Sonos Era 300 Vs. Denon Home 400: Why I'm Pulling The Plug On The More Popular Speaker

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For years, Sonos has been nan go-to marque for multi-room speakers. That, however, mightiness beryllium changing. 

Denon precocious took nan wraps disconnected of its latest-generation speakers, including nan caller Denon Home 400. Both battalion beingness upfiring drivers for Dolby Atmos playback, some plug into robust multi-room ecosystems, and some are designed to anchor a modern wireless audio setup. If you're cross-shopping premium smart speakers, these 2 are almost surely connected your radar.

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They're not priced nan same, though. The Sonos Era 300 runs astir $479, while nan Denon Home 400 will group you backmost $599, astatine slightest successful nan US. In Europe, they're really nan aforesaid price. 

Price aside, these speakers return somewhat different approaches to sound tuning, beingness connectivity, and ecosystem integration. So which 1 should you buy? Here's nan breakdown.

You should bargain nan Sonos Era 300 if…

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1. You person different Sonos speakers

If you've already bought into Sonos, grabbing nan Era 300 mightiness beryllium an easy decision. Sonos runs 1 of nan astir mature and afloat built-out multi-room audio platforms available, and adding a caller speaker to that strategy will beryllium simple. Plug it in, and nan Sonos app picks it up automatically -- setup takes a mates of minutes tops, and grouping speakers crossed different rooms only takes a fewer taps successful nan app.

There's much to it than basal multi-room audio, though. The Era 300 tin besides service arsenic a rear situation speaker erstwhile paired pinch Sonos soundbars, which is simply a earnestly useful characteristic if you're piecing together a location theatre without wanting to woody pinch speaker wire. 

Since nan Era 300 has Dolby Atmos support baked in, utilizing a brace of them arsenic surrounds gives you existent tallness channels from nan backmost of nan room -- and that tin adhd a batch to nan immersive experience. If you're already utilizing a Sonos Arc aliases Beam successful your surviving room, nan Era 300 drops correct into that setup.

2. You want a somewhat much consumer-friendly sound profile

Neither nan Era 300 nor nan Home 400 is what a hardcore audiophile would telephone reference-grade -- but that's not really nan constituent of either one. Where they really disagree is successful really they're tuned. The Denon Home 400 goes for a much neutral position pinch stronger low-mids and smoother highs. The Era 300, connected nan different hand, is simply a small brighter and bass-heavy -- though it's surely not complete nan top.

Also: I traded my Sonos Era 300 for Denon's caller location speaker - and spot nary logic to spell back

The quality is subtle successful practice, but it's decidedly there. Sonos pushes nan bass a spot and pulls backmost somewhat connected nan mids, which creates a sound signature that a batch of mundane listeners will find instantly engaging and fun. 

If you thin to gravitate toward audio that's punchy and lively alternatively than level and analytical, nan Era 300 is astir apt going to consciousness much breathtaking consecutive retired of nan box. That said, nan Denon is still a very tin bass speaker; it conscionable isn't arsenic in-your-face arsenic nan Era 300.

3. You want to prevention immoderate cash

At $449 versus $599, you're redeeming $150 by going pinch nan Era 300 -- and that spread gets moreover harder to disregard if you're readying to bargain a brace for stereo listening. The Era 300 already sounds fantabulous astatine its price, and spending little present doesn't mean you're giving up thing melodramatic successful position of audio value aliases features. 

For astir group shopping successful nan premium smart speaker category, nan savings unsocial make a beardown lawsuit for Sonos -- unless nan Denon brings thing circumstantial you really need.

You should bargain nan Denon Home 400 if…

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You want much beingness controls

Physical connectivity is 1 area wherever nan Denon Home 400 thumps nan Sonos Era 300. The Sonos Era 300 has a USB-C larboard connected nan backmost that requires an adapter for line-in aliases Ethernet. The Denon Home 400, connected nan different hand, has a USB-C input and a 3.5mm aux jack. 

That other elasticity is simply a spot of an advantage if you want to hook up a turntable, link a section euphony library, aliases activity nan speaker into existing location audio cogwheel without messing astir pinch dongles.

For anyone who loves analog audio aliases already has a postulation of beingness media and hi-fi components, nan Denon's attack is simply a small much accommodating. 

You for illustration nan HEOS ecosystem

The Home 400 runs connected nan HEOS multi-room platform, and while HEOS doesn't person nan aforesaid sanction nickname arsenic Sonos, it's a tin ecosystem that keeps growing. One of its biggest trading points is that it isn't locked to a azygous marque -- HEOS useful crossed a assortment of speakers, A/V receivers, and amplifiers from Denon, Marantz, and different compatible manufacturers. 

If you already ain a Denon aliases Marantz receiver, nan Home 400 mightiness merge straight into that setup successful a measurement a Sonos speaker conscionable can't.

Also: Why nan 'Subwoofer Crawl' is nan only measurement I recovered nan bass saccharine spot successful my surviving room

Voice adjunct support is different differentiator worthy mentioning. The Home 400 offers afloat Siri integration done AirPlay 2, truthful you tin usage it arsenic a due Siri speaker -- thing Sonos doesn't do. 

To beryllium clear, Sonos still supports AirPlay, but nan Era 300 can't beryllium utilized arsenic a Siri speaker itself; it can, however, beryllium utilized arsenic an Alexa speaker. The HEOS app isn't rather arsenic refined arsenic Sonos's, but erstwhile you get utilized to it, you'll find it perfectly fine.

You want high-resolution audio support

If hi-res audio really matters to you, nan Denon Home 400 has a clear method advantage. It natively handles afloat 24-bit/192kHz audio, and if you provender it FLAC files done nan USB port, it tin play them without issue. 

The Era 300 tin technically judge 24-bit/192kHz audio arsenic an input, but it downscales during playback. For astir group streaming from Spotify aliases Apple Music, this quality isn't audible aliases relevant. But if you're nan benignant of listener who specifically seeks retired hi-res tracks and wants to cognize your speaker is playing them backmost astatine their autochthonal resolution, nan Denon is nan clear victor here. 

Writer's choice

If you're looking for immersive and full-sounding audio without paying a precocious price, nan Denon Home 400 is perfectly worthy considering. That said, whether it thumps alternatives depends connected your region. In immoderate regions, for illustration Europe, it costs nan aforesaid arsenic the Sonos Era 300, but successful nan US, it costs much than $100 more. 

Most group looking for a smart speaker successful this people will want to prevention nan rate and spell for nan Era 300, particularly if they don't attraction astir amended high-res playback.