Audio Video News

Sonos yesterday announced a $699 wireless TV sound system designed for placement under the TV instead sitting in front of it like a soundbar.

Born out of the “insight that up to 70 percent of all TVs stand on furniture and are not mounted to the wall,” the Playbase is described as equal parts TV speaker and music speaker offering wireless multiroom capability and access to more than 80 music services. The system is slated to ship the first week of April but available for pre-order now on sonos.com.

The system packs 10 custom-designed drivers—six midrange, three tweeters, and a woofer—in a platform-style enclosure that and stands 2.3 inches tall and has no visible seams. Each driver has it’s its own dedicated amplifier and is software-controlled to produce a sound stage much wider than the speaker itself, according to Sonos.

The system also incorporates Sonos’ Trueplay speaker tuning system, which uses the Sonos app to measure how sound reflects off walls, furniture, and other surfaces and make adjustments to achieve the best sound possible.

The Sonos app also offers Dialogue Enhancement to enhance vocal clarity and Night Mode to tone down bass during loud action scenes for a quieter viewing experience. In addition to the Sonos app, the system can be controlled by the TV’s remote control or partner apps.

Designed to “disappear” in the home, the Playbase’s molded cabinet is available in black or white and made of a custom-designed glass-filled polycarbonate to reduce vibration and support the weight of a TV.

Setup requires only two connections—power and optical audio—and the system is described as easy to control with wireless multiroom capability when connected to a Sonos network.

Later this year, Amazon’s Alexa-enabled voice control is coming to all Sonos speakers, including the Playbase.

“When we think about what product we’ll invent next, we think first about…the role each of our products play in the home,” said Sonos CEO, Patrick Spence. “What we realized is that Playbar only met the need of the small percentage of homes where people mount their televisions on the wall. We saw a tremendous opportunity to deliver great sound in great style for the majority of homes where the TV sits on a piece of furniture.”

Giles Martin, sound experience leader at Sonos, said “the challenge with Playbase was upholding the desire for it to be beautiful from all angles without compromising any of our design, acoustics, or engineering principles. We were obsessive in our approach and decisions… and custom built everything else to find the perfect fit—it’s our thinnest, most beautiful speaker yet.”

For more information, visit on sonos.com.