Question

play 3's or subwoofer or ...

  • 24 June 2017
  • 3 replies
  • 452 views

So - I've got a pair of Play 1s in my bedroom. I want to put a single play 1 in each of my kids' bedrooms (2 other bedrooms). Currently the Play 1s are ceiling mounted in corners of my bedroom and it's lovely and I use them to listen to music or watch tv (about 50/50). I'm thinking of either replacing the ones in my bedroom with 2 play 3's and moving the play 1s to the kids rooms. I think this gets me a little more bass and the play 3's still seem small enough to put in the corners of my ceiling? Alternately, I'm thinking of getting a subwoofer for the mbr and just getting 2 new play 1s for the other rooms. This has the advantage of the least amount of work. :)

Any thoughts on these solutions? Or other ones I haven't thought of?

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3 replies

I do not personally own the sub (yet), but I do have all other speakers. You did not mention the size of your MBR as this will affect sound. However, it sounds like you have been happy with the two Play 1's in your MBR. I would consider the costs and benefits. The Play 3's are great speakers and you will get two of them for less than the cost of the sub, plus you will be able to place your existing Play 1's in the other bedrooms per your plan described above. The bass from the Play 3's is a boost over the Play 1's and my pair of Play 3's in my garage produce a great listening experience when I am working out there or just relaxing while grilling. They fill an area of about 800 square feet.

I also have another pair of Play 3's complimenting my Soundbar in my great room. I had contemplated the sub vs. the Play 3's here for the extra bass, but the Play 3's gave me the benefit of satellite speakers which really fill the room, also with great bass when playing music. The bottom line is the Play 3's will not let you down and they will provide more versatility rather than just getting a sub. Granted, they are not at the Play 5 level of sound but they definitely serve their purpose.
@mayormike thanks for these thoughts! My MBR is 20x11. The Play 1s have been great in there, but a little sad with the bass. In my living room I have a tv w/ playbar and subwoofer and the sound is much better. As far as cost, I think the sub is only $100 more than the 2 3's, so I'm not super concerned about that (for a bit I was thinking of 2 5's, but that's a ton of bucks and not really ceiling mountable and probably overkill 🙂.

Really waffling on this decision, had been vaguely leaning toward the sub, but now maybe I'm leaning the other way. ARGH. 🙂
@maI think the sub is only $100 more than the 2 3's, .


Umm...not quite. It also means that you will have to pay more for speakers elsewhere that could otherwise have been relocated. That said,a 1 pair with a Sub is getting into audiophile quality territory.

While the 3 units will sound somewhat better than the 1 units, I doubt that will address the specific concern of bass that you have expressed. Why not try on a returnable basis, and buy/install only thereafter?