The Sonos Connect is simply a Sonos player which needs to be connected either to a set of powered speakers or an existing receiver or amplifyer. It has the most output options of any Sonos device because it’s designed to be used with either analogue or digital connections to existing equipment. It has one analogue input (sorry, no digital inputs), but it has an analogue RCA output and two digital outputs, one optical Toslink and one Coax digital. It does send simultaneously to these outputs, e.g. I have a Sonos Connect hooked up to my high-end stereo system downstairs via the Coax Digital output, but I can at the same time connect a set of powered speakers to the RCA analogue outputs and, if I wanted, I could connect the Miccus bluetooth transmitter to the optical Toslink output. I will most likely return the Miccus bluetooth transmitter/receiver to Amazon because of the drop-outs and I have for the most part already stopped using it. I am luck in that I have one of the original Play 5 players which when I bought it way back in 2011 or 2012 was called the S5 and it has both a 3.5mm input jack and a 3.5mm output/headphone jack. As long as I don’t mind the cable I can put this unit next to or under my bed and use any wired headset with it. When it comes to adding a wireless headset to Sonos I think it is much better to use a Sennheiser wireless headsetwhich transmit via 900 Mhz from the base station to the headset (for the less expensive models) or via I think 6.0 Ghz (the more expensive digital models). They can go anywhere from $99 to $600 here in Canada, but I had bought one of the midrange ones with Aeroplan points years ago and gave it to my Dad who passed away last year so I might try it. Sennheiser also makes a unit called the Flex 5000 which is a wireless digital headset receiver/amplifier. Same idea, you have a base station which connects to your source (the Sonos in my case) and it has the ability to connect via optical Toslink), then the unit itself is a small box you can clip on your belt, it has a rechargeable battery and you can plug in any headset you want from inexpensive earbuds (it comes with a set) to high-end audio file headsets and if you already own a good wired headset this sounds like a nice unit. It is $269.99 on Amazon Canada.
Best regards, Sieghard From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Fanus Sent: Monday, January 15, 2018 4:55 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: Thoughts about some new bluetooth toys Hello Sieghard & Rick Once Again I have the same interests than Sieghard i.e. listening to audio in bed when my wife has long gone to dreamland. I have the Micus product but the previous model & I also experience the drop outs. Please keep us posted if you guys find something that works well. And also, Sieghard, can you please tell me more about the Sonos Connect device? Regards Fanus From: Sieghard Weitzel Sent: Saturday, January 13, 2018 6:56 PM To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Subject: RE: Thoughts about some new bluetooth toys Thanks, Rick, I’ll take a look at those. From: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Rick Alfaro Sent: Saturday, January 13, 2018 7:32 AM To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Subject: RE: Thoughts about some new bluetooth toys Hi Sieghard. Have you considered trying out the Sleep Phones from www.sleepPhones<http://www.sleepPhones>.com ? They come in both wired and BT versions. I have not tried them personally but they sure sound like they would fit the bill for you. From: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Sieghard Weitzel Sent: Thursday, January 11, 2018 11:36 AM To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Subject: Thoughts about some new bluetooth toys Hello, I’m a huge Audible/audio book fan and often listen at night after my wife goes to bed. I therefore am always on the lookout for the perfect way to listen so it doesn’t disturb my wife but so it’s also comfortable for me since I often fall asleep listening. I often just use my iPhone and wired Earpods, but sometimes that of course results in me waking up during the middle of the night lying on my iPhone and with Earpods wrapped around me. I have tried a pillow speaker which I purchased from Amazon, but it wasn’t for me. I sometimes use my Plantronics Voyager Edge which just a single earpiece and if it ends up somewhere in the bed under me it’s not so bad, but it’s also not quite perfect yet. I recently purchased two larger headsets and something called a bluetooth receiver/transmitter, here some links: Jabra Move – link to the canadian Jabra website<https://www.jabra.ca/music/jabra-move-wireless> Jabra Move – link to Best Buy Canada<https://www.bestbuy.ca/en-ca/product/jabra-jabra-move-on-ear-bluetooth-headphones-blue-100-96300001-20/10358809.aspx>, regular $109.99 on sale until today for $69.99 I actually bought this on Amazon.ca for $88 so seeing on Best Buy Canada on sale for $69.99 is a bummer, but anyhow, I quite like this headset. It’s an on-ear headset which is very comfortable and well-built. Only thing for me is that the on/off switch which is a slider is on the right ear and the play/pause button and volume up/down is on the left which I find a bit awkward. It claims 8 hours of battery life and can be used in wired mode as well and I quite like it when headsets offer both options. Sony MDRXB950BT/B on Amazon.com<https://www.amazon.com/Sony-MDRXB950BT-Extra-Bluetooth-Headphones/dp/B00MCHE38O> $118.00 Sony MDRXB950BT/B on Amazon Canada $199.99<https://www.amazon.ca/Sony-MDR-XB950BT-Bluetooth-Extra-Headphones/dp/B00NBR6QMK> Sony MDRXB950BT review<https://medium.com/@Xander51/sony-xb950n1-xb950b1-extra-bass-wireless-headphones-review-a-feature-packed-update-of-an-old-46a8750021d4> These are over-the-ear headphones which have noise cancelling and a base boost feature and they are awesome, but a bit larger than the Jabra Move. I was able to get them on sale on Amazon Canada during Boxing Week for $124.99 Canadian which is under $100 US so that was a really good deal. I love the controls, the on/off is a button, but the headphones have a very pleasant and high quality female voice and say things like “Power On”, “Power Off”, “Pairing mode” etc. The play/pause is on the right ear and it’s a button but it ccan also be pusshed up/down for skip/jump back and if you push and hold it it will fast forward/rewind. They sound fantastic, are very comfortable and what I would expect from Sony. I have seen reviews where they are favouribly compared with Bose and Beats headsets which cost much more. The last item I bought is a dual mode bluetooth receiver/transmitter, it can connect to a TV, stereo etc. by 3.5mm/RCA analogue or optical digital connection and this allows you to make a non-bluetooth device into one you can listen to with a bluetooth headset or speaker. Here the Amazon.ca link: Miccus LONG RANGE Dual Link Bluetooth Transmitter and Bluetooth Receiver, aptX Low Latency audio. Wireless adapter for TV, stereo, speakers, Phone, PC. Auto optical pass through - (Home RTX 2.0)<https://www.amazon.ca/Miccus-Bluetooth-Transmitter-Receiver-Wireless/dp/B075J4RKGH/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1515687519&sr=8-6&keywords=miccus+bluetooth> It’s a little box, maybe the size of an iPhone 7 (not a Plus) and it has a 3.5mm analogue input and output in the back as well as an optical digital input and output and it comes with a little antenna which is attached in the back in the middle. It also has a micro USB port for power. I bought this in order to basically bluetooth enable my Sonos system. I have waited for a long time for Sonos to come out with a Sonos headset, but at this point Sonos is all about listening out loud via speakers, they now are focusing on their voice smartspeakers which support Alexa and soon will support Google Assistant and Cortana and I have a feeling that a headset is not coming soon although I’m sure it will come at some point since you find many posts on forums where people want one. Anyhow, I plugged it into one of my Sonos Connect players using the optical digital cable and at first it seemed to work great with the Jabra Move headset. However, after you listen for a while there are little drop-outs, just a second or less, but annoying. I have it just next door to the bedroom in my office and up on a shelf about 5 feet high and when I am in bed at night that is literally 10 feet away and through one wall (just a regular interior wall with drywall) so I’m not too sure if I want to keep this. Alternatively I could go with any of the many Sennheiser wireless speakers which are not bluetooth but which plug into a stereo or other source with a base and then transmit via the 900 Mhz band (their less expensive models) or via 6 Ghz digital. Some of these have a super-long range of at least 100 feet or more and the digital models can also plug into an optical digital output and sound probably better than bluetooth. Anyhow, thought I share my thoughts on these devices, as for listening to audio books in bed I am starting to think that something with the form factor of the Airpods which can be used in one ear or both would probably my best choice, if it falls out when I go to sleep it would hopefully paus the audio which would be nice and if I lie on it I don’t think it would be a problem, but of course I am still not willing to shell out over $200 Canadian for these things. I am almost sure the second generation of Airpods will be released this fall so I’ll wait just a bit longer. 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