Answered

Configure Sonos Arc surrounds using In-Ceiling speakers powered by Sonos Connect:Amp Gen 1

  • 24 April 2024
  • 8 replies
  • 40 views
N

  • Yes I know Arc is not compatible with S1 but I’ll explain why I have what I have.

  • I have a total of 6 Sonos Connect Gen 1's, each powering 2 Sonos In-Ceiling Speakers in 6 separate rooms, including the Living Room. When we moved into this home, all that was already hooked up.

 

  • The Sonos Connect Gen 1s are of course only compatible with the S1 app

 

  • In my living Room, I have a Sonos Arc as my flat screen TV external sound system. The Arc is only compatible with the S2 app. The Arc is currently connected with a Sonos Sub (Gen 3) as the subwoofer. There are currently no speakers configured as surround sound speakers for the Arc. I bought these when I first moved into the house. I am new to Sonos so I didnt know about the S1 / S2 divergence/incompatibility.

 

The problem:

  • For my Arc, I would like to be able to configure the Sonos In-Ceiling speakers in the Living Room as the surround sound speakers for the Arc for when I am watching movies on my flat screen TV. However because the In-Ceiling speakers in the Living Room are powered by a Sonos Connect Gen 1 (which are only compatible with the S1 app), when I go to configure the surround sound speakers for the Arc (which is only compatible with the S2 app), the Arc cannot "see" the Living Room In-Ceiling speakers.

 

  • I know one simple solution is to upgrade the Sonos Connect Gen 1 to a Sonos Connect Gen 2 which is compatible with the S2 app. However I do like to be able to play the same music through all the rooms or some of the rooms - so that would mean upgrading all 6 Sonos Connect Gen 1s to Gen 2s. Which I just dont have the budget for.

 

 

  • If I purchased one Sonos Connect Gen 2 for the Living Room In-Ceiling speakers(so that I can configure them as the Arc surround speakers), is there a way or some sort of device I can use, so that the Living Room In-Ceiling Speakers could be powered by either the Connect Gen 1 or the Connect Gen 2 and I could automatically or manually toggle between the Connect Gen 1 and the Connect Gen 2? Doesn't seem likely but thought I would ask! Maybe there is a music player which can see both S1 and S2 powered speakers in which case I can still play the same music to all the rooms even if the Living Room In-Ceiling speakers are S2 and all other room speakers are S1?

Sorry for the longish email! And thanks for any and all suggestions!

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Best answer by Schlumpf 25 April 2024, 00:03

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8 replies

Schlumpf
Userlevel 7
Badge +16

@ndh9400119

There‘s no way of doing that with the official Sonos app. 
Some kind of switch between amps and speakers imo wouldn’t be a comfortable option… don’t know of something like that is available at all. 
There are 3rd party apps to control S1 and S2 together, but I can’t tell you about that because they aren’t supported by Sonos and I don’t use something like that. 

Ralf
N

Schlumpf - thanks for the tip on there being apps that can control S1 and S2 together - I will look into that! Hopefully I can use something like that for when I want to be able to play the same music to all rooms at the same regardless of whether they are S1 or S2.  

Yeah the toggle solution isnt an ideal solution and I suspect it would have to be a toggle initiated manually.

Thanks for the tip!

jgatie

I hope you are speaking about Connect:Amps, not the Connect.  No Connect of any generation can be used as surrounds, only the Connect:Amp, and it must be wired.

Schlumpf
Userlevel 7
Badge +16

I hope you are speaking about Connect:Amps, not the Connect.  No Connect of any generation can be used as surrounds, only the Connect:Amp, and it must be wired.

Yes, I hope too, he’s talking about Connect Amps. 😉

Btw. it would be better taking a „Sonos Amp“ (if the in ceiling speakers are worth it)  instead of a Connect Amp Gen2. Better hardware and no need of lan cable. 

Ralf
Airgetlam

Much easier to find a Sonos Amp, as well. You’re extremely unlikely to find a ‘new in box’ CONNECT:AMP of either gen 1 or gen 2…along with the difficulty of determining which generation it actually is. And buying one used, IMHO, is a crap shoot, as to whether it works, and which generation it really is. They aren’t marked, and based on the number of repeated questions about them in these forums, many people don’t know how to identify them. 

Bruce
N

@Airgetlam @jgatie @Schlumpf  yes I was talking about Connect:Amps - didnt even know there was such as a thing as a Connect :)

 

I didnt think to consider the Sonos Amp - obviously more expensive but much nicer specs and looks like it will support both S1 and S2 BUT it also looks like it can be configured to work with either S1 or S2 but not be able to work with both - is that right?

https://support.sonos.com/en-us/article/sonos-s2-compatibility

 

Thanks!

Airgetlam

Nothing does both S1 and S2 at the same time. 

Bruce
N

Got it - thanks

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