The Play:5 — specifically the 2015-released “Gen-2” model — is among the most beloved Sonos speakers ever. It was the company’s biggest and best-sounding standalone speaker — and the only one with a line-in connection to hook up a turntable — but today the Play:5 is very difficult to buy.
The reason is quite simple — Sonos doesn’t sell it anymore. It officially discontinued the Play:5 (Gen 2) in 2020 when it introduced the Five, which is essentially the same exact speaker, just newer.
So what’s the problem? Nothing for new buyers. But it’s a bit of a headache for anyone, like me, who owns a Play:5 (Gen 2) and wants to turn it into a larger system by making a stereo pair.
Sonos Play:5 (Discontinued)
Specs
Drivers | Three mid-woofers, three tweeters |
Amplification | Six Class-D digital amplifiers |
Connectivity | Wi-Fi, Ethernet, 3.5mm audio line-in, AirPlay 2 |
According to Sonos, the Five’s upgraded internals make it more future-proof, but this comes at the cost of compatibility. Because even though the Play:5 (Gen 2) and the Five are virtually identical, the two speakers can’t be stereo-paired together.
In a nutshell, you need two Play:5 (Gen 2) speakers or two Five speakers to create a stereo pair. You can’t mix and match an old with a newer one. And there’s no way around it.
This wouldn’t be such an issue if the Play:5 (Gen 2) speaker was easy to find and buy. But it isn’t. At all. A dwindling supply plus a growing demand for people who want to complete their stereo pair means these old Play:5 (Gen 2) speakers are very much — even increasingly — in demand.