Our Favorite Multi-Room Music Setups

As a home technology company, we love technology, but never for its own sake. Rather, we love how it can simplify our client’s lives and bring more enjoyment to everyday living. That’s why we love whole-home audio systems; they can bring music to every corner of your Atlanta home, including outdoors. Today’s technology brings amazing ease of use and audio quality to multi-room music setups, making it easier than ever to enjoy the mood-enhancing effects of music in your space. Let's explore some of our favorite solutions for multi-room audio solutions and how they blend seamlessly with your decor and lifestyle.  

SEE ALSO: Thinking About a Multi-Room Speaker System? Here's What to Know

The Architectural Way

In this era of plug-and-play connected wireless speakers, are built-in speakers really necessary? If you care about both style and performance, we say absolutely yes. Architectural speakers virtually disappear into walls and ceilings, letting your decor shine. But there’s no compromise in performance for their demure looks. Whether you favor background classical music or rocking the latest pop hits, there are speakers that fit the bill. 

The other aspect that might be overlooked is the professional touch. Professional design, installation, and calibration of a multi-room system customize and optimize the sound of a home. A great room, for example, might need more than a pair of speakers in the ceiling to deliver rich, balanced sound in every part of the space. It involves understanding the room's layout, acoustics, amplification needs for desired sound levels, placement, and more. An expert team—like ours at GHT Group—is trained to do these things. Plus, there's the integration bonus. Beyond audio, a home technology expert (us again) can combine your music with smart lighting, shading, and other functions to create experiences that fit your lifestyle and routines. 

Our Favorite Multi-room Audio Speakers

As the name implies, the Sonance Invisible Series speakers are built to disappear into your home's architecture. They are installed flush with the walls or ceilings and can be finished over with the same materials as the surrounding surfaces, such as paint, wallpaper, or even plaster, making them virtually undetectable. Because of Sonance's decades of experience with built-in speakers, they employ clever design in woofers and tweeters that take advantage of their wall installation, offering sound quality that belies their depth and hidden appearance. They are ideal for those who love minimalistic or highly curated interiors where visible technology is not an option. 

James Small Aperture speakers offer a slightly different take on architectural audio solutions. These speakers feature a small, visible aperture that can be as diminutive as three inches in diameter, yet they house a powerful speaker system including a mini-subwoofer, midrange, and tweeter. The result is a speaker that offers full-range audio with a barely noticeable footprint. What sets them apart is their ability to integrate visually with elements like architectural lighting, providing a cohesive look that will please audio enthusiasts and design aficionados alike. The speakers are also highly customizable, with options for paintable grills and flush mounts to match any room's decor.

Can you mix and match these speakers? Of course. Perhaps you want Sonance invisible speakers in a dining room, without built-in lighting or speaker grilles visible in a special ceiling. You can use the James Small Aperture speakers in other rooms, choosing square or round grilles that blend seamlessly with your recessed lighting. It's part of the advantage of a custom approach. 

Control4 Multi-Room Audio

Control4 is a premier smart home platform, but it’s also a top-tier, highly flexible multi-room audio system. It supports all the major music streaming platforms, high-resolution music formats, and integration with other audio sources like CD players, TVs, and even turntables. Because it's a smart home platform, you can control your music through an app, personalized AV remotes, dedicated touchscreens, and wall keypads, so you have many options for managing your audio. The music system also comes built into Control4 home controllers, allowing you to integrate lighting, climate, shading, and security for a completely integrated smart home. Control4 features a wealth of configuration options that don't lock you into a single speaker type or brand, so the system can be fully tailored to your needs. 

What About Sonos?

Sonos is well known for its wireless, connected speakers and robust app that makes it easy to play audio throughout the home. Did you know that there is a custom side to Sonos, too? The Sonos Port is a component that bridges a traditional audio setup (including a multi-room one) and the Sonos ecosystem, letting you add Sonos streaming and ease of use to an existing or new setup if Sonos is a preference. Similarly, the Sonos Amp brings the same capabilities plus amplification to drive many architectural speakers easily. 

A Sonos system might be the right choice for someone already invested in Sonos equipment and the app. However, depending on the size of your home and how many zones of audio you would like, other systems may be more scalable and ultimately more cost-effective than the Sonos approach. That's the beauty of working with a professional integrator like GHT Group; we can recommend the solution that best fits your needs and budget. 

Are you ready to bring the magic of music to every part of your home? Whether it’s these or other options, let us bring your vision to life. To learn more, contact us today or click the chat box below to connect quickly with one of our staff members. We look forward to working with you!