Muso or Sonos – seriously

Posted by: The Author on 15 September 2015

The other day I spent an hour doing a side-by-side demo of the Muso and a Sonos playbar/sub combo. I was A-B switching via my iPhone between the two apps, using the same songs to get an direct comparison.

 

I think I need a third offering here as I wasn't happy with either really, but if I had to pick, I'd go Sonos. Here's why.

 

Using the direct comparison I felt the Muso lost some instruments almost totally. Sheila Jordon's version of Baltimore Oriole for instance. On this track it's her vocals on top of a simple double base a foot-pedal operated hi-hat and brushes doing the usual circular motion on the snare drum. A-B switching was astonishing. When on the Sonos I could hear the brushes brushing the snare clearly, but on the Muso, the snare brushes were practically removed from the mix altogether, like somebody had taken that track and turned the volume off. Also, the clarity of the vocals were too laid back into the mix compared to the Sonos and, on the whole, when I closed my eyes I could pin-point the Muso to a very tiny little space right under the TV in the dem room at the hi-fi shop, absolutely no specially or width or room-filling ability whatsoever. The Sonos in comparison, filled the room like a 5-1 sound, had way more separation in the vocals, more presence and none of the instruments got lost in the mix.

 

Finally, the Muso sounded very 'boxy' like it was coming out of a cardboard shoebox, harsh I know, but that's just how it sounds compared to the Sonos.

 

However, I did prefer the 'rounded' sound of the Naim, it was softer and easy on the ear, while the Sonos sounded harsh and tinnitus-inducing in comparison. Though I adjusted the treble EQ in the Sonos app and it helped a bit, it wasn't quite there for me.

 

The bass on the Sonos was way deeper with more slam than the Muso too, though it was a trifle less musical I must admit.

 

On a final note, for TV, the Muso is no good as you still have to use the (very cheep and tacky, it would break in 5 seconds) Naim remote control as there is no way of using the TV remote so you need a remote in each hand, one for channel hopping and the other to adjust the volume. Really, this Muso remote control has the build quality of something you'd get out of an Xmas cracker, a Chinese Xmas cracker at that. The Sonos on the other hand can be set up so the TV remote does the volume.

 

If you're using a system like this for TV, where Movie sound reproduction is the order of the day, the Sonos is the one to go for. As for me, I'm now looking for an alternative to both these offerings for the reasons listed above.

 

P.S. Let the flaming commence. But please remember, this is based on my listening tests/my findings and even the two guys in the hi-fi shop agreed that the Sonos is definitely the better option if you really were forced to take one of the other, they would both take the Sonos/Sub combo also.

 

So, is there anything else out there. I know this is a Naim forum, but I figured this is a good place to ask. Oh, and I'm a huge Naim fan by the way, not on here to get flamed. I own several pieces of Naim Hi-Fi in my 'proper' Hi-Fi' set up.

 

 

 

Posted on: 15 September 2015 by Harty601

I have both - and like what both boxes do (for the money and space they take up).

 

I use the muso in my office, which I think does a pretty good job as a second system. I find the bass quite deep but controlled (for a one box solution). It certainly doesn't sound boxy to me.

 

I have the sonos player / sub / surround on my TV and again am very happy. The convenience of not being constrained by wires for sub and surround is worth the trade off (for me) in a better sounding system that does require cables between all boxes. I also do find myself using the sonos for casual listening from time to time and it doesn't do a bad job.

 

Neither system is going to give a decent hifi set up a run for it's money (obviously), but set up well I think both solutions are very capable of doing what they are intended for - whilst giving the convenience of space saving and or cable running.

 

 

Posted on: 15 September 2015 by GregW

As @Harty601 says neither system is going to put a classic stereo hifi setup in any trouble, but they do have their own unique capabilities.

 

When our ancient Bose Wave CD/Clock/Radio died I replaced it with a Mu-so, but with an update to include an alarm clock looking unlikely in the near term, I picked up a Sonos Play 1 in the run up to Christmas last year and repurposed the Mu-so.

 

I've subsequently added another Play 1 creating a stereo pair in the bedroom. Running the units side by side I would say that for casual listening I find the pair of Play 1's more enjoyable than the Mu-so. The software/control and streaming service support story is well understood so no need to go in to that here.

 

One thing I would like to see available in all wireless speaker systems is the ability to optimise or tune the speakers to the room/position they are in. More often than not they end up in sonically compromised locations. The more expensive the system e.g. Mu-so, the more I think this should be part of the package.

Posted on: 15 September 2015 by Bert Schurink

I think the Muso is very good at what it does and leads to very satisfying results, especially after the initial run in. It by no means challenges the main system, but that's ok as it has it's own context. I yet have to hear a better one of these.