Sonos unveiled the new ZonePlayer ZP80 at the 2006 CES, aimed at whole-house audio entertainment. The ZP80 can play music on all equipment - right from home theater systems to table-top radios.
Setting up the system is very easy: all you need to do is connect the ZP80 to an amplified audio source using analog/digital outputs. Once this is done, you simply use the Sonos Controller to control your digital music collection in any room.
What's additionally cool about the ZP80 is the ability to retrofit a conventional multi-room audio system with home-run speakers, or using Sonosnet to increase the wireless range. With provision for auto-sensing line-in connectors, you can connect an external audio source - even your iPod - to the Sonos Digital Music System and listen to it throughout your home.
Priced at US $349, the Sonos ZonePlayer ZP80 will be available in spring 2006. For more info, access Sonos' website. Check out the extended entry for specs.
Sonos ZonePlayer ZP80 Technical Specifications
Sound quality -- THD+N<0.02%, 20-20kHz
Line-out connections -- Analog (RCA), optical and coaxial digital audio, fixed and variable settings
Line-in connections -- Analog (RCA), auto-detecting, able to digitally encode line-in sources
Ethernet connection -- 2-port switch, 10/100Mbps, auto MDI/MDIX
Wireless connectivity -- Sonosnet(TM), a secure AES encrypted, peer-to-peer wireless mesh network
Audio formats supported -- Support for compressed MP3, WMA, AAC (MPEG4), Ogg Vorbis, Audible .AA (format 4), Apple Lossless, FLAC (lossless) music files, as well as uncompressed WAV and AIFF files. Native support for 44.1kHz sample rates. Additional support for 48kHz,32kHz, 24KHz, 22kHz, 16KHz, 11KHz, and 8KHz sample rates. Firmware upgradeable to support future audio formats. Apple "Fairplay" and Microsoft "Plays-for-sure" DRM-encrypted and WMA Lossless formats not able to be supported.
Audio services supported -- Rhapsody 3.0+, Audible
Internet radio -- Streaming MP3, WMA. Pre-loaded with more than 190 Internet radio stations.
Album art supported -- JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF
Operating systems -- Windows(R) 2000, Windows(R) XP, Macintosh(R) OSX,v10.3 and v10.4; NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices supporting CIFS
Power supply -- AC 100-240, 50-60 Hz
Dimensions -- 5.4 x 5.5 x 2.9 in (136.0 x 136.8 x 74.0 mm)
Weight -- 1.5 lbs (0.69 Kg)
Finish -- Light gray, high-quality PC grade with Aluminum details
