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I was posting on another thread, and the topic came up with regard to 2.4GHz WiFi and possible Microwave interference.  I was curious.

I have never tested this before, but came up with a simple stress test experiment, to help me understand impact of ‘Cooking with Sonos’

I have an Amp in Kitchen that has a microwave in between the AP and Amp. Amps use 2.4Ghz WiFi, so ideal for a test.

I started an Apple Lossless stream 3Mbs to the Kitchen Amp, and grouped 4 other rooms also on 2.4GHz, spread across 2 APs. I could see 3Mb/s down to Amp and backup up to other zones. I then ran a ping to the Kitchen Amp to get a baseline for packet loss:

 

Baseline - Streaming Apple Lossless with group coordinator connected on 2.4GHz WiFi - no music dropouts - no ping packet loss  


    Packets: Sent = 176, Received = 176, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:

    Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 33ms, Average = 3ms

 

I then put a  cold cup of water in microwave for 1 minute on full power 900W - Streaming Apple Lossless with group coordinator connected on 2.4GHz WiFi - some music dropouts - significant ping packet loss  

 

    Packets: Sent = 43, Received = 35, Lost = 8 (18% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:

    Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1192ms, Average = 104ms

 

Repeated for 600W - no music dropouts, some ping packet loss, assume Sonos buffers are handling OK
    Packets: Sent = 51, Received = 46, Lost = 5 (9% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:

    Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 114ms, Average = 13ms

 

And again for 360W - no music dropouts, some ping packet loss, assume Sonos buffers are handling OK
    Packets: Sent = 62, Received = 59, Lost = 3 (4% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:

    Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 92ms, Average = 5ms

 

The above shows different packets sent due to packet loss.

 

Conclusion microwaving, especially on high power, may cause WiFi interference dependant on AP and Sonos device location. However, even with some packet loss heating at 600W, the 48/24 stream from Apple was not affected, I assume the buffers were doing their job.

Interesting findings. Whenever we’re watching on the Apple TV in the kitchen, the microwave will interrupt the stream from the 2.4ghz wifi, prompting us to have to either press play again or to wait until the microwaving is finished. The microwave sits halfway between the mesh node and the Apple TV.

(Before anyone makes a 5ghz suggestion, the Apple TV needs to be on the 2.4ghz wifi to get a reliable signal with sufficient strength and speed over that distance from the node...). 

The kitchen Sonos speaker is next to the ATV, but is on 5ghz as it doesn’t need the bandwidth of the ATV, so doesn’t get any microwave interference... 

So if you are watching Frozen on your ATV, only use the defrost mode on microwave. 😁

So if you are watching Frozen on your ATV, only use the defrost mode on microwave. 😁

🤣

Based on some conversations here with a regular/guru - that is all I know about this subject. I am aware that old microwaves can be a health hazard and there is advice to not be in their vicinity when they are working, unless one is sure that they are not leaking excessive energy as they age.

What I recall is the advice that if microwave radiation is causing Sonos wireless play to be affected, it is a good idea to check the microwave because  it may be leaking more than it should.

I remember joking then about an little known feature of Sonos to be one of identifying microwaves that need attention to make sure that age has not made them a health hazard.

That's why I wire my soundbar, as it doesn't work on 5Ghz.

I had a CR200 sitting beside a microwave oven and a ZP100 about 3ft away. While cooking, the CR200 commands might be sketchy, but music was OK.

As I recall, the conversation was that miso etc inside the oven would still cook; the concern was for the bags of water in the vicinity of a leaky oven, not far away enough from it.

PS: Now that all my 5 Sonos zones are ethernet wired, I have lost this Sonos feature, and my Echo front ends are all on 5 GHz. As a general rule, no one stands next the oven while it is cooking stuff. Just being careful around a 15 year old oven….

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