Einleitung

Long gone are the days of analog boomboxes; say hello to portable, wireless speakers. The popularity of digital musical content demands a new and innovative way of listening to our music. Meet the Sonos Play:3 All-in-One Wireless Music Player with 3 Integrated Speakers.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for the latest teardown news.

  1. 3YTUSH4GnBBaU4KE
    3YTUSH4GnBBaU4KE
    lNS1cvRDpMYYfQGV
    1QdG4IAMBCFfB6W6
    • Ladies and gentlemen, allow us to introduce the Sonos Play:3 all-in-one wireless* music player.

    • *Amazon puts it best: The Play:3 "easily connects to your wireless router with included Ethernet cable or wirelessly anywhere with addition of Sonos Bridge." So if you want to use it wirelessly, you'll need to shell out another $50 for the Sonos Bridge. Otherwise, Ethernet's the only way to connect to it.

    • What exactly does this all-in-one music player contain? We're glad you asked:

    • Three Class-D digital amplifiers

    • Three-driver speaker system—two mid-range woofers and a tweeter

    • A classy grey box that works both horizontally or vertically

    “So if you want to use it wirelessly, you'll need to shell out another $50 for the Sonos Bridge. Otherwise, Ethernet's the only way to connect to it. “

    This is of course not correct, it is fully wireless.

    Thorium Prime -

  2. WorDAVZB4Mcs2nWO
    • The rear side of the Sonos Play:3 houses a minimal number of ports:

    • Ethernet port

    • AC 120/240 V power supply port

    • Standard ¼"-20 threaded mounting socket

  3. fOeWhnKhcW5LMIO5
    fOeWhnKhcW5LMIO5
    daMGSSsvUpZbcxFb
    3cQTv6NMxHCQBpUZ
    • A flick of our spudger allows us to remove the speaker grille with relative ease, although the gooey adhesive on the perimeter clips was reluctant to let go.

    • Our first peek inside reveals exactly what we expected—speakers!

  4. 6PGqFHIMimcLTbiF
    6PGqFHIMimcLTbiF
    eiginCERAOGvw1im
    ReeWDXMMLyeSQgds
    • What do we have here? If it isn't our good friend, the "Warranty void if opened" sticker.

    • Alas, cousin, we hardly knew ye.

    • Just as we thought, there is a hidden screw located underneath the "you shall not pass" sticker.

    • The fragile sticker comes off easily, but leaves its impression on the front bezel: a repeating pattern of the word "VOID." It seems Sonos doesn't want users servicing their own players

  5. AqlbytZsASRtLiJU
    AqlbytZsASRtLiJU
    SBv4xcNmMHKyuYFA
    • Well, here's a tool we don't normally get to take out of our armory, the beefy Phillips #2 screwdriver.

    • While our bit driver kits come equipped with a #2 bit, the small driver will leave you with some very buff forearms.

    • Ten screws later, the front bezel is on its way out.

  6. QMGCUX1UiOBEyfh5
    QMGCUX1UiOBEyfh5
    xdbBETGT6nSrFHxe
    Pk6t5Z5ykJKDDif6
    • This is what opening Pandora's box must feel like. Let's hope that this action does not have severe and far-reaching consequences.

    • Inside the Sonos Play:3 is a playground of wires and circuit boards, arranged methodically for space efficiency.

    • Before we can free the front panel assembly, we must disconnect the speaker wires and pull out what appears to be a Wi-Fi antenna.

    • So if the Sonos requires a networking cable, what's this for? More on this in just a few steps…

  7. uLvKbGZNGspYYUXV
    uLvKbGZNGspYYUXV
    BceNSDnkyax2XM2l
    qlFcpSsKlmZmKGQp
    • How difficult is it to replace the two mid-range drivers and the one tweeter? Not very difficult. Each is held in by four Phillips screws, for a total of twelve to pull out the trifecta of music-emitters.

    • With these speakers out of the front panel, maybe we can drop something a little larger in there.

    I think the link for MTX Jackhammer changed to this one.

    http://international.mtx.com/jackhammer-...

    Valdir Stiebe Junior -

  8. p3MoVcUlXGgXG35l
    p3MoVcUlXGgXG35l
    rvgnKpXqbrSorHDN
    • The mid-range drivers have pretty impressive permanent magnets, accounting for 37% of the device's total 5.7 lbs.

    • Want more specs on the speakers? So did we. Since Sonos is hush-hush about them, we decided to do some poking and prodding of our own. Here's what we came up with:

    • 2 ¾" mid-range drivers (2" composite speaker cones)

    • 4.8 Ω measured resistance

    • 1" silk dome tweeter

    • 3.7 Ω measured resistance (tweeter)

    • Why do we stress that these are measured resistances? While speaker ratings are given in ohms, the unit of resistance, they're actually values of impedance, which is dependent on the specific frequency being played. Home stereo speaker impedances are usually 8 Ω, but because a multimeter can only read resistance, our measurement will be lower.

  9. mxcwhTwsDmoSFEAK
    mxcwhTwsDmoSFEAK
    AYUTRs2QIVBFNqPA
    2SKQEbtUXvZccZIp
    • Getting to the Play:3's motherboard was no Herculean task, even though it did require defeating the Hydra cables, as well as some Phillips screws.

    • No matter what obstacles are put in our way, we will go the distance to dismantle this device.

  10. Xu5uA5tfFgjHD1ar
    Xu5uA5tfFgjHD1ar
    2wdd3ureNZnud4fW
    2cJITNKiS3RGFKrj
    • We found three antennas in the Sonos Play:3, all attached to a communications card on the motherboard and held in place with a soft glue.

    • Through a combination of the three antennas, the Play:3 communicates over SonosNet, a proprietary wireless mesh network that connects the player to a Sonos Bridge or another player (but not your home wireless network).

    • The length of the antenna traces are listed on the antenna board (10 and 23.2 mm). The antenna design seems to be that of an Inverted F-Antenna, common in small electronics and implemented to reduce antenna size and improve multiple input multiple output (MIMO) systems.

  11. vy4dVKlEOqScTID6
    vy4dVKlEOqScTID6
    CClHXN1dCmpgISHC
    • Pulling the communications card off the motherboard reveals the chips responsible for its operation:

    • Qualcomm Atheros AR9380 single-chip, 2.4/5 GHz, 3-stream 802.11a/b/g/n solution with SST3 technology

    • Skyworks SE2595L dual band 802.11n wireless LAN front end

  12. cfmxNlCPds4EVf3D
    cfmxNlCPds4EVf3D
    Skqrked2vjiDkt6J
    • With the motherboard removed and stripped down, we finally get to see the control behind the music. The following prominent ICs power this device:

    • MPC8314VRADDA low-power PowerQUICC II pro 266 MHz processor

    • STMicroelectronics NAND 512W3A2SN6

    • Nanya NT5TU32M16DG-3C 512 Mb DDR2 RAM

    • STMicroelectronics STA339BW 2.1-channel high-efficiency digital audio system, capable of outputting 2 x 20 W into 8 Ω at 18 V (we assume these two chips make up the "three class-D digital amplifiers" listed on Sonos' website)

    • Maxim 78Q2123 10/100 fast ethernet MicroPHY

    • HanRun HY601680 10/100Base-T transformer module

    • On the back: Texas Instruments TPS54226 4.5 V to 18 V input, 2 A synchronous step-down SWIFT converter

  13. EJYYwY2qFc6W1HFQ
    EJYYwY2qFc6W1HFQ
    EGaRSpJDEG2xApOL
    EWMgym2wWeONHVeR
    • Proceeding with caution, we carefully remove the "AC 120/240V, 50-60Hz, auto-switchable" power supply board.

    • Behold, the towering metropolis that is populated by an array of capacitors and inductors.

    • Notice the globs of glue splattered over many of the components. The smallest rattle or vibration inside the Play:3 will cause quite the uproar (and probably a product return), so everything is firmly glued in place.

    We have noticed a design flaw with this circuit board, after fixing quite a few of these now. The screw coming out of the heatsink next to the caps gets very hot. It's proximity to the caps makes the caps blow and burn out the circuit board. We have replaced many of the caps with better rated ones, and bent them away from the screw as best we can, but they will eventually blow again. If they increase the space between this screw coming out of the heatsink away from the caps, then the reliability of the device will be much improved, and stop these from blowing every 2-4 years of use.

    sonosfixit -

    I cover up the offending screw with plenty of hot glue to isolate the heat to a degree, none have come back as yet.

    Charles -

    Hi, having taken apart my Play 3 it would appear I have a blown board, is there any way to get a replacement part?

    Jon -

  14. smC3csUZ4mQWJPWD
    smC3csUZ4mQWJPWD
    h4Lxm2PWCBNODWVl
    DJDeEMLCHfDp6sEh
    • The short clearance inside this case almost got us down, until we pulled out the flexible shaft attachment from our 54 Bit Driver Kit.

    • With yet another rarely used tool in hand, we snake a Phillips #0 bit into the case's interior, pull out a few screws, and free the button board.

    • While the button board itself is easy to replace (with the correct tools), it's a bit of a bummer that you have to take most of the device apart to get to it.

  15. KkLSCgXCeCfrVNCU
    KkLSCgXCeCfrVNCU
    CHyFF5sqlEw2RWAH
    bRvMVdCZaCtjHi6h
    • At long last we've found the advertised bass radiator, a passive speaker cone secured in the very back of the case that forms an inexpensive alternative to a powered subwoofer.

    • Interested in knowing how a bass radiator works? Wonder no more. As the mid-range drivers move back and forth, they create air pressure inside the enclosure. A bass radiator uses that air pressure to create a "bassier" sound, without taking up excess room. It's similar in principle to a reflex port in an enclosure, without taking up a lot of space.

  16. FnP1IK5CHAOBOHY1
    FnP1IK5CHAOBOHY1
    tfZ6ZOFMckPoVJGo
    • Sonos Play:3 Repairability Score: 8 out of 10 (10 is easiest to repair)

    • All major components are held in place with Phillips screws, many of them the same size.

    • The entire disassembly is pretty straightforward.

    • Modular design means that nearly every component can be replaced individually.

    • Glue and adhesive are not impossible to overcome, but definitely need to be reapplied to dampen vibrations.

    • A "warranty void" sticker stands between you and any repairs.

Walter Galan

685541 Reputation

31 Kommentare

Any advice on how to make pre-amp line-out in Play-3 or Play-5?

theal -

Any idea on how to fix it when it dos'nt boot up

RNDW5517 -

How would I go about replacing the wireless card since it is a proprietary wireless card?

Drake Bridgewater -

Any schematic or specification available to determine output voltages of correctly operating PSU and expected readings at the various test points?

SteveA -

A pre-amp line-out would be awesome!

It would basically be a half price connect?

Stephen -

For those that want a pre-amp line out, could you connect to the audio bus feeding the amplifier chips? Their input would be a pre-amp level for these chips?

You'd probably want to feed them into an op-amp, or you would change the characteristics of what you feed the amp.

Matt Barber -

Did anyone figure out the wiring diagram for a pre-amp line-out?

bob -

Preamp line-out. I'm not certain, but sometimes these class D amplifiers act as the D2A as well as the amplifier, so there is no internal low level analog signal to tap off of. I think a simple 22:1 resistor divider from the speaker terminals would do it for you. You may have to combine the divider outputs from both the midrange and the tweeter. Likely the response will have been tailored for these specific drivers by the digital crossover, but that's probably OK. I would come off the positive terminal of each driver with a 2.2k resistor. Connect the other end of each resistor together and then to a 100 ohm resistor to ground. The line level will be across the 100 ohm resistor.

Dana Olson -

It would be a complex wiring diagram for a pre-amp line out. It would involve purchasing and developing a circuit for a DAC chip that supports I2S. Either that or a chip which can convert said input into SPDIF. The good news is the amplifier chip is also the DSP, so if you managed to pull and decode the I2S data you would have an unaltered digital audio signal. You might lose volume control unless you pulled that into your DAC as well. It would still be an interesting project if one had the time and money. Of course Sonos could just stop ripping people off with the Connect...

n8price -

Hello,

any chanche to measure the output voltage of the power supply unit ?

The audio amplifiers STA339BW can work up to 26 Volt ... the 20 W output are specified at 18 Volts ...

Doc Luca -

Trying to figure out how to go about bypassing the 110AC and adding the capability to use a 12vdc source? Any ideas or attempts at this? Success?

todd -

I have a Sonos Play 5 that I used outside - and one of the components got just a little moist - so one or more of the many electronic elements in there is fried. But I have no reason to think any of the speakers are bad... I have the patient open on the table now, and I can take out any part. So if anyone needs a speaker or connector etc I guess post here. Or, if you have a Play 5 with a bad speaker and the electronics are still good, and you want to get rid of it, let me know!

Lloyd Chrein -

Interested in the center subwoofer.

tantalum181 @ yahoo.com

tantalum181 -

Interested in upper circuit card assembly from first gen play 5 if you still have it

J Y -

Anybody know how to add a line in jack? this would be great for non wifi audio players?

Mike Hamer -

Please warn us here if you ever find a way to add a line in for the Play:3!

Valdir Stiebe Junior -

Looking at the datasheet of the STMicroelectronics STA339BW (Class D Power Amplifier on the board), it seems as if the amplifier only accept Inter-Integrated Sound (I2S) as input. This is digital sound data from the embedded system circuitry, so I don't think an auxiliary input (analog) would be possible without some massaging and extra components. Even then, the fidelity of the audio would be decreased, since one would have to re-sample the analog signal (already coming from some DAC whose sample rate is 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz) to get an I2S signal. It would be akin to using a copier to copy an already-copied picture. The quality will just go down.

I'm currently trying to work out some way of playing my own selection of music (as I believe that is the primary concern for anyone with this device). I was thinking I would perhaps use a beaglebone to connect a spotify server. I'll let people know if I find anything that works out.

Kevin Vold -

@kevin To play your own files you can just share any folder on your computer, NAS or phone and create the playlists on Sonos controller. Maybe I didn't get what you trying to do.

As for putting a line in on Play:3 would be more like a Hack a Day post than for an IFixIt because, as you said, it can't be done without extra components.

Maybe a Play:5, Playbar or CONNECT teardown would show the circuitry used for analog input.

Valdir Stiebe Junior -

Sonos added a firmware update after this article was written where they no longer require the proprietary SonosNet and now connects directly to the router on wifi after you have done the setup to configure the wireless settings.

Now an even better and cheaper product to own but the competition is catching up..

Glasslugger -

Hi all, the transformer in my play 3 is damaged does anyone know of a replacement transformer that I can install?

lou Fappiano -

I was wondering if i can somehow connect to a "pre-amplified" signal from Sonos and add it to a new amplifier (i.e. replacing an expensive Sonos connect amp) with a Sonos1... Adding a nice KEF speakers amplified by a Marantz Amplifier... Any ideas if you know someone who have ever done such?

thank you

Tiago S -

Trying to figure out a way to hack the Play 3 to accept input from Chromecast by physically connecting the Chromecast audio puck somehow. I have one Play 3 which sounds great, but going to a centrally controlled Chromecast system controlled by a Google Home device due to lower cost.

mwarner57g -

A warranty stick DOES not "stand" between you and repairs.

Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act Act of 1975 prohibits companies from denying warranty claims if the customer used non mfr parts. Nor can a mfr prohibit you from opening your hardware. Taking apart your hardware to clean it from dust (which causes heat build up and component failure) does not violate a warranty. If a company denies a claim simply because something was opened that is indeed an illegal practice. A company will only get away with this sort of practice until it bumps into someone willing to fight. Then their game is over.

https://www.extremetech.com/gaming/23312...

River Worm -

Anybody know if this device will continue to function after removal of the communications board. I want to remove all wi-fi from Sonos permanently and use ethernet-based system only. Have tried disabling wi-fi signal via commands sent through network (as seen on You Tube), but question the effectiveness of this method. Thanks.

K.D.

KD Roth -

I'm debating tearing out all the electronics from my Play 3 and replacing them with an aftermarket amp + Chromecast audio. My only concern is the “2.1” nature of the system. The Play 5 appears to be a “Mid-Mid-High” mix and most COTS 2.1 amplifiers are “Mid-Mid-Low” Any thoughts on how to power only the speakers with a COTS amplifier?

Carlos Garcia -

Thanks for these notes, using them I have been able to repair the power supply board (33mF capacitors replacement). Easy job but take care when testing you have 330 vdc on the bench!

Freddy S -

I have sonos play 3…Transformer explode with some capacitor…has any one any suggest to use external power supply?

Tefera -

Before I tear my Play 3 apart - it was dropped and is not producing bass as previously, all other frequencies seem as per normal to my ear - I’m wondering if anyone can point me to what I should focus on assessing, especially if I find the bass radiator is intact?

Chris -

Paryloc can waterproof any Sonos using Nano-Coating technology to make them last in real high humidity moisture areas.

unlike Sonos stating its protected from humidity. we cant see how when the ethernet plug is giving full access to moisture and humidity accesses.

also the top has many holes open right on the top board that is no way protected from any outdoor issues.

we can make any sonos last for many more years in the rain even.

www.paryloc.com

info@paryloc.com

yslasm -

I know this is an old thread but gonna try anyway. I blew the dust off my play 3 and was going to attemp well I’m going to hook up a blue tooth device into the speakers. I will figure it out with trial, error, possibly lots of soldering and heat shrink but wondered if anyone could help me on where to wire it in to make it work with the same sound quality. I’m missing the part that hooks into my router and would like to have it for camping trips anyway. If it’s not possible that’s fine too I have just done it with several othe speakers and systems and had good success. Thanks

J Rhodus -

Look up www.sonosrepair.co.uk if you want any out of warranty sonos product repaired. They have a great reputation online. Dont give up on your faulty sonos product just yet, just because sonos cant help!!

These guys offer a great service with a “no fix, no fee” policy.

Aldo -