Question

Connect play 1 to smart TV


Dear Sonos, I have bought 2x play 1 for in the living room. I want connect the speakers to my Samsung smart tv, is this possible? As I just graduated I am obviously not going to spend a lot of money to buy another Sonos system. If there is no other way, I suggest you figure something out to connect the sonos play 1 to the tv, otherwhise you will lose another customer. To be honest, I can think of a billion ways to make it work. Best regards, Bram

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12 replies

I still don't really understand what made Sonos decide not to equip the 1 and 3 with a line-in. I love the Play 1's, great sound, and of course I could have figured it out before I bought them, but it's crazy to add another purchase of at least 549,- just to be able to route the sound of my TV to the Sonos system.
Userlevel 5
Badge +4
Hi Bram Van Reenen,

By default this is not possible due to the PLAY:1 having no line-in ports, however you have three different ways to get the PLAY:1's to play TV audio.

1. You can use a CONNECT. For this method you would use the line-in ports on the CONNECT to input the TV's audio. From inside the SONOS Controller App you would select the room of the PLAY:1's, then select 'line-in', and then select the CONNECT. Your TV audio will then play through the PLAY:1's.

2. You can use a CONNECT:AMP. For this method you would use the line-in port on the CONNECT:AMP to input the TV's audio. From inside the SONOS Controller App you would select the room of the PLAY:1's, then select 'line-in', and then select CONNECT:AMP. Your TV audio will then play through the PLAY:1's. This method also gives you the ability to wire separate third-party speakers to the CONNECT:AMP and have them on your SONOS network to play TV audio or any other music content.

3. You can use a PLAY:5. For this method you would use the line-in port on the PLAY:5 to input the TV's audio. From inside the SONOS Controller App you would select the room of the PLAY:1's, then select 'line-in', and then select PLAY:5. Your TV audio will then play through the PLAY:1's. This method also gives you the ability to use the PLAY:5 for TV audio, as well as having another SONOS speaker for around the house.

I personally use setup number 2 and I've never had a problem. My audio plays in full stereo through my two stereo paired PLAY:1's, as well as my SONOS SUB.

Here are some links to give you a little more information on the products, as well as using line-in on SONOS:

Using the Line-In on a SONOS Player.
SONOS CONNECT.
SONOS CONNECT:AMP.
SONOS PLAY:5.

Alternatively the PLAYBAR was designed for playing TV audio. I understand you don't want to spend loads of money though.

I hope this helps!
Best regards!
No, the only surround configuration is with the Playbar. You could group them and they will play the same thing, but no surround possible.
No, the Sonos speakers, any of them, don't have Bluetooth. You could conceivably add a bluetooth receiver to the line in on a Sonos CONNECT, and stream that way, but then you'd have to deal with the 75ms delay on an analog line in.
Userlevel 6
Badge +3
Great post kmly,

Everything in the above post is correct.  Sonos is an environment that has many different parts.  Each part does their job very well.  I love my Sonos and have at least one of everything they make.  for TV you really need the PlayBar as that is what it was made for.  I have the PlayBar, Bass and two Play1s and I get 5.1 surround sound that is amazing to hear.  I hope this does not turn you off Sonos.  
Userlevel 5
Badge +4
Great post kmly,

Everything in the above post is correct.  Sonos is an environment that has many different parts.  Each part does their job very well.  I love my Sonos and have at least one of everything they make.  for TV you really need the PlayBar as that is what it was made for.  I have the PlayBar, Bass and two Play1s and I get 5.1 surround sound that is amazing to hear.  I hope this does not turn you off Sonos.  

PLAYBAR is magical! :)
I should have added that I also have a PLAYBAR in a separate room with the full 5.1 setup. Sounds so wonderful!
Does #3 still apply for the Play 5 Gen 2? Does it apply if you were to substitute a Play 3? I'm having a hard time finding out what inputs/outputs are on each device. I have a few Play 1s.
Does #3 still apply for the Play 5 Gen 2? Does it apply if you were to substitute a Play 3? I'm having a hard time finding out what inputs/outputs are on each device. I have a few Play 1s.

Play:5 yes. Play:3 no, it has no line-in.
Thanks, jgatie! (I love this community already). To further probe, if I were to get a Play 5 and set it up with my television, could I then connect my 1's in a surround configuration? I am not ready (financially) to purchase the bar as I am slowly building my Sonos home empire.
Badge +2
I am using kmjy's Option 2, albeit with a Sonos Connect and paired Play: 1s. My issue is that while the Play:1 wired to the Connect sounds amazing, the other cuts out frequently. Apparently this is due to sound from the TV being uncompressed but surely a Sonos system can handle this? It should for the price.
I still don't really understand what made Sonos decide not to equip the 1 and 3 with a line-in. I love the Play 1's, great sound, and of course I could have figured it out before I bought them, but it's crazy to add another purchase of at least 549,- just to be able to route the sound of my TV to the Sonos system.
I feel the same way...
They argue that it would be more expensive in production as they would have to integrate analog/digital conversion (applies to line-in; I don't know about an optical input). In other words: They would lose money as they would have to lower their margin in order to keep up with their competitors. Every system on the market has its pro's and con's. Watching the competition getting stronger, I hope that they seriously consider putting input jacks into their future generation' speakers. Otherwise I might have to consider switching to another vendor, when their software gets better (despite my $800 investment in Sonos).
I want to connect 2 play:1 as surround in my bedroom. I don't want to buy an additional play bar. Could Sonos connect wireless via Bluetooth to Smart Tv's? Seems like current technology should allow this.