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Sonos Playlists pointing to ML content will not play from mobile Apps

Forum|Forum|1 year ago
June 29, 2025
6 replies
437 views

So many frustrating things since the Sonos app debacle. While some aspects of the S2 app have slowly gotten better, on my iMac using the Sonos Desktop Controller I can call up and play Sonos playlists (all of which were created on my iMac), however they will not play using the S2 controller on my IOS or Android devices even though the playlist icon shows on the S2 controller. It spins for a while and that’s it. Note if I search the music library for songs within the playlists I can play the individual songs. Do others have this same experience and what, if any, remedies exist for this problem. Please note that I do not use any Sonos speakers. My system is composed only of Ports, Sonos Connects, Amps and Connect Amps. Thank you.

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Best answer by Corry P

Hi @FRANKANTHONY

Thanks for the additional information - I understand the issue better now.

I just now tried creating a Sonos playlist pointing to Music Library tracks on my own system. I first did so from my Android phone, and I was able to create and play the playlist without issue. I then removed all presence of it and tried again using the Desktop controller for Windows - again, I was able to create a Sonos playlist pointing to ML content, and was able to play said playlist from both the Desktop app and the Android app.

I did create and test a playlist with over 100 items, so the issue you are seeing does not appear to be related to the size of the playlist.

So, I am unable to recreate your issue.

Given that you have already been through unsuccessful troubleshooting, I suspect that things may improve for you if you were to recreate said playlist from scratch using either controller. You can first test with a few songs as I did - if a small playlist works as expected, try recreating the full one. Note that to do so, all you need do is load the playlist to a speaker’s queue in the desktop app and then click on Save Queue to save it as another playlist. Deleting the original will ensure you do not mix them up.

I hope this helps.

Corry P

Sonos Staff

Hi @FRANKANTHONY

Welcome back to the Sonos Community!

Sorry to hear about this issue you are having with playing playlists on your iOS or Android controllers.

You mentioned Sonos playlists, but also mention Music Library - are your playlists in the library, and made by the Apple Music (or iTunes) app on your iMac? If so, they are not Sonos playlists (which is an important distinction).

They should still play from all controllers regardless of this, to be clear. I have no problem with playing my own imported playlists, but they were not created by Apple.

If they are playlists made by the Apple Music or iTunes apps, when was the last time you exported them from the relevant application (usually as an xml file)?

I’ve asked a few questions here, but my recommendation to you is that 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.

I hope this helps.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein

F

FRANKANTHONYAuthor

Trending Lyricist I

To be clear, each individual song in the playlists to which I am referring was downloaded music which I purchased (e.g., in mp3 or flac format) and stored in my NAS drive to which Sonos is connected. Within Sonos I added each song from my Music Library (not a music streaming service) to the queue and then saved the list of songs in the queue in its entirety at that time as a named Sonos Playlist, and it is not an imported playlist. So, each playlist I have in my Sonos desktop Sonos app comes from individual songs in my Sonos Music Library. Accordingly, if I search in my Sonos Music Library for a particular individual song in any playlist, I can find that song and play it individually from any device, including my iPhone, my iPad, my galaxy tablet or my Mac OS Desktop Controller. But while I see the Sonos playlist name in my Sonos app on any device, the Sonos Playlist will only play from the Sonos desktop controller. This could all be done in the Sonos S2 app before the new (but not improved) Sonos app was launched. Done it from when Sonos components first became available including on the proprietary controllers and on IOS devices when they became available. Oh, and I spent over 1 ½ hours with a Sonos Level 1 tech doing all of the step by step troubleshooting (rebooting each component, deleting and reinstalling a Sonos S2 app on an iPad, rebooting our router, giving him the name and model of my modem and my router and submitting diagnostics, all to no avail.

Corry PAnswer

Sonos Staff

Hi @FRANKANTHONY

Thanks for the additional information - I understand the issue better now.

I just now tried creating a Sonos playlist pointing to Music Library tracks on my own system. I first did so from my Android phone, and I was able to create and play the playlist without issue. I then removed all presence of it and tried again using the Desktop controller for Windows - again, I was able to create a Sonos playlist pointing to ML content, and was able to play said playlist from both the Desktop app and the Android app.

I did create and test a playlist with over 100 items, so the issue you are seeing does not appear to be related to the size of the playlist.

So, I am unable to recreate your issue.

Given that you have already been through unsuccessful troubleshooting, I suspect that things may improve for you if you were to recreate said playlist from scratch using either controller. You can first test with a few songs as I did - if a small playlist works as expected, try recreating the full one. Note that to do so, all you need do is load the playlist to a speaker’s queue in the desktop app and then click on Save Queue to save it as another playlist. Deleting the original will ensure you do not mix them up.

I hope this helps.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein

frlegends

Lyricist I

@FRANKANTHONY where can we get these mobile apps for playing?

H

harrie05715

Lyricist III

Here’s the best plain text solution: If Sonos playlists linked to music library (ML) content won’t play from the mobile app: Reindex music library – In the Sonos app, update/reindex your library so playlists can find the correct file paths. Check path differences – Playlists created on desktop may use local PC paths that mobile apps can’t resolve. Recreate playlists inside Sonos to ensure universal access. Verify network share – Make sure the NAS/PC hosting your music library is powered on and accessible from all devices. Update apps & firmware – Keep both the Sonos system and mobile app updated to the latest version. Test playback – Try playing a single track from the library via mobile. If that works but the playlist doesn’t, the playlist itself needs rebuilding.

Root issue: mobile apps can’t follow local/PC-specific paths in playlists.

Fix: rebuild playlists directly within Sonos or reindex with correct network paths.

H

heptichay

Contributor I

@FRANKANTHONY

I’m running into the same issue with Sonos playlists that contain media library content. Anything added from my local library shows up fine inside the app, but as soon as I try to play it from the mobile app, it either hangs or refuses to start. Streaming services play normally, so the problem seems specific to ML-based playlist entries.

I’ve already tried the usual steps (refreshing the library index, rebooting the speakers, reinstalling the app, and checking network permissions), but the playlists still won’t play reliably from mobile. It feels like the app isn’t pulling the local library path correctly or losing access when triggered from a playlist.

If anyone has found a fix—maybe a setting change, path update, or something on Sonos S2—please share. This is getting a bit frustrating because my library-based playlists used to work without any issues.

Hope this helps highlight the problem.

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