Giles Martin and Sonos CEO Patrick Spence on the new Era 100 and Era 300 speakers | The Vergecast

Today, Sonos announced a new line of speakers - the Era 100 and the Era 300 - CEO Patrick Spence believes this is the right time to do it. “We didn’t know that, in 2022, 85 of the top Billboard 100 artists would actually release Atmos tracks, but they did,” Spence says. “We feel like we’re at an inflection point.”
On board with Sonos for this shift in music listening is record producer Giles Martin, who mixed the first-ever spatial audio album (a remix of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles album that his father, George Martin, originally produced) and several albums and live experiences in Dolby Atmos since. Martin is also the senior vice president of sound experience at Sonos and was involved in the development of the speaker.
Both Patrick and Giles joined Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel for The Vergecast to talk about the new speakers, supporting spatial audio, and why this is the time to do it.
00:00 - Intro
01:33 - Sonos Era 100
19:40 - Sonos Era 300
43:17 - Sonos vs Big Tech
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Decoder with Nilay Patel: apple.co/3v29nDc
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[@AndrewMelder]

Great episode. I'm personally not convinced about Atmos tracks but I'm just glad they are putting a line in (with an adapter) to these new speakers.

[@TheVergecast]

Amen to that!

[@NFTwizardz]

Tell them to make beam gen 2 a center channel and allow me to run two 300 LR. 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@7stringjazz1]

Great idea. They can do this for the arc as center as well.

[@PatrickJoannisse]

I'm so glad this is now a video because you get SO much more of the jokes and nuances.

[@epap1375]

Agreed I’m on the weirdos that won’t listen to a podcast without video

[@The1andonlyBYack]

Wow, "it's like having a clear window on the world of sound..." What a quote.

[@lthemanl]

40:12 - Absolute GOLD moment. Patrick was SWEATING.

[@NoahShearer]

"don't say anything"

[@aaronlowe3156]

"...We want these products to last because why not? We're not asking you to replace them, we're asking you to put more in your house" I love this philosophy and this is why I continue to keep purchasing Sonos products. I purchased my first in 2019 and in 2024 it's still getting updates and bug fixes pushed to it. They sound great, last forever and have amazing software support. Just wish they did more for the "on-the-go" products. I wish I could pair 2 Sonos speakers together over Bluetooth like JBL or Sony. Sonos could use a proprietary protocol that allows Truplay to work as well...

[@wcarp4231]

He made a good point about simply enjoying the music and not become so obsessed with the technical nuances of specs (bitrate, etc). I have two first gen Sonos Play 3's that sound amazing in one room. In another room I have a Sonos Beam Gen 2 with Sub Mini, and I also have two Era 100's in the kitchen setup for stereo. Does the new tech sound better? I guess, but it doesn't take away that music sounds amazing from my pair of old Play 3's

[@StevenvanderGraaf]

Great show and interview! I do hoped you’d asked them if there would ever be a Sonos set-up where any Sonos soundbar would act like a dedicated center speaker with 2 separate left and right speakers for a wider soundstage. I got the Arc with 2 ERA 300’s and a Sub mini. It sounds amazing but yes i would like another pair of ERA’s at the front in a theatre set-up. Do you think they would ever go that road for enthousiasts?

[@robertweekes5783]

Apparently, you can connect a front set of Era 300’s by pairing them and then adding them to your existing Arc set up. It’s not true channel separation, but it still sounds amazing according to NeverEnoughTech.

[@ericjohnson5330]

The coolest thing they don’t tell you about the Era is that you can use services that aren’t part of the Sonos limited list. You start with the blue tooth connection on the room where you want to listen to, let’s say Radio Garden, and then patch other rooms in over your linked WiFi. Very cool!

[@Capybarainahumansuit]

Wait so if I have a sonos arc 2 subs and 2 eras connected to t v. I can sync the era to bluetooth then connect the other subs and soundbar via wifi to that Bluetooth connection?

[@TheTechnicalRecruiter]

Era 500s coming later this year!

[@AnotherCupofTea2]

I've a pair of Kef Q50's recently put into my attic that I bought in the late 1980's. That's 30+ years and, whilst dusty, they sound perfect. This interview really was tremendous fun to watch and really enjoyable. Does it count as the world's longest ever advert? OK, you win, mind made up, Era 300 it is - partly sound but importantly though we're a mixed Apple and Android household. Thanks everyone 😎

[@drjag2861]

Would love for them to reach out to Tidal in order to integrate higher end audio into the app!

[@chasandreae4178]

I don’t believe that is a tidal issue. Tons of devices support MQA and high res through tidal connect and Roon. Sonos has both of these (if you count Roon tested) and they cap 2 channel audio for tidal

[@DDD-xx4mg]

What do to with my One SLs maybe add support for side channels so they don’t go to waste

[@TheVergecast]

What's your favorite song mixed in Atmos?

[@seraphimcifri]

Firefly by Shygirl

[@schemkesa]

Favorite Atmos song changes everyday, because songs are added on a daily basis. I listened to Chic last time and that bass and guitar were awesome in Atmos

[@audie-cashstack-uk4881]

THE ONE THAT ALLOWS ME TO USE THE 100S AS 3D DUE TO THERE TWIN SPEAKER STEREO STATUS and great height width virtualization oh wait sonos want to rip me of and force a 300 purchase

[@LayMeInTheRiver]

@@seraphimcifri love Shygirl

[@ThomasMoneyhon]

The one where I hear the tune of folks throwing out their sonos for making google products worse. I will boycott all sonos products. Forever. My friends and family will not be allowed to buy them and return them if they accidentally do buy them.

[@RobSnow-ui4sz]

This was really good. However I think we are a ways out for atmos/spatial for all music and not just for selective music. I will wait for Spotify to bring Atmos/Spatial and that will be the defining moment. Also if I had Era 300 I have no doubt that a sub would also be required in order to feel the impact the song has. That in a Sonos world would be about 1600-2200 in Canada. I am not thinking for occasional songs it is not worth it yet. Maybe by the Time they launch ERA 500, I will look at this different. Again Spotify will define this for me.

[@liquid79]

Sonos isn't the problem.. Spotify streams at a much MUCH MUCH! lower bitrate. Drastically lower quality then Tidal for example.

[@RobSnow-ui4sz]

@@liquid79 Thanks I know this already. My argument is not about Tidal verses Spotfy. I just think for the cost of Era 300 the value today is not there for music. And if you use them as rears, well people would have to consider that 10-15% of atmos audio, high value. In fact when used as rears you are almost saying it is more important than the dialogue which is from the center channel. Just A pair of ERA 300 cost more than the ARC itself ..MHO.

[@AlexIsUber]

You just heard the CEO mention the cost. He divides Sonos prices by 12 (what it would cost per month) and sees as it's still cheap lol

[@NovaDoll]

@@AlexIsUber People will be the thing they are interested in.

[@NovaDoll]

Spotify has crappy low but but data…

[@06dame27]

I'm curious as to why you can add the in-ceiling speakers for the Atmos effect. I don't want to swap my Fives and put them in another room for the ERA 300's. It feels like the Amp should connect to the Arc like any other speaker. 🤔

[@XeRzclanPR]

Every day it gets harder not making the switch from spotify to apple music

[@Papafynn]

Nilay is a national treasure 💎

[@The1andonlyBYack]

"It's expensive for us to keep products in the market place... but it's the right thing to do." This is why Sonos is #1 in wireless audio and will remain that way forever.

[@The1andonlyBYack]

@@anthonyarcher7268 Unless they get bought, they will be in wireless audio forever. No one else is even close.

[@Alex-vw1nf]

Will it be possible to have for a surround - A sonos Arc - 2X sonos subs - 2X sonos one (ceiling) - 2X sonos Era 300 (standing) ? ?? Or you can't have the sonos one with others surround ?

[@kuki040998]

The cannot be in "the same room setup", assuming you have the Era 300 as surrounds for example, those Ones (as independent rooms) can be grouped, but they cannot work as an additional rears or any type of dedicated improvement. Also if you play Atmost content with Arc+Era300+2Subs, and you "group" Ones, Atmost content will get back to regular since Ones don't support it.

[@schemkesa]

I also expect Dolby Atmos is the new standard to be. Because.... everybody can hear it. Even the kids with headphones and you don't need a 7.2.4 set up in your home to experience Dolby Atmos. It's compatible with all systems. Will it be better with 7.2.4 ? sure, but you can already experience it with 5.1 systems, even with 2.1 systems or headphones

[@varghesethomas6882]

Hello Andrew, great review. May I ask what gauge speaker cable you used for the dm80.

[@chasandreae4178]

I wish Sonos would fully adopt Roon.

[@cmoney0619]

Great content! I guess I will continue to expand my Sonos collection

[@DJAllex231]

Great episode, I think I’m ready for this

[@jbwise2002]

Id really like for them to explain why a pair of 300s CANT be used as a stereo pair for music AND tv

[@kevinweber5129]

No HDMI or optical input. I want them to make a Atmos receiver with RCL outputs but support rear and height Sonos speakers.

[@YoungLink529]

I’m not sold on Atmos for music but Atmos for TV is amazing!

[@roylee8114]

Atmos at it's current state is hit or miss for music but for movies it's so immersive. I would love to drive 2 era 300s but I can't make it look good at my place. I'm actually really liking the symfonisk picture frame speakers though.

[@cevxj]

this 1080 looks excellent. I need to know the setup

[@denimbotany]

Sonos, please make a receiver like Nilay suggested.

[@RoastBeefSandwich]

I really like the Sonos stuff I have. I don't really like spatial audio so I am not itching to upgrade to these speakers though. What I'd love is a pair of Fives for my listening room, honestly.

[@DaveSimkus]

Is there a way to hook up two fives using a single AUX cable or do you have to use WiFi?

[@RoastBeefSandwich]

@@DaveSimkus Sonos speakers do not have AUX, they only work over WiFi.

[@julianfp1952]

@@RoastBeefSandwich Until these Eras with their aux-to-USB adapter option the Sonos Five was the one speaker in the Sonus lineup that does have a 3.5mm input. I’m not sure how that works in a stereo pair, I would assume that one speaker is considered the master and it’s aux input could still be used. Using the aux input means that no transport controls (play, pause, skip etc) will work of course, you’d have to use the ones on the device connected to the 3.5mm input.

[@RoastBeefSandwich]

​@@julianfp1952 The way I understood their question was, can you connect something to the 3.5mm input and have it just play, like a regular speaker. Sonos speakers are still wifi dependent devices. You can't have a stereo pair of Fives without wifi.

[@shadician]

So will Sonos speakers work in my smart-home with Google Assistant? Unless something has changed dramatically, I'm guessing I won't be able to use Google Assistant on the new Era speakers directly, and I won't be able to have a speaker group that includes them + Google speakers around my house...

[@EthanHMoore]

I'll be honest, everything I have heard from Atmos or 360 audio from Sony has been really bad. I'm interested to see if it improves but it does feel a bit like the MQA debate since you need so much investment to get the best out of it, consumer and producer both.

[@audie-cashstack-uk4881]

utter nonsense if someone or team do a bad mix master how is that the forMats FAULT ...ATMOS IS AMAZING..go play re2 remake with atmos on and atmos surround or headphones go watch good atmos content on stream and again listen via speakers or a atmos app-ed headphone output its amazing . even stereo over headphones with atmos app switch on in music mode sounds fully and rounded and fills your head with magic

[@netguru2004]

The Era 300 look amazing and look to perform well with the Sonos Arc. Is Sonos looking to fix the Amazon Alexa integration to support the playing of music? The Hey Sonos works but is not as good as just using Alexa.

[@NovaDoll]

Nearly all of the music I listen to is in atmos. Love my era 300 and sub mini.

[@Yowzoe]

Have you tried *2* era 300s?

[@markfi123]

Great video, really enjoyed this!

[@rippergaming7825]

Can I run 2 Era 300 as rears with an Arc,2 series 5 and 2 subs (gen 2,3?

[@meskin84]

Are they consolidating Decoder into a Vergecast episode rather than it’s own show?

[@Tim_in_Australia]

Love it. Sonos is quality, unlike my #apple friends. I have 4 origional Homepods. Three have died. Apple have not kept their quality, unlike Sonos.

[@DaveSimkus]

The biggest issue is that you can't just use the speaker out of the box. You can't just plug in your 3.5. You have to download their app first and connect with your wifi. So if you just want to use the 300 as is and you don't have wifi at home, then you must go somewhere where you can get wifi just to set it up for your AUX connection.

[@ygdiget4119]

I would never consider that to be the biggest issue. Out of curiosity, why would you buy a Sonos product for non-wireless use? Wouldn't a wired speaker be of much greater value for your intended non-wireless use case?

[@DaveSimkus]

@YGDiget Yeah but what wired speaker offers the same audio quality and nice design package as a Sonos Five?

[@kevinweber5129]

@@DaveSimkus kef LSX

[@DaveSimkus]

@@kevinweber5129 Thank you for the suggestion. They look nice but very pricey.

[@acerebello5631]

Will the Roam ever be used as rears or part of a surround sound system ? Pleaseeeeeeeeeeee

[@VanceReviews]

Love the idea of replacing the board as the "upgrade" and still using the same speaker.

[@kevinweber5129]

Wait wasn’t everyone expecting headphones?

[@mattsynth]

I see the 100 as having very little speaker separation with just one of them. I cannot wait to hear two paired. No Spatial or Atmos is a real bummer. The 300 is just too big, goofy looking and way too expensive to purchase a pair of them. These new Sonos speakers will have to sound really great to beat Apple HomePods. I do give Sonos credit for going after this market and giving us a choice.

[@NovaDoll]

All you need is one 300. I paired mine with a sub mini because I like more bass.

[@liquid79]

They focus on MUSIC FIRST yet sell them as REAR speakers. Do they expect people to buy FOUR of these so you can listen to music from the front and have them as rears for movies as well? Things are getting complicated.

[@Dando-1983]

Era 100 holders for existing Sonos 1 stands please 🙏🏼

[@liquid79]

Buy a shelf or a table

[@Dando-1983]

@@liquid79 what a silly idea.. why would I do that when I have Sonos stands behind the sofa.

[@TanukiTakey]

Took a sonos sponsorship to get all the podcast participants levels the same.

[@ShumonM]

The frequent inexplicable wifi issues are what finally put me off wireless/smart speakers for good.

[@JN-ys6eq]

I picked up a second hand Boost and it fixed my (infrequent) drop out issues

[@ShumonM]

@@JN-ys6eq signal strength isn’t the issue. My wifi router is about 5m away from my speakers and none of the other devices in my house have any similar issues.

[@betelgeuse68]

Sounds like you have a WiFi issue... not a speaker issue. For stationary devices I always prefer Ethernet connections -- eliminates wonky WiFi issues... everything from you're too far away from the WiFi router to a crowded WiFi environment (lots of neighbors being on the same WiFi channel). On a tangent, don't expect amazing WiFi from a $50 home router.

[@onewontdo]

Been using Sonos Arc + Ones + Sub for a couple years and I never experienced any latency or connectivity issues.

[@deangluyas5678]

I had intermittent issues until I connected one of the speakers (in my case the arc) to an Ethernet connection. Since then trouble free.

[@luismo347]

very expensive speakers, it ERA 300, it was what I expected for my sonos system with ARC, SUB 3 gen and 2 SL, but $450 dollars for rear speakers, not good

[@AudiophileTommy]

Who needs Spotify 😡

[@user-wj9cg2rd4j]

You make throw away products , how is that good for the environment? Just tell the people what they want to hear.

[@user-wj9cg2rd4j]

Bla,bla,bla

[@milanmaksimovic4865]

plastic speakers.🙊🔊😊

[@LynRees]

Can't wait to hear how they stack up. Look good on paper @lynrees