I have 4 play1s and a PLAYBAR. Play1 in the kitchen. Play1 in the entryway. Pair of play1s in the bedroom and a PLAYBAR in the great room connected to the tv.
I have been wanting a play5 since I heard the sound. Amazing.
I was thinking to put a play5 in the bedroom and move the stereo set of play1s to the great room to do a 5.0 surround set up. It's not a huge bedroom but it isn't small. Will I miss the stereo separation?
Now I see the sub is on sale. It had me thinking I could add a sub to the PLAYBAR and keep the 1s in the bedroom. I can't afford both at the moment. I have been very happy with just the PLAYBAR in the great room. I was never interested in the sub but I keep reading on this sub (lol) how amazing it is. I live in an older apartment building and am worried to disturb the neighbors. So there is that issue to consider.
Is the PLAYBAR/sub better than the PLAYBAR/1s (3.1>5.0)?
Is the Play5 better than a stereo pair of play 1s?
PLAYBAR is attached to the tv but my priority is music. $100 off the sub and found a open box play5 for almost $100 off; both at Best Buy.
Get a play 5 for the bedroom, bring the play 1s into the great room for 5.0 set up and wait on the sub?
Get a sub for the great room for 3.1, leave the stereo 1s in the bedroom and wait on or skip the 5?
Thoughts?
Answered
Next purchase... Sub or Play5?
Best answer by Contemplative
Hi Dangerboy79,
Not sure this is still a question for you, but I'll go with the SUB for the great room and leave the paired 1's in the bedroom.
I'm actually in the same situation as you with a 1 pair in the bedroom and a bar plus a single 5 in the living room.
Plan Was to swap the 5 and 1 pair to enable 5.0 in the living room.
Moved the 1's to but while it added something to the TV sound it was not much.
So I swapped it back and I'm now waiting until I can afford or justify the sub.
View originalNot sure this is still a question for you, but I'll go with the SUB for the great room and leave the paired 1's in the bedroom.
I'm actually in the same situation as you with a 1 pair in the bedroom and a bar plus a single 5 in the living room.
Plan Was to swap the 5 and 1 pair to enable 5.0 in the living room.
Moved the 1's to but while it added something to the TV sound it was not much.
So I swapped it back and I'm now waiting until I can afford or justify the sub.
This topic has been closed for further comments. You can use the search bar to find a similar topic, or create a new one by clicking Create Topic at the top of the page.
Hi Dangerboy79,
Not sure this is still a question for you, but I'll go with the SUB for the great room and leave the paired 1's in the bedroom.
I'm actually in the same situation as you with a 1 pair in the bedroom and a bar plus a single 5 in the living room.
Plan Was to swap the 5 and 1 pair to enable 5.0 in the living room.
Moved the 1's to but while it added something to the TV sound it was not much.
So I swapped it back and I'm now waiting until I can afford or justify the sub.
Not sure this is still a question for you, but I'll go with the SUB for the great room and leave the paired 1's in the bedroom.
I'm actually in the same situation as you with a 1 pair in the bedroom and a bar plus a single 5 in the living room.
Plan Was to swap the 5 and 1 pair to enable 5.0 in the living room.
Moved the 1's to but while it added something to the TV sound it was not much.
So I swapped it back and I'm now waiting until I can afford or justify the sub.
I just recently (as in 2 days ago) put in the playbar & sub. Was going to do playbar only and wait on sub, but $100 off changed my mind. Sounds amazing. I live in a 1 story with two young children (1&3) so at night, I just turn on the night mode and it really tones down base to not wake them.
I would go with the sub and leave the play1s in the bedroom. I have a fairly large family room and it definitely provides enough sound to fill the space.
I would go with the sub and leave the play1s in the bedroom. I have a fairly large family room and it definitely provides enough sound to fill the space.
I think you're going to be happy with either option. Disturbing neighbors is a concern, but I imagine you can find a sweet spot. If it were me, I probably would go with the sub for now. Sonos, has said nothing, but since the PLAY:1s were $50 off last Christmas, and this Christmas looks to be a competitive market, it stands to reason that sale will be repeated. So you maybe you have time to save up and get a full 5.1 before the end of the year.
Thank you for your reply.
I needed up getting the sub from sonos so I could have 45 days to see how it sounds and if any of the neighbors complain. It adds so much! I tried it a few days with just he PLAYBAR and sub and I just brought in the paired 1s from the bedroom to try out the 5.1. I love the 5.1 but I agree that it doesn't add much for TV watching. It really shines when watching movies and music.
I recently got a gift card and am trying to decide between getting a 5 for the bedroom or another pair of play ones.
Since you have both what are your thoughts? Does a single 5 sound better than a pair of ones?
You have "1 pair in the bedroom and a bar plus a single 5 in the living room." Since you can't link the bar and the 5 are they in different zones? How does it sound?
"Moved the 1's to but while it added something to the TV sound it was not much." You aren't going to hear much since tv isn't usually broadcast in surround. Movies sound great though
The default setting for the surrounds are on ambient. Go into the settings>advanced settings for your room and switch the surrounds to full. It really changes it when you are listening to music and really fills the space.
Thanks
I needed up getting the sub from sonos so I could have 45 days to see how it sounds and if any of the neighbors complain. It adds so much! I tried it a few days with just he PLAYBAR and sub and I just brought in the paired 1s from the bedroom to try out the 5.1. I love the 5.1 but I agree that it doesn't add much for TV watching. It really shines when watching movies and music.
I recently got a gift card and am trying to decide between getting a 5 for the bedroom or another pair of play ones.
Since you have both what are your thoughts? Does a single 5 sound better than a pair of ones?
You have "1 pair in the bedroom and a bar plus a single 5 in the living room." Since you can't link the bar and the 5 are they in different zones? How does it sound?
"Moved the 1's to but while it added something to the TV sound it was not much." You aren't going to hear much since tv isn't usually broadcast in surround. Movies sound great though
The default setting for the surrounds are on ambient. Go into the settings>advanced settings for your room and switch the surrounds to full. It really changes it when you are listening to music and really fills the space.
Thanks
Paired 1's vs single play 5, what a dilemma.
I'm not sure its a question of which one is better but more of which type of sound you prefer.
The 5 produces much richer sounds and is enough to fill most bedrooms with a significant amount of bass.
It is in fact better than the 1 in every aspect..... well.....this is until you experience the stereo separation of a 1 pair.
Personally, I prefer the 1 pair in the bedroom as it can still fill the room at lower volumes and having one on either side of the headboard (or on the other side of the room facing the bed) at low volumes in a darkened room I find very enjoyable listening experience.
Others may prefer the bigger presence of a single 5
As you have already experienced the 1 pair, you can get a 5 with the 45 day return policy and run it for like a month before making a final decision.
My eventual goal is to get a sub and another 5 to complete a 5.1 system in the living room, but until that happens the single 5 sill rocks the living room for music while the bar does the job for TV and movies for now
I'm not sure its a question of which one is better but more of which type of sound you prefer.
The 5 produces much richer sounds and is enough to fill most bedrooms with a significant amount of bass.
It is in fact better than the 1 in every aspect..... well.....this is until you experience the stereo separation of a 1 pair.
Personally, I prefer the 1 pair in the bedroom as it can still fill the room at lower volumes and having one on either side of the headboard (or on the other side of the room facing the bed) at low volumes in a darkened room I find very enjoyable listening experience.
Others may prefer the bigger presence of a single 5
As you have already experienced the 1 pair, you can get a 5 with the 45 day return policy and run it for like a month before making a final decision.
My eventual goal is to get a sub and another 5 to complete a 5.1 system in the living room, but until that happens the single 5 sill rocks the living room for music while the bar does the job for TV and movies for now
Just hooked up the 5 in the bedroom. Wow. just wow.
The clarity and depth. Definitely better than the stereo pair of 1s It has amazing stereo separation for a single speaker. Even at high volumes there is so much clarity and range. Is it strange that it sounds better than the 5.1 surround in the living room? Contemplating returning the PLAYBAR and sub and getting stereo set of 5s for the great room. Wish it would work with he tv 😞.
The clarity and depth. Definitely better than the stereo pair of 1s It has amazing stereo separation for a single speaker. Even at high volumes there is so much clarity and range. Is it strange that it sounds better than the 5.1 surround in the living room? Contemplating returning the PLAYBAR and sub and getting stereo set of 5s for the great room. Wish it would work with he tv 😞.
Dangerboy79 wrote:
Is it strange that it sounds better than the 5.1 surround in the living room? Contemplating returning the PLAYBAR and sub and getting stereo set of 5s for the great room. Wish it would work with he tv 😞.
No, it isn't strange at all; the Sonos 5.1 solution is a compromise to allow reduced clutter and cabling compared to a full monty 5.1 set up with an AVR that works just as well for both music and movies. What you are experiencing is the price to pay for that compromise. Many find that compromise to be acceptable, a subjective decision. Just as many do not.
1 person likes this
I honestly dont think ill mind the compromise of the Sonos 5.1 system. After years of having to deal with cables.
The icing on the cake would be if sonos allowed the muting of the play bar in a 5.1 setup when source is not the optical cable i.e when playing music to give a proper 2.1 setup.
Having done a side by side comparison of the bar and a single 5, the 5 is by far better than the bar. Not that the bar is inadequate for the task, its actually very good, just that the 5 is so much better.
That would justify building a 5.1 setup with a pair of 5's. Set to full. Ahhhhhhh
Sonos hope you are listening to my humble appeal.
To be fair i aint too proud to beg if thats whats required. :$
So let me know
The icing on the cake would be if sonos allowed the muting of the play bar in a 5.1 setup when source is not the optical cable i.e when playing music to give a proper 2.1 setup.
Having done a side by side comparison of the bar and a single 5, the 5 is by far better than the bar. Not that the bar is inadequate for the task, its actually very good, just that the 5 is so much better.
That would justify building a 5.1 setup with a pair of 5's. Set to full. Ahhhhhhh
Sonos hope you are listening to my humble appeal.
To be fair i aint too proud to beg if thats whats required. :$
So let me know
Enter your E-mail address. We'll send you an e-mail with instructions to reset your password.