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I do most of my listening (to classical,  mostly) in my very cozy den (about 9 feet x 9 feet, with a low, painted wood beam ceiling (about 6 1/2 ft.), with spaced beams coming down 4 inches from  the ceiling--TMI, I suppose, but I suspect these help the acoustics quite a bit).  Anyway, I have a Sonos One and love it. It is certainly loud enough for the room. But I've always wanted a really nice stereo and have never quite been able to afford one... So,  my question is, if I want to upgrade, should I be reasonable and just get a second One, or would a Five blow me away? (I have an eager prospective recipient if I decide to pass along my current One--in fact, that would essentially reduce the added cost of the Five because the One would be such a nice present.) Would the sound quality and bass be worth it even if I don't need the volume? Or would the stereo separation of two Ones be the way to go?

 Or would the stereo separation of two Ones be the way to go?

If you are accustomed to listening to stereo, this.

Tough choice.

If you love the One, you’ll be blown away by the Five. The Five is Sonos’ best-sounding music speaker IMHO.

A better answer: Try both options and return the one less preferred.

I love my 5 but that is because it sits about 5 feet from me and the stereo image isn’t too bad. A pair of anything isn’t an option in that space so it is great.

In another room with a 5, where I was further away, say 10-15 feet the image I hear is pretty weak.

A Pair of Ones or One SLs if you don’t want voice when set to provide a good stereo image will sound much more live than a too distant 5. A bit less bottom end but for classical that shouldn’t be a show stopper if you aren’t an organ fan.

Like normal bookshelf or larger speakers placement related to your listening spot is king for the imaging.

 

Thanks, guys. I'll ponder for a while... I was a little too timid to propose Kumar's solution, but it's very tempting... I'm sure either solution is going to sound great! Looking forward to it! Thanks again.

I'll report back.

Also, although based only on reports - the 5 does not sound as good at low volumes as it does once past the midway point. Another thing to check if comparing two set ups, especially if much listening is at lower levels.

If you are referring to timidity in the context of returning one new unit after comparative testing, wherever Sonos offers this option, it is an acceptable thing to do... 

The ones with Trueplay are going to be tremendous in that room. I have a pair of the play 1s (earlier iteration) and they sound great in my den which is about 10x10. Either way you can’t go wrong. 

I’m very happy with my Gen2 5 at low levels as long as I switch on the loudness compensation.

 

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