Here’s how to get max energy from your Sonos S5

Normally, my blog posts are in my native language, danish, but I found an advice on using the Sonos S5 that is so great, that I want to share it with as many Sonos lovers as possible, so I wrote this blog post in english.

Please retweet / share the link to this article if you think it can help other S5 owners! Thanks

I’ve been running my own sound recording studio for 18 years, so I know good sound when I hear it. Even though the S5 is a consumer-level product, I’m absolutely amazed by the dynamic, rich and very pleasent sound it produces, even when the volume is hit hard when a good tune is banging on Last.FM!

But – if you want more energy to your sound, here’s a quickguide on how to get the max energy from your Sonos S5 in 20 seconds!

But: what many people don’t realise is, that how you place the S5, has a tremendous impact on the sound. Let me show you why and how to get the sound you prefer in just 2 minutes! It applies to all speakers, but I wrote it for all you happy Sonos owners

Here’s the basics: place the S5 on a table will bring you neutral level of low end / bass energy. Put in up against a wall, you will double the low frequent energy you percieve. Put it in a corner, and you double it once more. I.e. Putting your S5 in a corner, will produce much more low end energy to the sound.

If you’re into electronic music like dance and R&B or pop/rock, you know that the bass can really “drive” the energy of a track.

Right after unboxing and plugging in the S5, you’ll realise that there’s a LOT of energy in the S5, even though it’s small compared to a, say, mid sized loudspeaker.

You CAN edit the EQ of the S5 and change the level of low and high frequencies. But even before you do that, just by placing the S5 where you want it, will have an impact on the sound. Here’s why:

Any surface reflects the sound. Placing it on a table, reflects the sound, so what you hear, is a combination of the sound from the source itself (the built-in speakers of the S5) and the reflections from the surface.

If you put it not only on a table, but also against a wall, you will add the amount of bass, perceived by your ears because you now have 2 surfaces to reflect the sound.

Put it in a corner and you double the bass / low end energy because you now have 3 surfaces to reflect and “emphasize” the sound.

Please retweet / share the link to this article if you think it can help other S5 owners! Thanks

Why not just fiddle with the EQ? Well, you can if you like, but the way you place the S5 can save you a lot of messing around, trying to get the EQ just right and EQ is kind of swimming upstream, and placement is just “playing along the rules of nature”.

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