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Contributor I
Feb 8, 2019 9:17 PM UTC

SONOS AMP - which surrounds?

hello I'm about to purchase a SONOS AMP - I'm using it to connect my B&W speakers, subwoofer and turntable to my Sonos system. i'll be using it with both Airplay 2 and the Sonos App.

My question is - Which surround speakers should I buy? Sonos play:1 or Sonos one? I believe the former will work as a surround group using Airplay for music? what about Spotify Connect?

documentation is slightly spotty here.
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13 replies

Ryan S
Retired Sonos Staff
Feb 8, 2019 9:21 PM UTC
Hi RDTitus, the short answer is that both will work for Airplay 2 and Spotify, assuming you're using them bonded with the Amp as surround speakers, not as a separate room grouped with the Amp. The Sonos Amp is Airplay 2 compatible, so any surrounds bonded with it will also play that audio.

That said, if you're using the Sonos Ones you'll also be able to take advantage of the voice control with Alexa, and later with Google Assistant, if you're interested in having the capabilities in the future.
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RDTitusAuthor
Contributor I
Feb 8, 2019 9:27 PM UTC
Hmm. so you are saying that The surrounds and the amp (which has my B&W towers and sub connected) will all work as a single room in a multi room setup.. but I'd need Sonos one's if I wanted Alexa.
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Ryan S
Retired Sonos Staff
Feb 8, 2019 9:30 PM UTC
That's correct. The Play:1 doesn't have Alexa or Airplay 2 compatibility, so if bonded with an Amp as the rear channels, you'd be fine with Airplay 2, but you'd need to use a Sonos One for the voice control.
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RDTitusAuthor
Contributor I
Feb 8, 2019 9:42 PM UTC
Ok. but I can control it via another Alexa device. yes?
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pwt
Virtuoso
Feb 8, 2019 10:07 PM UTC
Ok. but I can control it via another Alexa device. yes?
Yes.
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4 x P:5 | Sub | 4 x P:1 | 3 x Connect | 2 x Boost | Connect:Amp | 2 x One | Amp | Move | Port | Era 300
Renowned Enthusiast I
Feb 15, 2019 7:03 AM UTC
What he said about the Sonos Ones but I also prefer them because I think they look better and are more flexible if you want to use them for something else. Get the Flexson not Sanus stands. They are better made, look better, and fit the speaker in a more stable way.
I turn off the surrounds for 2.1 music.
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Lyricist I
Feb 17, 2019 4:25 PM UTC
Recently purchased our first Sonos components; a Playbase and Play:1x2 for a sweet surround set-up in our bedroom. We are very pleased with the performance/sound of Sonos.

I am now considering the Sonos Amp, sub and surrounds (Play:5) for our main large open living area. After reading the user guide for the Sonos Amp I was under the impression that if I used the Sonos Amp with my current B&W speakers I could not use Play:5 speakers for surrounds. After reading this post it looks like I can.

So, just to confirm. I could add a Sonos Amp to use with my speakers as front L&R and then add a Sonos Sub (or third party sub) plus Play:5x2 as surrounds with all the Sonos benefits such as TruePlay etc.. Is this correct? If so (and I cannot overstate this) that would be outstanding!

Also, does the Sonos Amp have an active crossover built in? Would it send the frequencies below the crossover to the sub and not to the main speakers. If so, this is also outstanding.

Thanks for any help and guidance. It is appreciated.:)

Cheers,

Scott
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pwt
Virtuoso
Feb 17, 2019 4:30 PM UTC
So, just to confirm. I could add a Sonos Amp to use with my speakers as front L&R and then add a Sonos Sub (or third party sub) plus Play:5x2 as surrounds with all the Sonos benefits such as TruePlay etc.. Is this correct? If so (and I cannot overstate this) that would be outstanding!
Yes to all, except TruePlay. Only the new Sonance/Sonos (indoor) speakers support TruePlay with the Amp. (For what it's worth, I think the P:5s are overkill for surrounds. I'd just get P:1s, which are good value now.)

Also, does the Sonos Amp have an active crossover built in? Would it send the frequencies below the crossover to the sub and not to the main speakers. If so, this is also outstanding.

Yes, with an adjustable crossover frequency.
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4 x P:5 | Sub | 4 x P:1 | 3 x Connect | 2 x Boost | Connect:Amp | 2 x One | Amp | Move | Port | Era 300
Lyricist I
Feb 17, 2019 4:57 PM UTC
Thanks for the quick reply, pwt. I'm sure you're right about the P:1s. We have such a large open area (W28'xL26'xH12') I was worried that the P:1s might get "lost" if we wanted to use them at times for full music playback.

So, if I add P:1s or P:5s as surrounds I won't be able to use TruePlay? Should I be concerned about this? Thanks for your help. It's great getting advice from veteran users.

Cheers,

Scott
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pwt
Virtuoso
Feb 17, 2019 5:42 PM UTC
So, if I add P:1s or P:5s as surrounds I won't be able to use TruePlay? Should I be concerned about this?
That's my understanding, but I'll defer to others on this, because I don't currently use Sonos for any home theatre applications. The extent of the changes TruePlay makes will depend on the space and how much audio tuning it would benefit from. For my usage I've always thought of it as a modest 'nice-to-have' rather than anything essential.
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4 x P:5 | Sub | 4 x P:1 | 3 x Connect | 2 x Boost | Connect:Amp | 2 x One | Amp | Move | Port | Era 300