Sonos Era 300

The Sonos Era 300 has Very Good overall sound quality - although it has some noticeable sonic quirks, this model reproduces music and dialog very well. Bass has good impact and goes deep, but is a bit prominent and boomy. Midrange is fairly even, but is a bit hazy and grainy, and a touch etched. Treble is extended but the lower treble is a touch prominent and a bit smeared and sizzly while the upper treble is a bit subdued. Does a decent job of recovering room ambience but sounds a touch constricted. The stereo sound field extends somewhat above and beyond the sides of the speaker enclosure and there is a hint of depth. Individual instruments and voices are identifiable but have a two dimensional quality. There is no significant difference between WiFi, Bluetooth, and line-in sound quality. Provides adequate listening volume for a medium to large sized room. Stereo Pair: When 2 units are combined to form a stereo pair they can be placed to provide better stereo separation and the sense of the width and height of the sound noticeably increases. Tonality is similar to that of single speaker except the bass sounds more prominent and boomy, and the score increases to the top of the Very Good range. Spatial Audio: When playing Spatial Audio material via Apple Music, the width and height of the sound stage expands and depending on the program material can fill the front end of the room; audio imaging can extends up and above from the front of the room, and depending on the program material can extend into the front half of the room.

Versatility is Very Good. It's a stereo speaker, with multi-room support with other Sonos speakers. Supports stereo pairing with another Sonos Era 300. Wireless: WiFi supports dual-band and it has Bluetooth. Communications: Lacks support for calling, texting and messaging features. Digital Assistant Muting: Has a dedicated control to disable the digital assistant by muting its microphones. Audio Connections: Has analog audio inputs but lacks outputs. Audio Tailoring: Has auto calibration and has treble and bass controls. OS Support: iOS, Android. Other connections and features: Lacks a USB device port and integral Smart Home Hub. Display: Lacks a display. Streaming by voice command: Supports voice command of common streaming services such as Amazon Music, Apple Music, Pandora, Spotify, Tune-In, iHeart Radio. Voice ID: Lacks support to setup voice identity using this speaker, although it can use a voice print stored in a user's Amazon account trained from an Amazon speaker. This feature allows the account holder to access personal information with their voice print.

Overall ease of use of the Sonos Era 300 is Excellent. Wireless setup: Setup requires an app downloaded to a device or device connection, easy but not intuitive (e.g. leaving app to change settings/returning to app to continue) - need instructions (may be included in app), may or may not involve inputting Wi-Fi network password, account setups. Console controls: Volume controls are medium contrast prominent +/- labels with an audible indication when max volume is reached. Lacks graphical position marking but can be set to be controlled via a natural language command and have index "marking" via verbal command and acknowledgement and controls all inputs. Audio mute: Unlabeled - well placed - with indication when it is engaged. Microphone mute: Well marked, well placed, clear indication when it is engaged. Source selections: Requires app to be installed, app installation is straight forward. Once app is installed switching between inputs is fairly intuitive. App remote: Volume controls are prominent and have graphical position markings with momentary numeric index markings when touched, and they control all inputs. Mute: (Remote) Well marked, well placed, clear indication when it is engaged and mutes the line input. Voice transport controls: Natural language control of transport (Play/Pause/Skip/Mute), volume controls and source selection was easy and intuitive.