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Volume issues - Amazon Music and Atmos


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Hi @Corry P,

I've just noticed that the issue discussed in the thread below has been solved. I don't know exactly when, as I was travelling these last weeks.

But, the fix seems to have generated another bug:

  • Now it's the opposite: when playing a non-Atmos song after an Atmos one, the volume becomes very much louder. If you pause this loud song and then resumes playing it, the volume returns to its normal level.
  • Additionally, in general, all songs appear to play in a lower volume than before.
  • When listening to my Play:1 in another room, I don't have any of these issues.
  • When listening to sources other than Amazon Music, I also don't have any issues.

My setup is a Beam Gen 2 with a pair of Symfonisk bookshelf speakers as surround, no Sub.

Could you let the team that worked on this fix know, please?

c.c @Mr. T , @Jimmy C 

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Best answer by Jimmy C 6 August 2022, 21:44

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73 replies

Userlevel 1

I can't add my Sonos Arc to devices in Amazon Music. I have android so no Airplay 2.

I can't add my Sonos Arc to devices in Amazon Music. I have android so no Airplay 2.

Sounds like you may have a fault there then - maybe a network discovery issue perhaps?

Our ‘Living Room’ Arc shows up here on our android tablet in the Amazon Music App ‘Connect’ list…

 

Userlevel 1

I wonder if it's because mine is the Arc SL so it doesn't have Alexa. I have tried every way that I could think possible to add it with no success. I just gave it another shot but still not happening. I'm the person that my friends and family call when they have issues. But this one doesn't seem fixable at the moment.

I'm in Canada also, just thought I would mention that in case that could be a limiting factor. Never know with these apps

I wonder if it's because mine is the Arc SL so it doesn't have Alexa. I have tried every way that I could think possible to add it with no success. I just gave it another shot but still not happening. I'm the person that my friends and family call when they have issues. But this one doesn't seem fixable at the moment.

I'm in Canada also, just thought I would mention that in case that could be a limiting factor. Never know with these apps

The Arc SL should not make any difference - maybe chat to Sonos Support and see what they suggest…

https://support.sonos.com/s/contact

Userlevel 4
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I also am not experiencing a non-Atmos track being louder after playback of an Atmos track.  I am just happy that after many months the original issue has improved enough (for me, at least) that I can actually enjoy listening to Amazon music on my HT system.

Okay, all is still not well for me.  I know there are posts from others saying as much but wanted to append my last post.  When Afternoon Delight by Starland Vocal Band came on after another song, it was like 5x the volume level of the prior song. Never imagined an angry version of that song but there you have it. Ouch.

Userlevel 1

Same issue here with Arc + Amazon Music.

A non-Atmos song playing after a Atmos song is much louder. Can be reproduced with different Amazon Music playlists. Important: Skipping songs doesn‘t cause the problem. Just move manually to the last seconds of the Atmos song and wait for the next song to beginn.

A fix would be much appreciated, since I can‘t listen to Playlists and Stations anymore.

Userlevel 1

I talked to Sonos 3 times yesterday and Amazon Music once. They both told me that I can only play Amazon Music through the Sonos App. Can’t stream directly.

When it comes to the volume increase between Dolby and Ultra HD/HD songs, the first person told me to unplug my HDMI, test the volume through various sources and to send multiple Diagnostics and finally asked me to turn off “Loudness” under System/Products/EQ. I did that and couldn’t recreate the issue for a bit so we ended the call. I also noticed that skipping songs doesn’t cause the issue.

Shortly after, it happened again. I used the chat feature with the Diagnostics but that didn’t go well so I ended up on the phone again. Way easier to describe the issue.

This time on the call I submitted multiple Diagnostics while recreating the issue. She said that the issue looked to be with my device controlling the volume somehow. She asked me to restart my phone and she would call me back. I did and she called back a few minutes later. I tried scrolling through songs (fast forwarding to the last 10 secs and letting it flow to the next) for probably 6-8 minutes with her still on the line. I couldn’t recreate the volume issue. I then left the music playing for probably another 20 minutes after that and still no issues.

I haven’t tried streaming Amazon Music through the Sonos app yet today so I can’t say if this is a permanent fix or just temporary. I’m using a Google Pixel 6 Pro.

Userlevel 1

So I started streaming after my last post. It just happened again. I told them yesterday that it's a software issue that they need to addressed rather than putting the blame on other things. Hopefully enough people will complain and they will try to fix it.

Userlevel 3
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So I started streaming after my last post. It just happened again. I told them yesterday that it's a software issue that they need to addressed rather than putting the blame on other things. Hopefully enough people will complain and they will try to fix it.

It's been happening here all the time.  My wife seriously complained and I had to stop listening to Amazon because of that.

Userlevel 3
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Hi @Corry P ,

Both @Xtreme  and myself are in Canada. I had a different issue some years ago that Sonos escalation team had a hard time to replicate and, after a few months,, they found out it was only affecting Canadian clients. Then, it was an easy fix.

Could it be the same here?

Userlevel 7
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Hi @furacaopr 

This issue is not location-dependant, and we are able to reproduce it in-house.

FWIW, I've had my Sonos ARC SL, One SL's and Sub 3 for 5 months. Just started having this exact issue  this week. Drives me crazy because I can't just let it run, always have to be ready to be blasted by loud music, pause and restart track.

The playlist above, with Maggie Mae and Raindrops on repeat, reproduces it.  I'm hoping a fix is found soon.

Have you, after recreating the issue, submitted a system diagnostic, and called Sonos Support to discuss it?

Userlevel 1

Of course we have. They blame it on everything besides themselves. I told them repeatedly that it's a software issue but they still blamed it on things I had plugged in, loudness setting, my phone somehow controlling the volume in the background, etc

Sorry, I was referring to the post made by @Horde , to see if they had provided additional hard data to Sonos, in case it helped them track down what the issue is. My post was not in response to you. 

Userlevel 1

@Airgetlam, @Xtreme:

Corry P (Sonos staff) has confirmed, that they are able to reproduce this issue in their lab.

“[…] and we are able to reproduce it in-house.“

I can't wait for a fix either, but the issue seems to be at least acknowledged and worked on by Sonos (@Corry P?).

I am also experiencing this issue or something very similar listening to Amazon Music Prime Stations on my Sonos Arc system with surrounds and sub using the Sonos app. After many months of listening, the issue started happening a few weeks ago. I’m not sure if it’s related, but I keep getting pop-up messages asking me to retune my Arc even though I’ve retuned it several times.
 

Hopefully, Sonos now has a handle on the problem and will be able to release a fix soon.

Hi All

I’d just like to add that my system is showing this behaviour too. I think it’s when the system switches from an Atmos track to an Ultra HD/HD track in Amazon. At the change of track the volume goes shockingly loud. Pausing and unpausing the system will cause the track to return to normal volume.

I have a Beam Gen 2, One SL surrounds, and a Sub Gen 3.

Edit: I tried disabling Atmos/Spatial audio in the Amazon App, and that seems to have helped but I’ll keep testing.

Userlevel 1

@Sonos: Any update regarding this issue?

Even a workaround (deactivate Atmos somehow?) would be appreciated. Lot‘s of people have expensive systems at home which can‘t be used. :(

Userlevel 7

@Sonos: Any update regarding this issue?

Even a workaround (deactivate Atmos somehow?) would be appreciated. Lot‘s of people have expensive systems at home which can‘t be used. :(

You can restrict the stream quality to HD/Ultra HD by grouping a non-Atmos capable speaker.

Userlevel 7
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Hi @Lars1425 

I’ve no further information to share at this time - which is not unusual. We tend not to share progress or provide dates, as it can cause more consternation than it’s worth.

Thanks though - it’s enough to know you’re aware and onto it tbh.

Userlevel 1
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I wonder if it's because mine is the Arc SL so it doesn't have Alexa. I have tried every way that I could think possible to add it with no success.

 

@XtremeAdd alexa to your Sonos system even if you don't have voice enabled speakers and Amazon music direct control will work just fine. The reason for this is, the Amazon music app needs the Sonos skill installed for Amazon music direct control to work. See: https://support.sonos.com/s/article/3549

 

@Lars1425I would not expect a “fix” for this. Why? Because imho nothing is broken. Atmos is a different format, sounding different to normal music (always will) and that's just that, technically not an “issue”, not a bug, it's a feature. To me it looks normal behavior and logically that can be reproduced.

 

The workarounds mentioned here all have in common to avoid the Atmos content. If you can group other speakers to your Soundbar that's an easy one. If the Sonos App allowed to disable Atmos for Amazon music or change quality with a button for example, we would have another workaround.

Sorry, I was referring to the post made by @Horde , to see if they had provided additional hard data to Sonos, in case it helped them track down what the issue is. My post was not in response to you. 

No I haven’t. It sounded like they had data from other users so didn’t seem to be needed, IMO.

Understood, although I’m of the opinion that more data is better, as there’s no guaranty that your issue is exactly the same as someone else’s. The symptoms may match, sure, but the cause can be, at times, completely different. The joys of networking, I’m afraid.