The design of the RA-5000 was what initially caught my eye. Looking like a contemporary sculpture with its upturned mini speakers encircled in beautiful copper. Giving it the appearance of an art sculpture or piece of furniture. The setup: The RA-5000 requires the use of the Sony Music Center application (android only) to install the speaker for use and audio configuration. The RA-5000 utilizes Bluetooth to make the initial connection. You can use NFC to make a quick connection. The unit supports both 2.4 and 5ghz WiFi networks. Google’s Chromecast is built-in, so think of a name for your speaker. This name is how you will find your new speaker. After the speaker is installed. Click on it and navigate to ‘settings’, ‘sound’. Under “Equalizer” select ‘custom’. You will be presented with a graphical equalizer to tailor the sound to your particular taste. (Extremely important the default settings are horrible!) note. – remember to set the “Immersive Audio Enhancement” and the “Auto Volume” to {ON}. Here you can the “Level” for the up firing speakers on top. Under "Settings", "System" - make sure the "network standby" box is checked. Here you can also check the firmware version. The current version is 1.70 as of 12/23/24. If you are running an older version of the firmware the speaker will not perform correctly! The 5000 can be added to Google Home or Amazon Alexa to enable voice control and add it to your smart home. The 5000 unit does not contain an internal microphone. It can only be accessed by voice via an external smart speaker with a microphone like the Google Home mini or Amazon Alexa speaker. This speaker supports music encoded in Sony’s 360 Reality audio. I tried three music services that supported this audio format. Amazon Music Unlimited is only provider offering full voice integration for the play back of Sony’s 360 Reality Audio format. The audio format when played back through the 5000 unit is superb! It is like having a front row seat to a live performance. The main selling point for me was the Hi Resolution audio playback. Spotify is popular but it does not support high resolution tracks. I signed up for Deezer because it was supported by my Google connected smart 🏠 I loved this speaker so much that bought 3 and am thinking of purchasing a fourth. The unit is comprised of 7 individual speakers. Three tweeters on top 3 mid-range and a subwoofer wrapped with a cloth covering. Only pick up the unit with 2 hands from the bottom. Read more
I am not an audiophile, but I do really appreciate excellent audio. For reference, my audio gear are as follow: 1) The best speakers on a phone so far is my Samsung Note 20 Ultra. 2) For headphones I have enjoyed the Sennheiser HD700, HD650, HD600, HD598 and other 500 series, and for Bluetooth I am using the Sony WH-XM4 and the WF-XM3 truly wireless earbuds. 3) For speakers, I have used many Harman Kardon speakers (Soundsticks 1 & 2, Onyx 4 & 6), and am currently testing this Sony against the Harman Go + Play 2 and the Harman Aura Studio 3 The apps I used was Apple Music, and Tidal HiFi. I did not use the specific 360 Reality Audio files because I wanted a level playing field against the Harman speakers. For this Sony, there is the simple stereo sound, and then with the surround sound function on. I like to quantify ratings so readers can have a clearer picture. 1) Stereo sound: Crisp highs - 7 out of 10; strong mids - 8/10; weak lows - 6/10 2) Surround sound: This feature boosts the highs, and especially the mids. It works about 60-70% of the time, meaning it affectively adds to the immersion and experience at that rate. On other songs, it turns it into a weird hollow audio experience that washes out the song. Compared to the Harman speakers: 1) Stereo sound - after testing, I have found that the sound which best fits my ears comes from the Go + Play. The way the woofer disperses is much more agreeable than both the Sony and the Aura Studio 3. It sounds more meaty, and hits you at the right spot. The Aura Studio actually has a bigger woofer, but because the tweeters are smaller, the overall sound lacks the meaty mids of guitars and the overall affect of vocals. As for the Sony, the mids is where it shines, but because my listening preference is more bass-heavy (not anything as heavy as EDM or rap, but I enjoy most pop and specifically Asian modern pop), it lacks the punch at higher volumes. 2) Surround sound - here, the reverse is true. The Go + Play is the most front-sounding of the three speakers. The Aura Studio 3 does a better job since the tweeters are dispersed throughout its circumference. While the Sony beats them both while on surround sound mode. For the songs that works, anyways. The effect is quite dramatic. The most effective speakers are the three up-firing tweeters. If you use the accompanying Sony app, you can also change its frequency output, so that it fires out highs or lows (the default is mids). You can play around with it, but for me, the best experience is leaving it at outputting mids. And even with the surround sound effect off, the overall surround sound from the Sony still sounds best. Now, don't get me wrong, I think OVERALL, the Sony actually does have the best sound. Even without the surround sound, its sound is the most balanced. But I chose to award the overall sound to the Go + Play 2 based on the totality of the package: It is portable, so you can place it on many surface styles to change the outcome of the sound. Want something crisp? Place it on a glass surface? Want to add more mids? Change to a wood surface? And want an overall warm and lower-frequency effect? Put it on your couch or bed. As great as the Sony is, it is meant for the middle of your room where the sounds can be dispersed fully, and for it to just stay there always and forever. But most of all, is the $700 price. At that price, I would have expected something much much more. This is more of a experiment meant for early adopters and Sony loyalists. I mean I am almost one for all the Sony gear I own, but in the end even I couldn't justify the price. At most, this is a $500 speaker. I expect the price to reflect that for Black Friday, so maybe save your money and wait for then. Read more
