opening the box.

The convenience of a wireless home theater sound system makes the Sonos a frontrunner for listening to all of your home computer’s music. Even if your home already has built-in wiring, you can make a wired connection to additional zone players or bridges. So whatever music is in your computer’s library can be played any of your zones by loading the included CD on your desktop controller (PC), any laptop, or the included remote control. Plus, the zones can be linked together to all play the same song, or can be programmed instantly to play different songs in all the zones. So, if a family has multiple zones with multiple controllers (laptops, I-phones, desktop pcs) all members can listen to their choice of music, uninterrupted and in the privacy of the room (zone) they programmed it to play in.

To make this system even more spectacular, an Apple I-phone now has the capability to be loaded with Sonos, which can make it a controller as well. So if you already own an I-phone and a home theater, a less expensive route to owning a Sonos system would be to buy the zone bridge ($99) and zone players separately. You would probably cut the cost in half, and have the same system as a bundle, minus the Sonos controller and charger base. The BU150 that I reviewed retails for a little under $2,000.00. Another feature to add to the wow factor of this system is that internet radio can also be played on this. An advantage to purchasing a bundle pack is the included three 30-day trials to Sirius, Rhapsody, and Napster, as well as free Last.fm that is preloaded on the software.

Once the software is loaded onto your computer, the zone players are working with the touch of a button. A zone player (ZP) 90 is connected to the room your receiver is in, while a ZP120, which has a built-in amplifier, is connected to the speakers, enabling the user to put them in any room you desire music in your house. Another convenient feature is its portability: for example, if you are having an outdoor party, take the ZP120 and speakers out of your bedroom and put them on your deck, and you amped up your party in an instant. The only drawback to the Sonos system that I can find is that the zone bridge is a unit that needs to be connected to your wireless router, so this room would not have the ability to be connected as a zone to listen to music in. According to the owner’s manual however, I discovered that even this minor flaw can be fixed with the purchase of a ZP80 or ZP100, but it was not necessary for me to configure this.

The entertainment value of the Sonos seems limitless. If all of the above mentioned qualities still don’t have you convinced, the zone players all come equipped with ports, called line-ins, that can hook up to any portable CD, DVD, or MP3 players, even your TV. Would make a great idea for your next Super Bowl party! It seems that although the price for this system is a bit steep, the benefits far outweigh the cost, and the years of enjoyment it will provide prove it is worth its weight in gold. So if you are looking to vamp up your existing home theater and can afford what will most likely be the next best thing in the electronics world, I encourage you to pursue the Sonos. Which is good news for Pete Townshend and the rest of us music lovers. The song will never be over! You will be enjoying all of your music the way it was meant to be, with you at the controls.