Budget wifi mutispeaker setup

[.anon]

Hey guys! Long time ltt follower, first time poster here!

 

Ok, here is the deal. I have been looking into an option of mutispeaker wifi setup. I want to use it in our new office, probably 8-12 speakers. It is devided into 2 open floor plan areas 700sqf each, so I guess bluetooth is out of the question for such distances.

 

Only option I have left are wifi speakers. BUT, spending a few hundred usd per speaker is really not the option since these speakers will be played at low volume just to be used as background noise. In our old office we used a simple 5.1 system with filled speakers and it worked great, but we routed the cables trough false ceilings. In the new one (that we rent) I don't have false ceilings. So it is hard to route them and make it look nice at the same time.

 

One more restriction is that we are located in Europe, outside EU, and what ever the price for something in the US is, add some 30-40% to that. It is quite expensive here. (for comparison, a 2080super is 1200usd here).

 

So any ideas for a DIY solution? I have looked into 3.5mm adapters, but no luck so far. Maybe someone here has some experience.

 

Thanks!

 

 

[PineyCreek]

I've actually been wondering for a while now if it's possible to toss older Raspberry Pi devices or similar devices that are wifi-enabled connected to a speaker and find some open-source code to mesh them.

[PineyCreek]

Think maybe an FM transmitter would work?  Maybe connect that up to an amplified antenna?

[PineyCreek]

You can also buy BT signal boosters, but I'm not sure buying a booster for every room would really be budget-friendly...

[.anon]

The problem with bluetooth is that most bluetooth devices connect 1-2 devices the most. There is no way to daisy chain them.

[dalekphalm]

You’d probably be better off just using cable track (something like Legrande Cable Mate) along the corners of the ceiling. Paint the cable track same colour as the ceiling paint. 
 

It won’t be invisible, but it’ll blend in so no one sees it unless they go looking. 

[.anon]

I know that is always an option.. But I don't wanna.  I am trying to figure out the best cheap wireless option.