Whole Home Audio Systems
Jim RichardsonI edit the home A/V and pro audio articles on Crutchfield.com. It's a cool gig for a guy who's been seriously into audio since way before 1974.I started buying records, guitars, and gear with the money I made mowing lawns and delivering newspapers.
Now the way I earn my money has changed for the better, but where it goes hasn't changed too much.I was employee #007 when I started at Crutchfield back in 1976. Seriously, I was the seventh person Bill Crutchfield hired. Back then we all did a bit of everything. I spent time answering customer calls, packing boxes for shipment, purchasing merchandise, and writing catalog pages.I left Crutchfield in 1983 to finish college. Then I worked as a newspaper reporter and editor before returning to Crutchfield in 1993.I returned just in time to participate in the launch of Crutchfield.com, the first big ecommerce site in consumer electronics. Having a hand in that process was a thrill and an honor. And just look at how much we've grown since then.
It blows old 007's mind. About Jim. Wrote and edited hundreds of articles for Crutchfield.com. Lifelong student of home audio gear. Represented Crutchfield at countless trade shows like CES and CEDIA.
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Attend dozens of vendor training events each year. Plays guitar and sings in a couple of bands. Local United Way board memberMore from Jim Richardson. In a nutshell: A well-planned home has a variety of fixtures and systems to keep its occupants comfortable and happy. Architects and designers work wonders with lighting, plumbing, air conditioning, appliances, furniture, and fabric.But there’s one element designers frequently neglect: sound.Imagine music flowing through your rooms like light from the windows or cool air from the vents. That's what it feels like when the speakers are built into your walls or ceilings.It’s easy to incorporate and when you’re building or renovating a home.
- Play Pandora in your kitchen, iTunes in the den, or the same song throughout the entire house – all from a single, intuitive app. With flexible wired and wireless solutions and seamless integration into advanced control systems, Player Portfolio is the perfect fit for any home.
- The whole-house audio system we’re showing in this article uses a technology called A-BUS. A-BUS technology uses a standard Cat-5e cable (four-pair communication wire) to carry all the signals from a central source. The wires carry audio signals to each room, where they’re amplified to speaker-level audio by the keypads.
In an existing home, it’s easier to use.Your music can come from an Internet service like Spotify®, or from a computer or hard drive that’s attached to your home network.It’s easy to play one song in the family room and another in your bedroom. Or play the same music throughout the house.You can use your smartphone or tablet a remote control. Or you can install in-wall controls.Ready to plan the perfect system for your home? Read the full story. Building a new house (or thoroughly renovating an old one)? You have the perfect opportunity to conceal speakers and wires in your walls and ceilings.
It can be done in an existing home, but it’s not easy work for a do-it-yourselfer. For details, see our.Wireless systems are the easiest solution. We'll explore those first. Wireless systemsToday’s wireless systems are popular for good reasons. Installation and setup takes minutes. They don’t have to involve a bulky and complicated home theater receiver. You can easily carry a wireless speaker from one room to the next.
If you are fortunate enough to have a home filled with in-ceiling and in-wall speakers (or plan to), a whole-house audio system is the best solution for amplifying and sharing audio throughout your home. HTD products are designed with the do-it-yourselfer in mind allowing for easy set-up and operation.
And you can take the entire system with you when you move. Video: See how a Sonos system fits into a typical homeA is an obvious choice for an existing home, but may also be the best platform for a new home. Consider a hybrid systemThat’s a system in which wireless components, such as the, feed the music to in-wall or ceiling speakers.In such a system, you enjoy the convenience of a smartphone remote control app. But the hardware is hidden in a utility room or equipment closet.A common misconception about the Sonos wireless system is that you must have Sonos hardware in every room. And that notion can be a deal-killer if ceiling speakers are all you can get away with in the dining room and the formal living room.
Fortunately, it’s not the case.The solution is to locate one or more Sonos modules in your utility room and run speaker wires from there to the ceiling speakers in the dining room and the living room.Your system might also include several other Sonos components that are located elsewhere. For instance, you might have a and a for TV sound and music in the family room. You could put powered speakers in bedrooms and any other spaces in which the hardware fits nicely. Your yard is a room, tooNow let’s turn our attention to your outdoor zone.Say you need several to evenly distribute sound about the pool and patio areas. You’ll play the same music through all of your outdoor speakers, so you only need one Sonos component for this zone.
But outdoor speakers require a lot of power, so you don’t want to rely on a single 2-channel amplifier.In this scenario, you might pair a non-powered module with a. Place them in the utility room along with the CONNECT:AMP modules serving the living and dining rooms. Get an or cabinet to keep things organized in the utility room.
Wired systemsWireless systems are terrific, but some people find a wired system with in-wall controls easier to live with.Installation of a wired system can be daunting for a do-it-yourselfer. Most people will require the services of an electrician or audio/video installer. But Crutchfield’s can help you plan your system. 70-volt systemsWired systems are also good for commercial applications, such as a dentist’s office or a coffee shop. A traditional stereo system is good in a very small office or shop, where there are only a few sets of speakers.In a commercial building, a 70-volt system is usually the best solution. There are several reasons why:. One amp can drive many speakers without using a complex wiring scheme.
It’s easy to set different volume levels in different listening areas. You use lighter, less expensive speaker wire and much less wire overall. Easy system expansion — just add more speakers to an existing chain.For help a commercial installation, contact a system designer at 1.800.315.2758.
To learn more about commercial audio, read our. What type of system is best for you?Below we’ll explore the pros and cons of two types of wired systems.
First, we’ll look at setups that use the multi-zone outputs of a home theater receiver. Then we’ll discuss separate music-only systems. Home theater receiver with multi-zone capability. Audio for two rooms, using the receiver's 'B' speaker outputs.Most modern receivers have speaker outputs for a second room. Many connect to a home network for access to Internet music sources. These features make a receiver-based system a great option in some situations.Planning a system that will serve more than one or two additional zones?
You can connect several pairs of speakers to a receiver’s “B” speaker outputs (or to a separate two-channel amp connected to a receiver’s preamp outputs). You’ll need a or impedance-matching.
Be careful, though. Some speaker selectors are meant to be used only with an amp capable of driving a low-impedance speaker load. Music-only systemsYou might be better off keeping the home theater receiver out of the equation. A multi-channel amp (with its own music sources) is safer, easier to operate, and capable of bigger, better sound. To learn more, read our article on.Wall-mounted volume controls require speaker wiring only. In-wall keypads that let you control your music source components also require CAT-5 wiring.
You may also need infrared “flashers” to relay remote control commands to your music source components.Shop for hardware, and. What music sources are best for your system?Playing the music files stored on your computer is a good option for many systems, but there are a few drawbacks. The computer must be turned on, of course. And your computer’s hard drive might not hold all your music.Consider storing your music library on a high-capacity networked hard drive (also known as a NAS drive). You can leave it turned on, so your tunes are always instantly available.Or take a look at the It rips your CDs in a hi-resolution format and stores the files on a built-in drive.
This takes your computer (and all the associated hassles) completely out of the equation.With some systems, you may be able to play the files stored on your smartphone or tablet. If you want to do this in a receiver-based system, make sure the receiver can play your phone or tablet music in the second zone. Many receivers play only analog sources through the second zone outputs.When choosing a wireless system or a receiver, make sure it’s compatible with your favorite music streaming services. Next stepsFeeling overwhelmed by too many choices? Here's how to sort it all out:. Jot down some notes about which rooms you want music in. What kind of sound and what kind of speakers you want in each one.
Think about whether you want to simultaneously play different music in different rooms. Consider whether you want to use a wireless device such as a smartphone or tablet as your system controller. Continue your research by reading more Crutchfield. Eileen from Clearwater, Florida Posted on 4/29/2019We have in-ceiling speakers in our family rm/kitchen 8spks,living rm4spks, pool2spks, master bed/bath 3spks, office 2spks, bed#2 1spk, bed#3 1spk, utility 1spk for a total 22 speakers, all wires run to our media cabinet, we have 4 SONOS Connect -Amps (allowing up to 4 speakers to be connect per zone)and no wall volume controls. We will use android phone & tablet for volume control for music. We have 4 TVs (mbed, family rm, living rm, office) We want to have the ability to listen music or TV in each of the rooms that the TVs are in & be able to watch different programs or stream different music in different rooms simultaneously.
We currently do not have an amp/receiver, we want music in 4 zones (family rm/kitchen, pool, master bed/bath, office)utizing4 SONOS Connect-amps, Question: What do we need to buy for connecting TV audio to their respective ceiling speakers? An amp/receiver? Can we utilize our android phine or tablet for volume control for TV, would not want to have to go to media cabinet if i want to watch tv in my master bed or office. How many channel amp would we need? Also, want it to be very budget friendly and campatible with Alexa.
Luke keating from Cataula Posted on Sir,I am looking for a system for my living room 18 by 28 size room, and it to run speakers out on my deck and pool area. ALL of my music is on my computer and iPod. I will not be using it for surround sound.
I have a sound bar and sub for that. I just want good clean sound (very loud). I would love a rack system. Wired or wireless just the best one and components, I would run wires through floor Or the ceiling. The last time I had a full-size Soundsystem I was a private in the army 30+ years ago a little help will go along ways. Matt Posted on I am in the process of building a house.
As of now, we will have wiring for 4 pairs of speakers in various locations around the house. We were pitched the Sonos system to we can get the Playbar and zoned speaker system, however at $500 per Connect (will require at least 3 to separate the sound), this just seems way to pricey for what we are doing. Is there anything similar to Sonos but cheaper that will function the same and allow for separating and grouping of rooms?Load More Comments. Steve from Yakima, WA Posted on I have a similar situation to several above. I purchased an older home that was remodeled and wired with built in ceiling speakers. In all there are 7 rooms with two speakers each and what I assume is a volume knob on the wall. In addition the living room has 5 built in speakers.
From a little research it seems as if the living room is set up for a home theater system and the 7 other rooms for audio alone. On the wall in the living room there are 7 sets of gold inputs with black/red bands that I have been told are for the speakers. Next to that there are also three sets of 'yellow-white-red' jacks and one set of 'black pronged-white-red' jack.
Elsewhere in the room is another in set of gold inputs (subwoofer?) and higher on the wall (TV?) are an additional set of the 'yellow-white-red' jacks. Lastly, one of the rooms with the built in speakers has a separate set of 2 of the gold inputs. I am curious what I would need to first 'test' the system and then figure out how to set up the Living room home theater system and 6 of the other rooms may be wired for audio to be operated from the Living Room. The 7th room seems to be operated from the same room.
How close am I to understanding what I inherited?. Harv from Leesburg Posted on 11/6/2017I recently purchased a new house with 8 zones - 16 total speakers. All wires home run to basement mechanical room. We do not have volume controls in the rooms. Having volume controls would have made things a lot easier.
Too late now to wire them in. Thinking of SONOS, do not want to purchase 8 Connect-Amps. Really only need 2 streams of music at a time. Would also like a Playbar in the Family RM for the TV.My questions are:If i go with SONOS, can I turn on/off and adjust volume in each location if I use a Connect with 16 CH amp?IF SO.Also can I connect to SONOS Connects to my amp for 2 available streams?IF NOT.Will I have to go the route of 8 Connect Amps?When using a PlayBar, can I also stream my TV connected to it thru my FAM RM or Kitchen Speakers since my home audio and my tv audio are on the same app/wifi?Thank you for your time. Jeff from Herriman, UT Posted on 11/5/2017I recently built my house and wired the master bedroom, laundry, kitchen and second floor loft. I would like a multi zone setup that can be controlled on an app from my wife's phone or mine. So we can listen to music in one space or all together.
These are all in the ceiling wired. I have a separate system I've wired for my family room to run a 5.1 surround system all with in wall wiring to be able to watch sports or movies with the family. I ran 16/2 wire in all the spots. I didn't have the time to figure this out while I did the building cause I was more focused on just getting the wires in and figuring it out after. Chris from Centreville, Va Posted on 11/1/2017I am also looking for a recommendation.I have a brand new house with in-ceiling speakers in the family room, formal living room and on the screened porch. They are all wired back to the mechanical room.What I would like to do is to be able to control each space individually or together by an app. I would also like to be able to add speakers out by the pool and control those in the same manner.I would like the system to be compatible with Alexa.Ideas?.
Mike Perdue from Costa Mesa, CA Posted on 10/9/2017To Isaac Myman - I would look at the Onkyo TX-RZ series. I believe you want to be in the 800 series or above. It's app based and does 99% of you're wanting to accomplish from one amp/receiver. It has a lot of great features that you are looking for in a AV Matrix. You may even want to use some of the pre-outs from the Onkyo and power them through your other receiver to give you more options. Sonos is another way to go, but you will spend about $1700 to do what you're describing for 3 Sonos Connect:Amps and you still need a Dolby receiver for the surround. If you have the budget, Sonos is the way to go.
I recently designed an 8 room Echo Dot system. All voice activated and on the web.
It was in the 4-5k range though. Good luck!Best of luck,M. Isaac Myman from Tampa Posted on 10/9/2017Jeff,Question for you. I have a 200 watt receiver right now I bought from best buy for 100 bucks. I don't think its enough though for what I want to do. I want to have a single receiver that plays surround sound from my TV as well as Bluetooth audio from my cell phone.
Then I want to connect that same receiver to 2 different sets of outdoor speakers with separate volume controls. A second room of in ceiling speakers with its own volume control and then also pump music out of the surround sound speakers.
Basically I want 4 zones with separate volume control and separate input so that someone could watch TV and play music at the same time. Is there anyway to do this? Can you point me in the right direction on who would be good to ask?.
Artie from Los Angeles Posted on 12/6/2015Kenny - I had the same situation as you - big bundle of wires, not connected. I bought a Fluke Pro3000 Tone Generator and Probe Kit ($80). There are others - Greenlee, Klein, etc. If you've ever watched a landline telephone repair guy trying to find the right set of wires, this is the equipment they use. There's a box with 2 alligator clamps, which you attach to a speaker wire. Push a button once, you get a steady tone. If the wire leads to a speaker, the speaker will emit that tone.
Push the button again, you will get a series of different musical tones, like a car alarm. This is how I found and labeled the majority of the wires. The second piece of the kit is the listening device. If there's no speaker at the end of a wire, then the listener has a very sensitive microphone, that will pick up the tone from the cable itself. If you know where cables terminate, you can just place the listener next to each cable, until you hear the tone.
If you connect red clip to red wire, and black clip to black wire, the listener can pick up a signal within 3-6 inches away from the wire. You can also attach the black clip to ground, or to a helper, and that increases the sensitivity tremendously - also resulting in some false positives. Take a look at YouTube for some informative videos on how to use this equipment.
Whole Home Audio Systems Reviews
A house filled with music is a happier place. I know this for a fact. Since we picked up a set of wireless speakers and a couple of Bluetooth-enabled streaming devices, every room in our home has been filled with music. A whole home audio system is so uplifting and motivating, especially compared to the incessant, distracting drone of the television.Not so long ago, this type of whole home audio immersion was the purview of the very rich, or electricians with side jobs as drywallers. This was because it required extensive wiring throughout your home.Today, technologies such as Bluetooth and are eliminating the need for wired sound systems.
Don’t go ripping out your speaker wires if you have them—wired connections are still the most reliable, being less prone to interference—but if you’ve been holding off on a home audio system because of the expense of hiding the wiring, then read on. Wireless whole home audio system options:. Begin investing in a proprietary system of high-end wireless speakers. This will provide the best sound quality and integration but is still expensive. However, you can enjoy the benefits with just one or two speakers, starting at around $400 for 2, and grow from there as your budget allows. The second option is to select different devices designed for specific use cases for each room in the home. This is more of a hodge-podge scenario but achieves a similar end result, at a much lower price.A proprietary home audio systemA complete wireless audio system from a company like Acoustic Research uses a Wi-Fi network to play music from local and/or cloud services (such as Spotify or iTunes).Each speaker has only a power cable, and connects with its siblings through its own wireless mesh network, so you can play the same music through every speaker in your home, in sync or select different tracks for different rooms.
Whole House Audio Systems
You purchase each speaker separately and there is a wide selection that can combine to make one large system or operate alone.Pros. You can play the same music in every room in your house. There is no need to pair the speakers with your devices; just use the app to play the music.
You can play your locally stored music through a Network Attached Storage device.ConsCost—while not as expensive as the traditional hardwiring, a proprietary home audio system is still a pricey proposition: a minimum of $1,700 to have each room un-wired for sound. However, the benefit of this wireless technology means you can start small and build gradually. Proprietary home audio optionsMore and more manufacturers are getting in on the wireless audio game, meaning we may start to see lower prices and more options.Samsung released its competitor to SONOS, the Samsung Shape M7 wireless audio system. According to, this is the best competitor to SONOS yet. The speakers are at a similar price but Samsung’s have the benefit of Bluetooth playback and the ability to wirelessly connect with some Samsung TVs.Another recent competitor to Sonos, is the, which has HDMI inputs and a portable speaker. The sound quality is very similar to the SONOS, the app for the speaker is not as nice or easy to use.
Whole Home Audio System Wiring Diagram
Other competitors to SONOS include, and.All systems start between $99 and $299 for a single speaker and go up from there. Room-by-room audio systemIf you want audio in every room but don’t need it to all play the same music and sync seamlessly, then consider some of these Bluetooth speaker options.
Bluetooth works by pairing with your smartphone or computer, so you will need a device nearby to make these work.The biggest drawback to a Bluetooth system is that your device can only stream to a single speaker set at a time, and it will have to un-pair and re-pair with each device as you move from room to room. Living room audio systemA medium to large sized A/C powered Bluetooth speaker such as this Jensen Bluetooth Wireless Stereo Speaker will work well in a living room or den. And at only $60, it’s ideal for those on a tight budget. Bedroom audio systemFor the bedroom, the Pulse Dimmable BR30 LED light bulbs with built-in wireless Bluetooth speakers ($169.99 for 2) offer a simple, wire-free way to incorporate sound and energy-saving lighting into the bedroom (or any room). Simply install the Pulse like any other light bulb and wirelessly connect from a Bluetooth-enabled phone, tablet or PC.
Control light/sound intensity, audio equalizer modes and launch Pandora, Spotify, TuneIn Radio, etc. From the free or Android app.Alternatively, this stylish GOgroove Bluetooth speaker ($59.99) would look great on any bedside table and incorporates time and temperature on its display. You can also plug your device into it directly to play audio. Bathroom audio systemOptions for streaming music into your bathroom are actually quite varied. You can replace your exhaust fan with the Homewerks Ventilation fan with built-in Bluetooth speaker ($129), and never have to worry about recharging it as the speaker draws power from the bath fan wiring.If the ceiling fan isn’t an option, the Kohler Moxie showerhead with a built-in Bluetooth speaker ($149) will pipe music and water directly into your shower. The speaker is also removable so you can use it elsewhere.
It works off a rechargeable battery that lasts about 7 hours on playback.Along the same lines, this little $10 splash-proof speaker from SoundLogic will deliver. Just stick it on the wall and pair with your smartphone. You can even answer phone calls through it.
Kitchen audio systemThe under-the-cabinet radio your grandma had gets a tech upgrade with the iLive Bluetooth Under the Cabinet Music System & Radio ($39.99). It’s perfect for keeping the counters clutter free while still enjoying some tunes as you whip up that gourmet meal.As you can see, the options for piping music into your home wirelessly are plentiful and growing. The best part, however, is that with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-enabled speakers you can easily achieve a high-end music experience throughout your home that is totally portable—meaning that if you ever decide to move, you can take the entire whole home audio system with you without leaving any damage behind.