SONOS Upgrade

That's about the best explanation of mono I've heard. Thanks Kumar. Last question (I hope). What exactly does an amp do and might one improve my gen 1 5s?

An amp does what its name suggests - amplifies the voltage of the incoming signal to the extent needed to drive downstream units, usually passive speakers.

You will need an amp, more accurately called a phono preamp, only if you want to attach a turntable to the 5 units and if that has not been built into the turntable.

In no other case should you try to attach any kind of amp to the 5 units. At best it will do nothing, at worst it will damage the 5.

To continue, the 5 has as many as 5 amps built into it, for all its sound delivery needs - except for the TT exception pointed out above.

Well, pulled the trigger and bought a new pair of gen 2 5s just to see how they compare with my gen 1s. I can return them, keep them and my gen 1s or sell my gen 1s. Last question, I promise. I assume that if I keep all 4 5s everything can be set up through the bridge I bought with my gen 1s. Right?

Yes. Technically, you don't actually need the Bridge , any speaker, if connected to your router with an Ethernet cable will function the same. That's a change they made a few years ago, now, it used to require the Bridge/Boost device, but now every speaker is one.

By the way, I'm not advocating getting rid of the bridge. I have one in my setup ( well, a Boost, but they're practically the same) which helps me control my passel of speakers. Useful device, especially if none of your speakers happen to be close to your router.

The only technical difference that I'm aware of between a Bridge and a Boost is the Bridge uses SonosNet 1 protocols, and the Boost uses SonosNet 2, which is a bit faster.

Yes. Technically, you don't actually need the Bridge , any speaker, if connected to your router with an Ethernet cable will function the same. That's a change they made a few years ago, now, it used to require the Bridge/Boost device, but now every speaker is one.
Not quite so Bruce, if I know my Sonos. If any speaker or Sonos unit could be connected to the router, the Bridge was never needed from day 1.
The change that Sonos made a few years ago was of giving the option of using the existing WiFi for audio, by having NO unit connected to the router and doing away with the need for a bridge. But that is a marketing driven compromise and it has not worked for me as stably as my Boost anchored 4 room system does.
For the OP, there is no need to change the Bridge if it works. However, if any one of the 4 speakers can be wired to the router in place of the Bridge, wireless performance will be improved because the units will set up the improved version of Sonos net compared to what the Bridge does.
But if this isn't practical, there still ought to be no need to disturb the Bridge. There is nothing to be gained by improving wireless performance beyond the point that is delivering stable music streaming to all speakers in the home.

Yes. Technically, you don't actually need the Bridge , any speaker, if connected to your router with an Ethernet cable will function the same. That's a change they made a few years ago, now, it used to require the Bridge/Boost device, but now every speaker is one.
Not quite so Bruce, if I know my Sonos. If any speaker or Sonos unit could be connected to the router, the Bridge was never needed from day 1.
Correct. Once upon a time there was only the ZP100 ZonePlayer (and CR100 to control it). A bit later along came ZP80.

For those not wanting a playable 'Zone' in the wired device it could be dumbed down to 'Extender Mode', removing it from the Zones menu.

Since paying a ZP80 price for what was effectively a bridge seemed a bit exorbitant, Sonos introduced the ZoneBridge.

I think I will just keep the bridge as long as I can pair speakers in different zones. If I wired a speaker to my router, would it still be wireless? Doesn't sound right but what do I know? Great responses, fabulous information. If anyone is interested, I'll let you know how I like the gen 1 vs gen 2 5s. Thanks.

If I've understood what I've read here in these boards, the speaker will take the shortest/quickest route to the source. My understanding is that wired tends to be quicker, so it would use that.

And yes, I'd be fascinated in your take of gen 1 vs gen 2. More data points is good. I just can't tell from running by a store and listening to a gen 2 and compare it against my gen 1. Of course, at the end of the day, our preferences are subjective, as our ears and minds are all different (Monty Python's Life of Brian "I'm not!"), but I do like general consensus as a reference. Just not as a rule 🙂