SONOS are you reading this? Please put the controller queue function back how it was!

I just got back into town and really hate how easily a queue can now be obliterated. My queue is constantly evolving and to be told to save it often only adds to my frustration.

If I'm forced to live with the queue as it is now I just ask that Sonos simply add a "Confirmation" option in the settings before the queue is replaced. It's fine if by default there is no confirmation as long as I can adjust a setting to add that layer of protection.

BCM wrote:

Supposedly the next update to version 7 fixes a lot with the queue.

All I have seen about 7 is Spotify stuff. If the queue is fixed in version 7, then they should be letting all of the unhappy folks know.

Can I just add to the voices here requesting that Sonos revert back to the way the queue used to operate.

I hate the touch to play option and many other people who have used my controllers have also got caught out with wiping a queue or adding an entire albulm when not required.

It is very counterintuitive and I do hope they at least provide an option in future software to allow user to customise these queue behaviour options to keep all users happy.

We hope so

I have frankly abandoned the Sonos controller for SonoPad and SonPhone. By now means perfect controllers but they did an excellent job of provide customization options to users. So I know Donis can do it too. But their controller changes irritates me too much. I honestly have it a fair try for a while. But sorry, I HATE IT!!!!

My Sonos experience is now a poor one. I loved it so much at a friends house eight years ago, I bought one and apart from the odd friend that got it wrong initially pressing 'play now' instead of 'add to queue' social gatherings were fun and easy to manage in getting a good experience and mix of music without any major hiccups and I could easily leave my guests, even those with little to no experience of the app, to make varied choices. Now, with this horrible update, I have to hover and babysit each guest otherwise each night degenerates into a poor experience of cancelled queues usually after guests have spent a long time choosing, by one I can't even say careless press, because it's so easy to select the whole album and to bin the queue or at least have the frankly annoying and unnecessary step of skipping each album track to regain the queued items. Seriously Sonos? This app has ruined your legacy, and after 7 years of enjoyable experiences, it has made me look at alternatives because the app is so awful. Did I mention how poor the app is? Because it's bad, it stinks. Thanks for nothing Sonos, I used to praise your product to my friends, now I slag it off. Poor, bad, and avoidable. All down to a crappy software update making it unusable. What were you thinking when you green lighted this piece of junk? It's like you've got an F1 car and given it pram wheels.. Roll the update back boys because you broke what didn't need fixing. If there's a competitor reading this I don't care if your hardware isn't a formula 1 car like the Sonos, just as long as your app doesn't suck like this mess that Sonos have vomited on my iPad, reply with your product name and I'll flog this sadly useless hardware on eBay whilst there are enough people out there who still think it's good..

Just wanted to add another small voice to this topic - we used the queue all the time, HATE the way it works now - making playlists is a bit laborious, being able to play the queue back round a few times (and decide if you like a few songs before you playlist them) was great. Sonos, please make it right. Thanks.

Forget their controller if the queue is super important to you. Use SonoPad and SonoPhone. Again these have their limitations like no universal search etc. But I opted to live with those limitations rather than this downgrade update. I gave it a try but could take it no more.

Please tell us when you are planning to make the old queue function available again. Unhappy customer. I am considering switching to another system now.......

Just adding my two cents. The new queue replace functionality is a bad idea. It unnecessarily replaces functionality that was intuitive and worked well. Seriously, how did anyone in charge of user experience decided that this would be a GOOD idea? People don't want their queues replaced at the touch of a button, warning or no. Add my vote to restoring the old functionality as this change is a disaster.

Same here. One more unhappy customer... does Sonos actually care?

They do care - but how much resources they are devoting to revising what they purposefully changed ... we have no idea.

Chris wrote:

They do care - but how much resources they are devoting to revising what they purposefully changed ... we have no idea.

Resource is one thing. Admitting they did something wrong is another.
Are they actually willing to go back to how it was before?

I don't think they are that hard headed or unwilling to listen. We know they are listening....hearing...we just don't know if they are taking any action or not.

The current beta is all about Spotify etc. next beta is assumed to be all about Echo support. I'm not overly optimistic on seeing any big improvements in next 3 months or so. They should do something but they seem to have a lot of other priorities. Unfortunately making the controller more like other apps was a priority for them (forgetting they are not supposed to be like other apps that is what sets them apart - unfortunately making us happy doesn't sell speakers in the short term). Short term sales probably good for. Long term alienation of user base ... time will tell if they worry about that one.

Chris wrote:

unfortunately making us happy doesn't sell speakers in the short term

Well, I had plan to add two Play:1s, two Play:5s, a sub and a Connect this year; but I have decided to wait to see what happens with Audible and Echo. Making me happy with just Audible and a promise of Echo would have made that sale.

Lost sales from me too (another 2 Play 1s and Sub). I am still on 6.3 but will not purchase any more as when I add it to the system, Sonos will force me to update and I am strictly a classic user when it comes to the queue.

Chris wrote:

unfortunately making us happy doesn't sell speakers in the short term.

I used to be very enthousiastic and promote the system around me as often as I could. Now I tend to avoid giving friends any feedback on it and when they ask, I'm more than cautious...
Recommendation is big sale driver that Sonos is probably underestimating

Wow, I just stumbled onto this thread and I'm surprised at how passionate people are about their queues. It never even occurred to me because the term "queue" is typically volatile and transitory anyway. The behavior as it stands now doesn't affect my family too much. We all maintain customized playlists that we routinely use to append or replace the queue. A printer queue holds print jobs but they come and go. People get in line for Black Friday and then the lines disperses. It never even occurred to me that a queue would be something people would consider "permanent". That's not a condemnation of anyone here that thinks otherwise. People are used to the way it worked and it has changed. However, I have been on Sonos for four years or more with players in all rooms (including two teenagers) and none of this has ever been an issue. The 6.4 update and beyond hasn't done anything but brought welcome new features for us. I have ALWAYS assumed I needed to build playlists or add to playlists to maintain something permanent. The queue was always assumed volatile by me and mine. I do think the album play buttons, etc. should default to "add to end of queue" and start playing from there rather than replacing the queue. I could live with that and others here would likely welcome the preservation of their queues. Just offering a different perspective to illustrate that the whole Sonos user community is freaking out about this change. And, I'm still recommending the system to friends and family.

I am in the same boat as Christopher_19. Always used Sonos playlists for preserving anything, the queue is only used for more transitory playing.

Hirsut wrote:

Chris wrote:

unfortunately making us happy doesn't sell speakers in the short term.

I used to be very enthousiastic and promote the system around me as often as I could. Now I tend to avoid giving friends any feedback on it and when they ask, I'm more than cautious...
Recommendation is big sale driver that Sonos is probably underestimating

A new user would know nothing of the old way and so would have no opinion on it. Recommending, or not, a system based upon the current experience of an ever changing user interface seems to be a restricted view. There have been mass threats over previous interface changes.

Christopher_19 wrote:

... Just offering a different perspective to illustrate that the whole Sonos user community is freaking out about this change. And, I'm still recommending the system to friends and family.

Not quite. I like the new system as it offers more pluses than minuses - as progress always does. A few transient lost queues (I've always saved queues) in the learning curve and that was that. A new user would know nothing else.
If you count the number of different posters who hate this change they are, well, very few. That does not denigrate or ignore their opinions on the change.
Will it change back. Two months on....of course not. Imagine the protests.

BoredofBalham wrote:

Christopher_19 wrote:

... Just offering a different perspective to illustrate that the whole Sonos user community is freaking out about this change. And, I'm still recommending the system to friends and family.

Not quite. I like the new system as it offers more pluses than minuses - as progress always does. A few transient lost queues (I've always saved queues) in the learning curve and that was that. A new user would know nothing else.
If you count the number of different posters who hate this change they are, well, very few. That does not denigrate or ignore their opinions on the change.
Will it change back. Two months on....of course not. Imagine the protests.

Rolling back the update is by no means the only option here. As I have said here a few times you can give users a customization option which allows users to keep queue management as it currently is or as it was previous. This has been successfully done by SonoPad/SonoPhone - a 3rd party controller. I personally think that works very well.

Then you get two polarised sets of users IMO.
A big complaint is about when people throw parties. Some guests are likely to have Sonos. Which version will they try to use - back to babysitting, as some have called it, your guests.

The current system needs more work on it to iron out some of the wrinkles. Why not seek to improve the current experience rather than being firmly stuck in the, controversial in its own right, past and be positive about direction.

Wouldn't, say, an undo button (for just one movement forward, be of more benefit than toggles.

Honestly if there were just a toggle to disable clicking on a song it would alleviate 90% of the issues. Make it so you can force people to use the ... simple for those who use it other places to realize one click on mine is disabled.