Windows 11 Native Audio Play Integration for Sonos
I’d like to request a feature that lets my PC’s audio play through my Sonos One (and all other speakers and groups) directly from Windows 11’s “Select a sound output” menu.
Windows 11 Task Manager
Ideally, this capability would not require the Sonos Windows App but of course this would be acceptable.
I am aware that I could buy the Sonos port for $550 to achieve this but this is very expensive and want to avoid the extra wires and clutter.
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Did the Sonos ones come with any line in port?
alternatively get Sonos Era 100 type C line in from Pc.
Did the Sonos ones come with any line in port?
alternatively get Sonos Era 100 type C line in from Pc.
The Sonos One does not have a line in. Regardless, the speaker is not near my PC, it is sitting on a bookshelf behind me. Therefore, usage of a “line in” is insufficient. As the speaker is connected to Wi-Fi, there is no reason my feature request isn’t possible from a software perspective. Many software's on my PC already create virtual audio output sources.
Any Sonos line in comes with a 75ms delay, that would not be good for computer sound (as would having speakers behind you, but that is your choice).
I’d like to request a feature that lets my PC’s audio play through my Sonos One (and all other speakers and groups) directly from Windows 11’s “Select a sound output” menu.
Windows 11 Task Manager
Ideally, this capability would not require the Sonos Windows App but of course this would be acceptable.
I am aware that I could buy the Sonos port for $550 to achieve this but this is very expensive and want to avoid the extra wires and clutter.
If Bluetooth output is an option, a Roam2, Move2, or either Era models would be a cheaper alternative to the Port.
Totally agree with this request
As the speaker is connected to Wi-Fi, there is no reason my feature request isn’t possible from a software perspective. Many software's on my PC already create virtual audio output sources.
I agree, its probably technically possible. But from a business perspective, how would it be monetised? From a support perspective it would be a can of worms, there are many different permutations of PC hardware, OS versions, driver versions etc.
An example of this is Apple Airplay, works well on Apple iOS & MacOS, but no so well on Windows 11.
The Bluetooth option (eg Roam) mentioned above provides a ‘wireless’ solution. Or you could connect a Sonos Ray Soundbar with optical connection to a USB adapter direct to your PC.
I agree with @craigski …Sonos would need to shift some portion of their attention towards supporting / being PC speakers, which seems to be a completely different premise than ‘whole home music’. And, I think that market is fairly saturated with other companies.
Both this and the “Make my PC a Sono Zone/player” request have been out there since day 1. They have never been fulfilled. Make of that what you will, but 20 years of requests with no result is pretty telling that it’s not an easy, ROI positive task.
Someone on the Windows Audio team tried this during a hackathon a few years ago - capturing the PC audio is easy enough (at least in stereo) but streaming it to the speakers was painful due to the latency. There is a VirtualLineIn interface exposed on the speakers via UPnP (used for Airplay I believe), but neither he nor I could figure out how to use it.
As the speaker is connected to Wi-Fi, there is no reason my feature request isn’t possible from a software perspective. Many software's on my PC already create virtual audio output sources.
I agree, its probably technically possible. But from a business perspective, how would it be monetised? From a support perspective it would be a can of worms, there are many different permutations of PC hardware, OS versions, driver versions etc.
An example of this is Apple Airplay, works well on Apple iOS & MacOS, but no so well on Windows 11.
The Bluetooth option (eg Roam) mentioned above provides a ‘wireless’ solution. Or you could connect a Sonos Ray Soundbar with optical connection to a USB adapter direct to your PC.
I fully understand. It would not be a direct revenue source. It would further display Sonos’ software dominance.