Hi @Matt Butler 

Welcome to the Sonos Community!

The “not encoded correctly” error is typically symptomatic of interference - the speaker is receiving a garbled version of the data and is unable to make sense of it.

I suspect that a neighbour of yours perhaps upgraded/replaced their router and are now using the same (or worse, overlapping) WiFi channels as you are. If you don’t have any Sonos devices connected to ethernet, you will need to adjust your router’s WiFi channels, whereas if you do, you will need to adjust Sonos’ channel at Settings » System » Network » Change SonosNet Channel.

As to which channel is the best to use, I can only say that 1, 6 and 11 are the best channels to choose from, but I recommend you get in touch with our technical support team who have tools at their disposal that will allow them to give you advice specific to your Sonos system and what it reports - they will then be able to recommend the best channel.

Another possibility is that there is a new device close to your router or speakers causing interference, in which case you may just need to move it away from them a bit - 1m is recommended. Again, the support team will be able to see if any of your Sonos devices are affected by interference, though this page may be of help: Reducing wireless interference.

I hope this helps.

Hi Corry P,

Thanks very much for taking the time to provide such a detailed answer.  Can I just check (and, apologies, I should have put in my original post) we also use Spotify and this has continued to work perfectly at the same time as the BBC Sounds started dropping out.  Does that still make sense with your proposed solution?

Matt

Hi @Matt Butler 

It could do, yes. It would depend on the relative bandwidth that each service is using - if Spotify is on the edge of what can be transmitted successfully, but BBC Sounds is using slightly more, that would fit what you experience.

Note that I am basically guessing - I recommend you get in touch with our technical support for specific advice. As we’re now basically chatting in real-time, however, please feel free to submit a support diagnostic and post the given number here and I’ll be happy to take a look for you.

Hi Corry, 

Apologies, I was caught up immediately after that last communication.  If there is any chance you are still looking at this, i have just submitted a support diagnostic.  The number is:

1551788525

Thanks very much,

Matt

Hi @Matt Butler 

Thanks for the diagnostics. However, all they tell me is that you apparently live in a fully-detached house in a field somewhere - I’ve never seen less interference! So, that’s one thing that can be ruled out, at least.

I don’t see any playback errors logged. To really know what’s going on, I’d need you to recreate the issue then submit a diagnostic soon afterwards, but that’s my fault for not specifying so in the first place - apologies.

I did glean one piece of info that might lead us to a fix, however. Please follow these steps:

If the issue persists after taking these steps, please submit a support diagnostic soon after receiving the error and I’ll take a look again.

I hope this helps.

Sorry Corry, I don’t know how to log into the Unifi controller, or even what that is? 

Hi @Matt Butler 

It’s the app for configuring your Ubiquiti WiFi devices - unless I’ve made an incorrect assumption, that is, though I’m reasonably sure that all Ubiquiti WiFi hardware is labelled with the “UniFi” product name. Perhaps they don’t all use the app, however.

Hi Corry, 

Apologies, not sure how to access the Unifi controller.  Instead I have just recreated the issue and run a diagnostic.  Number is:

947326665 

Thanks,

Matt

Hi @Matt Butler 

OK, so I see the events - the speakers are reporting audio dropouts - but there’s nothing much to explain why they are happening, which leaves me with the following possible conclusions:

1. There is interference, but it’s at the router - this would not be visible to me in the diagnostics. If there are any electrical devices within a metre of your router or your Ubiquiti access points that use radio communications (cordless phone bases, printers, smart-home hubs, baby monitors and the like), please move them away.
2. Network configuration - it’s possible an update was pushed to your router or Ubiquiti system that changed the behaviour or defaults of your network settings. I recommend you install the UniFI configuration app - a search for “UniFi” on Apple App Store should go straight to it, and it’s available for computers too. Just follow the instructions above once it’s installed and connected, and you should be good. This is my current favourite explanation/fix.
3. Something else that I just can’t see or think of. If it is practical to do so, you can try ethernet-wiring one Sonos device (not the Sub) to the router. This will fundamentally change the way it and all the other speakers connect to the network and you may see an improvement. Please remember to keep the wired speaker at least 1m from the router.

I hope this helps.

Hi,

Is there any update on this issue?

I have been experiencing the same problems and it is really doing my head in now.

What I have noticed is that turning the Play 3 off and on again at the wall seems to sort the problem out for a day and then the issue comes back again. I am considering putting a timer switch in to switch the Play 3 off overnight each night.

I have tried changing wifi channels and various changes of settings on my Ubiquiti router. I was getting dropouts on other services also, but now the problem seems to be limited to BBC Sounds.

Is there any reason why this service is different to others in the way it behaves? It seems the issue is with the feed as much as anything.

Steve

Hi @Steve_237 

As far as I am aware, there is no issue - this is likely something that you yourself will need to address, locally. As with above, I recommend you get in touch with our technical support team who have tools at their disposal that will allow them to give you advice specific to your Sonos system and what it reports.

Perhaps it is - this is why I recommend you get in touch with our team to find out.

I hope this helps.

Hi @Corry P 

Thanks for the prompt response. I have spoken with support previously and their suggestions included making sure all Sonos products are on the same SSID, which I don’t think would work in my situation with four different APs going to the same switch, and turning it all off and on again. As it is intermittent that solved it for a time so the call ended. I will give them another try.

Thanks for the advice.

Steve

I’m seeing this same issue recently with BBC Sounds - and my Sonos is ethernet wired. BBC Sounds is almost unlistenable as a result.

What did Sonos support say when you called them?

I have also been experiencing dropout on BBC Sounds and not on other music or radio streams on a Sonos S2 system operating as a wired network with the ethernet going into a Connect:amp in the lounge which is where I am experiencing the problem.

Any updates or suggestions would be much appreciated.

Simon W

Scroll up about four posts and see Corry P’s instructions.

Just to pitch in here.  I am also seeing this problem with BBC Sounds. It only started in the last 6 months.   Not on other streamed audio.  I am only seeing the problem on my Connect:Amp. Not on other devices listening to the same station at the same time.   My system is wired (via one other Sonos device) but the Connect:Amp is wireless.  No changes to my home network/devices setup in that period.  It does seem time of day dependent (at what I suspect is peak time for number of users on the radio station that I was listening to).  

Full reset and reconfig of the Connect:Amp made no difference and same for the obligatory ‘turn everything off and turn it back on again’.  

At its worst it becomes unusable.  It can cut out three times in a minute and so be off more than it is on.  

I will raise a ticket and send a diagnostic as it is easy for me to be ready to submit and wait for the cut out.  But wanted to post this here to see if others are finding the same problem.  And if so did they find a solution.  

I have seen no solution proposed here (given I have a wired system). e.g. Cory P on this thread.   The suggestions seem to be related to WiFi interference at my router or coming from a neighbours router.  I do have UniFi access points for which guidance was given on this thread but I assume if I am wired then my Connect:Amp is not connecting to the UniFi AP but to the wired Sonos device.  

Andy

Not all Sonos these days will connect to SonosNet, they are WiFi wireless only.

Check here:

https://support.sonos.com/en-us/article/check-if-sonos-is-in-a-wireless-or-wired-setup

Hi Stanley_4. Thanks for the suggestion.

I checked and my Connect:Amp does show as WM:0 (wired).  Not sure if it is relevant but for this device only, below the WM:x line, there is OTP: followed by 2 sets of numbers each separated by ‘.’  The 2nd set being very close to, but not exactly, the HW Version for the device.  

Hi @abr2021 .  From the symptoms you describe, nothing could be clearer than that this is a local network issue, and not a generic problem with Sonos or BBC Sounds.  However, you do seem to have gone about troubleshooting in a sensible way.  

What wireless channels are your router, access points and Sonos using?

@John B

Sonos is using Channel 11.  My router is not exposing a WiFi access point but I used two wired access points.  Not sure what channels they are using.  Each has a 2.4Ghz and 5GHz network.  But I can confirm that my Connect:Amp is not connected to either AP.   

Thing is, it has been working fine for years.  It still works fine on all other Sonos devices and still works fine for any other streamed audio service.  So, I do only have a problem with just one device on one service.  

I have plenty of Internet bandwidth.  

Unfortunately, it is not practical to move the Connect:Amp around to see if that makes any difference,  

Internet speed is rarely an issue, local network speed and communications errors are.

I’d do the improving your WiFi FAQ, make sure your local channels aren’t conflicting, check for nearby devices (radio included or not) causing RF noise and do the diagnostic if all that fails.

Just to update… I fixed this by replacing the Play:3 that we play the radio on for an Era 100. It’s been working fine since. Not the ideal solution, unless you need an extra speaker anyway. Having the ability to Bluetooth to my Sonos setup is a nice touch though.

Hmmm … I wish I could get BBC Sounds to connect! Bought 2 SONUS FIVE’s for a stereo pair and we only stream BBC Sounds and Spotify. Spotify connects straight away … BBC Sounds says all connected ok, SONOS says there was an error connecting. Cannot get past this. :-/

What did they say when you called Sonos Support directly to discuss it? I would have suspected an issue with your location in your Sonos account, but that would be a guess. They’d be able to see more concrete information in your submitted diagnostic.