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Question

Thinking of upgrading Play:1s to Era 100s – worth it for Sound quality, Apple Music & stability?

  • January 26, 2026
  • 2 replies
  • 16 views
Jonesnow
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Hi all,

I’m looking for a bit of real-world advice before upgrading part of my Sonos setup.

I currently have:

  • 2 × Play:1

  • 1 × Play:3

  • Sonos One

  • Sonos Port

  • Era 300

We’ve recently switched over to Apple Music and are mostly using AirPlay / Apple Music integration alongside the Sonos app.

I’m considering replacing the two Play:1s with two Era 100s, and I’m trying to get a feel for whether the upgrade is genuinely worthwhile.

A couple of questions I’d really appreciate views on:

1. Sound quality:
Is the jump in sound quality from Play:1 → Era 100 actually noticeable in day-to-day listening, particularly with Apple Music (lossless / Atmos where applicable)? Or is it more of an incremental improvement?

2. Apple Music & stability:
Since switching to Apple Music, I’ve noticed occasional dropouts or odd behaviour when:

  • Switching between the Sonos app and controlling playback directly from Apple Music

  • Adding/removing rooms mid-playback

For those who’ve moved from older speakers (Play:1 / Play:3 era) to newer ones like the Era range, did you notice any improvement in stability or reliability with Apple Music and AirPlay? Or is this more of a platform/network thing rather than a hardware one?

I’m trying to work out whether upgrading to more modern speakers will meaningfully improve both sound and the overall experience, or whether I’d be better off living with the Play:1s a bit longer.

Any insights or experiences would be really appreciated — thanks in advance!

2 replies

Airgetlam
  • Airgetlam
  • January 26, 2026

I can’t really speak to question 1, it’s your ears that detect any difference. If you purchase from Sonos directly, they do have a return policy, you can determine for yourself. I have a smattering of most speakers, and they all sound good to me. 

As to question 2, your situation seems much more like a wifi interference issue, exposed more so when you take those actions. I’d be awfully tempted to do a full network refresh, by unplugging all Sonos devices from power, then rebooting your router. Wait two minutes, then plug back in your Sonos. Wait another two minutes, then open your controller and apply any updates that are found. Finally, do your testing. 

If that doesn’t resolve your issues, I would recommend that you submit a system diagnostic within 10 minutes of experiencing this problem, and call Sonos Support to discuss it. Don’t post the resulting diagnostic number here, Sonos’ lawyers get sensitive about GDPR, I suspect.

There may be information included in the diagnostic that will help Sonos pinpoint the issue and help you find a solution.

When you speak directly to the Support staff, they have tools at their disposal that will allow them to give you advice specific to your network and Sonos system.

 

Bruce
    Stanley_4
    • Stanley_4
    • Lead Maestro
    • January 26, 2026

    I used my Play 1s mostly as surrounds but often in full mode for music. Replacing them with Era-100 does sound better and I don't regret the upgrade there.

    Looking at them as primary speakers instead of surrounds I'm pretty sure I'd feel the same although I did no a/b comparisons recently.

    However I decided that as primary speakers the Era-300s were the way to go (bought six so far) as the Atmos performance of the 300s is a huge plus to my music listening and their ability to fill my large and open rooms is a huge step up from the 100s. I wouldn't consider the Play 1s as a good primary speaker option in any of my spaces today.

    I do use my pair of Play 3s in the garage and found them better than the Play 1s that I passed on to the kids. 

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