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Visual difference Gen1 vs Gen2 Connect & Amp

S
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Hi...is there a visual way to determine a Gen 2 Connect & Amp from a Gen 1? I have heard that the Gen2 has the Pause/Play button on the front rather than the Mute button, but have been unable to verify this….I am looking to buy some Gen2 Connects. 

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Best answer by Ryan S 10 April 2020, 00:30

The mute button is a pretty good way to check. I believe that the hardware change of the button was at the same time as the other hardware changes, but I’m not 100% certain on that. The timing is about right. On top of that, you could ask for a picture of the first half of the serial number, the four digits at the beginning, before the 00:0E:58, B8:E9:37, or other Sonos MAC identifiers is the date of production, in the format YYMM.

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Chris
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I don’t know when the change of button happened - I don’t think it happened right at the same time.

You can call sonos with serial number I’m sure they can tell you

 

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S
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Looking to buy Gen2’s on eBay etc, so was trying to find out if there was an easy way to determine this. Looking for a cheaper way to get all of my devices compliant with S2.

J

I don’t know when the change of button happened - I don’t think it happened right at the same time.

You can call sonos with serial number I’m sure they can tell you

 

I am sure you are correct, Chris.  The change happened across the existing products at that time, and I think it was in 2013.  The Connect ‘gen 2’ (as we now call it, although we didn’t know it at the time) started in 2015.  So we can say that if it has the mute symbol it is definitely gen1.  If it has the play symbol, it could be gen 1 or gen 2.

S
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So it appears there is no easy way to visually confirm a Gen1 v Gen2 Product….I have a long term investment in Sonos and 6 out of my 12 boxes are Gen1, so was looking at a cheaper way (than just the 30% deal) to replace them.

Ryan S
Userlevel 7
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The mute button is a pretty good way to check. I believe that the hardware change of the button was at the same time as the other hardware changes, but I’m not 100% certain on that. The timing is about right. On top of that, you could ask for a picture of the first half of the serial number, the four digits at the beginning, before the 00:0E:58, B8:E9:37, or other Sonos MAC identifiers is the date of production, in the format YYMM.

Mark good posts by pressing the like button, and select the best answer on questions you've asked to help others find solutions.
J

I think the change to the operation of the mute button was rather earlier, around September / October 2013.  I imagine that new devices from pretty soon after that would have had the new play/pause symbol, but it may not have been immediate.  So a mute symbol is pretty much a guarantee it is gen 1.  Most with a play/pause symbol will be gen 2, but you can’t be certain of that.

106rallye
Userlevel 7
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Ask the seller to e-mail you a print screen of his account details, showing the serial number of the device he is selling you. If it’s a legacy device the print will say so.

R

I see the discussion on the mute vs. the pause button, but does anyone know the OTHER hardware changes that took place between Gen 1 and Gen 2?  Any sound, processing, wifi performance or anything else we’d really care about?  I have a Gen 2 Connect on 1 legacy system and several sonos speakers, but don’t want any lag or other issues if I pop a Gen1 Connect on my other legacy stereo system.  Does it matter? 

Thanks.

106rallye
Userlevel 7
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The only other change I know of is that the Gen 2 has more memory. For a (future) S1 system a Gen 1 Connect will function as it does now - that's why Sonos will keep it on S1 from june…..

J

I think the change to the operation of the mute button was rather earlier, around September / October 2013.  I imagine that new devices from pretty soon after that would have had the new play/pause symbol, but it may not have been immediate.  So a mute symbol is pretty much a guarantee it is gen 1.  Most with a play/pause symbol will be gen 2, but you can’t be certain of that.

It appears that the software change in late 2013 was NOT immediately followed by a change in the button from mute to play/pause on new units, and that the physical change was about the same time as the memory increased, i.e. gen 1 to gen 2.  There has been evidence on other threads of units classed as ‘modern’ with serial numbers starting 1502 (i.e. Feb 2015) and 1504 (i.e. April 2015).  I obviously cannot guarantee the validity of these, I am just reporting what has been said.

J

I see the discussion on the mute vs. the pause button, but does anyone know the OTHER hardware changes that took place between Gen 1 and Gen 2?  Any sound, processing, wifi performance or anything else we’d really care about?  I have a Gen 2 Connect on 1 legacy system and several sonos speakers, but don’t want any lag or other issues if I pop a Gen1 Connect on my other legacy stereo system.  Does it matter? 

Thanks.

It matters enormously if you want to put your whole system into S2 post-June, as only the gen 2 has enough memory to function in S2.  But in the context of an S1 system there will be no need to be concerned in any way about the performance of a gen 1 Connect.

R

Thanks 106rallye and John B.

You guys really helped. The extra cash it’ll be then on eBay then for the Connect Gen2!  I’ll be able to upgrade to S2 then which honestly I’ve been ignorant of until just looking into it now. Would like a Port of course, but $449 is too tall an order for me on this right now and seems Port is too new to have used market just yet. I can’t find one.

Thanks! 

S

In case this helps anyone…….

I too was frustrated trying to find the generation of my devices.  When I ran the Sonos S2 app, it told me some devices are incompatible with S2, but not WHICH devices.  I have 4 Connect:AMPs, a Connect, and a Play5 (as well as other “compatible” devices), bought at different times, so I didn’t know what was what.

First, the S2 app was too dumb to realize my devices needed a software update to become “compatible.”  I did a manual update check in the S1 app, it found an update, and installed it.  Then in the S2 app, instead of saying some devices were incompatible, it said an update was required.  I ran the update and now all my devices work in the S2 app.  This is of course just blind luck, as it may not have been the case if I had purchased my first devices a month or two earlier.  I feel bad for anyone who can’t use their existing devices in the new S2 app.  I think this is a huge stain on the Sonos brand, and I don’t think I’ll ever buy another Sonos device unless they fix this.  When are they going to randomly tell me that MY devices are too old to work with my new devices?  This eliminates the main reason I went with Sonos in the first place - expandability.

All that being said, my oldest Connect:AMP has a Play/Pause button and a serial number starting with 1506.  So I guess anything from at least that manufacture date forward will be compatible.  My Connect starts with 1809, so that’s not much help.  My Play5 starts with 1512.

106rallye
Userlevel 7
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The fact you need to update soem devices before installiung S2 is mentioned on the forums. It is not on the normal S2 pages, probably because those seem to advise you to wait until you are prompted to make the choice for S2 - at which point the updates are probably installed automatically. Where you prompted or did you make the choice yourself?

For users to see that their devices are becoming legacy is a hard thing to swallow. If anything, you can point your finger at Sonos for not stating clearly when this point would be reached for their devices in the past. Now they have: at least five years after stopping production of the device, though Sonos’track record is way better.. 

 

S

I use the S1 app daily and hadn’t been prompted to update.  I installed the S2 app after reading an article.  When I first opened the S2 app, it said something like, “Some of your devices are not compatible….you have options...”

  1. Open in S1 App
  2. Open Options

When I went to options, I had no options to set up a system or anything.  Just to view existing system devices and a couple others.  I don’t remember what all was in there.  But definitely no option to update until I did the update in the S1 app.  So I was obviously not happy with that situation, and later found I was one of the lucky ones.

I have no issue with Sonos putting out new devices and saying older devices can’t run the new software, can’t get new features, etc.  What I do have an issue with is the splitting of systems.  If my Connect:AMPs, Connect and Play:5  just happened to be Gen 1, almost my entire setup would have been unusable with any new devices.  I’m not saying old devices need to be able to decode a Dolby Atmos signal or play in a surround setup with a new Sonos Arc.  Obviously there are hardware limitations to any electronic device.  But to say that I (and I’m speaking for people with older devices) can’t play Spotify on all my devices sync’d (Sonos’s main selling point) is ridiculous.  They obviously took the easy path and thought it was better to piss some people off than to confuse people buying new devices.  But how hard is it to say, “Your living room Play:1 can’t play this.” or “Only these devices can be paired with an ARC”?  Sonos built their company on the backs of a loyal customer base, and now they’re leaving us in the lurch.  I can’t imagine this bodes well for the quality of the product line in the future.

106rallye
Userlevel 7
Badge +17

I hear you, but I also understand the choice Sonos had to make. For now I'd advice you to stay on S1 until the user experience really deteriorates. That could be a couple of months or a couple of years from now….

J

My Connect has the play/pause button and a 1511 date before the serial number.  I updated the software FOR JUST THAT DEVICE on in the Sonos2 app, but the app updated my whole system (playbar, boost,and a bunch of play1s).  I held my breath and prayed.

 

It worked!  

I am sharing a photo of my older Connect so folks can SEE what it looks like. Good luck--and yes, I wish Sonos would provide a VISUAL table of compatible vs incompatible devices.

 

S

I have both, so figured I would send a comparison shot.

 

V

i just purchased Connect from eBay as gen 1, but when received it it worked on S2 app without any apparent downgrade or warning messages to my surprise, so i suspected that maybe i have Gen 2

 

I too have play/pause button but serial number is 1511

 

L

I have a gen 1 Sonos connect ( at least sonos system tells me) and it has a mute button. 

 

B
Userlevel 2
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I have both, so figured I would send a comparison shot.

Thanks for that photo!  That makes it easy to spot Gen2’s on eBay or other sources.  I have two Gen2 and three Gen1 devices, including an early (2008) Connect AMP which still works great.  But I’m going to keep my eyes open for a good deal on Gen 2 replacements.  I’ not eager to spend $2k upgrading everything.

 

B
Userlevel 2
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Sonos is doing everything they can to get the old hardware out of circulation.  

I noticed that they do not show the hardware serial number online, only the “system” serial number which does not indicate the manufacturing date.

And, I suspect the 15% and 30% discounts are designed to compete with the re-sale value of your old devices which tempts you to trade in rather than go to the trouble of buying new and selling your old device.

SirDigitalKnight
Userlevel 1
Badge +2

Thanks to all the posts here I was able to snag two Gen 2 Connects off eBay for a fraction of the cost of one new “Port” which doesn't even have optical digital out which I need so I would consider it a downgrade item. Not sure why when I look at my Gen 2 Connects under devices it has a “Upgrade Eligible | Get 15% off” button? I am already on Gen 2 and there is nothing better that they sell to upgrade to?

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