Fine-Tuning My Sonos Setup: A Journey of Trial, Tweaks, and Sweet Sound

I’ve lived with a Sonos Play:5 for years now. It’s been a faithful companion, handling everything from mellow background playlists to late-night volume-pushed jam sessions. But lately, something felt off. The highs weren’t hitting like they used to. Maybe it was age. Maybe I was just noticing what had always been there. Either way, the sparkle was gone.

So I decided to experiment.

Enter: The Sonos One.

I thought, why not group it with the Play:5? In theory, two speakers should sound better than one. But in practice, the result was underwhelming. Instead of a richer, fuller soundstage, I got a mismatch of tones. The One was bringing its own flavor — a bit too much mid and bottom end — and it wasn’t blending seamlessly with the Play:5.

Still, I lived with this setup for quite a while. It was “good enough,” but I knew it could be better.

Then came the breakthrough.

One day, I decided to dig into the EQ settings on the Sonos One. I dropped the bass to -10, cranked the treble to +10, and turned Loudness on. Suddenly, everything clicked. The One stopped competing with the Play:5 and started complementing it.