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I currently have 2 - 5’s and a sub that I use for listening to music in one room and a separate TV room for watching movies. I plan on combining all into one room as I don’t listen to music and watch movies at the same time. I would like to incorporate the 2 - 5’s, Sub, and possibly a Ray/Beam/Arc with a new TV. When watching movies all systems would be used, when listening to music the Ray/Beam/Arc would be off (the only reason being, I like certain music LOUD and not sure if a soundbar should be in the mix?? Also not sure what soundbar would pair best with the existing 5’s?

Or, should I look for a tv with better sound and use it as the soundbar with the 5’s and Sub? My current TV doesn’t have Bluetooth, but I’m assuming I can connect the 5’s and Sub through that if I forego the soundbar for the tv sound?

Also I run everything through a Roku Ultra with most music coming through either Spotify on the Roku or a folder off a local NAS drive. Video comes from apps on the Roku...Netflix, Prime, Plex (Plex server located on NAS also).

Thanks for any input!

If you are using the Fives as surrounds, the Arc is the best option for a sound bar.

Because the Fives will be connected as surrounds, you will not be able to play music only through the Fives without first removing them as surrounds from the Arc in the Sonos app.

But if you set Music Playback to FULL under the Surround Audio settings, when you stream music from the Sonos app or from a music app on your phone, you will get full stereo playback from both the Arc AND the Fives. But this doesn’t work if you stream music from the Roku. In this case, the Fives will sound more like ambient audio.

I can’t address the Roku issues as I stream using the Sonos app, mostly Amazon or my local music library.

For the best sound (aside from any Roku issues) I’d look for the Arc, using One SLs or 100s for surround use then move the Fives (placed for proper stereo imaging) to a different “Sonos Room” to use for music.

Try the Sub on both the TV Room and the Music Room to see where you prefer it. Might want a second sub or mini-sub at some point.

You could group the two rooms for music but while the bar would likely add volume it might detract from the stereo imaging.

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