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Sonos speaker alternating between projector and turntable


Hi. I currently own a Sonos One and a Sonos Roam. I'm considering buying the Pro-ject T1 Phono SB turntable with the Sonos Five speaker so I can get back to listening to vinyl.
 

My living room is quite small and has been served by Sonos One so far, so I believe Sonos Five will be quite the upgrade (One will be moving to another room). I'd therefore love to use Five as my main sound output, also while streaming movies/shows.

 

I don't own a TV and I stream video on my MacBook Pro and project on a wall through a Benq projector (model is from 10 years ago, EP4227, and I use and HDMI cable to connect it to my laptop). In the past, I've tried playing the sound on One while projecting the video (simply by having One and my MacBook on the same WiFi and selecting the sound output on One, while projecting the video through HDMI) but there's always been a substantial lag in the sound. I've given up and always use the MacBook speakers for sound, which is obviously less than optimal.
 

If I am to invest in further sound equipment, I'd love to solve this issue. Is there a way to get sound playing on Sonos Five while streaming video through an HDMI cable on to a projector? At this point, I'm also considering upgrading the projector and any recommendations are welcome if they'd solve the sound lag issue. My goal is to be able to use one good speaker (at this point, most likely Sonos Five but open to different suggestions) with both a turntable and a video projector (alternately, of course).

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

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Best answer by Corry P 20 May 2022, 11:44

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2 replies

I have just realised (through an older question) that I can use Roam on bluetooth as a gateway for my Sonos One and eliminate the lag issue when streaming on my projector! I assume the same is possible with Five so I think my decision is made. It's not ideal to have to use Roam on Bluetooth (particularly given its short power life) so if anyone has better tips that won't break the bank, I'd be grateful 😊

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Hi @Raqueldsf 

Welcome to the Sonos Community!

The only way of accepting an input to Sonos without noticeable delay is to use an HDMI or optical connection. This would not only require a Sonos unit with those connections, but also a projector that supplied the right connection for it - HDMI-ARC is not yet common on projectors (though it is getting there).

While it will not eliminate the delay entirely, I think using Bluetooth via your Roam might be the best way to do it without spending money.

However, as I understand it, AirPlay will actively try to keep the video and audio synced even across separate devices. As you are using a MacBook, you may find that AirPlay would serve you better - you could AirPlay directly to a One or Five without needing to go via the Roam’s Bluetooth. When initiated from the OS rather from an app, AirPlay 1 tends to get used, however, which will play, but we don’t fully support. You may find that if you pause a movie for a longer period, it will be necessary to recreate the AirPlay connection to get sound back after resuming. A Five will behave exactly as a One in this case, so you can easily test before buying a Five.

However. A Beam or Ray would both be cheaper than a Five, and both are intended as Home Theatre solutions. If you were to buy one of these, either could connect to a optical output located either on your projector or MacBook (a direct HDMI connection to a source device would not work). Meanwhile, you could get a Bluetooth turntable and play vinyl via your Roam, grouping-in any of your other speakers. This would cost less than getting a Five and a turntable, and the Beam or Ray would be more fit for purpose. Saying that, it doesn’t look like your projector has a optical port. You can get HDMI splitters that will take the audio stream from HDMI and provide an optical port, but these are unsupported.

I hope this is all clear, and of help.