How to add multi-room audio to your AirPlay 2 supported speakers

Table of Content

• Worlds Only AirPlay 2 Certified Ceiling Speakers
• Create a Multi-Brand. Multi-Room setup with AirPlay 2
• Sign up for the Technology Minute
• Whole Home Wireless Audio Streaming with Airplay
• Using AirPlay from Your iPhone or iPad to Stream to Multiple Speakers

The most basic setup is a single Sonos wireless speaker that connects to your home WiFi network. It works with the Sonos app for Android or iOS. Debuting in 2004, Apple’s proprietary wireless protocol suite has developed into an all-singing, all-dancing entertainment hub.

Food Network star Alton Brown is always complaining about “unitasker” gadgets in the kitchen. Similarly, I worry about expensive, proprietary tech devices that only do one thing. Granted, Sonos does its one thing fantastically well. But what about in five years, when perhaps routers don’t support the band that your Sonos speaker uses, or when Apple releases a competitor and drops support for the Sonos app ? Unlike an old laptop that I can rip apart and repurpose its components, a Sonos speaker only works with Sonos, and without Sonos, you’ve got a sleek $199 paperweight.

Worlds Only AirPlay 2 Certified Ceiling Speakers

There are also custom solutions, like whole house wired audio offered by companies like Guardian. Logistically, it’s feasible during construction or renovation but is usually beyond the reach of a DIYer. Shairport Sync actively maintains synchronisation with the source. If synchronisation is lost — say due to a busy source or a congested network — Shairport Sync will mute its output and resynchronise.

It’s unclear whether this will work with existing speakers or require new ones. Firstly, sadly I don’t have a hard-wired house, although laying CAT-5 to some strategic rooms is on my to-do list. The WiFi signal seems to be strong throughout the house, but I do live in a contested environment, where I can see lots of SSIDs from adjacent houses. I also have a number of Philip’s Hue bulbs/outlets connected via the Zigbee protocol, so that adds to the 2.4 Ghz pollution.

Create a Multi-Brand. Multi-Room setup with AirPlay 2

Stream music, podcasts, and other audio to Apple TV, HomePod, or AirPlay 2-compatible speakers or smart TVs. Play audio across multiple speakers throughout your home in perfect sync. Or play something different in every room — all with AirPlay. To start, whole-home audio will work with Apple Music, but an API will become available for other music apps that want to support the feature. To play audio to your AirPlay receiving devices, they need to be powered on and connected to your WiFi network. Then, you need to send audio to them from your centralized source.

Im using an Eero mesh network that covers my house well with solid 4 and 5 bars of signal. Finally, someone raised the concern that Sonos might just evaporate given AirPlay2’s arrival. In fact, I’m more concerned that Apple will suddenly lose interest in the HomePod mini (much as they have just done with the original HomePod, and historically with Airport routers, etc.).

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I’ve had a Sonos system for 9 years now, with some of the original components still working well. Nothing but compliments, and they keep it working as wireless technologies improve. Is whole-house audio worth a $600+ investment to you?

A major kitchen remodel necessitated ripping out an old Broan intercom/music distribution system that served 12 stations throughout the house and the patios. Losing the intercom capability wasn’t really a show-stopper, but losing the whole house music distribution definitely was. My only source of music is an iPad, loaded with a comprehensive iTunes library, currently connected via Bluetooth to the input of the Broan.

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So frustrated with Apple not standing by their products. I’m looking at investing in Sonos because it has it’s own buffering technology and won’t cut in and out when some bandwidth issue happens. I’m growing to hate Apple more and more when they do not allow for older tech. Sonos uses a combination of your home’s WiFi network and its own dedicated Sonos network to stream music in sync.

But to talk to each other, Sonos speakers will use an entirely separate wireless network created by the Sonos system itself. This is all done behind the scenes without you knowing it. Problems can arise when you are trying to synchronise with speaker systems — typically surround-sound home theatre systems — that have their own inherent delays.

How AirPlay Works

These were just located in strategic rooms serving as part-intercom, part-voice control for the HomeKit stuff. My point is that personally I have never seen the worth in spending so much money for the merely simple task of multi-room audio. In the author’s case he would list the price paid for each Apple product he had already purchased.

If you are more interested in controlling your entire house obviously go for an automation solution like Savant. As far as just pure audio though Sonos is amazing. It works flawlessly – the software just gets better and better – and the future looks even brighter. Every friend I have ever shown SONOS to buys the system within a month. To control AirFoil from your phone, get the Airfoil Satellite app from the app store.

How to play different audio in different rooms

Most of my systems are not connected to TV’s and I’ve got a very powerful router already. Once you have all of your AirPlay 2 supported speakers set up throughout the house, you may not want to play music everywhere all of the time. You can pick which room to play music in without having to be in that room.