This is my ultimate RM16,000 Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 Sonos setup!

And here’s what others have to say about it:

“Okay, that was unexpected!”

“I am a Sonos user, I did not know that I could have this experience at home”

“I’d rather come here to watch the movie than to go to GSC or TGV”

“It literally feels like cinema at home”

“My hair was standing up!”

 

So, Google is everyone’s best friend, right? So, I want to be your best friend too… I wanted to answer all of your frequently asked questions on Sonos’ latest smart speaker, the Sonos Era 300. So, here we go!

 

How tall is the Sonos Era 300? 

Well, the official dimensions of the Sonos Era 300 are 6.30 x 10.24 x 7.28 inches. 

And here’s a size comparison with the Sonos Era 100, the Sonos Move, and the biggest Sonos 5.

 

Does the Sonos Era 300 have to be plugged in? 

Yes, it needs to be plugged in since it’s not a portable speaker, but it will be great if you could, right? Maybe Sonos Era 310?

 

Can I connect the Sonos Era 300 via Bluetooth? 

Yes, you can, as the Sonos Era 300 joins the Sonos Era 100 and the other portable lineup to include Bluetooth connectivity.

 

Does the Sonos Era 300 have an ethernet port? 

Technically no, but you can add the 3.5mm line-in or ethernet connection using the separate dongle that connects to the Era 300 via the USB-C port at the back. But I don’t really think that you need to, though, because it comes with a very reliable Wi-Fi 6 connection.

 

How many channels are there in the Sonos Era 300? 

So, in total, there are 4 channels that use 6 amplifiers, 2 woofers, and 4 directional tweeters to project the sound to the front, left, right, and above, in order to create a real surround experience.

 

Can the Sonos Era 300 get loud? 

Oh yes, it gets super LOUD!

 

Can you only connect the Sonos Era 300 as a TV speaker? 

Well, technically you can, but even if you successfully do that, the Era 300 can do it via the line-in port, but you will probably experience a slight delay, and you’ll only be limited to stereo audio. 

Now, this is because the Era 300 is not designed to be used as your primary TV speaker. So, the correct way to use the Sonos Era 300 for your TV is to be their rear surround in your Sonos home theatre setup.

 

What is Spatial Audio on the Sonos Era 300? 

Spatial audio, in simplest terms, is making the sound come out from every direction for better immersion. So, sounds come from the front, sides, and even the top, which finally brings us to showing you how I achieve the Dolby 7.1.4 setup. So, let’s head back to my home.

 

Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 Setup

In order to achieve this Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 setup, there are a total of four speakers. But I’m sure you might be wondering why only four speakers. Well, let me explain.

Firstly, keep in mind that this entire setup was built in a span of several years of purchasing Sonos speakers. And the brain of this setup is this: the Sonos Arc soundbar. And this will handle the center, left, and right speaker channels. 

Then down below, there’s the Sonos Sub Gen 3, which will be the .1 in this 7.1.4 setup. Now, there’s also this 7.2.4 setup that you can do with two Sonos Sub Gen 3, but I’m not trying to make myself or even my neighbors deaf, so just one sub is more than enough for me.

And by adding the Sonos Sub Gen 3 to the Sonos Arc, the Sonos Arc will cleverly sense that the Sonos Sub is helping it to produce a bass, so it will concentrate the projection on the highs, mids, and the upward-firing speaker and let the Sub do all the bass work. 

Then, when we walk towards the back, here are the two new stars of the setup, which are the Sonos Era 300 speakers.

Now, it is on a pair of Sonos 300 stands, and the reason why I put them on a stand instead of mounting them on the wall, firstly because I wanted the accuracy in height because I didn’t want to measure each side to make sure that it is correct and all. And secondly, in case I shift houses or if I want to change my setup in the future, I can just easily remove the stands, just like how I replaced the Sonos One SL with this Sonos Era 300.

So, is there a huge difference changing between the Sonos One SL to this? Yes, of course. Now, besides the obvious size difference, the main difference is that there is a physical upward-firing speaker on the Sonos Era 300 compared to the non-existent upward-firing speaker on the Sonos One SL. So, yes, this overall setup heavily relies on this Sonos Arc. 

And similar to how when I added the Sonos Sub with the Arc, when I added the Sonos Era 300 to the whole setup, the Sonos Arc once again offloaded some of the upward-firing speaker load to the Era 300, hence giving you a well-balanced sound for the front and also the rear area for better sound immersion.

So, all of this setup is done without having speaker wiring going from one end to the other since all of this connects wirelessly. Now, it’s not only great from a sound perspective but also from a clean aesthetics point too. Plus, with this overall aesthetics of the speaker, that gets a HUGE checkmark on my end.

 

Don’t forget to join us at our community Discord channel and also tell me whether or not you tried a similar setup yourself. Join here: https://discord.gg/taRdMMwBYk

 

App & Trueplay

Now, to set up the Sonos Era 300 is extremely easy, as usual. Just download the Sonos S2 app and add the speakers accordingly. Now, I’ve done a video of going through the app very extensively too, which you can check it out here: https://my.tcacoustic.asia/products/sonos-arc

And one crucial thing that you need to do is Trueplay, which I highly recommend not to skip because it works to give you the best sound experience.

 

How Does It Sound?

So, how does this sound? Well, how about hearing it from a few of our subscribers and friends who are experiencing it for the very first time? 

 

Uma, Movie Reviewer (@gogglermy) 

“Ah, okay, that was unexpected. I expected it to be good, I didn’t expect it to be THAT good! The bass, the clarity of sound on this is just so much better.

I currently have a Sonos setup at home, it’s the first-gen Sonos, so I’ve had it for a long time, which let me tell you is the problem because these things don’t break, and they’re really good.

So, trying to make a case to buy a new one is actually very difficult because I’ve had the old one for 10 years now, and it’s perfectly good. Until Adam played me bloody Top Gun Maverick on this 7.1 thing, which sounds amazing! And it was just the trailer!

I mean, just the Dolby Atmos compatibility, all of that stuff. People use those words all the time, the technical terms, but actually, it’s something you can experience, you can understand when you sit down and listen to it. You notice the difference, and I know mine doesn’t sound like this.”

 

Leo, Sonos Arc Owner (@lrayan18)

“I am a Sonos user, and I did not know that I could have this experience at home. 

Watching all the clips, 4K clips from the movies from Top Gun, I mean, Top Gun really gave me goosebumps. That was crazy. I mean, the planes were really flying all over me, you know? I did not know that I could have this experience at home. So yeah, it was a very good thing to get this chance to experience it.

So, definitely, after seeing the Arc pairing with the Sub and two of the Era 300, I’m definitely going to upgrade mine very soon.”

 

Josh, Video & Music Producer (@joshinthemoment)

“This is the first experience for me to have Dolby Atmos at home. and this was really mind-blowing. To get this quality of sound, I feel like I’d rather come here to watch the movie than to go to GSC or TGV.

As an audio engineer, audio is very important, and we buy expensive speakers, expensive headphones to get that sound and to get the quality of sound and clarity.

If money was no object, I would probably buy two of these, one for my office and one for my house, because my clients would love to listen to Atmos mixes.”

 

Priscilla, Fitness Instructor (@priscillayee_)

“I think that was such a mind-blowing experience, it made me feel like I was in a cinema. I don’t know, how do I say like mind-blown thing? Goosebumps, my hair was standing up!”

 

Farooq, Audio Enthusiast (@faralias)

“It literally feels like cinema at home. Honestly speaking, if it’s someone like me, I really appreciate audio, and if money is not a thing, you just give it to me, I’ll be like… YES!”

 

Luna, Paw-dio Expert (@luna.my.neko)

“Meow-nificent! Purr-haps the best speakers I’ve ever heard!”

 

More FAQs

Now, I know not everyone can afford this setup immediately, but as mentioned earlier, this was an accumulation throughout the years starting from the Sonos Arc, the Sonos Sub, and the Sonos One SL, and then eventually switching to these Sonos Era 300s.

So, let’s answer some more Google-related FAQs.

 

How much is the Sonos Era 300? 

Now, I’ll give you a direct answer. It is RM2,799 (USD615) in Malaysia for one.

 

How do I know if Dolby Atmos is working with my current setup? 

Firstly, it will be displayed within the Sonos app on the “Now Playing” screen. And the more obvious way is also seeing it before playing the movie content, whether or not it’s on Netflix or any other platforms.

 

Where to position the Era 300 as rear speakers? 

Now, if you position at a listening height like this with the stands or even through the wall mounting for the Era 300, you can place it face towards the front, since the speakers will be auto-tuned to project towards all of the areas better compared to the Sonos One SL, where it needs to be towards where you’re sitting at.

 

Can the Sonos Era 300 be used as a stereo pair for music listening? 

Yes, you can.

 

Is the Sonos Era 300 worth it?

Well, whether or not you’re using the speaker as a standalone unit, a stereo pair, or even rear speakers, the short answer to that is… ABSOLUTELY!