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Question

WMAL & WABC "not encoded properly" + iHeartRadio authorization failure — started June 21/22

  • June 22, 2026
  • 2 replies
  • 8 views

Long-time Sonos user here, with a significant investment in Sonos speakers. Everything was working fine as recently as Friday June 19. As of this weekend, I'm dealing with multiple simultaneous failures:

Issue 1 — Radio stations fail with "the song is not encoded properly"
Both WMAL (105.9 FM, Washington DC) and WABC (770 AM, New York) fail to play with the "not encoded properly" error. I've tried both iHeartRadio and TuneIn as the source — same error on both. Spotify streams perfectly, so this is not a network or Wi-Fi issue.

Issue 2 — iHeartRadio authorization completely broken
After attempting to remove and re-add iHeartRadio as a service, I now cannot even authenticate. The OAuth flow fails immediately before I can enter any credentials, showing: "There was a problem authorizing your account. Please check your internet connection. Select back and try to authorize your account again." My internet connection is fine — Spotify and everything else works.

Issue 3 — Mac app update failing with Error 1101
The Mac desktop Sonos app is also refusing to update, throwing Error 1101.

All three issues started simultaneously over the weekend following what appears to have been a phased rollout reaching my system. I notice the May 2026 app update included TuneIn migration changes — I suspect that rollout hitting my system this weekend may be the trigger.

Has anyone else experienced this combination of issues starting this weekend? Any fixes short of contacting support?

2 replies

Stanley_4
  • Grand Maestro
  • June 22, 2026

The usual recommendation that fixes so many issues.

Power down ALL Sonos, reboot the router and controller, then power up your Sonos. 


MoPac
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  • Headliner III
  • June 22, 2026

Both WABC & WMAL work here.  I’m in the US.  Too many commercials. Think I’ll pass.