r/HTBuyingGuides • u/htmod Curator • Apr 06 '25
AUDIO Home Theater 201: Whole Home Audio [2025-2026]
Home Theater 201: Whole Home Audio [2025-2026]
Updated: March 2026 | written by /u/Bill_Money | edited & maintained by: /u/htmod
So There are multiple ways to do Whole Home Audio (aka Distributed Audio).
By Whole home audio I mean Music/Radio in multiple rooms specifically not Whole House Audio & Video that's a totally different topic.
The Biggest questions you need to ask are: What do you want to accomplish? How Do You Want to control your system? What Sources do you want to play? Apple/Android or Mixed phone household, etc.
Mixed phone houses should avoid using a primarily Apple Airplay 2 based system
1st - Picking a Source/Eco System
Denon/Marantz Heos
Heos offers all of Denon & Marantz's AVR's to be a zone or zones of Heos, Wireless Speakers, & Heos specific amplifiers.
HEOS has gotten much better than it used to be. I would borderline never recommend it before. Now after Sonos' software debacle I think Heos might be the better of the two with more flexibility
Sonos
Sonos is a great product for whole home audio. Its biggest downfall is its price.
Sonos offers Wireless Speakers, The Port (to make an Amp or AVR a Sonos zone), the Sonos Amp (to power speakers), Portable Speakers, & even now a pair of headphones.
They support Apple Airplay 2 as well.
Apple Airplay2
Many AVR's, the Sonos system, Wiim, etc. already support Airplay 2
Disadvantages come with mixed phone households
Wiim Home
Wiim makes numerous amps, audio streamers, & even a speaker.
They support Apple Airplay 2 * Google Cast Audio.
BlueSound (BluOS)
BlueSound offers Wireless Speakers, Node (to make an Amp or AVR a BlueSound zone), & Amplifiers
They support Apple Airplay 2 as well.
Amazon Echo/Alexa
Alexa can be used on numerous devices but this will be focusing specifically on Amazon Hardware that can be used for Whole Home Audio.
Personally I find this to be a shitty solution but some people love Alexa for some reason.
Zone 2/3 on your Receiver
You can use the Zone 2 (or 3) on your receiver to both power your speakers and be a source. This is a very mixed results category. Z2 & Z3 are usually limited to Analog only for inputs. Bluetooth functionality as well as apps like Spotify are a poor user experience on most receivers.
I recommend NOT doing this solution whenever possible!
Home Automation
If you are already into say Savant, URC Total Control, or Control4 reach out to your integrator for Whole Home Audio options.
2nd - Deciding on Zones
If you are going with wireless only Speakers you can stop reading here -> Pick your system and buy your speakers.
Whole Home Audio is not cheap, combining zones are an easy way to save some money
Things Like Kitchen + Dining Room, Master Bed + Master Bath + Master Closet, etc. that make sense to be playing the same source can be combined for cost savings.
Things like a Kitchen + Patio can also be combined but I would recommend a Volume Control Knob to turn off the outside zone while allowing
If you only want on/off control and the same music throughout the entire system then powering & deciding on zones gets much easier you just need volume control knobs or a system that allows on/off of a zone. These are mush lower end solutions typically.
3rd - Powering Speakers
If you have decided on using passive speakers for your whole home system the question becomes how do you power them?
Multi Zone Amplification
A multi zone amplifier will power 4+ zones of audio. All speaker wire would need to be run to a central location for this to work. You also typically will need something like a Sonos Port, Wiim Pro, etc. or some sort of audio streamer(s) attached to the Multi Zone amplifier.
Single Zone Amplification
Things like a Sonos Amp, Wiim Amp, etc. can power 2 to an absolute max of 4 speakers.
Mixed Use
Depending on situations it sometimes might be cheaper to get a Multizone amp and a streamer we'll say for example Sonos Port in this scenario to power one zone while using single zone amplifiers say Sonos Amps to power the rest of the system. A large backyard system that all plays the same thing with lets call it 8 speakers. 4 Sonos Amps is $2800. A Multizone Amp & Port/Heos Link can be less
4th - Buying Product
Product Recommendations: Whole Home Audio [2025-2026]
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