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Hi everyone,

I’m sure this question has been asked lots of times but I can’t seem to find a definitive answer.

Can you use Alexa via another device (i.e. smartphone) to control Sonos speakers that don’t have integrated Alexa functionality?

For example, suppose someone had this setup:

2x Sonos One in the kitchen
1x Sonos Five in the living room
1x Sonos One SL in the bedroom

Only two of those four speakers have Alexa built-in (the Ones in the kitchen). However, if you happened to be in the kitchen, could you say something along the lines of “Alexa, play Spotify in the bedroom?” or would that not work as the bedroom speaker doesn’t have Alexa built-in?

If it does work, would that then mean that a smartphone could also be used to action voice commands? For example, if the person was in the living room, could they use the Alexa app on their phone to say ‘Alexa, play Spotify in the living room?’

In fact, if that is possible, could you not just use the assistant on the smartphone? Could Siri or Google Assistant do the same thing without Alexa integration? I think I’d prefer to just talk to the phone, which I usually have on me, rather than have additional microphones in every room.

Thanks for any guidance.

 

Yes but only via Google Assistant or Alexa!😁

Yes but only via Google Assistant or Alexa!😁

Does that mean the speakers could be controlled via Alexa on the phone, too?

Yes but only via Google Assistant or Alexa!😁

Does that mean the speakers could be controlled via Alexa on the phone, too?

Yes.  Your phone does not even need to be on the same WiFi network as your Sonos system.

Yes but only via Google Assistant or Alexa!😁

Does that mean the speakers could be controlled via Alexa on the phone, too?

Yes.  Your phone does not even need to be on the same WiFi network as your Sonos system.

Wow, that’s really helpful to know. Takes away the concerns I had of the Five and One SL not having a voice assistant built in. Almost always tend to have my phone on me, so it’s not a problem, and thinking about it, I probably prefer my speakers not to have additional mics. Just the phone is plenty. :thumbsup:

Yes but only via Google Assistant or Alexa!😁

Does that mean the speakers could be controlled via Alexa on the phone, too?

Yes.  Your phone does not even need to be on the same WiFi network as your Sonos system.

Wow, that’s really helpful to know. Takes away the concerns I had of the Five and One SL not having a voice assistant built in. Almost always tend to have my phone on me, so it’s not a problem, and thinking about it, I probably prefer my speakers not to have additional mics. Just the phone is plenty. :thumbsup:

 

For Alexa, you can use the Alexa app or the Amazon Music app.  With the music, you also have the option of finding whatever you want to listen to, then casting it over to Sonos.  Really, the ability to cast from a music app to Sonos is available with many music services now

In case you do what I did and got the echo dot with the smart plug deal on special amazon days (like 25$for both devices which is a steal) you can setup a group in Alexa and set the Sonos zone as the preferred speaker. I have a dot in 2 bedrooms with a Sonos one and play 5 as the preferred speaker for each room respectively. 

 

The only down side is I've been having issues with Pandora only playing a single song and I've seen Spotify have to repeat the command twice to get it to go. 

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