Sonos Five vs Era 300: Which is Right for You?
Sonos is a well-known participant in the constantly changing market for high-end smart speakers, providing a variety of wireless audio options like Sonos Era 300 and Sonos Five.
If you are struggling with making the right decision between Sonos Five vs Era 300, then you are at the perfect place.
Era 300 is the better one. It’s Sonos’s most adaptable speaker and also thanks to Bluetooth, USB-C line-in, and spatial audio, and among all, the real standout feature is the audio performance, which is more competent and sophisticated.
Let’s dive deeper into the comparison and know the details of the differences between both sound systems. Let’s go!
Difference Between Sonos Five and Era 300.
Features | Sonos Five | Era 300 |
Sound Technology | Stereo Output | Dolby Atmos |
Wi-Fi connectivity | Yes | Yes |
Voice Assistant support | No | Yes |
Trueplay Tuning | i0S devices | Android devices |
Speaker Configuration | Stereo | Supports Dolby Atmos |
External device | Yes | Yes |
Line-in Port | 3.5mm Line-in | USB-C Line-in |
Price | Check Price | Check Price |
Sonos Five Review
Sonos Five is an excellent option for someone looking for both a high-end audio experience and an attractive appearance.
It has a sophisticated design, seamless integration into the Sonos ecosystem, and extensive compatibility for external devices.
Specifications
- With its stereo output, the Sonos Five offers a well-balanced, spacious sound experience.
- Lacking Bluetooth compatibility, it uses Wi-Fi to facilitate wireless communication.
- The Sonos Five has a 3.5mm line-in jack that enables direct connection to external devices like record players or turntables.
- The Sonos Five uses third-party devices for speech control instead of having built-in voice assistants.
- This feature allows for personalized audio optimization according to the acoustics of the space and is supported by iOS devices only.
Pros
- The Sonos Five creates an immersive listening environment with rich, detailed sounds.
- It easily combines with the Sonos ecosystem, allowing customers to set up several rooms.
- Turntables and other external devices can be connected to the Sonos.
- The Sonos Five has an elegant and well-made design that complements a variety of home decor styles.
Cons
- The Sonos Five lacks Bluetooth capability, which restricts direct wireless connections from specific devices.
- It uses external devices for voice control instead of having voice assistants built in.
- This function, which adjusts music according to the acoustics of the room, is only available on iOS devices.
- The Sonos Five is marketed as a luxury speaker, and its cost is also luxury for some users.
Sonos Era 300 Review
The Sonos Era 300 provides a dynamic audio experience with Dolby Atmos compatibility for an immersive soundscape.
Its sleek and versatile appeal is enhanced by the presence of a Bluetooth connection, a USB-C line-in, and compatibility with many voice assistants.
Specifications:
- Offering a three-dimensional and immersive audio experience, the Sonos Era 300 is unique in that it supports Dolby Atmos.
- The Era 300 allows customers to wirelessly connect devices for flexible music playback.
- The speaker has a USB-C line-in connector, which increases communication possibilities.
- The Era 300 has built-in voice commands and is compatible with Amazon’s Alexa.
- Its distinctive tight hourglass shape was designed with spatial audio in mind, projecting sound in several directions.
Pros
- The Era 300 stands out for its Dolby Atmos compatibility.
- The Era 300 has Bluetooth 5.0, which gives consumers more options for wireless audio streaming from a variety of devices.
- The speaker’s shape adds to a room-filling acoustic experience in addition to being aesthetically pleasing and optimized for spatial music.
- The Era 300’s smart capabilities are expanded by its compatibility with integrated voice assistants, such as Alexa from Amazon.
Cons
- Users may require access to certain Atmos material to fully utilize Dolby Atmos features.
- The Era 300 includes a USB-C line-in connector, consumers will still need to pay extra for an additional adaptor to connect the turntable.
- Its track record and user evaluations may be more limited, which makes it more difficult to evaluate its long-term performance.
- The Era 300 can be more expensive than some of the competition.
Sonos Five Vs Era 300: Features Compression
Let’s move toward the final decision, here you will decide which soundbar perfectly matches your standards and needs.
1. Sound
Although the intended sound from each of these speakers is meant to fill a room, which one is truly worth the cost?
The enormous feeling of size possessed by the Era 300 begs for “spatial audio.”
It boldly projects music farther into the space than any other comparable wireless speaker we’ve heard, including the Apple HomePod 2.
Not only is the size astounding, but the quality is as well, with stereo and spatial audio tracks sounding exceptionally well-integrated and robust.
2. Design
The Era 300 smart speaker has a unique appearance compared to its competitors.
With a distinctive tight hourglass shape that helps in delivering spatial audio and blasts sound out in all directions to produce a genuinely room-filling acoustic experience, it’s a long cry from other Sonos products.
In contrast, The Five appears quite dull and has an outdated design as compared to Era 300.
3. Features
Both of them are extremely feature-rich top-tier Sonos speakers.
One other feather in the new Era 300’s crown is spatial audio. Six drivers—four tweeters and two woofers—that are driven by specialized Class D amplifiers inside provide a sound that genuinely fills the space.
Since Dolby Atmos was a major consideration in the construction of the Era 300, Apple Music Spatial Audio music may be played on it, making it the first non-Apple device to do so.
It does not support Tidal, however, it does support Dolby Atmos music through Amazon Music Unlimited.
4. Price
Both models are expensive options since they are the highest-end speakers in Sonos’s lineup.
The Sonos S5, which evolved into the Play:5, Play:5 Gen 2, and finally the Five, is the ancestor of the modern Sonos Five.
Though the US pricing hasn’t changed, Sonos currently offers it for £549 / AU$899, although it originally retailed for £499 / $549 / AU$700. Don’t worry, though; you can find it for less somewhere else.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the benefits of the Sonos Era 300’s Dolby Atmos support?
The Sonos Era 300’s Dolby Atmos compatibility improves the audio quality by producing a more expansive and lifelike soundstage.
Does the Sonos Era 300 come with a USB-C converter for connecting a turntable?
No, the package does not contain the USB-C adaptor needed for turntable connectivity. To connect a turntable to the Sonos Era 300, users must buy it separately.
Is it possible to utilize Sonos soundbars in a home theatre system with the Sonos Era 300?
Sure, when paired with Sonos Arc or Beam Gen 2 soundbars, the Sonos Era 300 may function as a rear surround speaker to help Dolby Atmos home cinema system.
Final Verdict
The Sonos Five and Sonos Era 300 provide different audio identities in the ultimate comparison of high-end Sonos speakers.
Sonos Five fits into current Sonos settings smoothly and may be oriented in different ways. However, consumers could be turned off by its absence of Bluetooth and Dolby Atmos.
On the other hand, the Sonos Era 300 boldly embraces the future with its Dolby Atmos capability, providing an immersive 3D audio experience.
So, Era 300 is the better than Sonos Five. It’s Sonos’s most adaptable speaker with Bluetooth, USB-C line-in, and spatial audio.
I hope you found this article helpful, so make sure to let me know in the comments section below.