Question

using Sonos products with existing amplifier

  • 26 September 2014
  • 17 replies
  • 21168 views

My question is similar to several other topics related to using Sonos speakers and other amplifiers, but those threads are several months to as long as a year old.  I’m hoping for an updated answer.

I plan to purchase a Playbar and other Sonos wireless speakers to create 5:1 audio for TV viewing and additional wireless speakers for other rooms in the house.  I also would like music from my CD player and/or AM/FM receiver to play through the Sonos speaker system instead of using my externally wired speakers.  The CD player is currently connected to the amplifier in the receiver, so all current audio sources (except for the TV) are output from the amplifier to the hardwired speakers.  Every thing I’ve read describes connecting a Line Out from the Sonos Connect to a Line In on an amplifier, but wouldn’t I need to come OUT of the receiver and IN to the Connect so the source can be sent to the wireless speakers?  Thanks.

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17 replies

Userlevel 5
Badge +3
Hello William,

In this particular case you will need to wire the CONNECT Out to the Amplifier IN to play mp3s or Music Services to your existing sound system and wire your CD Player to the Line of your CONNECT to be able to use it on the amplifier itself or any other Sonos devices.

Of course you will not be able to use your AM/FM receiver with the rest of the Sonos system, but we offer a build-in service called TuneIn which provides almost all the radios available worldwide. 

Let me know if you have any other questions about it.

Pierre
I think what William was asking for was help in connecting from the "tape out" on his receiver to the line in on a Connect so that any source playing on the receiver could be sent to all Sonos zone players.
Pierre-
I currently have a Denon amplified stereo (with a built-in AM/FM receiver).  The CD player is a separate component that has an audio OUT that connects to the stereo’s audio IN, then all sound is currently played through wired speakers, so all music sources play through the stereo.  I want to do away with the wired speakers I currently use.  If I understand your answer correctly, it’s not possible to use a Sonos sound system as the only speakers for a home stereo.  Did I misunderstand your answer or did you misunderstand my question?  Thanks.
Userlevel 7
Badge +21
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

MikeV--  If I can use Sonos speakers to replace the stereo’s speakers, why would I need to use TuneIn?  On the stereo receiver, I can select Tuner as the sound source and the broadcasts of tuned-in radio stations come out of the speakers.  Why would that change if the stereo was hooked up to Sonos speakers?  Similar question with the CDs.  If I select CD Player as the source on the receiver, music from the CD player comes from the speakers.  If every possible source is routed through the stereo receiver and the receiver was hooked up to Sonos speakers, why wouldn’t everything play in the same way?  One audio OUT cable from the stereo connected to one audio IN on something that distributes sound wirelessly to the speakers.  What Sonos product has that input jack and has the capability to communicate with other Sonos speakers spread around the house?
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

You can certainly do that. You would use the tape-out jack on your receiver to feed the line-in on a Sonos component that has line-in jacks. Whatever is selected on your receiver would play through tape-out and thus through any or all Sonos speakers.

You can use a Play 5 speaker, A Sonos Connect, or a Sonos Connect Amp to provide the Line-In to the Sonos environment. If you use a connect Amp you can also hook it to your old speakers if you want to so the location where the Denon is will work pretty much the same as it does now but the music will also be available to all other Sonos devices.
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

I have the same setup / questions as William... I want to install Sonos wireless speakers throughout the house, starting with a Bridge or Playbar connected to my DSL router via wired ethernet.  I want my setup to include AM and FM as a source into the Sonos speakers spread across multiple rooms (football games, local FM stations, etc).  If I'm reading correctly, I can connect my receiver's Line Out to the Connect (or Play 5) Line In to achieve my setup goal.  Other clarifying questions:  Does the "receiver" show up on the Android control app?, or something else;  Can I control "receiver" volume only from Android control app?, or power on/off and anything else?
Userlevel 7
Badge +21
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

Jon,

Most receivers will feed analog sources - AM/FM tuner, phono, etc. - out through analog outputs (like a Tape Out). If you feed that analog line output to the Line In on a Sonos device, then you can play those sources from your receiver through your Sonos speakers. Receivers don't usually play digital sources to analog outputs, so an optical, coaxial, or HDMI input will most likely NOT play through an analog output.

If I remember correctly, you can label the Line In source to be called whatever you want in the Sonos controller (Settings > Room Settings > [select room] > Line In). But you will not have any kind of control of the device through the Sonos app. For example, if you want to change the radio station playing, you'd need to go to the receiver and change the station.
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

Thanks MikeV!  Makes sense.  Extending this line of questions... what happens if I loose my Internet connection?, Obviously no access to online music services, but what about the AM/FM "player" will it still play across the Sonos zones?, same with music on an iPhone?, will TV still work through Playbar, etc, etc.  Basically, what happens if I loose Internet (happens to be DSL).
Userlevel 7
Badge +21
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

If you lose internet connectivity, all of your local sources - music library on computer/NAS/mobile device, line inputs, etc. - should all continue to function. If there's a problem with YOUR router, then things will likely start having problems on your local network.
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

So, back to my situation.  If all of my devices (except the TV) route through the receiver and the output source can be selected at that point, all audio output would travel by RCA cable from the Line Out on the receiver to the Line In on the Sonos Connect.  From the Connect, sound would travel wirelessly to all Sonos speakers anywhere in the house where they would be controlled by the app on a tablet or phone.  Do I have that much correct?  The TV could connect by a digital input cable to a Sonos Playbar, which would then be able to wirelessly distribute the sound to other Sonos speakers that you select on the app.  Is that part correct, too?  Thanks.
Userlevel 7
Badge +21
You can use the Sonos speakers to replace your stereo's speakers. You can replace your Denon's AM/FM tuner with Sonos' TuneIn service, which covers most radio stations that have online streams available.

As far as your CD Player, you'll need a Sonos device with a stereo Line In connection to hook it up to. The Sonos devices with a Line In connection are the Sonos Connect or Connect:AMP, as well as a Play:5 speaker. The Connect or Play:5 would likely be your best options for this... unless you have a pair of wired outdoor speakers that you might want to hook up to a Connect:AMP.

Apologies William... I completely missed that you had asked a question so long ago.

Yes, you have both of those points right. If you still desire to use a receiver with multiple sources to feed into Sonos, then there's no problem. Plus you can hook a TV up to a Playbar, then group in other speakers to have TV sound play throughout.

But if you were to subscribe to a music service (or transfer your CDs and/or other media onto your computer) and use internet radio services like TuneIn or iHeartRadio for your local stations, then you could even eliminate the need for the receiver and the additional Sonos component (not that I want to take away from sales of their products, but I would think you'd be more interested in saving money). Plus you would gain additional control by being able to change radio stations, albums/artists/songs, etc. all from a smartphone or tablet, rather than having to go to the receiver to make a change every time.
Hi,
I realize that this thread is a year old, but I don't think the OP concern was ever properly addressed. Either that, or I don't understand it.

In looking at the Connect, there isn't an Input, only outputs. It looks like the only way to get information into a Sonus system is through the router, and that would require a network attached device. Is it possible for newer receivers to stream their sources back into the router ? I don't think so.
In looking at the Connect, there isn't an Input, only outputs..
Incorrect. It has RCA L/R Line-In jacks.
Then that's good news. Thanks. As I look more closely at an image I can see that.
I just got a connect and a play 5 today and it was a bit of a fiddle, but yes, my old analogue amp now connects to the Connect which outputs to my play 5. CD and Turntable connected to my amp, works a treat, sounds great!
Gr8!