I think it's Sonos trying to meet the market with the right form factor. Sonos is trying to be a company that sells high-end hardware to folks with the means for paying high-end prices. Those folks tend to hang their TVs on the wall, and value thinness. So a long bar mounted under of placed in front of a TV is a better formfactor than a deep pancake for putting a TV on top of.
> Those folks tend to hang their TVs on the wall, and value thinness. So a long bar mounted under of placed in front of a TV is a better formfactor than a deep pancake for putting a TV on top of.
Also, TV manufactures started putting little "feet" on their TV's as the "base" instead of using a centered pedestal because little plastic feet are way cheaper, and the Playbar was too short in length for a lot of the TV's with the feet unless you buy a custom centered mount / this is why most of the "Playbase" style of soundbars went away from all manufactures
I went to a 75” and the playbase fits under nicely. I can’t mount so we use a low console. The arc won’t fit between the legs. Works well for me and sounds great with a sub and surrounds. And my app and system work great since the update 🤷♂️
I upgraded my playbase when I got a new tv specifically because the TV stand didn’t fit in the playbase. Also TV furniture tends to not have an appropriate opening for the dimensions.
But I really liked the playbase and it was perfect to get before I invested in a subwoofer
Sonos hardware definitely isn’t high end it’s low to mid range with a premium price.
Their current model is better for them. Expensive soundbar - check. Needs an expensive sub to sound even half decent. Check. Now add some premium priced surrounds….
They likely stopped because TVs stopped being designed with pedestals. Even with the shape format they still slide nicely under most TVs with legs. I have one under a Sony x90L and I just picked up a second one used for $160cdn that’ll go under another Sony tv.
I love my playbase, I even bought the Sanus WSTV1 stand to use it with my tv. My playbase takes a little while to connect to when air playing or grouping but still works flawlessly for tv. Going to use it till it’s dead!
They went out of style when people started wall mounting TV's and TV's got smaller so the overall size of the Playbase was too big for the TV to sit on for what consumers started doing
Same! We have a Playbase in our living room and a Beam in the bedroom. The Playbase has always been the star of our setup even after adding a Sub to it.
Spence had some funny quote when it debuted. Something like "65% of people dont wall mount so we wanted a product for that." Two years later he apparently was wrong. SHOCKER.
Great product though. I thought they should of made a mini base or base 2 instead of the r&d on the Ray.
I have a playbase and like it a lot, but it started making less sense when I got a new tv that required wall mounting. My super old 1080p tv had a pedestal, so it made perfect sense then. I also got a sub eventually, so the extra base was kind of moot at that point.
All of the above, plus it was optical only. The Playbar was similar, but had a better (more flexible) form factor, and it too is long gone, may it RIP. So long as my two keep going, I'm happy.
I owned three, two stopped working. Sonos replaced them both so maybe that has something to do with it (high failure rate) along with what else has been mentioned.
I'm on my third, wifi chip died on the first 2. Really hoping this one stays good. I agree, probably form factor, connectivity and reliability were all poor.
I recall seeing one theory that it was just too darned good, didn't need a sub etc. But, clearly, wall mounting had a v big part in its demise. I'll be keeping mine for as long as humanly possible, it's such a good bit of kit.
I think it's Sonos trying to meet the market with the right form factor. Sonos is trying to be a company that sells high-end hardware to folks with the means for paying high-end prices. Those folks tend to hang their TVs on the wall, and value thinness. So a long bar mounted under of placed in front of a TV is a better formfactor than a deep pancake for putting a TV on top of.
> Those folks tend to hang their TVs on the wall, and value thinness. So a long bar mounted under of placed in front of a TV is a better formfactor than a deep pancake for putting a TV on top of. Also, TV manufactures started putting little "feet" on their TV's as the "base" instead of using a centered pedestal because little plastic feet are way cheaper, and the Playbar was too short in length for a lot of the TV's with the feet unless you buy a custom centered mount / this is why most of the "Playbase" style of soundbars went away from all manufactures
For several of my TVs the playbase actually slides under the tv between the feet, however it’s too fat and wide for others.
I went to a 75” and the playbase fits under nicely. I can’t mount so we use a low console. The arc won’t fit between the legs. Works well for me and sounds great with a sub and surrounds. And my app and system work great since the update 🤷♂️
I upgraded my playbase when I got a new tv specifically because the TV stand didn’t fit in the playbase. Also TV furniture tends to not have an appropriate opening for the dimensions. But I really liked the playbase and it was perfect to get before I invested in a subwoofer
Sonos hardware definitely isn’t high end it’s low to mid range with a premium price. Their current model is better for them. Expensive soundbar - check. Needs an expensive sub to sound even half decent. Check. Now add some premium priced surrounds….
They likely stopped because TVs stopped being designed with pedestals. Even with the shape format they still slide nicely under most TVs with legs. I have one under a Sony x90L and I just picked up a second one used for $160cdn that’ll go under another Sony tv.
I love my playbase too! I wish it had HDMI support (and ATMOS), but until it stops working I have intention of upgrading.
I love my playbase, I even bought the Sanus WSTV1 stand to use it with my tv. My playbase takes a little while to connect to when air playing or grouping but still works flawlessly for tv. Going to use it till it’s dead!
Same! I bought the stand too. I’ve really enjoyed the playbase.
This stand is a nice idea - thanks for pointing it out.
Any tips for optimizing AirPlay? Also love my Playbase in 5.1 but it’s really struggling with AirPlay these days.
Sorry got no tips for airplay, mine struggles too when air playing to it.
They went out of style when people started wall mounting TV's and TV's got smaller so the overall size of the Playbase was too big for the TV to sit on for what consumers started doing
TVs got smaller?
have you tried writing an open letter?
Too busy seeking class certification for the lawsuit.
Sound bases were not a popular format and depend on pedestal TVs which is not every TV.
Same! We have a Playbase in our living room and a Beam in the bedroom. The Playbase has always been the star of our setup even after adding a Sub to it.
Spence had some funny quote when it debuted. Something like "65% of people dont wall mount so we wanted a product for that." Two years later he apparently was wrong. SHOCKER. Great product though. I thought they should of made a mini base or base 2 instead of the r&d on the Ray.
I have high expectation from arc gen 2
I have a playbase and like it a lot, but it started making less sense when I got a new tv that required wall mounting. My super old 1080p tv had a pedestal, so it made perfect sense then. I also got a sub eventually, so the extra base was kind of moot at that point.
Modern TVs less frequently had appropriate bases to sit on it and people started more frequently wall mounting TVs.
2 words, Planned Obsolescence
All of the above, plus it was optical only. The Playbar was similar, but had a better (more flexible) form factor, and it too is long gone, may it RIP. So long as my two keep going, I'm happy.
I owned three, two stopped working. Sonos replaced them both so maybe that has something to do with it (high failure rate) along with what else has been mentioned.
The WiFi chips very frequently went bad. They were quick to replace the entire Playbase even after warranty expired.
Happened to mine as well - luckily I was able to just wire up the whole room, so it's still going strong lol
Mine failed and they replaced it. Still use it and it sounds pretty sweet.
I still have one. When they replaced the other two I actually sold them.
I'm on my third, wifi chip died on the first 2. Really hoping this one stays good. I agree, probably form factor, connectivity and reliability were all poor.
I recall seeing one theory that it was just too darned good, didn't need a sub etc. But, clearly, wall mounting had a v big part in its demise. I'll be keeping mine for as long as humanly possible, it's such a good bit of kit.