Sonos Amp review

We’d recommend setting aside between $200 and $400 for speakers, but the best stereo speakers can vary wildly in price, ranging from around $100 to well over $1000.Image credit: TechRadarThe Amp’s appearance is at once more serious and more svelte than that of the Connect:Amp. In terms of volume it’s very marginally the smaller of the two, but its proportions are markedly different, with its shorter, deeper and slightly wider design making it better suited to placement on a hi-fi rack or being hidden out of sight. It’s important to note that these are not typical Sonos speakers - they’re simply passive speakers designed to work well with Sonos components from aesthetic and audio perspectives.If you connect the Amp to a pair of Sonance speakers, you can use the Trueplay feature to tune the sound to your room. Spotify Connect and AirPlay 2 are on board, too, so you need never open Sonos’s own app should that be your choice.Overall, Sonos is simply the best at multi-room music streaming, and the Amp doesn’t change that.The one potential oversight in the eyes of the serious hi-fi crowd will be the continuing lack of hi-res music support, but we don’t imagine many people in Sonos’s target market being overly put off.Image credit: TechRadarHaving done the legwork so you don’t have to, we can confirm that the Sonos Amp is capable if driving a wide variety of speakers. The outlay will be a bit higher, but you’ll end up with a system that sounds substantially better and also integrates with your telly way more effectively.But for all it’s strengths, we can’t help but criticize the Amp for a slight lack of subtlety when compared to the best streaming components of a similar price and good hi-fi components that cost much less.The Sonos Amp is oodles of fun, but it doesn’t quite deliver the subtlety and sophistication that you’re entitled to expect when spending this sort of money on hi-fi kit.All that being said, there are lots of reasons you might choose Sonos over a rival such as Bluesound as a whole-house system, and if you’re firmly in the Sonos camp but looking for something a bit more serious, the Amp will likely demand your attention.Get the best tech deals, reviews, product advice, competitions, unmissable tech news and more!TechRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher.