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What Watt rms do Sonos have?

  • 8 September 2018
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Does anyone know how many Watts rms sonos speakers have?
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Best answer by Kumar 8 September 2018, 08:41

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Speakers don't have watts as a relevant spec, which instead is how loud they can go, without distortion. Sonos does not provide a spec for this, but I never run my play units above 75% volume levels.
The answer is . . . 42.
42? In play1,3,5, or wich one?
None of them, it was a joke (Google 'Douglas Adams 42'). Kumar is correct, watts mean nothing in an all-in-one powered speaker because we don't know anything about the sensitivity of the speakers used, distortion level, frequency range/dropoff, etc. For example, you could have a 1000W amp driving extremely inefficient speakers bested in output by a 100W amp driving extremely efficient speakers. Therefore, watts mean nothing.
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I went back and looked to see if there were any good answers and I couldn't find anything.

With Sonos gear containing multiple amplifiers per channel to multiple speakers and active equalization even trying to measure the power on your own would be an exercise in frustration.

You could plug your Sonos into a power meter and note the idle power then blast a full frequency test tone through it and note the power used. Of course that might well destroy a speaker or two but if you really want to know... Figure 90% for efficiency and subtract the idle power and you'd likely get a rough estimate of the total amplifier power in a unit.
Sonos must know? Do we know how Much the amp puts out in a play 5? Looking at an nad amp to power my outdoors speakers,
https://www.hifiklubben.se/stereo/forstarkare/nad-ci-980-effektforstarkare/
The Connect:Amp is the only unit for which rating watts actually makes sense, which is why Sonos lists the wattage. It is rated at 55 W. The new model Amp coming out next February is rated at 125 W.

For all other Sonos units (I'm going to make this quite clear) WATTS DO NOT MATTER!!!!!!

Read this link:

http://www.hifipage.com/why-wattage-does-not-matter-6/

Note that is for separate amps and speakers. It matters even less for all-in-one powered speakers like Sonos.

So stop asking about watts.
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Part of your problem is not understanding how Sonos speakers are built, which of the Six internal amps in the Play 5 are you considering using to power your external speakers? How are you going to bypass the internal crossovers that Sonos uses to deliver the proper frequencies to each internal amp and matching speaker. The Play series are all horrible choices to power external speakers and tearing them apart and modifying them for that will void the warranty and likely be fruitless in the end due to their nature.

From the Play 5 product page: "Six Class-D digital amplifiers perfectly tuned to match the six dedicated speaker drivers and the acoustic architecture."

If you want an amplifier to power your external speakers the Connect Amp would be the right choice, depending on the number of speakers you might need an impedance matching box or multiple Connect Amps.

https://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/connectamp.html

When released the Sonos Amp might be better but it is not ready yet.

https://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/amp.html

If you want to use an external amp (not Sonos) like the one you linked to then a Sonos Connect (not Connect Amp) is the way to go.

https://www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/connect.html
IF Watts do not Matter, why is the new amp on 125w insted of 55w?

I an looking for like 6-8 speakers and one amp that sounds like 6-8 play5’s.

Its outsoor... Thats why i wondering how the play5’s are, so i can compare some data?

Its note the same to listen to ONE speaker in the shop as 6 to 8 of them in my garden.

Regards Lindeberg
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You are still missing the key point:

Watts do not matter to a Speaker.

Watts do matter to an Amp.

Are you seriously considering buying eight Play 5s, tearing them to pieces and trying to find a way to connect the mess you will have made with the six individual internal Play 5 amplifiers to an external speaker?

The Play 5 is not waterproof, even before you rip it open to expose the internal components, it is not suitable to being left outside.
Sound quality is more dependent in speaker design and materials than the number of watts. It is highly unlikely you can match the sound of a Play:5 using off the counter outdoor speakers, no matter how closely you match the amplifier power.
Nope, i Am note buying eight play 5s, but i want the new outdoor system to have the same punch as eight play 5s.

I’m going to hook up a good quality amp with 8channels to 6-8 outdoors speakers. And then connect the amp to a Sonos connect.
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Then the output power of the amp you buy and the efficiency rating of the speakers you get is what matters, not the ratings of the Play 5.

I'd recommend a good audio shop where you could compare outdoor speakers to find ones you like then buying an amp with a power rating of at least 1/2 of the speaker's maximum rating with more being better if you want them loud. Buying speakers without listening to them is a very risky proposition as ones rated the same can sound very different.

Don't expect a conventional speaker the same size as the Play 5 to sound as good, without the multiple driver/amp configuration they probably won't.
i want the new outdoor system to have the same punch as eight play 5s.


Yikes, the neighbor from hell. Pity anyone living nearby. 😃
i want the new outdoor system to have the same punch as eight play 5s.


Yikes, the neighbor from hell. Pity anyone living nearby. :D

Lol.
Assuming there are no neighbours, you need to take many more variables into account. As an example, if you want the same punch as eight play 5 units playing indoors in a large outdoor yard where the speakers are also further away from the listening area, you may need amp power of 10,000 watts and speakers robust enough to handle the power.

On the other hand, I get plenty of punch from a pair of Minirig speakers outdoors, where these are placed nearby - as in less than six feet away; these are portable bluetooth speakers with built in amps, and the pair of them can fit in a backpack with enough room to spare for overnight kit.

And to clarify the watts spec for the Connect Amp - this spec is provided because it is relevant where the amp is to be used to drive third party speakers because it is necessary to know it to choose/get speakers that are matched to the amp in the sense of being able to deliver the required sound levels when driven by the amp being chosen.

In the case of integrated units such as the play 5, this matching has been done by Sonos, and all you need to know is how loud the speakers will go without distorting. And since this depends on the nature of the space where the unit is placed, even if Sonos were to give a dB spec, the only reliable way to know would be to test run the units in place and see if they go loud enough.

I’m going to hook up a good quality amp with 8channels to 6-8 outdoors speakers. And then connect the amp to a Sonos connect.

A specific response to the above would be to get an amp that can deliver 100 watts+ rms to each connected speaker, make sure that the outdoor speakers have sensitivity higher than 90dB at I metre, and place the speakers as close to the listening areas as possible because sound levels outdoors reduce very rapidly with distance.
Use speaker wires of adequate thickness for the length needed - guidance is there on Google for this.

I’m going to hook up a good quality amp with 8channels to 6-8 outdoors speakers. And then connect the amp to a Sonos connect.

A specific response to the above would be to get an amp that can deliver 100 watts+ rms to each connected speaker, make sure that the outdoor speakers have sensitivity higher than 90dB at I metre, and place the speakers as close to the listening areas as possible because sound levels outdoors reduce very rapidly with distance.
Use speaker wires of adequate thickness for the length needed - guidance is there on Google for this.


Great answer:) now i know what to look for.
The outdoor listinig area is like 20x5meters.
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So what is the Sonos Beam's Amp Wattage?
So what is the Sonos Beam's Amp Wattage?

I suggest you read the thread.
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Don't worry I did and I figured you would answer with a WATTS DO NOT MATTER!!!!!! but I am looking to compare the Beam vs the Playbar according to specs.
Oh, you are comparing two very different units using a single data point from a very complex interaction of data points? Well, that's a different story.

Playbar: 72 watts
Beam: 64 watts.

Hope that is of help.
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thank you so much. Appreciate it
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Rather than trying to get a power number for the various amplifiers in the devices you are looking at, just count speakers and compare case volumes. That will give you a decent comparison of the abilities of each unit.
Nope, i Am note buying eight play 5s, but i want the new outdoor system to have the same punch as eight play 5s.

I’m going to hook up a good quality amp with 8channels to 6-8 outdoors speakers. And then connect the amp to a Sonos connect.


I have seven of the Play 5 units (GEN 2), and they are amazing sounding when all playing together. I took one apart and connector high level convertors on the speaker leads to give me low level signal. Then buttoned it all up so now I have six channels of low level signal from each unit. This went into my amplifier that I then connected to my outdoor speakers. I purchased some old Sonance Marine speakers with dual 5.25" speakers and one tweeter in the center. They are powered nicely and with the active equalization from the Play 5, the speakers sound just like a Play 5 but louder and play lower since the 5.25" are bigger and in a ported box. I used two Sonance Marine speakers and it covers the outside beautifully. It is almost as if I have a subwoofer and for open-air, it is impressive.
You are compounding your ignorance by shining a light on it with your use of abuse.