Sonos Bundle 250 review

Better than anything at the price

I searched for a long time to find a system that would allow me to archive my CD collection in lossless format and would allow playback from a NAS drive. I connected a ZP80 to my router and Arcam amp, recorded my CDs to my Buffalo NAS drive using Mediamonkey (try the free download) and now I have a very versatile system that plays back with more clarity than my £900 Arcam CD player. It connects to internet radio (again the quality is amazing) and I am listening to my music more and more. All that is needed is a ZP90 and a controller and you can find some real bargains at present - really do check it out if you like listening to music. Sonos have committed themselves to this product and it will be a long term asset. No background hum of fans as NAS is hidden in a cupboard two rooms away and muvh more eco friendly than leaving a PC switched on.

By malcolmv on 27 Aug 2009

@malcolmv - as someone who's just got a mini hi-fi (albeit an Onkyo) hooked up to their computer, can I say I'm very jealous of your setup.

By pbryanw on 27 Aug 2009

Don't be jealous

I really would say look at the good discounts on last years models at Richersounds. This and a low price amp and speakers will be amazing - I am very fortunate to have what I have but I saved for 3 years before putting it all together. Just try Mediamonkey - its free and is a big improvement over Windows Media Player and iTunes which lock you into their format.

By malcolmv on 28 Aug 2009

Exceptional!

It's sad, but when I purchase technology these days, I generally expect to be a little disappointed with it. With most high tech devices there is usually a reliability niggle, a slight compatibility gottcha or a feature that doesn't quite live up to the marketing hype.

Sonos stands out as the exception to this rule!

I've owned a system for about three months now and I have to say it has performed flawlessly in daily use. I've not had to do a single reboot, not had a single problem connecting, never been unable to play music. This equipment does exactly what it says on the tin and does it exceptionally well. Other manufacturers would do well to take a leaf out of the Sonos book!

My only criticism is the lack of a headphone output on the zone players. I use a ZP-120 (the amplified one) with a pair of bookshelf speakers in my home-office and it would be nice to be able to plug in a pair of headphones for late night working when my other half has gone to bed!

Apart from this one small wish, I cannot fault Sonos - this is a 10/10 product!

By kendolondon on 23 Sep 2009