Playing Local Music Library on Sonos through Alexa

I would never want to have to run a local server, and I despise the "Tell XXXX to do YYYY" phrasing. No thank you. Sonos should do it right or not do it at all.

Leaving merely 6766 other viewers of this forum who might....

As of now, there is only one vote for and one vote against. You speculate all you wish, but I think I can say that after 9+ years of helping out on this forum, the requirement to both run a local server and regress to "Alexa tell Sonos to XXXX" instead of the current phrasing would cause an uproar of epic proportions. I'll take that experience over your "I think this way and 6766 other viewers might also" speculation.

Besides, there is a user (controlav) here who has developed just this kind of implementation via his own homegrown skill. If your speculation was correct, there would be no need for this thread, you could simply load his stuff and be a happy camper. Lord knows he is not shy in promoting it.

I love sonos I have the full range from a one player right up to the sub and play bar all of which are great, but not being able to voice command music from my library with Alexa via my new sonos player is a BIG mistake and something Sonos must address pretty soon as it makes mine use less as all my music is brought, owned and not streamed.
Please advise on an update to this issue

Fully agree with jgatie regarding that there are technical reasons why voice control does not currently work with local libraries. Several of us on here have put in the time to actually think about how all the integration works, as implemented, and have come to the conclusion that there are significant technical differences. Sonos staff have confirmed, in a broad sense, that this is the way it works.

I don't think that means that making a profit, for Sonos and Amazon, are completely irrelevant, I just can't conclude, at this point any way, that the Amazon/Sonos integration isn't enabling local libraries and all the music services Sonos provides purely for monetary reasons.

Out of curiosity, is any one bothered by the fact that neither Amazon, Google, or Apple (I think) can play your local files natively through their voice assistant devices?

Siri can play local music from my iPhone and not using Apple Music or streaming services

From link here

https://www.synology.com/en-global/knowledgebase/DSM/tutorial/Multimedia/How_to_enable_Audio_Station_skill_on_Amazon_Alexa


Synology are able to use alexa to navigate and play music from a local audio station client installed on the
Nas. I have been using synology for over five years and run all my local media off it so know it well. Using Plex and audio station.

So this is defiantly not an amazon or alexa limitation on streaming music locally. There should be zero reason sonos cannot implement this feature.

I guess sonos wants to go the way of blackberry.


Siri and Apple can also play music locally stored on iOS devices - and I am not taking about Apple Music as I refuse to Trent music or pay for streaming services.

From link here

https://www.synology.com/en-global/knowledgebase/DSM/tutorial/Multimedia/How_to_enable_Audio_Station_skill_on_Amazon_Alexa


Synology are able to use alexa to navigate and play music from a local audio station client installed on the
Nas. I have been using synology for over five years and run all my local media off it so know it well. Using Plex and audio station.

So this is defiantly not an amazon or alexa limitation on streaming music locally. There should be zero reason sonos cannot implement this feature.

I guess sonos wants to go the way of blackberry.


Siri and Apple can also play music locally stored on iOS devices - and I am not taking about Apple Music as I refuse to Trent music or pay for streaming services.



commands available to stream local music library using Synology audio station that Sonos should be able to reproduce

3. List of supported voice commands
With Audio Station skill, you use the voice commands below to play your songs, songs by a specific artist, an album, or playlists, as well as check the currently playing music.
Alexa, ask Audio Station to + play
start
search + [song name]1
the music
track
songs
audio by [artist]
the album [album name]
the playlist [playlist name]
Ask what's playing
Ask what song is the song

FYI - Please see my last post in this thread for another possible solution:

https://en.community.sonos.com/amazon-alexa-and-sonos-229102/playing-from-local-music-library-not-possible-using-alexa-voice-control-6797647/index1.html#post16192554

I am very disappointed the Sonos Alexa skill cannot play music from my local music library. I an frustrated that it can do track-level operations on albums I have played through direct Sonos control of my music library. I want it to do more and don't use streaming music sources, and never have.

Come on Sonos; get your lovely speaker SW ass in gear and (a) commit to providing Sonos Alex control of music library playing, and (b) deliver it promptly. We'll all love you for it.

I came to this thread looking for how to use the Alexa voice command to play my local library on my Sonos system. I thought it was just my lack of know-how, but apparently it can't be done. So I am overjoyed to learn that I'm not just a technical simpleton, but someone who was also duped by the marketing. Seriously, I'm very disappointed because I did think that Alexa in the Sonos One would be able to play ALL my music sources, not just the streaming services. I hope that Sonos works out a solution to this.

Well here I am patiently waiting in Australia for Alexa to 'çontrol' my Sonos - and it finally arrived in Jan 2018. Already have 1's set up in stereo so no use getting a P1 with Alexa so went with an Echo Dot. As noted by my irate colleagues - can it play from my Sonos library ?? (the only reason I bought one) unbelievably no. Love my Sonos, very stable, great sound, handles my big library easily. However they perhaps should have given voice control a miss until one of the fundamentals was worked out. Anyone in the market for a brand new Dot - it tells jokes and knows the weather !

Well here I am patiently waiting in Australia for Alexa to 'çontrol' my Sonos - and it finally arrived in Jan 2018. Already have 1's set up in stereo so no use getting a P1 with Alexa so went with an Echo Dot. As noted by my irate colleagues - can it play from my Sonos library ?? (the only reason I bought one) unbelievably no. Love my Sonos, very stable, great sound, handles my big library easily. However they perhaps should have given voice control a miss until one of the fundamentals was worked out. Anyone in the market for a brand new Dot - it tells jokes and knows the weather !

The Sonos CEO has committed to getting this to work but no Alexa or Google device plays locally stored music smoothly at present.