+1Hi guys,
I have 2 Sonos play 5s and I would like to use these as the sound output of my Mac mini (2020). I connected one of these to my Mac mini using an RCA cable, but I cannot get the sound out of them.
Is there any missing step that I did not perform or, these 2 are not meant to be connected using the cable?
TIA.
Best answer by Airgetlam
Where did you connect it on the Mac mini? For that matter, where on the PLAY:5? I don’t see RCA jacks on either machine.
From what I see on Apple’s website, the only audio output on the Mac Mini is a headphone output (3.5mm). You’d want to connect that to the similar (3.5mm) line in on the back of the PLAY:5. And if you have a Gen 1 PLAY:5, you’d want to be sure you weren’t accidentally using the headphone out on the Sonos.
Given that headphone outputs are variable, and not line level inputs, you’d need to play a lot with both the Sonos line in settings, and the volume output of the Mac to get a good enough signal.
And then deal with the 75ms delay minimum on an analog input on any Sonos device. There’s a reason which Sonos doesn’t market themselves as computer speakers.
Where did you connect it on the Mac mini? For that matter, where on the PLAY:5? I don’t see RCA jacks on either machine.
From what I see on Apple’s website, the only audio output on the Mac Mini is a headphone output (3.5mm). You’d want to connect that to the similar (3.5mm) line in on the back of the PLAY:5. And if you have a Gen 1 PLAY:5, you’d want to be sure you weren’t accidentally using the headphone out on the Sonos.
Given that headphone outputs are variable, and not line level inputs, you’d need to play a lot with both the Sonos line in settings, and the volume output of the Mac to get a good enough signal.
And then deal with the 75ms delay minimum on an analog input on any Sonos device. There’s a reason which Sonos doesn’t market themselves as computer speakers.
+1Thank you Bruce for the prompt reply.
I have made a mistake in above. I believe the in/out connection should be AUX instead.
And based on your response, even when I use the right connection between P5 and Mac mini, this will not be optimal as there will be an audio delay.
Correct. There is always audio delay on a Sonos analog input, a minimum of 75 ms, due to the way the system is designed to work. It can not be removed.
https://support.sonos.com/s/article/1080?language=en_US
Details here but Sonos seems to indicate you should be able to make it work. If it doesn’t they should just come out and say it.
Adjust line in settings
https://support.sonos.com/s/article/4838?language=en_US
Enter your E-mail address. We'll send you an e-mail with instructions to reset your password.
