I really want the Vanatoos they sound amazing for the price!
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Yeah, I agree, I don’t need high resolution or to try and figure out how to mount 7.1 around the room.
I haven’t thought of Realistic in a while! I do miss the Shack when I need some random switch or other part.
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So my story has a Christmas twist - getting the last of the decorations out of the attic I found an old Cambridge SoundWorks 2.1 set up. I swapped the Soundlink mini out and it sounds great with the Sub hidden behind the dog food bin! I ordered a Chromecast a couple weeks ago and that got screwed up, that’s another story…
The Transparent Ones look very interesting, the low power sleep mode seems like a really good thing
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i was in your situation 2 wks ago.
wanted a pair of sonos play 1 to replace the sole play 3 in my kitchen for my wakeup/casual listening/cooking music.
so i found a pair here in vancouver bc off of craigslist (excellent condition)
for cdn$200…craigslist is your buddy for sonos gear that is used but in great shape
with excellent discounts.
another option is to look at the new kef lsx which i might do in the new yr but they’re $cdn1200ish even with a discount tossed in…but they’re getting great bang for buck reviews.
reason why i’m holding on to the sonos vs the kef lsx 50 for the kitchen is that
i’m not doing critical listening…instead i’m surfing on my computer …eating…or cooking.
who’s looking for imaging, dimension and such? not me.
so sonos @ $200 vs kef at $1300…doubt the kefs would be 600% better sounding either.
but i’ll still go and have a listen to them this week.
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btw: i love the room callibration system of Sonos’ trueplay…seems to work, esp against other speakers in similar situations i’ve had.
last yr, for example, i had the sonos play 3 in my kitchen…like many on here always wanting better sound,
i bought the 2.5x more pricey Bluesound pulse mini, thinking it’d sound 2-3x better, being made by ‘real audiophiles’ over at PSB Speakers, etc.
…so the day the Blusound Pulse Mini arrived i was so excited…hooked it up…turned it on.
and then my jaw dropped. I was soooo disappointed in the sound.
(sounded muffled and dull, lacking the detail of the sonos play 3).
my disappointment led to an email thread with the company and they kindly sent a replacement…
but nope: the replacement was (in my op) just as poor sounding.
too bad other companies don’t have a similar sonos trueplay callibration sytem.
plus the bluesound series is not as easy as sonos’ mesh ecosystem to set up.
(note: bluesound has recently come out with their 2i series, so maybe setup and sound have both been tweaked for the better: but the prices are still $$$)https://www.bluesound.com/)
so my lesson learned: you don’t always get what you pay for (i have heard the smaller bluesound pulse flex and larger pulse do sound fine, but this middle positioned pulse mini was a huge thumbs down…for me anyway..of course this is only my opinion, if you’re a bluesound fan and love the pulse mini, then rock on…your happiness with it is all that matters.)
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The KEF LSX is on my wishlist. Just waiting/hoping that price goes down a bit.
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i hear you man…but would the 5-6x the price increase of the kef lsx equate to 5-6x the sound refinement?
doubt it…but who knows…still for cdn$200 for my pair of sonos play 1s that is hard to beat.
they just sound ‘good enough’ for their setting and purpose,
know what i mean?..still the lsx, if they’re like the ls50w i have in my livingroom,
then i might be tempted to splurge 
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