Easy to agree with this. My living room already has 2x Play:1 as surrounds, an Arc and sub. I picked up a single Five, placed in the corner of the long end of the room, and it fills the room with beautifully separated instruments and vocals. So far the wife hasn’t spotted it….when the time is right, I’ll add a second! ;) Great video Peter.
Peter, you are the best at reviewing Sonos gear. I love the summary you give up front and the very detailed and well researched info that follows. One of the great RU-vid channels!
Thank you uncle Peter. Came across your video on searching the sonos five and was so impressed, went out and bought two. I can say, no regrets as I am blown away by the ease and power this setup affords. Subbed!
Nice! Aaron, I am happy to have helped! And So far, for the sub and the fives, no one has ever blamed me for a wrong choice before when I recommend them!
Awesome review like always. Your reviews are absolutely the best I've seen. Such in-depth information and easy to understand. I look forward to all your videos.
I have had my stereo pair of Fives for a few weeks now and love them. I placed them vertically as per the normal way most people place them. I then thought I would try them horizontally and wow! they sound much better. I trueplayed both times and interestingly, with them vertically, there was a huge difference in toggling on and off the trueplay. Not so much now with them horizontally which suggests my room was better able to deal with the sound horizontally anyway.
Yeah. Cos usually you have things around the house that will absorb sound waves and reflections on the lateral plane. But most people won’t have things on the ceiling to absorb reflections, causing some imaging issues.
Thankyou for your excellent review, today i purchased the sonos 5 and am more than impressed. I just wanted to add something which i would like to hear your view of, on initial listening with the unit horizontal (just one) it sounded very mono so i got digging into the settings (no callibration as only have android). Anyway i turned off volume limiting and loudness, i also turned off compression, then i played with the equilizer with the unit on the floor central and about 5 feet away, I lifted the trebble to plus 3 and the imaging suddenly came to life i could hear the medley floating with width and shimmering treble, i then pushed it a little more upto 5 and somewhere between 4 and 5 is the sweet spot with the stereo image coming alive and well centered feeling like a stereo pair. If you would like to try this and let me know if this works for you too, it may help those with only one speaker or it could just be my room but on 0 it sounds very flat and mono. It seems those outward tweeters are not driven enough with the factory eq and the width is left muddled with the bass and lifeless. The detail right across the board with this speaker is also amazing. Thanks, Mat.
I totally agree! That grouping speakers for different configurations would be great! It’s so disappointing that their is no easy way to unpair the surrounds from an arc if you want to hear music. Great video again! Thanks for sharing! 🙏
Thank you for all your hard work Peter. I have 4 Sonos Fives in my 40’x20’ living room. Each set is paired together on opposite sides. It sounds awesome. Is there anything I should do differently with this set up? Thanks.
My first Sonos was the Play 5 first gen. I was blown away by the power and sound in such a small package and it was beautiful and so well made. Have since purchased a Sonos Playbar, Arc and gen 3 subwoofer. Going to get either the Sonos Move or the new play 5 the place the gen 1 Play 5 for the upstairs of our home this coming holiday.
The Move can not be used as surrounds, but if you just want a single portable speaker .. or a stereo pair .. it is a good choice. It does however only compare to the Play:3 .. it is not the same as a Play:5 or Sonos Five
Hmmm, I have never thought of the Move as a Play:3 replacement. But in terms of size, it does look similar and sits between the One and the Five. But the use case for the Move is restrictive through. Just for music. Or if you like, Bluetooth from a tv or screen to put sound out. But there will be a definite lag.
@@PeterPee yes .. it nowhere replaces the Play:3 at all. From a sound-stage and quality it replaces the Play:3, but only as a single speaker or a stereo pair. Because you can not pair it in as rear surrounds. There is a true gap in their portfolio now between the One and the Five. I only got convinced to go down the Sonos route very recently by a friend who has been harping on about Sonos for years. I haven't had a decent stereo system in over a decade and when we moved to a new home that I decided to go full on smart home in, Sonos was the perfect choice. So I now have a total of 18 Sonos speakers and a Sonos Connect Gen 2 around the house :) That's 4 Playbars, 4 Play:3, 4 Ikea Symfonisk Bookshelfs, 4 Ikea Symfonisk Lamps, 1 Sub Gen 3 and 1 Move. And I am already planning on getting a 2nd Move to make a stereo pair. It could even work as stereo pair on the move using tethering in a mobile phone (in theory ... I will have to test it) I also have a room, that I have a Five planned for .. maybe eventually two .. just have to find the funds for it. I'd even love more subs to accompany the playbars, but it's such a pricey proposition. Worth every penny though, when you can afford it. I got real lucky with the Playbars, as Amazon was offloading them for around 500 quid to clear stock, when the Arc got launched. Prices soared again after that.
Thanks Peter. Awesome as usual. For stereo imaging in a vertical position should the tweeters be on the outside of the image , or inside ? … hope this makes sense …
AWESOME review, Pete! Quick question, I read online that you should space them between 8-10 ft apart. Will I compromise the sound quality if I literally let them be side by side by just a few inches? Your input would be appreciated. Thank you in advance!
Great scientific approach to speaker quality, thank you! Can you please advise if you think a stereo pair work equally as well horizontally placed as opposed to vertically? Many thanks.
Hey Peter! What is the best quality audio streaming service for the Sonos Five Stereo pair? Apple Music? Derzeit? tidal? … etc? What would you recommend? Can youngest the difference on the Sonos Fives? Thanks, Sven
Not sure if anyone else commented this already, but what about the KEF LSX pair? How would it compare to the Fives? Same price class and many positive reviews. No comparison to the latest Sonos Fives though.
Great review! Already bought a pair of Five's, and considering adding a Sub Gen3 for a 2.1 setup strictly for music. I am wondering if this probably is slightly overkill in a small livingroom, or if it just will make every frequency pop more out?
For the fives, adding the sub woofer is truly an overkill. You don’t need to as the incremental performance is going to be very marginal. But yes, the highs will be handled better and the lows will go down lower. Just not as big a jump as you might think it to be.
Hi,peter I just bought a five. It sounds like there are a lot of bass. It will be very shocking to watch movies, but the singer's voice will be covered by the bass when listening to songs, so I adjusted the bass to -6 to sound better.
Thanks so much for this thorough and very informative review. Really clears up the air on a lot of questions. I wonder if you might help me think through a comparison. My living room setup (music/audiobooks only) consists of a pair of Polk Monitor 60 tower speakers, a Premier Acoustic PA-120 subwoofer, all driven by an original Sonos Connect: Amp. How would this setup compare to a stereo pair of Play:3s, Play:5s, and each of those with a Sonos Sub attached? Essentially, where on that continuum is the best bang for the buck, and how would it compare to my current setup? Thanks!
Your current setup is hard to beat in terms of volume. Fidelity wise I can't comment as. I am not familiar with Polk. But I might want to suggest you think about getting a Sonos Amp to drive your tower speakers assuming you still like them and have the space to keep using them. Then you can pair the Sub Gen 3 with the Amp and that should give you a good improvement without replacing your speakers.
Thank you Peter for the great video. I heard the play 5’s as a stereo pair at a friend of mine and was impressed, especially at this price-point! As far as I see it only a Sonos AMP paired with a set of real nice monitors (on good stands) like e.g. B&W 606 would give a greater fidelity within the Sonos eco system. But at a much higher price. I think that it depends on your listening expextations/demands. But what I would like to know is how this setup would integrate with the sonos SUB(G3) AND how its gained soundquality wil compare with the Sonos Five strereo pair and the SUB(G3). I can imagine that the DSP’s in the FIVES will affect the sound and most likely the (e.g)Sonos AMP/606 combo will sound more natural due to far less DSP processing. Maybe an idea when you are getting bored 😂. Thanks again Peter
Paired a sub mini with a single Five, the result was minimal. Bass is a little deeper but you probably wouldn’t even notice the difference. You’re better off get a pair of Fives.
Really a great video dear Peter! No nonsense.. up to the mark and so easy to relate to and understand. thanks for posting. I have a single sonos 5 and was thinking of pairing it .. my decision is clear now. thanks once again and best wishes.
So if I heard this correctly. A pair of Sonos Fives for Music 👍 👍. But… for TV movie sound staging 👎 due to latency/ delay from picture to audio ? Please help for I want to buy 2 Fives both for Movies and music. BTW read comments on here Fives paired w the Sonos Arc great for movies. 🤷♂️
Excellent review! Thanks Peter! Just ordered a pair. Question about placement. Should the 2 speakers be placed at an angle (toe-in), or should they face the front straight? Thanks again. Kenny
Hi Peter, great review ! I own one Five and do not have enough space for a second one. I was thinking of adding a sub to my sole Five (easier to place the sub). Do you think it is a big improvment? Or does adding a second Five would make more sense than adding a sub? Txs 👍
A sub won’t do much more for your single five. I’d say maybe a 10-20% improvement if you need to quantify it. But adding a second five will improve the sound by another 150%. I don’t think I’m exaggerating.
I’m confused, you said that the speakers of Sonos Five are aggressively angled towards left and right; so, if I place a stereo pair of Fives vertically then won’t they be throwing sounds to the floor and the roof? Would it give me as precise soundstage as a pair of two mono speakers that have front facing speakers such as Sonos Ones?
Thanks Peter, great video as usual...do you have you any recommendation for the speaker orientation in terms of sonic quality when using them as a stereo pair?
I prefer them horizontally in stereo pair. For hometheatre especially paired with an Arc now, I prefer them in vertical as it throws the sound stage higher.
Hi Peter. I’ve got a Sonos arc already and I’m considering adding a pair of stereo for serious music listening & movie surround sound. Just wonder should I go for a pair of fives or get a Sonos amp and two passive speaks, such as B&W 607? I listen to lots of classical music😊
Good day Peter, I'm planning on pairing a pair of Sonos Five's, in your professional opinion, what do you recommend for orientation vertical or horizontal? I have the real-state that it will require to achieve optimum (quality) performance should need be. Thanks for your time, I will definitely consider your recommendation/s.
There are definitely some intricacies involved. For example, depends on whether your room is carpeted, or if your walls are close by. But in general, for music, I prefer vertical placement.
Hi Peter, I love your way of presenting, I have seen all your setups. I am convinced and decided to purchase 2 fives, sub g3 and an arc to order. The 2 fives a week without sub used. Very nice sound placed upright in stereo setup. Today added sub. What strikes me is now when using trueplay the low tones almost disappear from the fives. To be honest, a degradation of the sound quality. without trueplay they play better at the lower frequency. Have you noticed this too? lovely to check the sound throughout the evening. Greetings. Rene
Yes, with a sub in the mix, the bass frequencies are taken away from the Fives. So with or without true play, the Fives won't play much low frequencies.
Peter well done on a super informative and detailed analysis on the sonos five speakers. Really well done as always :-). I was looking at the frequency response part of the video (8:30) and I am looking at the graph for the single sonos five. I can't make out the exact db figures but it does look like the bass is way way pronounced compared to the rest of the frequency range (like 15 db over or more)? If that is the case, should we expect this to result into super boomy bass? I was kind of hoping that sonos would produce a more balanced frequency response to be honest. A few years ago I owned the Play 5 gen 2 and it too had a very pronounced bass that was impossible to tame unfortunately. Even with trueplay tuning, it was still there and the bass / treble eq was not enough to adjust the sound. Did you find this problem with the new Sonos five? In contrast, I found it was easier to get a more balanced sound with the bluesound speakers (after eq adjustment). Many thanks again
You brought up a good comparison for discussion. Sonos and bluesound, having tried both, appears to take a very different approach to their products. Sonos is a smart speaker company first. They are damn good at their sound too. But rely heavily on computational audio processing. In other words, DSP. Their intent was never to produce flat response. Flat response, is not exciting to them. Bluesound, is a different animal, pedigree born of royal hifi heritage, NAD and PSB. NAD is in the business of making amplifiers and PSB making speakers. To these parents, great hifi has always been an uncolored sound. If it’s neutral, it’s hifi. So the approach is to flatten the response. As to which route is preferred or even correct, no one is to judge. They both offer products with different emphasis. Sonos gets you started. Bluesound lets you graduate. To answer your question directly, Sonos five still offers a very deep bassy sound signature. There is some DSP magic there. And you’ll have to accept that that’s their sound signature and if you’re using eq to correct it, it’s trying to correct it from a position you don’t want it to start from. So my take is for someone of your preference, the bluesound is going to be the right speaker for you.
The sub makes the arc sound infinitely better than the arc on its own. At least the bass is taken care of. But it won’t come close to the Sonos fives. Sound staging and mid range suffers right away. And there is a very artificial boost on the arc’s treble which will disrupt musical performance.
I was looking for better passive speakers, either tower or shelves, for a budget of 2.5k max, possibly adding a sub to that... It doesn't seem to be worth it. The Fives seem to be solving many problems at once. Would be curious to hear about anyone's experience with the Fives using the Roon music player. I don't mind the 48hkHz limit personnally as I cannot hear the difference between CD resolution and higher formats, but are there any issues I might not be aware of ?
Thanks for all your videos to date. After comparing two one's vs a single five in my kitchen - I was very impressed at the pair of one's - so much so that i regretted my purchase of the single five. after many months - i went out and purchased my second five for a stereo pair ... Does it sound better??? YES it definately sounds better than stereo ones and a single five..... is it $749 (Australia) better???? Probably not - but I'll keep them anyway.
Oh yeah! A long wait.. The Sonos Five was on sale.. after all the voucher and stuff my Five other half is coming... can’t wait to experience the true stereo.. Thanks to Peter! Great review... was considering the XLS.. but I think for sure the XLS will definitely require a sub, whereas the Fives is the best Sonos can offer without a sub.
excellent video, it's the best I've seen. I really appreciate the technical analysis you have done, I am a fan of the Bowers And Wilkins brand, I would like you to make a comparison between the Formation Wedge or Zeppelin Wireless, to know the frequency response of the two brands. I declare myself a fan of your channel. thank you.
Hey Peter, I bought two Sonos Five’s and I am confused about something: After enabling “Stereo Pair” option through the Sonos app only one of the Sonos Five speaker plays while using AirPlay to play music or watch movies. I did a factory reset and re-paired the speakers using the app and it still has the same behavior. As a workaround, I unpaired the stereo pair through the Sonos app and I am now choosing two speakers in the AirPlay option. This allows me to play music using both the speakers. But, this option is inconvenient since I have to manually choose the two speakers. I thought the stereo pairing feature would produce sound from both the speakers at the same time? Am I understanding stereo pairing incorrectly? Thank you!
Did you ever find out what the issue was? I just got my second five and hooked the two up as stereo pair. When I use airplay from Apple Music, prime music etc… only one Sonos five will play. If I use the Sonos app to play Apple Music it will play on both fives. It seems to me that the stereo pair only works while using the Sonos app to play music.
Hei Peter first of all nice channel 👍 you do a great job, because of your research and all your advice I became an Sonos fan. I need your help, however, I just get my brand new Arc with sub and on pair of One.I am thinking to get a pair of Five. I have an old system 5.1 Jamo S 603 with Pioneer vsx 922.What do you think about....is this an good upgrade?? Thank you very much.
Hey Emil, welcome to the channel and Glad that you found it useful. I had the Jamo s603 before! With the pioneer, you have a relatively good setup. I’m not sure you’re going to get a very big upgrade in terms of sound quality and sound stage. If you want to get the same levels of performance, the fives will up the system performance but I can’t be sure it will match the performance of your current setup. One thing for sure is that the Sonos arc can process Atmos and has upwards during Soeakers so you will get a more immersive soundstage which the Pioneer/Jamo setup can’t deliver now.
At this price, you should compare the Sonos with KEF LSX. I have 1 Sonos Fives (gen3) not a stereo pair and a pair of KEF LSX. The KEF beats the Sonos on sound quality by big margin.
Hi Peter, I stumbled upon on your videos while searching various reviews on speaker. I started with searching reviews on Bose hs 500 and SB 700 with a tilt towards buying Bose as I have a Bose wave for 14 years which stopped playing finally. But after I saw your videos on Sonos I am fully sold out on this Sonos five. I have seen all your videos related to Sonos five, Arc and the Sub 3. Now I decided to build the whole Sonos echo system gradually starting with Sonos Five followed with Arc and then the sub. Will add the 75 inch TV with Atmos the last. I think I heard in one of the reviews you are from Singapore. If so can you suggest best places to get good deal on Sonos five. Also are there any recommended stand / wall mount for Sonos five.
Hello! Nice review I bought 2 Sonos five and one sub. I am planning to walk mount the fives and sub The five could be mounted orizontally to save space, my question: Do the fives work in stereo even if putted orizontally?
A single five will work in stereo when placed horizontally. If you pair them up into a stereo pair/room, they will each play the respective left or right channel regardless of orientation.
Hey Peter, I was going to get a five. For my Mac as a desktop speaker. Is there a difference between Wireless sound and 3.5mm sound? Also if I plug it in through the 3.5mm jack will I still be able to use TruePlay?
Yes, trueplay works regardless of connection. Differences between wireless sound and 3.5mm ultimately depends on the source. If both are good, the difference should be minimal. 3.5mm has a slight delay though so if you are hooking up a screen you might get lip sync issues.
Hi Peter I really like your videos and want to see more! I just bought an Arc after your review and will buy next week a sub Gen 3 based on your review :) Then I wanted to buy 1 play 5 to increase music experience. But in your video it seems I can't use at the same time the Arc + sub + play5 at the same time? Not sure I understand the line in issue you are pointing out. Thanks again so I can make a decision on whether buying the play5. Cheers from France. Clement.
Don’t worry about the line in issue for a five in a surround setup. You can use it in a surround setup. Just that you won’t be able to pipe in music into Sonos five with the line in if you set it up as surrounds speakers. It will be just performing the surround function.
Happy that I was able to help! And yes, the fives are great. The best stereo setup you can get from Sonos today. And when paired to the arc and the sub, it’ll be the most potent home theatre setup from Sonos!
Could you compare the sound quality between 2 play 5 as stereo vs a 5.1 system (playbar, sub, and two play 5s as surround w setting for music on full) for music listening?
Great video- as always, Mr. Pee- I have a play 5, but the new 5 does not form a stereo pair with the older 5. Would it be a good idea to get an old play 5 second Gen before they stop or just trade it in and get a sonos 5 later? What would you do?
I would get a older play:5 gen 2 if you already have one. I had that before and while I thought it was going to be a sound improvement, there is none. Sonically, it sounds the same. Save a bit and get the older one. And in fact, I wouldn't even mind knocking it off from some used deals site.
Thanks Peter for the detailed video as always. I'm glad that you finally got your pair of Sonos five. I got mine couple of weeks back and my sub is on its way. With that il have a 2.1 sound system. I'm looking forward for your video on 2.1 music setup with your sub. What do you think at $1700 price? How does it compare with pair of KEF LS50W (which also retails for $1700 now)? And another video I'm eagerly waiting is to have these fives as rear speakers. Many says it's overkill but want to know your opinion with the detailed analysis
Not overkill if you want to use the Play5/Fives within the Sonos cinema config for music playback. Talking purely sound stage (ignoring cost & aesthetics of speaker size) they will always give a richer sound stage than smaller speakers. If you have a dedicated cinema/music room then you might have one setup for movies and another for HiFi stereo. But if you want one system to enjoy both movies and stereo music then the Sonos cinema setup with Play5/Fives is a very good compromise. Turn on the “Full” music playback in your Sonos surround settings, listen with & without TruePlay, play with your EQ, sub & volume settings to get your preferred sound. E.g. I really like +5 on surround speakers for music playback. Helps ARC fade away while still letting it give a slight room filling effect at opposite end of the room. Sit back and enjoy rich sound whether it’s for a movie or music. So there are definitely tweaks you can do to make great use of the bigger speakers for music playback in the Sonos movie config. Enjoy experimenting.
I am thinking it’s overkill too but I will need to test it. Can you believe I haven’t had the time to do it yet! But I will. As for the fives plus sub, this is the most potent stereo combination that Sonos has to offer. And if you ask me, I’ll flat out choose this over the kef ls50w. The kef’s truly musical and great for vocals but it doesn’t deliver the depth of bass that the Sonos five + sub gives. Again, it depends on the music genre you like but I can see a lot of people preferring the Sonos setup. I have not gotten into the software side of things yet, which will again tip opinions towards the Sonos.
Peter, your videos are the best! I am new to Sonos and now acquired a total of 8 items from their new line (3x Five, 3x One, Move, and Sub). I have a large multi-leveled living room where I've placed two Fives and Two One SLs. I wanted to see if you could do a video of frequency response curves when paired to a single Five, pair of Fives, single One, pair of Ones. Trying to figure out the best placement and best way to pair the Sub! Thanks for your hard work!
Thank you for your support! This is easy. No need for extensive testing. Set 2 fives in a stereo pair. Set any other five as standalone and let this roam anywhere you need more output. Set two ones as a stereo pair, the sub should go with this pair. Set another standalone one anyway to fill in the gap in soundstage in your large space. The move you can of course move anywhere. So in our large living room, the pair of fives in stereo and pair of ones in stereo with sub should be there. And you can play them together to fill the whole space with sound.
@@PeterPee As I had mentioned, the sound from the Five became a lot more tinny once the sub got connected, it's as if it's own sub got turned off as a result of linking the sub. Placement of the sub is also somewhat tricky on a multilevel floor, seems like I have to place it at the higher point rather than lower. It's a work in progress, plus I need an iPhone... ;)
Oh yes. To perform trueplay. Anyway the fives will turn the bass down when a sub is connected. That’s the way it works. It should not affect the rest of the frequencies though. Just turns off the lower frequencies. But if well integrated, you won’t be able to discern where the bass is coming from. In fact it should sound like the speakers (fives) are the ones delivering the bass.
@@PeterPee Peter, like I mentioned, I have a multi-leveled living room with a loft and two sets of three stairs. I'm not an engineer, but I've noticed that bass has a hard time traveling up. a good idea for a video might be the science of how low frequency waves travel through air and space. Just an idea ;)
Hello Peter. This is my first comment ever on youtube! Even though i am not an audiophile (far from it) i really really enjoy your videos. Your voice and the way you make everything so exiting is amazing, congrats on that! So i am thinking about buying some Sonos speakers for a 1000 square feet (or 90 m2) open Studio. I was thinking about finding a pair of 3s on Ebay as they are much cheaper .. i could also go for a pair of Play 5 Gen 1 (they are selling CHEAP because of lack of update situation). What would you do? Buy a pair of 3 and a bit more modern (at least supports new app) or a pair of old Play 5 ? Sorry for such a big question. Please keep up with your work
Hi Babara! Sorry I haven’t got round to replying as I was so busy over the last 2 weeks. For 1000 sq feet of open studio, 1 play:5 might not provide enough coverage. My suggestion is to get the pair of play:3s. It will provide a more even spread.
@@PeterPee Thank you so much for your reply! Yes i think having more then one for a more uniform sound is the best bet. The good news is that they are cheap right now on ebay comparing to the 5s :) Keep up the great work !
Hi Peter, Thank you for great videos! Is there any way to stereo pair play5 Gen2 & Gen3? Had a Gen2 so bought a Gen3 bcos I wanted to stereo pair but was disappointed when I couldn't pair them. Do know if it's possible?
Hello Peter, first of all, thank you for your videos, I really like them, very useful. Here are my questions. I bought 2 Sonos five. They are great but with true play, the voices of the artists seem pretty thin if you know what I mean. is that normal? Furthermore, would you recommend 2 Sonos one sl behind the sofa to have the real music surround experience (my 2 Sonos 5 are in front of me, approximately 1,5 m separated from each other)? I would be very thankful for a respond. Thank you.
For music, don't need the surround channel for music, They won't be set up together too and it might get distracting. Not recommended. For the Trueplay, which phone are you tuning with? Check my latest video for some idea.
Nice review! Do you have any thoughts on the Sonos 5 setup (without sub) vs your Devialet Reactors? I’m considering these two, I know it’s about double the price but wondering if the additional cost is worth it. Would love to see a comparison video :) cheers
Would you say a pair of Sonos Five for $1000 is a better deal than the LSX Wireless 2 and Devialet Phantom Reactor pair for around $2800? I want to have the option for playing it loud at times and enough bass to where I wouldn't need a subwoofer.
Since you mentioned price somewhere in your question, I am going to assume you are looking for value for the money that you are spending. The $1K setup for the pair of Fives is the best bang for the buck. Correctly placed, I never felt the bass lacking. Not for $1K.
Loved this review man. I have a total of 4 Play:1s and 3 Ones all an various stereo and standalone setups. Stereo is definitely the way to go and when I heard how immersive two Play1s or Ones could be, I was immediately sold. Likewise, this review has sold me on upgrading my experience to a pair of Fives. I'm curious if you had experience and testing between stereo Play5s vs Fives. Of course the Play5s can be found cheaper now but does not support the newer features or longevity. But if I were strictly concerned about the frequency response, I'm curious how the two setups stack against each other.
I did not test my Play:5s before I sold them but I’d tell you they are sonically identical. Like how I am still using the older pair of Play:1s because the Ones sound identical.
@@PeterPee Thank you and truly appreciate you taking the time to respond, Peter! When you say identical to current Fives, are you referring to gen 2 Play5s or gen 1? I'm assuming Gen 2 since architecturally it's pretty similar to current Fives.
Hi Peter, Another awesome and informative review on the Fives. Just wondering whether you place your Sonos Fives on speaker stands - if so, what speaker stand would you recommend?
My Fives are currently on shelves. I used to place them on some cheap stands but doesn't do them justice. And this question you are posting is super uncannily timed. I just (like minutes ago), placed an order for a pay of Kanto SP 26". You might want to consider the Kanto stands. Seems to be well made and sturdy. If you are in no rush, do wait for my review of that item.
@@PeterPee Thanks for the reply Peter 😊👍. I have purchased a pair of Sonos One with the Sub gen 3 last week. Discovered that I needed pair of stands for the speaker. Just purchased a pair of Flexson stands for my Sonos one two days ago. But am also considering may be a pair of Fives for another room 😅 after watching your vids on the Sonos Five. Looking forward to your review of the Kanto stands 😊👍
Hi Peter - I love your channel! I am trying to understand if you can use a couple of Five in a TV set up as surround (with Arc and Sub) as well as in a music set up (as stereo speaker with or without sub)? Can you easily switch from one config to another through the app - or do you have to set up or do multiple actions on the app or worse - Not possible at all? Thanks for you response!
It is going to be a lot of trouble having to switch all the time. I use the Fives in a surround setup but if I listen in music sources, I will increase the surround volume to +15 so that it drowns out the arc a bit. It gives a better stereo image that way.
Hey Peter, I am big fan of your videos and i need your help for my decision. I already have a full Sonos setup (playbar, the sub and two one) in my living room. I also have a play 5 gen 2 which is also placed in the living room for music. Know I think about to upgrade my playbar to the arc or buy a second play 5. My TV would support Dolby Atmos through arc (DD+). What decision would you make? Thank you for your help
You’re quite sure your tv supports Atmos? If so get the arc! And I’m recommending specifically cos you have a sub already. Next step if you want to consider, is to sell the two ones and then buy another play 5 gen 2 and then pair both the play:5 into surround. When you play music, set the rear play:5 to full bandwidth and enjoy the music from there!
Peter Pee Thank you for your opinion. I have a Philips Oled 803 which should support Dolby Atmos over hdmi arc. But I think I need a hdmi switch with an audio extractor to get Dolby Atmos with an Apple TV 4K.
Don’t get the extractor first. I actually tried an extractor and it didn’t work with the Arc. Actually, if your TV supports Atmos and Apple TV 4K recognises it as such, it will send Atmos over.
Peter Pee I think I have to wait until something like the 4K Arcana 18Gbps comes on the market, because the Apple TV 4K gives out Atmos over MAT and my TV need a DD+ signal for Dolby Atmos. So I think I will buy a Play 5 gen 2 as my new rear speakers first and than maybe later the arc. Thank you very much for your answers and best regards from Berlin.
I was thinking about using Fives as speakers for my Macbook. If I use Airplay 2 will there be a noticeable delay if let’s say I’m watching a movie or RU-vid video or is that more for a line in connection?
Works great for music and safari sound, no lip sync issue in Airplay2 but there is a 2sec latency that is quiet annoying. For example when you press play on a RU-vid video, it will take around less than sec for the video to start and another 2 from the moment you press pause, the sound will continue 2 sec after. However with the Five, Era 100 and 300 with 3.5 jack it works perfectly well!! And the sound can be played wirelessly to your other speakers!
The Fives have no bluetooth. You can add a device that will accept Bluetooth audio and output to the Fives through the Aux port but you will still get latency.
Thank you Peter for the great video. Definitely subscribed for your channel :) Could you make sound comparison between Sonos five versus Arc + sub. Especially in the bass area. I heard both in the store and I got a feeling that the bass from Sonos Five (single) sounded better (more natural and musical) than the one form the SUB. The SUB's sound was kind of a thick... What is your opinion about it (Especially with the song you mentioned in the video "First Cells") Thanks
Yes your impression will be correct. The bass from the Sonos five is more musical. The speaker is of a sealed design and it sounds more even. The sub from Sonos is ported and thus it hits harder in the mid bass region. If you are into music, I’d say go for the fives. But bear in mind that the fives are not suited for line in from TVs as there will be a lag.
@@PeterPee Thanks for the replay :) Have you tried Five's as rear speakers to Sonos Arc? How much bass will they push without subwoofer for movies/music? I really do not like the bass from the sub compared to five's bass
This is probably an answer that everyone wants to know. I’m trying to get this done but work has not been kind. I’ll try to get something out this weekend.
In a fairly open concept 1st floor, should I get two 5's, one in the kitchen and one in the family/dining room (separated by about 25ft with a small wall in the middle). Or two separated SL's in the kitchen and one 5 in the other room?
Will the two rooms always play the same songs together? Will they always be playing at the same time? Any situations which will end up with only either the kitchen or family room playing on its own? If they are always going to be playing together, then get two fives. It’s a bitch to keep having to group them to play together. And the sound will be much more coherent and not sound like Optus fives are over powering the ones.
@@PeterPee yes, always the same source/song, thank you! Note your XM4 LDAC vid has been referenced at least twice on a big CDN deal site, very helpful vids sir
Can you do a video of the differences for using two fives in stereo pair and having them hooked up to the arc as surround? How the surround changes the dynamics when playing music?
Do you have a pair of Ones or play1s? Would be interesting to see how much of an improvement two Fives are compared to them and whether the added cost is worth!
Much richer & bigger depth to sound stage with the play 5 / Fives. No contest if you’re into your HiFi sound. They also sound greater with higher volume whereas the smaller model speakers sound stressed at volume. If you are wondering which sounds best for music Sub+Ones or simply 2xFives. Definitely the pair of Fives. You will also enjoy more again if you add a sub to a pair of Fives at a later date. But this last config with the sub is a more subtle/refined upgrade which some may not find worth it.
Nice video again Peter! I really enjoy this stuff. So I’ve got an Arc paired with a Sonos sub gen 2 for movies and music. Should I get a Sonos five especially for music? Or does the arc with sub sound better?
The honest truth is that for music, there is no combination of the Arc that will sound as good as the Sonos Fives on its own, in a pair. Sub or no sub. While the bass notes will get you there, the imaging of the Arc will fall way behind the Fives. If the question is for movies, there is no question, it’s definitely the Arc with a sub. But since you are asking about music and if money isn’t too much of a concern, it’s definitely the Fives.
I know I could play through my phone, laptop, and record player, but is there a way I could connect a pair of Sonos to a TV and play music from the Spotify and RU-vid app via my XboxOneX? Should I use these as speakers for my TV or would you suggest something else? Thanks.
I would really suggest something else as connecting the fives to the tv required a 3.5mm analog input and that introduces a lot of lag and lip sync issues. Your sound won’t match the picture.
Hi there, it would be good to know where the frequency crossover point is when paired with the sub? Be a shame if it keeps the same 92hz point as the arc.
I'd say that one major difference with the The Fives is the room placement. With that back port, the The Fives really need to be pulled out from the wall or else you're gonna suffer from too much bass. This is okay for when you have space, but none of my rooms would work for this. I do appreciate the Sonos Fives for being a sealed design that won't care much how close it is to a wall. The Klipsch speakers do have an advantage though for 2 or 2.1 channel home theater with their HDMI ARC port. All the issues Peter mentions in this video with the line-in delays means that this $1,000 set can only be used well for music (or back channels with a Sonos ARC). Maybe the Sonos Fives in a stereo pair would work well for 2-channel home theater over AirPlay2 instead? I've used AirPlay2 to connect a HomePod to my Apple TV 4k (small room) and it works mostly well. Some crappy apps (BritBox, etc) tend to choke or drop the AirPlay connection from time to time. Netflix and Prime aren't bothered.
I did consider the LSX. I auditioned it at least on 3 separate occasions and couldn’t make myself buy it. I have a wide taste in terms of music genre and while the KEFs excelled at vocals, they lack a little in the bass department.
That's a good question. And to be honest, I have always been undecided on this. The Phantom Reactor goes really deep but below a certain level, it's all extra which most music material won't make use of. But... if you queue up a track like the "First Cells - Eric Serra" and "Bass I love you - Bass Mekanik" then the Phantom Reactors start to shine. So the answer is dependent on the type of music you listen to. If you need to go low, the Reactors will do it for you. But it's twice the money. If you are thinking about a single Phantom Reactor vs two Sonos Fives because they cost the same, DON'T. A single Phantom Reactor, or a single anything for that matter, sounds like crap.
Hey peter i have a playbase, 4 play, 2s at the rear of my couch eather side and 2 just in front of playbase and a sub, i am getting a secend sub, but do u think it would be worth me getting 2 play 5 for rear?
Hi, I currently own a pair of Kanto YU6 how would you compare them to pair of Sonos five's, I so much consider replacing the Kanto for Sonos fives, but every time I listen to the Kanto I'm so much satisfied. .. so. . Whats your suggestion?
Hi Amit, we don’t have access to Kanto here in SG. I have always wanted to listen to them to try out. So I haven’t and I can’t make a comment on the sonic performance differences. Although I will say that when you buy a sonos, you are buying into the software and the ecosystem as well.
Amit, I have its predecessor, the Kanto Yumi’s paired with a vintage Mirage PS12/90. This replaced a $4000 setup, and it’s better (albeit a slightly laid back midrange). From what I’ve read, the YU6’s are +/- 1.5 dBA through most of the audio spectrum according to Sound & Vision. Other than adding a sealed subwoofer, it’s probably all diminishing returns. From personal experience, I recommend a speaker stand to angle the speakers upwards 15° or so, they really benefit imaging and soundstage if they’re close to the floor. I also found that I needed a high crossover of 80 Hz to properly blend with my sub.
@@amitlesly I've only auditioned the Five's with Sonos' mediocre audition recordings, so I can't say how they would compare. I would focus on a good subwoofer first, then a high bitrate audio streaming service, adding multiple channels if needed, and upgrade my main audio system last. If you search for Jason Zavarella on RU-vid, the product manager of Kanto, he gave a really enjoyable 1 hour talk on the wireless loudspeaker industry. The other really good talk was Dr Floyd Toole speaking to the CIRMMT McGill University audio engineers about loudspeaker measurements, and summarizing his life's work in the process. He also delightfully skewers Martin Logan and the $24,000 B&W Matrix 801.
Hello Peter, i just this Pair for my New home, is there any chance to connect them with a TV ? Or i need to get the Sonos Beam or one pf the soundbars? Thanks
You need the sound bars. You can connect to the TV if your tv has an analog 3.5mm out but there will be a significant problem with the audio lag and lip sync issue.
@@PeterPee Hi Peter, I watched a video on youtube where a guy went into the settings of the fives for the line in and changed the audio compression setting from automatic to uncompressed and that seemed to fix the issue. could you test that out?
Great video as usual! Im currently considering buying a sonos sub, will it make my rear sonos ones focus more on high/mids and less on bas? Im having a hard time to find the answer anywhere:) thanks
Sub Gen 2 or 3 will allow for your ones to perform miss voice if you have the arc it will balance your entire system to sound as crisp and clear. I have the Arc, Sub Gen 2 plus my two Ones Tv Sony 85” 90xh
I’d say it will help your rear Sonos one. But for the best answer you’ve to wait till I get some time to perform a conclusive test on how much the rear channels are getting in terms of bass. I’ll answer that in an upcoming video. Not that I’m trying to hold the answer but I need to test it before I can confidently answer!
@@PeterPee Sounds good, Im currently having the my rear ones with a wall mount, but I need to tighten the screw every other week or so to avoid ratteling noice since my ones still do quite alot of bas, hopefully the sub will help to avoid it. Cant wait for future videos!:)
Is it possible to make a 2.1 TV set up with Fives + Sub? If so, how do you connect them to the TV (since the Fives only accept analog)? I'm hoping that I could put a Five on either side the TV if its possible to get them streaming or connected to high-res digital (keep the Dolby intact) from a TV somehow? I know this can be accomplished with a Sonos soundbar, but anyway to skip that requirement?
@@PeterPee Thank you for answer Peter. I now have the pair in horizontal position as I found them a little too "sharp" when positioned tweeters outside. Sounds great in my setup/room.
Does the lip sync issue with linen in occur when you have one speaker on or only when fives are used as a pair. If there’s no sync issue with a single speaker, it’s possible to use splitters to split the signal in to left right, and use the speakers as stand alone singles.
It occurs when the line in is used. It doesn’t matter whether it’s one or two speakers. Actually the splitting of signal won’t be ideal also. You’d have to control the volume independently to match.
