TTS / Announcements / Music - Local

[simplextech]

43 minutes ago, larryllix said:

Sonos on a budget? LOL! It would be cheaper to install hard wiring from a central amp and then replace all your drywall.

Yes Sonos on a budget.  Getting two maybe three speakers is on a budget

Not looking for a whole house audio system (although 3 would about cover it) and I'm not looking for a full theater setup or surround sound system.  Just looking at options for some music in my office area and TTS notifications then perhaps one Sonos One in the Living Room for the same... The alternative is to use the echo's already in place but with the internet for TTS. 

However... in reading through docs and info today it actually seems all of the TTS solutions for Sonos are also internet dependent which really kills my initial interest in Sonos to start with......

[asbril]

On 6/17/2019 at 1:37 PM, Bumbershoot said:

Hear, hear to that.  Witness the current and ongoing Nest debacle for an example of this.  While very good products, if my Nest products (thermostat and doorbell) become invisible to my ISY in August, I'll take them out.

I guess that we all have our own experiences. My Sonos were Connect without amplifier, which I had connected to my existing amplifiers (in living area, bedroom area, and home office). In my case Chromecast works much better than my older Sonos, but I understand that many of you are happy with Sonos.

I also get the frustration with Google, but as mentioned my Google products, Google Wifi, Google Home and Chromecast, all work very well. However, right now I am sticking with Iphone over Android.

[larryllix]

Agreeing with Asbril, above, have a look at Google Home. I am not a google fan but those GH speakers sound as good as the Sonos I have heard and for 1/4 the price.

I have a 1000W Onkyo A/V receiver that supports Chromecast natively, and still costs less than three Sonos speakers. The Chromecast system synchronises perfectly between all devices. Even my mobile phone app synchronises sound with everything else. Amazon speakers don't but then I have the early Amazon models.

[lilyoyo1]

22 minutes ago, larryllix said:

Agreeing with Asbril, above, have a look at Google Home. I am not a google fan but those GH speakers sound as good as the Sonos I have heard and for 1/4 the price.

I have a 1000W Onkyo A/V receiver that supports Chromecast natively, and still costs less than three Sonos speakers. The Chromecast system synchronises perfectly between all devices. Even my mobile phone app synchronises sound with everything else. Amazon speakers don't but then I have the early Amazon models.

Which Google home sounds as good as Sonos? There's a huge difference between Google home and Sonos 1 in regards to sound quality.

The Google home Max though is a different beast. If it were simpy about sound I would take that against the play 5. The standard home though is a far cry from Sonos.

Sonos is expensive but it's worth every penny for me. I value Sonos over Amazon and Google because I'm not locked into a singular assistant yet all can be used as one. For example, I use Google home while my mom uses Amazon. When she comes to visit, her room is set up for Alexa. If I wanted to, I could change it to Google in the future if she decided to go a different route or I needed to repurpose that unit for something else.

The main thing however is automation purposes. It plays well with so many systems outside of those ecosystems. Go outside on the patio in the evening, my music starts playing. No needing to tell it to play or which playlist. 

 

[asbril]

3 hours ago, larryllix said:

Agreeing with Asbril, above, have a look at Google Home. I am not a google fan but those GH speakers sound as good as the Sonos I have heard and for 1/4 the price.

I have a 1000W Onkyo A/V receiver that supports Chromecast natively, and still costs less than three Sonos speakers. The Chromecast system synchronises perfectly between all devices. Even my mobile phone app synchronises sound with everything else. Amazon speakers don't but then I have the early Amazon models.

In the cold (Canada) and in the heat (Miami) great minds think alike.

[simplextech]

I am considering the Google Mini's as I already own 2 of those.  I'm looking through the forum trying to find info on how to use them for TTS.  I'm overlooking it or something...

[Bumbershoot]

28 minutes ago, simplextech said:

I am considering the Google Mini's as I already own 2 of those.

I've not looked into this, but will the changes happening within the Works with Google/Nest ecosystem have any impact on the Google Mini/ ISY interaction?  My assumption is that only Nest devices are impacted.

12 hours ago, simplextech said:

in reading through docs and info today it actually seems all of the TTS solutions for Sonos are also internet dependent

Yep.  No matter where you go, there you are...  TTS isn't mission critical in my installation.  If it gets interrupted or lags, I'll just turn it off.  Fortunately, that hasn't happened, and I'm sure I wouldn't be using it at all if it wasn't so easy to use/maintain.

[simplextech]

Yep.  No matter where you go, there you are...  TTS isn't mission critical in my installation.  If it gets interrupted or lags, I'll just turn it off.  Fortunately, that hasn't happened, and I'm sure I wouldn't be using it at all if it wasn't so easy to use/maintain.

I don’t think the google mini or hub chrome cast functionality will be affected by the nest changes. However I wouldn’t put it past Google to do something to block third parties from casting.

The TTS is not critical for me. Mostly a novelty that I like. Which is also why it’s hard to justify a high cost audio setup when I know it won’t get fully used.


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