Why do I have to specify the room name when using Alexa?

Update, I am very happy. I called Sonos and got a Tier 2 callback, they fixed the issue with Amazon and it’s working!!! Love Sonos now.

Yep, as per here:

In my case Sonos device is ‘Lounge TV’ in group ‘Lounge’

@Ken_Griffiths you would think? It’s clear that all the level one techs aren’t capable of or aren’t allowed to think critically. I explained this multiple times and they didn’t get it. Their email and phone teams are also completely split it seems. So the email people requested the video, I provided it, and they basically told me to call and stopped responding to me. The phone team I don’t think was able to watch the video. I was thinking about streaming the whole 5 hours yesterday on twitch. The whole thing had the same energy as Kitboga scambaiting people. I had to explain this very basic feature of Alexa to basically everyone I talked to for the first 4 hours. The conversations all want the same way pretty much, except nobody’s story was the same about the status of that “technical ticket” as they kept calling it. Some said it was waiting for a reply from the technical team, some said they had replied and there was no way to reply to them again. They all had the same move, they would say they would get a supervisor or look for additional resources, put me on hold, and the call would drop exactly 5 minutes later. I made some “progress” I guess in that after I got hung up on about 5 times whenever I would call back someone would answer “Hi Charles this is ___ from the technical support leadership department.” I would explain the issue and then they would connect me with the “escalations team.” The first two people on that team said that someone would call me back in 24 hours, which I’ve heard before. Never happens. The 3rd person I talked to on that team was the last person I talked to yesterday, who gathered some more information and screenshots to send to that technical team again. At least that’s what they said. We’ll see.

All done, let me know how you get on.👍

@Ken_Griffiths I found this page in my Alexa app and I’m sending a screenshot to them. When I called them they tried telling me that you always have to specify the room name. Which I knew was ridiculous because it doesn’t work that way on my Echo Pop. Now this screenshot in the app explicitly says it so we’ll see how they feel about that. 

I spent a total of 5 hours on the phone with Amazon today. They contradicted themselves a million times. Either the last person I spoke with would be a really good scammer, or there is an actual update being delivered to their “technical team” now and we’ll hear back from them soon. 

Really annoying, Amazon is saying that this is just not how Alexa enabled devices work. Seems dumb because that’s how it works for everyone else I know who has Sonos and Alexa. Really frustrating. 

@Ken_Griffiths just point it at your sonos, tell alexa to turn off the lights without specifying the room name “alexa, turn off the lights” and it shouldn’t say “sorry, I didn’t find a group named lights.”

At least that’s how it sounds like how it works for you. Amazon is telling me that on Sonos devices specifically, you always need to say the name of the room, even if the sonos device is in the same room. 

Whatever you were told, it isn’t true. It works for me without having to mention the room name and it actually explains that in the App itself under each Alexa group there are the two playback options and next to the options is an explanation. See attached.

It also explains it here, (see attached) - albeit the example given on this occasion is in relation to smart-lighting, but the same applies to Sonos and presumably Bose speakers too, which are also mentioned alongside Sonos.

As I say, it most certainly works for me … I just say to any group ‘enabling’ Alexa device “Alexa, play some music” and Alexa replies something along the lines of … “Here’s a hand curated playlist - Dance Hits, playing on Sonos”. Alexa immediately auto-groups the speakers in the group and then begins playback on the grouped speakers. I do not have to mention the names of any devices, rooms, or group, as the enabled groups "Playback Options” are set to ‘Always’.

@craigski,
Just to also add, the ‘Living Room’ speaker component which has the Alexa component, originally called ‘Ken’s Sonos Arc’ embedded inside it, is added to the first section of an Alexa ‘enabled’ Group to control the group, which I call Lounge in my Alexa App … it is also added to the third ‘Speaker’ section of the group (amongst other speakers). See screenshot attached… to which I’ve added some notes.

If I give a voice instruction to one of the three Alexa devices held in the Lounge Group, such as “Alexa, play Pink Floyd”*… then Alexa will group together Living Room, Portable and Fireplace and begin playback of Pink Floyd songs on the three (grouped) Sonos Rooms. 

*Note: the ‘Playback Options’ for the group need to be set to ‘Always’ in the Alexa App. It’s this that eliminates having to use the group name in the Alexa instruction.
 

Everytime I use the "Alexa” wake word too, the playing audio will ‘duck’ all Sonos speakers that are held in the first and second sections of the Alexa Group.
 

Does Sonos support ever frequent these forums? It seems roundabout but I think the only option is going to be for someone at Sonos to go bother Amazon. Amazon support is still giving me the runaround on email and isn’t even talking to me on phone support now. I call, tell them the issue, they say they’re going to check, then the call disconnects. This is ridiculous. I love everything about my Sonos speakers but if I can’t get this working I’m going to have to return all of them.