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tcarrasco84
Contributor I
November 3, 2020

Trying to figure out future setup, mainly for turntable, some streaming

I'm about to make the leap and invest in Sonos gear. 15 ft. x 25 ft. living room. Either two play 5s with a sub or a Amp with  4 play ones with a sub. What's the opinion on sound difference?? From what i understand  using the play ones vs the play fives I will get a better  high end treble sound and the sub obviously can handle all the bass. For me its all about connectivity, the amp would be nice to have but i cant find any definitive info showing how they work with the amp. Any help would be appreciated. 

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3 replies

lohr500
Prodigy I
November 4, 2020

Unless you want to drive traditional passive speakers, you do not need an Amp. The Play Ones have built in amplification, as does the Sub.

If you want to connect a turntable then you can either connect it via a cable to one Play Five, or by wire to a Port. The Port then transmits the turntable signal wirelessly with the rest of your Sonos system. Once the turntable is connected either to a Five or Port, the Sonos App will allow you to distribute the turntable output to any or all of the Sonos speakers connected to your system. If the speakers are connected as Stereo pairs, then you will get stereo sound from the turntable, even if it only connected to one of the Fives.

For the best stereo experience I would say a pair of Fives and Sub will out perform four Ones and a Sub. But that’s a personal opinion.

And if you go with Fives, you won’t need to purchase a Port to connect the turntable. 

(One advantage of a Port over a wired turntable connection to a Five is that you have more flexibility as to where you place the turntable. It doesn’t need to be close to a Five in order to make the wired connection.) 

Irrespective of how you choose to connect the turntable, your turntable will need a built in pre amp or small external pre-amp to provide a Line In level signal to the Sonos equipment. Some turntables only output at Phono level which is not suitable for direct connection to Sonos. Even the Sonos Amp would require a turntable pre-amp if one isn’t already fitted to the turntable.

    John B
    November 4, 2020

    Excellent and comprehensive reply from @lohr500 .  Unless positioning the turntable near one of the Fives is a major problem, I would not consider getting a Port.  And possibly not even then - a big expense for little or no benefit.

    Kumar
    November 4, 2020

     

    For the best stereo experience I would say a pair of Fives

    I would start with a 5 pair and not add the Sub unless the bass presence of the Five pair feels inadequate - provided that the turntable can be conveniently wired to one of the 5 units. If not convenient, the Port is needed and in that case, a One pair + Sub might be the better way to go.

    If there is also a need to solve the usual large space of problem of sound at the other end of the space needing a boost, add a One at the other end for times when the entire space is in use. Or, add two Ones if one unit isn't adequate.

    Only if the above feels inadequate, I would add the Sub, if a 5 pair works directly with the turntable.

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