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Nmoore1974
Contributor I
July 21, 2025
Answered

Sonos Play 1 or Sonos Play 5 (Gen 1)

Hi All

I have recently entered the Sonos ecosystem. I have a Beam gen 2, 2 Era 100s and a sub mini for the home theatre setup which is very impressive. 
The question is…. I am considering putting another two speakers in my kitchen/dining area for listening to music. I would also like to group them with my other equipment so I can play music throughout the house.

I can get two Play 1s for £65 each or two Play 5 (gen 1)s for £75 each. Which would be better in your opinion?

I have read that there may some compatibility issues regarding the app, I currently use the S2 for the theatre setup which is up. Is this the case?

Many thanks

Neil.

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Mr. T
Mr. TAnswer
July 21, 2025

Hi Neil,

The following support page lists speaker compatibility between apps.

https://support.sonos.com/en-gb/article/sonos-app-version-compatibility

In your case, as you have an S2 (Sonos app) system, the Play:5 (Gen1)s are not compatible. They can only be used with the S1 app and you cannot group speakers across the two apps.

Although the Play:1s will work in theory, I would personally invest a little more and look at Ones instead.

Ones have better internals, plus giving you the option of voice control, unless you opt for One SLs which don’t have a microphone, although you could buy one of each and still stereo pair.

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2 replies

Mr. T
Mr. TAnswer
July 21, 2025

Hi Neil,

The following support page lists speaker compatibility between apps.

https://support.sonos.com/en-gb/article/sonos-app-version-compatibility

In your case, as you have an S2 (Sonos app) system, the Play:5 (Gen1)s are not compatible. They can only be used with the S1 app and you cannot group speakers across the two apps.

Although the Play:1s will work in theory, I would personally invest a little more and look at Ones instead.

Ones have better internals, plus giving you the option of voice control, unless you opt for One SLs which don’t have a microphone, although you could buy one of each and still stereo pair.

    Stanley_4
    Stanley_4
    Grand Maestro
    July 21, 2025

    While I love my Play 3s and 1s (real push buttons) I'd hesitate to buy more due to the age and internals. Ones or One SLs are a much better option these days, even with the PITA touch controls.

    A used gen 2 Play 5 is a great option I love mine and it sees over half my listening time. 

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