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Bad Sonos connection, what to do?

E
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  • Esat
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Hello,

I live in a 2-floor house (ground level and 1st floor), which has 500 Mb/s internet connection. I use a TP-link Mesh wifi setup to distribute internet: 3x Deco M9plus (one is the main Deco attached to my modem) + 2x Deco M5. All Decos are connected by Ethernet cable to the first Deco router using a switch (star network). I am on S2.

In my living room (ground level), there are 1x Connect GEN2 (connected to my HiFi system’s DAC) and 1x Sonos Amp (using 2x Sonos InCeiling speakers) + 1x Sonos Sub GEN2 + 2x One SL’s as surround (previously I had 2x Play 3s working flawlessly). All of these were connected via Ethernet cables except the One SLs (Amp+Connect+Sub are connected via Ethernet cable to the main Deco M0Plus). In this living room, there is also a second Deco M9plus using a ethernet backhaul. In the same level, I have another room where there is a 1x PlayBar (in this room there is also a Deco M5 using also Ethernet cable backhaul) connected via Ethernet cable to the Deco M5.

In the 1st floor, there is a Deco M9plus attached with ethernet backhaul where there are 3 rooms (in my bedroom has also a Deco M5, ethernet backhaul). In this room, I have a Sonos Boost connected to the Deco M5 via Ethernet cable, and there are 2x Symfonisk bookshelves paired, and connected via Sonos Net via the Boost.

Everywhere in the house, I have at least 200-250 Mb/s wifi speed.

Sonos setup is with Sonos Net (WM 0).

Everything was working OK until now. When I changed the Play 3s (surrounds via wifi Sonos Net), and when I made the setup for Sonos Onel SLs as surround, everything worked nicely. However, since a couple of days, the 2x Symfonisks and the 2x One SLs were not working.

This morning, I made a modem reset, reset of all switches and all Decos. The unplugged all Sonos material. Replug the Sonos system. In the beginning everything worked (Symfonisks, and all the other Sonos connected via ethernet cables, except the One SLs (the system does not see them)). I passed a couple of hours without success (when I unplugged the One SLs and replugged I did undo the surround setup, and they worked. But when I tried to do surround setup, the system lost them). Then, as there was another Deco M9Plus near the One SLs, I put another switch to the Deco and plugged the One SLs via ethernet cables. Now everything works normally but I would not like to have this switch and cables near my One SLs...

Could you help me?

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Best answer by Esat 12 April 2022, 19:23

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37 replies

E
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The guy from Sonos badly informed me… If it is a WiFi interference problem, why would Play 1s work correctly?…

 

E
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Hello All. 3 weeks passed… Finally I found the solution: I have sold my One SLs (to a higher price of course) and bought a pair of used Play 1. They work without any problem without the need of ethernet cables… They work perfectly.

E
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Thank you Ratty.

Sonos AMP, Sub, Connect GEN2 are wired to the primary mesh via 2 switches; one just beside the main Deco, which wires all the other Decos and the 2nd switch beside the Sonos AMP (where the other Sonos and my TEAC NT-505 streamer are wired). 

The One SLs are (now) wired to a 2nd Deco via another switch.

The Playbar is wired to another 2nd Deco via another switch in the same room as Playbar.

The Symfonisks (L+R) upstairs are connected to the Sonos Boost via Sonosnet wifi, which is wired to another 2nd Deco (same room as the Boost and Symfonisks).

Just an information: since longtime (2 years?) the 2x Play 3s (as surrounds) were working without any problem, and One SLs, which replaced the Play 3s, worked without any problem ca. 5-6 weeks...

 

ratty

Digressing a little with a general question that may still be relevant to the OP:

If one has a state of art mesh WiFi giving good coverage across the home as the OP seems to have, is it now better to use Sonos in WiFi mode? Do such systems obsolete Sonos net, and therefore the need to wire any Sonos unit to the core network?

It depends. With many WiFi mesh systems there’s next to no control over channel allocations or even the ability to split the bands onto different SSIDs. In some situations a Sonos pair or group could end up with nodes spread across multiple mesh access points. If the Sonos devices are using different channels they’re unable to interconnect directly, so are at the mercy of potentially variable latency via the mesh backhaul.

When problems occur on a WiFi mesh the standard advice is ... to wire a Sonos device to the mesh primary.

E
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Thank you all for your replies and comments.

I will try this long Easter week-end different configurations. However, for the moment, even the One SLs are cabled via ethernet, I am happy; at least, everything works…

I will give you a feed back.

Thanks again.

K

Digressing a little with a general question that may still be relevant to the OP:

If one has a state of art mesh WiFi giving good coverage across the home as the OP seems to have, is it now better to use Sonos in WiFi mode? Do such systems obsolete Sonos net, and therefore the need to wire any Sonos unit to the core network?

Airgetlam

I’ll play that game….I’ve had both a failing microwave that borked my Sonos speaker’s ability to stay on a signal, as well as a neighbor installing a new router which stomped on my signal. Took a while to figure out the latter, as all I was aware of was that someone moved in next door….didn’t really consider that they might mess my wifi signal in my house. The microwave was pretty clear….when it was on, the speakers were off. :)

Bruce
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The interfering device doesn’t even need to contain a radio, just be putting out enough RF noise to swamp the signal. I had an external hard drive (with no radio) that would knock my Play 3 off line if it was within a couple feet of it.

Some days it just comes down to unplugging everything else and trying again. Even that won’t help if it your neighbor’s gear causing the issue.

ratty

I called Sonos today. The guy to whom I spoke looked to the plan in the this discussion, and told me that probably the Deco’s 5 GHz signal is too high compared to the Sonos AMPS’s signal, therefore the One SLs disconnect… He proposed me to leave the switch and the cables, and try to live with them...

That does not make sense to me, as the Amp auto-selects it’s wireless channels and it should be avoiding the channels in use by your Deco AP’s - I’ve not heard a case where a WiFi signal is too strong, maybe a case that all might be operating on the same channel, perhaps 🤔, in which case a channel change should immediately fix the issue... often a reboot should cause a product to re-auto-select its channels and hopefully avoid the channels in use by other nearby devices.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near%E2%80%93far_problem

Strong adjacent channels, or indeed anything blasting away in the same band, could be sufficient to deafen a receiver.

Ken_Griffiths

I called Sonos today. The guy to whom I spoke looked to the plan in the this discussion, and told me that probably the Deco’s 5 GHz signal is too high compared to the Sonos AMPS’s signal, therefore the One SLs disconnect… He proposed me to leave the switch and the cables, and try to live with them...

That does not make sense to me, as the Amp auto-selects it’s wireless channels and it should be avoiding the channels in use by your Deco AP’s - I’ve not heard a case where a WiFi signal is too strong, maybe a case that all might be operating on the same channel, perhaps 🤔, in which case a channel change should immediately fix the issue... often a reboot should cause a product to re-auto-select its channels and hopefully avoid the channels in use by other nearby devices.

E
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I called Sonos today. The guy to whom I spoke looked to the plan in the this discussion, and told me that probably the Deco’s 5 GHz signal is too high compared to the Sonos AMPS’s signal, therefore the One SLs disconnect… He proposed me to leave the switch and the cables, and try to live with them...

Ken_Griffiths

Bizarre, no?

It sounds to me like the WiFi adapter in the Amp is ‘perhaps’ not working/connecting to the SL’s. I would suggest submitting a Sonos diagnostic report and then contact/chat to Sonos Support and see what they can establish from the report. They may suggest a factory reset to see if that sorts it, but see what they say.

E
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Hello John B.

As you suggested, I erased the local network details in System, Network (I had my previous house and this one’s names).

Then, in the Support section, I tried to find the missing units. The system found the 2x One SLs. Asked me if they were cabled or not via ethernet (I uncabled them before); I said no. Then the App asked me to unplug and replug the router and wait until it is functional, which I did. Then, the App succeeded to correct the system “Salon Sonos Amp (+Sub+HG+HD)” but a couple of minutes later it became again “Salon Sonos Amp (+Sub+?+?)”. I, then, repeated the same procedure. Again, it worked but couple of minutes later lost the One SLs…

Now, I plugged again the switch and the ethernet cables to the One SLs, and the system works correctly.

Bizarre, no?

J

If you go into Settings,  

System, Network, are your network's details (SSID, pw) in there? If so please remove them.

If that doesn't help, can you experimentally turn off the 5GHz band on your WiFi?

E
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Good morning Ratty (as I live in Switzerland, it is morning for me as well).

  1. I waited at least half an hour when I disconnected the One SLs.
  2. In my AMP room “Salon Sonos Amp (+Sub+HG+HD)”, AMP, Sub, One SL L, and One SL R are all on “WiFi activated”.
ratty

When I unplug One SLs’ ethernet cables then in the App, my Sonos Amp becomes immediately “Salon Sonos Amp (+Sub+?+?)” instead of “Salon Sonos Amp (+Sub+HG+HD)”… Which means that One SLs disappear… When I replug the ethernet cables to the One SLs, it works again correctly...

  1. Did you give the OneSLs a chance to reconnect wirelessly (at least 1 minute)?
  2. You didn’t, by any chance, disable “WiFi” on the OneSLs while they were wired? 
E
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Hello, the WiFi was active (in fact, it is active in all products visible on the App...).

I will try tomorrow morning to uncable the Sub.

Ken_Griffiths

Hello, thank you for your replies.

I took out the AMP from the closet (it is really near to the One SLs (6 m ?). I unplugged the AMP, and replugged (I do not know what you mean by “Have you tried a reboot of the Amp and checked that it’s WiFi adapter is ‘ON’ - also what happens if you bring the speakers closer to the Amp?”). 

See if this link assists you in relation to checking/enabling a Sonos products WiFi adapter… 

https://support.sonos.com/s/article/3684

See if it’s enabled for the Amp.

What happens too when you uncable the Sub?

E
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Or maybe, I can reset all my system from Sonos Net to WiFi? What do you think?

 

E
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Hello, thank you for your replies.

I took out the AMP from the closet (it is really near to the One SLs (6 m ?). I unplugged the AMP, and replugged (I do not know what you mean by “Have you tried a reboot of the Amp and checked that it’s WiFi adapter is ‘ON’ - also what happens if you bring the speakers closer to the Amp?”). 

Sonos AMP and the Sub are connected via ethernet cables to my router. Should I unplug their ethernet connection and leave with WiFi only?

When I unplug One SLs’ ethernet cables then in the App, my Sonos Amp becomes immediately “Salon Sonos Amp (+Sub+?+?)” instead of “Salon Sonos Amp (+Sub+HG+HD)”… Which means that One SLs disappear… When I replug the ethernet cables to the One SLs, it works again correctly...

N
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Try taking the Amp out of the closet and see if it’s blocking the 5Ghz wifi signal. 

ratty

Please find enclosed the plan. The AMP is in a closet.

 

I’m trying to square that statement with the illustration, which shows the Amp in the living room somewhere close to the TV.

Ken_Griffiths

Have you tried a reboot of the Amp and checked that it’s WiFi adapter is ‘ON’ - also what happens if you bring the speakers closer to the Amp? Note, from a ‘bonded surround connection’ perspective, your Deco WiFi is not relevant, other than it’s signal might be interfering, but the Deco WiFi plays no role in a bonded setup. The main HT player (Amp) needs to communicate directly with its surrounds over an Ad-hoc wireless connection between the players. So, if practicable, maybe try to see what happens if you bring your speakers closer to the Amp, post reboot …and definitely toggle its WiFi adapter and check it is working. 

E
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And in the upstairs, there is another Deco M9Plus just the same level as Sonos AMP. There is a Deco M5 just the same level as Playbar (our bed room), on which a Sonos Boost is connected + 2x Symfonisk without cable connection (Sonos Net to the Boost). All Decos have ethernet cable connection to the Main Deco M9Plus. 

E
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Please find enclosed the plan. The AMP is in a closet.

 

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