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Hello, dear community. Can I have two PLAY:3 serve as a front (and only) speakers for AMP? So I can stream music by AirPlay to PLAY:3 via AMP or connect turntable to AMP and PLAY:3 will be the only speakers to play the sound?

In SONOS app I can see that I only can add sonos speakers as a surround, not front.

 

Thanks.

What’s the point of the Amp? The PLAY:3s are already internally amplified, so while they can be grouped with the Amp, they can’t be attached to the Amp’s speaker posts. They’d be receiving a stereo signal from the Amps speaker.

What is your goal here? Certainly, for a home theater use the Amp will not drive the PLAY:3s as ‘front’ speakers. 


You would setup the play:3s as separate Sonos room (still located in the same physical room).  You can then group the 2 rooms together to play the same audio, whether airplay or turntable.


You’ll have to make the Play 3’s a stereo pair. Read the article in the link on Line-in for Amp.

You’ll also have to set the Play 3’s as the “auto play room” for line-in

 

Edit:@melvimbe and I have a different approach to same question 😊


The amp will represent the front with passive speakers connected to it. The Play 3s can either be paired as surrounds, or as a stereo pair in another “room”. You can group the Play 3s to the Amp, but you cannot make them “front” speakers.

It also seems like a waste to simply buy an Amp and NOT use the speaker outputs. There is a simpler way to incorporate a turntable into your system:

  1. Purchase a Era 100 with the line in adapter to connect the TT to. Then you can group the Play 3s with the 100.
  2. Purchase a Port and configure it to auto play to the Play 3s..

Hope this helps.


You’ll have to make the Play 3’s a stereo pair. Read the article in the link on Line-in for Amp.

You’ll also have to set the Play 3’s as the “auto play room” for line-in

 

Edit:@melvimbe and I have a different approach to same question 😊


You are correct regarding the line-in when playing the turntable, but I was trying to keep it simple as grouping is the way to handle the airplay source.

The amp will represent the front with passive speakers connected to it. The Play 3s can either be paired as surrounds, or as a stereo pair in another “room”. You can group the Play 3s to the Amp, but you cannot make them “front” speakers.

It also seems like a waste to simply buy an Amp and NOT use the speaker outputs. There is a simpler way to incorporate a turntable into your system:

  1. Purchase a Era 100 with the line in adapter to connect the TT to. Then you can group the Play 3s with the 100.
  2. Purchase a Port and configure it to auto play to the Play 3s..

Hope this helps.

 

I was assuming that the poster already owned the amp, and were trying to use what they already had.   If they don’t already own an amp though, you are correct that the amp is not the most cost effective option for their goals.

 


The amp will represent the front with passive speakers connected to it. The Play 3s can either be paired as surrounds, or as a stereo pair in another “room”. You can group the Play 3s to the Amp, but you cannot make them “front” speakers.

It also seems like a waste to simply buy an Amp and NOT use the speaker outputs. There is a simpler way to incorporate a turntable into your system:

  1. Purchase a Era 100 with the line in adapter to connect the TT to. Then you can group the Play 3s with the 100.
  2. Get a used Connect S15 for the TT and make the Play 3s the main speaker by configuring auto play in the Connects settings.
  3. Purchase a Port and duplicate the settings for the Connect S15.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, it does. So just to confirm, in my current setup there’s no way I can play music from turntable connected to AMP or AirPlay to AMP while the output is heard from PLAY:3 pair?

The only way will be to add passive speakers to AMP?


You would setup the play:3s as separate Sonos room (still located in the same physical room).  You can then group the 2 rooms together to play the same audio, whether airplay or turntable.

Thanks, this setup is already in place - stereo pair of PLAY:3 in one “room” and Amp in another “room”. So how do I proceed from here for example to play music from PLAY:3 pair when I AirPlay it to AMP?


You would setup the play:3s as separate Sonos room (still located in the same physical room).  You can then group the 2 rooms together to play the same audio, whether airplay or turntable.

Thanks, this setup is already in place - stereo pair of PLAY:3 in one “room” and Amp in another “room”. So how do I proceed from here for example to play music from PLAY:3 pair when I AirPlay it to AMP?

 

group the two rooms together.

 

Thanks, it does. So just to confirm, in my current setup there’s no way I can play music from turntable connected to AMP or AirPlay to AMP while the output is heard from PLAY:3 pair?

The only way will be to add passive speakers to AMP?

 

You don’t need to add passive speakers to the amp as the amp will play the audio even when there are no passive speakers connected.


Thanks, it does. So just to confirm, in my current setup there’s no way I can play music from turntable connected to AMP or AirPlay to AMP while the output is heard from PLAY:3 pair?

The only way will be to add passive speakers to AMP?

 

Well, you could group the Amp with the Play:3 for Airplay, and choose the Amp Line-In source from the Play:3 for the turntable, but that’s a really expensive way to get Airplay or Line-In support if you aren’t using the Amp for an amplifier.  An Era 100+Line-In adapter would do the same thing for $425 less, and you’d get a speaker out of the deal.


You would setup the play:3s as separate Sonos room (still located in the same physical room).  You can then group the 2 rooms together to play the same audio, whether airplay or turntable.

Thanks, I did exactly as you said and it worked with AirPlay! Thanks again!


Thanks, it does. So just to confirm, in my current setup there’s no way I can play music from turntable connected to AMP or AirPlay to AMP while the output is heard from PLAY:3 pair?

The only way will be to add passive speakers to AMP?

 

Well, you could group the Amp with the Play:3 for Airplay, and choose the Amp Line-In source from the Play:3 for the turntable, but that’s a really expensive way to get Airplay or Line-In support if you aren’t using the Amp for an amplifier.  An Era 100+Line-In adapter would do the same thing for $425 less, and you’d get a speaker out of the deal.

Thanks, I’ve bought the Amp for the future use with possibly better sound quality, so I actually don’t own turntable and passive speakers now. But what @melvimbe suggested worked, and what you and @AjTrek1 suggested I’ll try as soon as I’ll purchase turntable.


Thanks, it does. So just to confirm, in my current setup there’s no way I can play music from turntable connected to AMP or AirPlay to AMP while the output is heard from PLAY:3 pair?

The only way will be to add passive speakers to AMP?

 

Well, you could group the Amp with the Play:3 for Airplay, and choose the Amp Line-In source from the Play:3 for the turntable, but that’s a really expensive way to get Airplay or Line-In support if you aren’t using the Amp for an amplifier.  An Era 100+Line-In adapter would do the same thing for $425 less, and you’d get a speaker out of the deal.

 OP already has an amp though, so it’s a case of using what you got.  Maybe it’s a recent purchase, but since he also has play:3s, I assume it was gifted or bought used.


Thanks, it does. So just to confirm, in my current setup there’s no way I can play music from turntable connected to AMP or AirPlay to AMP while the output is heard from PLAY:3 pair?

The only way will be to add passive speakers to AMP?

 

Well, you could group the Amp with the Play:3 for Airplay, and choose the Amp Line-In source from the Play:3 for the turntable, but that’s a really expensive way to get Airplay or Line-In support if you aren’t using the Amp for an amplifier.  An Era 100+Line-In adapter would do the same thing for $425 less, and you’d get a speaker out of the deal.

 OP already has an amp though, so it’s a case of using what you got.  Maybe it’s a recent purchase, but since he also has play:3s, I assume it was gifted or bought used.

Actually, PLAY:3s are dated, bought them in 2015 approx, and you were right about recent purchase of AMP, bought it today, mostly for the future scenarios like turntable as input and passive speakers for better sound quality. So I hope it’s all for the better


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