Not sure I have ‘the’ answer for you, but I do have a couple of comments which might be helpful.

First, your comments about lag, music dropouts, and stereo pair issues  ( let’s call that 1a, 2a, and 3a) leads me to consider some difficulty with your speakers staying connected at all times to your router, through the BRIDGE. And, based on what you say, the Sonos folks also suspected some sort of wifi interference. The steps you took certainly point in that direction, but there are two missing points that I would want to address.

First, replace that BRIDGE you speak of with the newer, and better BOOST. It’s faster, and perhaps more importantly for you, has better rejection of some forms of interference. The BRIDGE at this point is known to have issues with the power supply, which can cause difficult to trace issues. Better to add a BOOST, and then retire the BRIDGE, even the ‘new’ one. Or, just drop the BRIDGE all together, and wire an ethernet cable directly to a speaker. 

Second, and not explicitly stated in your second set of numbered items (let’s call them 1b, 2b, and 3b for additional clarity in referencing), I don’t see anything about refreshing your SonosNet network. Perhaps you weren’t asked, because doing so for 15 devices would be slightly time consuming, although simple. It’s also a much lower chance of being the issue, but still... Unplug all Sonos devices from power. While they are all unplugged, reboot your router. Once the router comes back up, plug back in the Sonos devices, starting with the one you have wired to your router.

This process is more temporary, you could easily achieve the same on a more permanent basis by assigning all Sonos devices reserved IP addresses in your router’s DHCP table, instructions for your particular router would be in it’s manual.

Those would address potential issues in your Sonos network, but there is always the possibility that the issue isn’t in your network, but at Spotify, and all the messing around you do won’t ever make a difference.

It is important to note a couple of things. First, most streaming companies have a specific feed for Sonos, not the same one they use for their own apps or the web. Mostly this is to make tracking where the people are coming in from, but people sometimes say it works in one place, but not my Sonos, without understanding it isn’t a single unified source for the data. Also, different streaming companies have differing tolerances for disconnections, so something that causes Spotify to drop may not cause Pandora to drop, which makes it hard to rule out an issue when one service is working, but another drops.

Hopefully, some of this knowledge is useful. The Sonos folks, with their access to diagnostics, would normally have greater insight as to why you’re having this issue. I’d be tempted, the next time it happens, to submit another one, and call back in.

Bruce, 

Thanks for the amazingly detailed response.

I mistakenly called my BOOST a BRIDGE and obviously dated myself. What I meant was that I had replaced my older BOOST with a brand new BOOST to see if that mattered. It didn’t. 

I’ve tried refreshing the SONOS network, and even tried the unplugging trick in the past. In the end, Pandora works like SONOS should work practically 100% of the time, and Spotify performance is horrible. I will play with the Spotify login and link to the SONOS system itself, but it’s something relatively new, and something specific to Spotify. 

Thanks again for for trying to help….  

Sure thing. And the unfortunate thing to remember is sometimes it isn’t Sonos, or your network at fault, sometimes it’s the network outside if your home, or even the Spotify servers. Sonos doesn’t have any control over a large portion of the data path, until it reaches your speakers, or at least one of them. 
 

Good luck!

I've been having the exact same issues all of a sudden lately and always in Spotify. It takes a long time to connect to my two speakers either through Spotify or the Sonos app when playing through Spotify. Sometimes it'll just drop out on its own. Skipping to another song or even skipping ahead within the same song introduces the same 10-30 second freeze as the OP notes. 

It tends to affect my Play:5 far more than my Play:1, despite the former being only a foot away from my router while the latter is in the next room.

I've changed routers, disconnected and reconnected the speakers both physically and to the Sonos network, factory reset the speakers, uninstalled and reinstalled the apps, and even tried on a different phone OS -- same results across the board. 

Sorry it's impacting others, but I'm glad it's not just me so hopefully the Sonos and Spotify technical teams can take a closer look at this issue. 

Falcon001,

As you have discovered, Factory reset rarely cures fundamental issues. I recommend that you refrain from Factory reset without further consult -- you are simply wasting time.

For the record, I have not been experiencing any Spotify issues.

I suggest that you submit a diagnostic and get SONOS staff comment.

Are you playing Spotify using the SONOS controller or are you playing through a phone using Airplay? How does Spotify perform if you ignore the SONOS system and play directly on a phone or tablet?

Hi! I have the same problems as you. At first I thought the problem was Wi-Fi, but then I ran an Ethernet cable directly to Connect Amp (S2), but the problem was not fixed.

I use Spotify Connect

Hi,

Same issue here:

I have a boost, 5.1 (playbar, sub, ones), move, pair of ones in kitchen, pair of ones in my master bedroom, one in my daughter room. If I group them all and I start music, there is a 10-15 sec delay on some speakers. Same problem if I skip song. I confirm they are all running on the sonosnet except the Move. How can I fix the delay ?

I don’t have this problem when using Tidal or Deezer.

Diagnostic Number: 407655022

Hi, 
 

same issue here. I've tried all the given recommendations, lost a bridge and upgraded to a boost, nothing. Upgraded my wifi router just to make sure, tried with the boost both plugged and not, no change. Hooked up most of my devices to Ethernet, nothing changed. Switched all my old, S1 equipment to new versions, still nothing happened. 
It only happens with Spotify, so something must be going on with their communication. 

Oh, I'm in the process of building a new family home and have 4 amps and 1 move on the way, while just having received a beam and a move yesterday. At this point I'm seriously considering canceling the order, returning what I can and cutting my losses.  

Been a sonos fanboy since 2003 approximately.