If you’re anything like me, you have a few USB-C input cables from phones, but will these work with the new Sonos Era Type C port?
Sonos is embracing line-in on more of its speakers, and that can only be a good thing. While the 3.5mm line-in port used to be only found on the expensive Play:5 and Sonos 5, or with an input device like the Sonos Amp, the recent arrival of the Sonos Era series switches things up, offering a Type C USB port with support for line-in control.
An inclusion of an input line on either the less expensive Era 100 or the more pricey and Atmos-capable Era 300 is a win for customers, particularly those who might have a record player or projector they want to plug into either.
While it won’t be useful for every customer, line-in support is no longer limited to just the expensive models Sonos makes, and that’s a good thing.
Unsurprisingly, you can’t just plug in any USB Type C device as a source, and so Sonos makes a dedicated Type C to 3.5mm converter for its products.
The thing is… so do a lot of brands.
Depending on the Android phone, it might have come with a Type C to 3.5mm headset jack, and there’s no shortage of options you can find out and about. It’s a similar situation with USB DACs, such as the Astell & Kern DAC, which is basically a better version of a Type C to 3.5mm converter with extra special sound chips inside, at least compared to a standard Type C converter.
In theory, the Sonos Type C line-in converter shouldn’t be all that special, and at $35 in Australia, the Sonos Line-In Adaptor isn’t a steep spend if you wanted to add line-in to an Era 100 or 300.
But it also seems like it’s the only option if you did want to plug a source in, because regardless of whether you’ve spent ten bucks on a Type C to 3.5mm port to a whole lot more, you’ll still need the proper Sonos one to make line-in work on the new speakers.
