The new Sonos Era 300 speaker has been available since March 2023, and I have tested the device extensively. Although the dimensions are slightly smaller than the comparable Sonos Five, the inner workings are at least as powerful.
Six individual speakers ensure a good sound that doesn’t just radiate forwards like the Sonos Five – but also to the right, left and upwards. This makes the Era 300 particularly suitable for spatial audio.
Sonos Era 300 test
For movies, the sound comes from all directions. But the new speaker also offers perfect hi-fi sound for normal music. Sonos is cooperating with Apple Music for the first time and delivers 3D and spatial audio.
It is finally possible to stream music to the device via Bluetooth. Integration via WLAN together with other Sonos devices is also possible, and the AirPlay 2 functionality for Apple devices is retained.
Just like the Sonos Five, external devices such as turntables or other audio sources can be connected to the Era 300 via the AUX input.
Recently, this has been done via a USB-C adapter and no longer with a 3.5mm jack plug. This feature is now also available on the successor to the Sonos One – the Sonos Era 100.
Dolby Atmos, 3D and spatial audio
What was previously only possible with the Sonos Arc and Beam 2 soundbars now also works with the Era 300: spatial audio. The sound not only comes from the front, but also from behind, from the sides and from above.
The new Sonos speaker can already produce this spatial sound with a single device. However, it sounds better when two Era 300s are used together and placed behind the sofa, for example. This can create a whole new sound experience for movies with Dolby Atmos.
This spatial sound also exists in music. Apple offers such songs on the Apple Music platform and calls it 3D audio.
Various terms for spatial audio are circulating on Amazon Music: in addition to 3D audio and Ultra HD, there are also playlists with music in Dolby Atmos for testing.
The problem with this new 3D music trend is that only a few songs using this new technology are available so far. 99 percent of music is mixed in normal stereo mode. It remains to be seen whether Sonos has backed the right horse here.
Sonos Era 300: The sound
With the Era 300, you definitely have to differentiate whether you are evaluating the sound for home theaters – i.e. for movies and series – or for music.
Home theater sound
Two Era 300s can be configured as rear speakers for home cinemas. They then primarily reproduce effect sounds from movies and series, making content sound even more spatial.
This worked well in my test and sounded fantastic. Provided you have movies that are available in Dolby Atmos. In addition, all other devices in the chain must support the formats: TV, cable and any HDMI splitters.
In my opinion, however, the Era 300 are oversized for most home theater applications; if it has to be rear speakers, I would rather recommend the smaller Era 100.
The installation location also plays a major role: in very few living rooms can the Era 300 be set up optimally, i.e. with as much space as possible on all sides so that the speakers arranged on the sides can play freely.
And even if this optimal placement is possible, the large “hourglasses” are definitely a matter of taste.
Sound for music
Yes, the Era 300 sounds great for music. At least if you have previously listened to music with a smaller Sonos speaker such as the Sonos One or the Era 100.
The bass is powerful and makes the dishes in the cupboard vibrate, the mids are balanced and the highs are clear and detailed.
The listening experience is even better if you play music via the Era 300 in 3D audio – i.e. in Dolby Atmos. The instruments are then reproduced more spatially, creating the impression of a concert hall.
So far, however, only very few pieces of music are available in this format. It remains to be seen whether there will be significantly more in the future.
I compared the Era 300 with the flagship Sonos Five. With the Five, all the speakers are positioned towards the front, especially as the speaker is slightly larger.
Songs from my test playlist such as “In My Secret Life” by Leonard Cohen or “When We’re Older” by James Blake sound even better on the old Sonos Five than on the new Era 300. The bass is a little more powerful, the resolution of the details even finer.
With both devices, the sound is even better if you connect two of them to form a stereo pair.
Fast tuning without cell phone microphones
Sonos speakers can be adapted to the characteristics of the respective room using the so-called Trueplay function, which ensures audibly better sound.
This function is still reserved for Apple users. You walk through the room with an iPhone while the speaker plays various test tones.
This is not possible with Android cell phones because there are too many different microphones built into the smartphones.
With the new Era speakers, however, there is still a possibility: with “fast tuning”, the speaker can adapt itself to the room. This works via integrated microphones – the speaker practically listens to itself and adjusts the equalizer accordingly.
Era 300 with Bluetooth
This function has been missing from Sonos speakers for years, but now it’s finally here. In future, the Sonos Era 100 and Era 300 will also be able to stream music via Bluetooth. It is unclear why the manufacturer did without this technology for so long.
Apple users can also send music to the devices via AirPlay 2. The advantage of this is that speakers from different manufacturers can function as a multi-room system, provided they support AirPlay 2.
The Era 300 is compatible with WiFi 6 and therefore theoretically achieves higher and more stable data transfer rates than its predecessor. In terms of connection stability, the new speaker could benefit from the technology.
External sources via USB-C
The predecessor of the Era 300, the Sonos Five, already had a jack socket on the back to connect external devices such as record players. This had the advantage that the sound from the record player could not only be played on this speaker, but also transmitted from there to the entire Sonos system.
The new Sonos Era 300 now also offers this function, albeit with a different connection concept: there is only one USB-C input at the back. This can be connected to external sources via an adapter.
Another adapter (not included) goes from USB-C to AUX and LAN. You can also connect a LAN cable there to connect the speaker directly to a router or repeater.
Sonos Era 300: New control unit
The new Sonos speakers have been given additional buttons. Previously, there was only play/pause and volume up and down. In addition, there are now touch buttons for forward and back as well as a mute button (speech bubble) to temporarily deactivate the integrated microphones.
If you want to switch off the microphones permanently, you can do so via another button on the back. Supposedly, this disconnects them from the power supply and they can no longer listen in.
In my opinion, the haptic recess for the volume buttons is a big plus point. This makes it easy to feel the volume even in the dark and change it at the touch of a finger.
The Sonos Era 300 can also be controlled via Sonos’ own voice assistant Hey Sonos, and Amazon Alexa will also be on board. It is not yet clear whether the Google Assistant will be added later.
My conclusion on the Era 300
Admittedly, the look of the Era 300 takes some getting used to. But if you don’t mind, you get one of the best Sonos speakers that sounds fantastic in the home theater as well as with music.
Especially when two devices are connected at the same time and provide perfect stereo or surround sound.
If you are only looking for good rear speakers for home theater, you will probably also be happy with the Era 100. I think the Era 300 is oversized for this application.
If you can do without a home theater and focus on high-quality sound for music, I would recommend the Sonos Five. It’s a little more expensive, but sounds great with music.
Sonos has definitely listened to users’ wishes in some areas and integrated long overdue functions such as Bluetooth. The option to continue integrating external sources such as record players into the system is also exemplary.
The ability to adapt the sound to the room via integrated microphones is great and is finally no longer reserved for Apple users.
Lars Grudzinski has been working as a sound and lighting technician since the 90s, was a DJ for electronic music, has a large collection of vintage speakers, and has been working for various radio stations in Germany for 20 years. At home, he enjoys high-quality home theater products such as soundbars and projectors and has installed an extensive Sonos system in his own home.