Sonos Amp buzzing

The 30% discount is the standard Sonos response to hardware issues as they don’t do repairs. Unlikely you will get a better resolution from them imo. 
 

My amp is long out of warranty as well. I really like it but can’t see me buying such an expensive device, even with discount, as the hardware platform is 6 years old and overdue for a refresh when there is a competitor for 1/3 the price that has more features and better software but ymmv. 

There are some EU companies that offer SONOS repair.

Interesting… ​@buzz is answering a question about buzzing.

Yes, it’s a giggle. I am overly sensitive to and hate miscellaneous noises. That’s why I use the handle. I’m rarely invited back to audiophile ‘my dog is better than your dog’ type showdowns because I notice and comment that all of the dogs have fleas.

I’m the same way.  Never learned to swallow my opinions.

So I seem to have 4 options. The buzz is too loud and audible when not in use so:

1. Turn the Amp off at the wall whenever not in use, which defeats the purpose and means it has to boot up each time I want to listen to music (while it still buzzes);
2. Accept the 30% discount and fork out $800 NZD to replace it;
3. Buy another brand like Wiim which would cost much less than the discounted sonos;
4. Go back to my old Yamaha analog amp with bluetooth adaptor (at no cost);

What would you do!?

Have you looked at the used market? Might find something for less but you’d not have a warranty.

Can you physically move the AMP to a location where the buzz is not so annoying?

Buy some Ace headphones, the noise cancelling is very good, you wont hear the buzz from the Amp, whilst wearing the headphones.

On a serious note, is the Amp on a hard surface / AV unit? Could the buzzing be supressed by placing on a rubber/foam type mat? 

Yeah I’ve tried moving it to different surfaces. It’s usually on a solid wooden table, but sitting it on the carpet makes no difference. It’s an internal electrical sounding hum/buzz.

Yeah I could do that but I find the noise to be a bit disconcerting. I worry its a fire risk. That’s probably not the case but that’s how abnormal it sounds.

Of course we don’t know exactly what is going on inside the unit, but it is not likely to be a fire risk. Usually this sort of issue is a physical breakdown of a transformer or coil

As the name implies these parts are a coil of wire, wound close together. Efficiency can be improved if the coil is wound on an iron “core”. Efficiency can be further improved if this core is a collection of laminated iron slides, rather than a single piece of iron. As current flows in a wire, there is a magnetic field, and forces. Since there are mechanical forces, the slides can vibrate unless tightly clamped together. Sometimes this clamp deteriorates and the vibration becomes painfully audible.

While this is a typical failure, it does not exhaust the possibilities. Another possibility is that an internal component might be drawing more current than expected, overpowering the clamp. In this is case, I expect that there will be a complete shutdown soon.

This could be a relatively straightforward DIY repair for you or a friend. You could purchase a failed “for parts” unit — that hopefully is not on the same track as your unit — then scavenge your part. Note that SONOS will not accept a unit for the 30% credit if the unit has been dissembled.

DYI is at your own risk, the internal voltages are deadly if you put a finger in the wrong place.

If you don’t know your way around inside consumer electronics seek out a skilled friend.