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problems with new Sonos app

The new Sonas app is awful. It typically will not connect to music even when the music is playing, hence I cannot switch the music of,

but worst problem is trying to control the volumes of the various sonas speakers. Even when I adjust the volume in the app it mysteriously changes itself back to the other setting.

trying to adjust volumes is almost impossible and VERY VERY frustrating.

fthis app should not have been released in such a dismal and poor state. It really damages Sonas reputation and brand.

when will these problems be fixed..?

373 replies

P
Userlevel 6
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Dear Sonos Team,

it pains me to read all the comments and complains your loyal customers are sharing with you. Not just in this community but in social media worldwide. The web is full of it. My previous company and I personally were one of the early supporters and financiers of your company and products and accompanied your growth and success. At home we have replaced all old passive speakers with your equipment and were always pleased by the sound and the ease of use. We have actively promoted your brand to family and friends over the years and most followed the advice. Since the release of your latest App, this has now backfired badly. 

I do not want to repeat and list all the deficiencies this App has, the other comments list only a few. I may add that we have digitized hundreds of thousands of songs from records and CDs in an iTunes library on our Mac, which we now cannot access anymore, never mind being able to steer it from a mobile. So in short, your system has become useless.

Please recall this App version immediately, re-release the old one and go back to the drawing board to reprogram it…and please! do a proper testing cycle (6 sigma standard) before you release a new version!!!

Meanwhile I will try to appease my friends and wife to not throw out the equipment and revert to alternative brands or old passive speakers.

Your still loyal supporter and customer…for now!

A
Userlevel 6
Badge +1

Agreed - it seems to have a complete mind of its own. Says it’s playing something on one speaker but it’s not, can’t get to the other grouped speakers with what is actually playing. Can’t seem to get any control of what is and what is not playing, adjust volumes 

Been on Sonos from very early days, loved it but this new version of the app, with all it promised, is awful. If I can’t control my music, which speaker is playing (out of over 10 speakers) and what the volume is, what’s the point of Sonos. 
please fix asap

W
Userlevel 6
Badge +1

Is this progress? No! The new app has so many problems with it and functionality that simply isn’t an improvement. Saved radio stations have disappeared. Volume controls don’t work properly or at all (delay in altering the volume, painful process of turning volume off on certain devices). 
I have been a loyal and longstanding supporter and customer of Sonos. But the company is now failing its customers. My problems and all the others raised by your customers need fixing now. Or let us go back to the previous app. It worked!

Edgie70
Userlevel 5
Badge +8

Every time I open the app , yes I can force stop it to fix but shouldn't need to !!!

D
Userlevel 4
Badge

I thoroughly agree with comments above - the new Sonas app is awful. It typically will not connect to music and I cannot switch the music off - I have to pull the plug to the speakers from the wall to stop the music!  And trying to control the volumes of the various connected speakers is even worse - I adjust the volume in the app and it mysteriously changes itself back.  Adjusting volumes is almost impossible.

GIVE ME BACK THE OLD APP - it worked properly and well.  Not like this heap of cr*p which should never have been released in such a dismal and poor state.

When can I have the old App back??? When will these problems be fixed?

R
Userlevel 4
Badge

I’m on the verge of no longer buying new Sonos products and no longer replacing obsolete Sonos products after many past years of loyal and happy use.  I’m extremely disappointed with the new app.  I was an application programmer for many years and using the new app isn’t intuitive at all.  I thought I’d get used to it after using it for a while, but no such luck.  I still have a slightly hard time figuring out where I go to find my rooms and the music source I want to play.  It used to be so easy to get to all from one screen.

Volume control is horrible.  I don’t see a mute button anywhere.  The main volume bar now only controls the volume in every room.  Now you have to take the extra step of clicking on the non-intuitive rooms button to control the volume in different rooms independently, but still no mute option from that screen either.  I know it's easy to swipe left to get the volume down to zero, but now I have to remember where it was before I turned the volume down when I want to increase the volume again.

My primary source of music is my music library. I have many artists in my music library.  I used to be able to quickly get somewhere in the artist list by clicking on the letter in the alphabet in the right margin.  Now I have to scroll down from the top every time and it takes forever to get to the bottom of the list.  They should add back the alphabet bar, or at the very least use the method I’ve seen in other apps to scroll very quickly or slowly depending on your swipe.

I use Spotify and the interface to Spotify from Sonos has always been bad.  I can view my Sonos library by playlists, songs, or albums, but not by artists.  It shouldn’t be difficult, and it should be obvious that they need to follow the basic organization structure of Artist/Album/Song.

Unlike others, I haven’t experienced problems so far with the reliability of the system once I find what I want to play.

It is especially frustrating that this flawed app comes shortly after Sonos persuaded me to spend thousands of dollars to replace working equipment.  This was so I could use the S2 app that allows me to use voice control, which I really don’t care about.  On one hand Sonos has dumbed down the app and removed the ability to do things it used to be able to do (like muting).  They’ve also removed labeled buttons to get where you want to go.  On the other hand, Sonos has added non-essential features and apparently the programming of the app is so difficult that they now need to make the user apply changes to rooms selected and volume changes, when that was never necessary before.

Please let me know if I’m doing something wrong and if there are solutions to my Sonos problems.  Can I go back to the old app until these major problems are resolved?

W
Userlevel 6
Badge +1

And where has Sonos’s customer support gone to? They are not replying to these comments and I have been unable to get anyone to speak to me. This is a PR disaster for Sonos and worse for us customers!

M
Userlevel 4
Badge

This app is a reteograde step thay its lauggable. 
Sonos, you need appropriat, wide rangong beta programme with a systemic approach to resolve issues before mainstream release. You at the very least need an ability that lets users use previous version. Uptake figures will then tell you how successful app is! 
 

Please recall immediafely. My whole system is broken 

A
Userlevel 3

I rarely post. Agree with all that has been said. I will add that I think I speak for every one of your customers when I say that we don’t care about how pretty the UI is for Sonos. We just need to find the speakers, find the music, turn it up, turn it down. Just like we had before. We need Swiss Army knife design. 

I had a random incoming call from my boss on Zoom today. I jumped on the Sonos app to turn down the music but the app was listing the wrong room. I couldn’t turn it down.
 

We all know the old app wasn’t perfect, but it could at least be available to turn down the music 99% of the time. Today, I had to unplug the speaker from the wall and then call my boss back.

P
Userlevel 6
Badge

I am not joking. We financed Sonos first inventory lines out to distributors. Many years ago. Ref. Library access, of course you cannot access all at once but the play lists that were compiled you could access and switch from one to the other …and all from your mobile as well. Now the APP does not even find it anymore. The number of digitized songs is also not an exaggeration.

A
Userlevel 6
Badge +1

95% of my Spotify library won’t show 

M
Userlevel 3

I agree with all the comments in this thread - the new app is so unresponsive it is verging on the unusable- recall it and restore the old app until all the bugs are fixed

S
Userlevel 3

I have the same issues.. Can't control volume, no music playing..   it goes on 😕

 

M
Userlevel 4
Badge

This app is a reteograde step that its laughable . 
Sonos, you need appropriate, wide ranging beta programme with a systemic approach to resolve issues before mainstream release. You at the very least need an ability that lets users use previous version. Uptake figures will then tell you how successful app is! 
 

Please recall immediafely. My whole system is broken 

 

Edgie70
Userlevel 5
Badge +8

I thoroughly agree with comments above - the new Sonas app is awful. It typically will not connect to music and I cannot switch the music off - I have to pull the plug to the speakers from the wall to stop the music!  And trying to control the volumes of the various connected speakers is even worse - I adjust the volume in the app and it mysteriously changes itself back.  Adjusting volumes is almost impossible.

GIVE ME BACK THE OLD APP - it worked properly and well.  Not like this heap of cr*p which should never have been released in such a dismal and poor state.

When can I have the old App back??? When will these problems be fixed?

If you use android phone you could delete new app then download the S2 gold app from apk mirror 

P
Userlevel 2

Tried use the new app for the first time today. It opens, but has lost connectivity to all 7 Sonos devices in my house. The app simply doesn’t work. How do I connect to the existing system?  It has also lost all my favourites radio stations etc. 

Please solve this issue and the others listed here ASAP, before you have loyal Sonos customers moving to other suppliers products in droves. 

Please acknowledge the errors and explain how you propose to correct them. 
 

 

P
Userlevel 2

I have been attempting to use the app for about two weeks since its release on my phone.  It is terrible.  I utilize Qobuz for HiRes listening.  My playlists have vanished as has my list of favorite artists and songs.  There is so much latency in the system.  Please go back to the previous version.  It worked.  This new app is junk.

J
Userlevel 2

This new Sonos app release is awful. I miss having the ability to disconnect the speakers from the phone with in the app. 

T
Userlevel 7
Badge +4

I’m having similar problems with selecting speakers and controlling the volume.

S
Userlevel 2
Badge

Dear Sonos Team,

it pains me to read all the comments and complains your loyal customers are sharing with you. Not just in this community but in social media worldwide. The web is full of it. My previous company and I personally were one of the early supporters and financiers of your company and products and accompanied your growth and success. At home we have replaced all old passive speakers with your equipment and were always pleased by the sound and the ease of use. We have actively promoted your brand to family and friends over the years and most followed the advice. Since the release of your latest App, this has now backfired badly. 

I do not want to repeat and list all the deficiencies this App has, the other comments list only a few. I may add that we have digitized hundreds of thousands of songs from records and CDs in an iTunes library on our Mac, which we now cannot access anymore, never mind being able to steer it from a mobile. So in short, your system has become useless.

Please recall this App version immediately, re-release the old one and go back to the drawing board to reprogram it…and please! do a proper testing cycle (6 sigma standard) before you release a new version!!!

Meanwhile I will try to appease my friends and wife to not throw out the equipment and revert to alternative brands or old passive speakers.

Your still loyal supporter and customer…for now!

Well stated. I have spent thousands on Sonos. I have warned people who were interested to not purchase a system at this point. I resorted to another music system this Memorial Day weekend. Other than one communication, as complaints continue to pour in Sonos leadership has been MIA and their system is useless. 

H
Userlevel 1

The new Sonas app is awful. It typically will not connect to music even when the music is playing, hence I cannot switch the music of,

but worst problem is trying to control the volumes of the various sonas speakers. Even when I adjust the volume in the app it mysteriously changes itself back to the other setting.

trying to adjust volumes is almost impossible and VERY VERY frustrating.

fthis app should not have been released in such a dismal and poor state. It really damages Sonas reputation and brand.

when will these problems be fixed..?

Fully agree. The new app is a complete and utter monster. Nothing works. How on earth could they launch this new app. Absolutely awful!! Shame on you Sonos. Shame on you 

U
Userlevel 1

Here are my issues:

 

Setup:-  

1. Took hours to add a gen 3 sub and two era 300's to my arc. Had to reset arc which then refused to allow me to properly connect earc. Kept saying other equipment was at fault. Nothing else was plugged into the TV. Just the arc

2. Can not get my play 3's to be a stereo pair. Just puts the them in different rooms with the same name. Impossible to fix. 

3. These issues means that even though I have a new router I can't use it. Because I know the shocking experience awaiting me if I try to move it to another network.

 

App:-

 

1. All the time it says I don't have a Sonos system. Force close open and all of a sudden I do.  This affects the ability to pause music, change what's playing or altering volume in a timely fashion.

2. It will randomly detect different parts of my system. And can take a couple of reboots of the app for it to see everything 

3. Playing anything through the app is an adventure. Getting the right thing in the right place is a nightmare.

4. Grouping leads to glitchy volume with all rooms glitching out as I increase the group volume. Sometimes volume changes apply. Other times it just goes back to where it was then you have to do it again.  

5. Grouping can lead to one of the rooms stopping and the all rooms. Then randomly a few mins later it'll start playing something else. It's actually rather embarrassing when you have people round and the system is just doing random stuff. 

 

How could this all be so messed up. Why haven't you just apologised and rolled us back while you fix this mess. I've paid over 5k for my setup. Why have you forced us into a situation where setup and control is like it's been made by ameratures. I just can't believe it. 

D
Userlevel 4
Badge

Why have we heard absolutely nothing from Sonos in response to our messages on this thread?

J
Userlevel 2

When will the old app be reinstated? I'm ready to give up on Sonos, the new app is so unreliable!

B
Userlevel 1

The unbelievable hubris of the Sonos leadership to spit in our faces and tell us it’s raining. Almost with a “like it or leave it mentality”; which is astonishing.

First, Sonos, your products are not cheap. Many of us have serious investment in your products which are not cross platform and require a functioning app to operate. You are basically telling us that it is our problem and we have to wait for you to get your house in order before we can fully use our products again.

Second, it’s extremely disingenuous to imply that we don’t understand software development lifecycle. Many of us work in the software development and infrastructure world, so we are completely clued in to how to and how NOT to release a new product to market. This product should have been through a rigorous QA and Staging deployment process prior to just shipping it to PROD. This should have included a very rigorous and transparent beta testing process before making the legacy app unavailable. The extremely negative feedback would suggest that despite trying to spin this, you cut corners. You admit that this was a novel product, and not updating legacy code, so following the SDLC is EXTREMELY critical.

 

As someone who has been in the software business longer than Sonos has existed, my advice to you would be this:

 

  1. Re-release your legacy app and put this product back into beta.
  2. Fix the BASIC fucntionality issues before working on feature releases (i.e. adding removing products into groups, volume issues, latency issues, playback issues)
  3. Re-add the most popular features from the legacy application and TEST THEM.
  4. Once beta is complete, release to PROD, but also leave the legacy S2 app available with an anticipated EOL date.

This is not rocket science, it’s simple SDLC which if followed, will cause this situation to be avoided in the future.

 

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