Review: Sonos ZP80

The original Sonos music system was a real turning point in digital home technology. It was the first time an audio-streaming device really looked the part.

Like Apple’s iPod – and not without a nod to its design – the Sonos ZP100 and its accessories looked like something most people would want to have in their living rooms (and in the rest of the house).

To add to that, it sounded great, worked without a fault and was easy to set up. The only drawback, and it was a big one, was the price – close to £1,000 for the most basic setup. Thankfully, Sonos has remedied that with the follow-up – the ZP80.

The way the Sonos works is that you buy one or more ZonePlayers, which are then dotted around the house and connected to an amp or speakers.

Add in one or more wireless controllers and one or more PCs, and you have a system that streams music directly from a PC, pumps it out around the house and allows you to control it wirelessly. Apart from the first ZonePlayer in the chain, none of them need to be wired to a network either.

The ZP80 is a cut-down version of the ZP100 – it’s smaller and more compact. The main difference, other than that, is that it can’t output directly to standard speakers because there’s no built-in amplifier.

You need to connect each ZP80 to an amp or powered speakers. The bundle we tested comes with a pair of ZP80s – although it will work with one – and the same wireless controller as in the original system.

Other than that, things are much as before. Plug it in and it works, and the easy-to-follow setup guides are still there if things go wrong.

The Sonos supports mp3, WMA, Ogg, and other popular audio formats, but won’t play anything that’s been copy-protected with DRM. Sound quality remains excellent – although this will of course depend on the quality of the amp and speakers used.

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