The Simple Trick to Make Your Smart Speakers Sound Way Better

Welcome to Product Support, a column devoted to helping you get the most out of the stuff you already use.

Most smart speakers can only play mono sound, as opposed to stereo sound, by themselves because they have one driver and can only play back audio through one channel. This is the case with all the popular (and affordable) smart speakers, such as the Amazon Echo ($99), Nest Audio ($99), and HomePod mini ($99). (Sonos’s newest entry-level smart speaker, the Era 100 ($249), can actually play stereo sound on its own.)

But for much better sound, all it takes is a pair.

Basically, every affordable smart speaker can be paired with a twin to play audio in stereo, which vastly improves sound quality. It takes seconds, and once done, your speakers will automatically play stereo audio; all the big streaming services can play stereo audio because that’s how the tracks were originally recorded.

Photo by Tucker Bowe for Gear Patrol

Mono has its advantages. It gives you an even sound throughout the whole room. This means that no matter where you’re standing in relation to the speaker, you should hear pretty much the same audio.

Stereo is the audio format that artists use when recording their albums, and it gives the listener a sense of space as it relates to where the band, singers and all the instrumentals are playing while on stage. This “stereo effect” is created because the left and right channels (or left and right speakers) are able to play different audio, which helps the audio sound more grandiose and, ultimately, more accurate.

If you’ve got two of the same speaker, it’s definitely worth a try. And if you were looking for an excuse to pick up a second, this is all you need.

How to stereo pair two Amazon Echo speakers

Amazon

1. Place two Echo speakers in the same room.
2. Open the Alexa app.
3. Select the Devices tab in the bottom-right.
4. Tap the Add (+) icon in the top-right corner.
5. Select Set Up Audio System.
6. Select Stereo Pair.
7. Select the two Echo speakers (must be the same type of speaker).
8. Designate each speaker as either the left or right channel.

How to stereo pair two Nest Audio speakers

Google

1. Place two Nest Audio speakers in the same room.
2. Open the Google Home app.
3. Tap Set up devices follow the in-app steps.
4. Tap one of the speakers that you want to pair.
5. Select Settings in the top-right corner.
6. Tap Speaker pair Next andselect two devices that you’d like to pair Next.
7. The LED lights on one of the speakers will start flashing white. Tap Left or Right to designate right and left channels.
8. Select Next and follow the remaining in-app steps.

How to stereo pair two Apple HomePod speakers

Apple

1. Place two HomePods or HomePod minis in the same room.
2. Open the Home app on your iPhone or iPad.
3. Tap and hold the icon for one of the HomePods.
4. In the drop-down menu, select Settings.
5. Select Use as Stereo Pair and follow the onscreen instructions.

How to stereo pair two Sonos speakers

Sonos

1. Place two of the same Sonos speakers in the same room.
2. Open the Sonos app on your iPhone or Android device.
3. Select the Settings tab in the bottom-right corner.
4. Select System.
5. Under the Products section, select one of the speakers you’d like to use in your stereo pair.
6. Select the Set Up Stereo Pair (or Create Stereo Pair if using the Sonos S1 Controller) and follow the in-app instructions.