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ZamaX
Trending Lyricist I
May 11, 2020
Question

Sub gen 2 vs gen 3

  • May 11, 2020
  • 28 replies
  • 104389 views

So i’m trying to figure out if buying sub gen 3 when i already have gen 2.

my question is, what’s the upgrade from gen 2 to gen 3 sub?

 

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      28 replies

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      controlav
      controlav
      Lead Maestro
      May 17, 2020

      The Gen 3 has twice the memory of the Gen 2, which had twice the memory of the Gen 1. However what is less clear is what functional difference this makes in the case of a Sub, which is one of the “dumbest” Sonos devices in terms of what it needs to do.

      Author of the leading independent Sonos apps for Android, MacOS, iOS, Windows and Xbox.
        lsutigers
        Lyricist II
        May 25, 2020

        It could just be that the old hardware is no longer available or more difficult or expensive to source for Sonos due to rapid progression in technology so they decided to “update” the internals to bring it up to par with more recent units.  They did the same thing with the One (Gen 1 vs Gen 2) and there is absolutely no difference.  They both handle voice assistants the same, which is probably the smartest thing they need to do in terms of processing power.  As others have said, the sub is a “dumb” device so I suspect it is nothing more than this and they have to call it Gen 3 because of the change.  

          DebadgedA6
          Trending Lyricist I
          June 4, 2020

          Probably just to handle a higher sampling rate if you have hires audio or Dolby Atmos. Sonically they should be exactly the same. 

          Actually I am very curious (and worried) if the Atmos setup from an ARC will require a Gen 3 sub in order to work?

          Airgetlam
          Airgetlam
          June 4, 2020

          No, Atmos will work on the Arc with both gen 1 or gen 2 SUBs. Essentially, if a device can run the S2 software, it will work with the Arc. Which means only devices on the ‘legacy’ list will not. The SUB, of any generation, is not on the legacy list. 

          Bruce
          ChiefShooter
          Lyricist I
          June 4, 2020

          Can I confirm if Sub Gen 3 have 2GB RAM ? What is the CPU spec ? Thanks !

          ratty
          ratty
          June 4, 2020

          Can I confirm if Sub Gen 3 have 2GB RAM ? What is the CPU spec ? Thanks !

          The specs: https://www.sonos.com/shop/sub.html

            controlav
            controlav
            Lead Maestro
            June 5, 2020

            Sub Gen 3 has 128M of RAM. The Sub is the simplest of any Sonos speaker so needs less horsepower than anything else.

            Author of the leading independent Sonos apps for Android, MacOS, iOS, Windows and Xbox.
              ratty
              ratty
              June 5, 2020

              Sub Gen 3 has 128M of RAM. 

              The specs are wrong then?

              Memory
              256 MB SDRAM
              256 MB NAND Flash

               

              corepuncher
              Lyricist I
              June 5, 2020

              I have yet to buy a sub, my first Sonos prouct (ARC) is on preorder.

              But...looking at where I might place it, I have seen no discussion about the huge size difference between gen2 and gen3!?  

              From Best Buy website:
              Gen 2: 15.3 x 15.8 x 6.2 in.

              Gen 3:  18.9 X 19.9 X 8.85 !

               

              EDIT: I talked with Sonos and Best Buy is incorrect! They are the same size.  It almost caused me not to buy it. 

              jgatie
              jgatie
              June 5, 2020

              Best Buy is probably listing the size of the box it comes in. 

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