Very good points and indeed I am realising that my view is probably the minority. With the exception of a few online reviews (Cnet and Wired.com), most people report that they prefer Bluesound over Sonos.
I also find Sonos speakers are indeed boomy with default settings. This is fixed through Trueplay tuning and eq to balance things.
Cheers
There will be an alternative solution soon as the Dali Callisto 1 speakers become available.
These speakers are powered by BluOS, play 24/96 hires and are Roon ready. Probably at a price point similar to the Bluesound Pulse2.
Apologies in advance for a noob-level question. Iām doing a little advanced research and planning for a room in a house that Iām moving into in October. So I think I want to setup a media room with a schiit bitfrost/vidar combo and a pair of elacs. My question is how best to push to that setup from a roon core on the other side of the room. I donāt think running a USB cable across the room is the answer so I probably need some kind of bridge, either wifi or ethernet. I really do not want to mess with pi/linux stuff - I know that preference will cost me but thatās okay. So, for this thread, can a Bluesound node2 work as a bridge with wifi in from the core and optical out to the schiits? Will that have a negative effect on SQ? Appreciate any insights.
You will need to decide on the best input for your BiFrost first: USB, optical or coaxial. If you want to stay away from a little DIY, for USB a microRendu or the likes is a good solution. If you want to go the S/PDIF route, the Node 2 will suit you fine. Its digital outputs are good and clean.
WiFi one the Node is as good as can be, but it all depends on the sustained performance of your WiFi network. Personally, I donāt use WiFi in locations I expect 100% reliability in low-buffer streaming scenarios from ā too many environmental variables outside your control. Then again, you could try WiFi first and pull a cable later if needed. The Pulse in my bedroom has been running wirelessly for two weeks now without problems ā and thereās a network cable right next to it. 
I use a Node 2 in my main system (wired with coaxial out) to great results ā and my familiy is thoroughly enjoying the extra functionality: lots of music in this home.
I have nothing to compare it to but I am very happy with my blue sound pulse flex, so much so I have bought a second ā but have not set them up as a stereo pair as the second is for my office.
.sjb
āBluesound has done a really nice job with their RoonReady integration. Itās rock solid and offers clean source switching (TuneIn Radio, Spotify, Qobuz, Roon ā you name it).ā
Pardon me if Iām missing something obvious, but can you elaborate on how this works? Can the Roon app be launched from within the Bluesound app? Itās easy to switch from Roon to TuneIn or Spotify and then back to Roon?
āIt also offers convenient remote support (you can use any remote you have lying aroundā
What is the remote used for?
Thanks!!
I can answer partially:
The Bluesound unit you select simply reponds to the latest command given, whether this comes from the Bluesound app or the Roon Control.
So, you select your Bluesound unit in Roon and decide to play HƤndels Messiah. This will play until you select the Bluesound app on your phone to select Sex Pistols - God save the queen from the Bluesound library, then that will play immediately.
No need to select input on the Bluesound unit.
The Remote can be used to select songs in queue, volume and in some way input select. (Such as the analog input on a Node)
Mikaelās answer is pretty much complete. 
You just open up the app you want to use and play.
With a remote you get play/pause/mute/previous/next, external source select and five presets, that can be set to correspond to (Bluesound) playlists or radio stations. (I have my favorite stations mapped to 1-3 via TuneIn). 4 is Roon, 5 is Spotify. When 4 or 5 is selected, Roon and Spotify continue playing by pressing Play on the remote ā no need to open either app.
Excellent new album you picked there 
You should hear it upsampled to DSD512ā¦
I know that if I want to move the data via ethernet or wifi that I will need abridge to convert to USB or optical out but on USB, canāt I go straight from my core machine to the bitfrost or do I still need a bridge of some sort?
Thank you Mikael and Rene. Very helpful!
I just stayed in a house with Roon and Sonos. I was appalled how poor the Sonos gear sounded. Real low fi.
Havenāt heard Bluesound.
Running a (meters) long USB cable (or coax/optical for that matter) will, put mildly, not improve audio quality ā if it works at all. Generally, an optimized and low-powered bridge will yield better results than using an output on a generic PC.
In your case, the optimum solution would be to route a network cable to your audio system, find out which input you like best on the BiFrost and choose an endpoint accordingly.
agreed - Iām hoping to get ethernet ports built into the houseā¦ that would simplify.
I agree, my friend (who runs LRB) has Sonus as he didnāt know better at that time with regards to network audio and ive yet to let him hear my Bluesound Pulse 2 and Mini. It will be interesting to hear his surprise but I know they sounds just so much better.
I write this as I listen to a bootleg he recently mixed (Not using Sonos) and all the music is there in spades. Lovely!
I think, at the end of the day, the obvious answer is for me to get over my DIY phobia and look at the rp3 options. Iām sure I can find one or two youtube walk throughs.
I have no idea with Sonos, but am very happy using a Bluesound Vault as a node on Roon. It serves as my DAC into a good stereo hi-fi. Musical Fidelity Amp with Audio Physic Scorpio Speakers.
The sound is amazing. I have yet to hear good sound from a Sonos system.
@Edward_Lee You may get more specific information if you say what Sonos setup you are considering vs. what Bluesound setup specifically. How many rooms, what sources, and how āseriousā of listening are you wanting out of the networked speakers. Like others posted, I use Sonos for broader house coverage. I had Sonos pre-Roon and only came to Roon since they added Sonos support. One room i have stereo Play:1 and a Sub and it sounds great. The Sonos ecosystem is great - SoundCloud, Spotify, Tidal, Mixcloudā¦ but likely both have similar sets of streaming options outside of Roon. Someone mentioned how easy it is to switch off of Roon to a different source from Bluesound, of course Sonos is the same. If you are playing from Roon, go into the Sonos app and pick something else it switches.
Fully agree with Robās comment above. I have a Bluesound Node 2 which feeds my main HiFi and it sounds fantastic for when I sit down to listen properly. A Sonos Connect āconvertsā my main HiFi so I can sync the main Rig with a few Sonos speakers around the house. Mid to Lo-Fi solution perhaps but great fun for the intended purpose (whole house music as I move around) and at a much lower cost (compared to Bluesound speakers).
As also mentioned above, Sonos speakers do sound boomy when you initially set them up. I like a more balanced sound presentation so I run the Trueplay tuning making sure the mic is near the walls (this tempers the bass) and also use the EQ tone controls to further tweak to taste. It works 
I am sticking with Sonos but I am noticing that Roon + Sonos is more temperamental when compared to Roon + Bluesound. This is to be expected as the latter is Roon ready. I may also try to improve the Sonos Connect by adding an SPDIF purifier (e.g. W4S Remedy).
As Rob mentions, a lot depends on the intended use case. The Pulse Flex did not work for me but If I did not have the main HiFi for serious listening then I would most likely try / prefer a pair of Bluesound Pulse 2s over a pair of Sonos Play 5s.
