Compression Settings on Windows

  • 11 October 2018
  • 17 replies
  • 762 views

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Why has the compression settings gone from the new Windows App? I can't find the "advanced" section anywhere! I used this all the time as i suffer from drop out when streaming music from my PC to other rooms, turning on compression helps with this, and I switch it back to uncompressed when watching youtube video etc on PC, as there is a delay when compression is on....

It's still there on the phone app, but not the Windows version!?

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17 replies

Please see this thread
https://en.community.sonos.com/announcements-228985/updates-to-the-desktop-controller-coming-soon-6813300/index1.html

BUT.... when you say you are streaming music from your PC, you presumably mean via a line-in? Because the compression setting only affects the audio through a line-in. But are you playing your music files that way, as well as YouTube audio? If so you are causing yourself unnecessary grief.
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I have a local iTunes library of 10,000 songs on my PC that i play rather that Spotify, Amazon etc, via a connect connect to my PC sound card, which is connected to my PC speakers and then the connect is grouped through my sono systems. So it's not unncessary grief...

The compression settings affect everything coming out of the PCs sound card and through the Sonos connect....
You get dropouts and are forced to use compressed setting, when you could play these tracks without using a line in, with its inefficiencies and relative instability. I would describe that as unnecessary grief, but if you are happy that's all good.
And of course it affects everything coming out of the PC sound card, as it is all going through the line in. It's just that 99.9999% of Sonos users with a local library don't play their library that way.
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My library it too big to play it through the sonos system, so it HAS to be through the line in. It just doesn't work with libraries that large, believe me I've tried. So, I don't have a choice. Most users don't have a local library as large as that, so therefore they don't have a problem...

Though to be honest, I find the ways of playing the local library through the sonos app clunky at best...

I've been using it this way for 4 years, and it's never been even close to unstable....aside from the dropping out, which the compression fixed...it's been seemless.
You should take a look at the Plex option. It allows for larger libraries. Not sure how it is on clunkiness, I don't use it myself.
The track limit is 65000 and I have a similar size library to you. But we all have our own preferences.
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Funilly enough, I just downloaded Plex the other day, for video streaming to my smart TV. I did find it a bit basic, which is fine for video, but I use my music collection differently, with lots of playlists and artwork and etc, so it suits me fine as it is to be honest. If I have to use the app to change the compression settings, it's not the end of the world. Just annoying that thay are taking features out of the desktop version. A bit silly really
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4 years ago the track limit must have been much less than that, as I tried to set it up like that when I first got my first sonos and it just wasn't having it. Granted, I haven't bothered to try it since...
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Actually, I've just realised that that's 10,000 albums not songs, my songs is 63,254 currently, so I'm dangerously close to that limit anyways...
Seven replies, can anybody answer the question? Where is the compression settings, are they actually gone??
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Yes it’s gone from the PC version. It’s on the App version only. 😠
Seven replies, can anybody answer the question? Where is the compression settings, are they actually gone??This was answered by my first post. If you click the link you will see 'line in settings' listed as removed.
Yeah I figured it out. Nice and direct way to answer the simple question. It's super rich that you attack this guy for using the compression feature. It's absolutely insane they did this and I am ultra-pissed that I cant change compression settings on my surface, they need to fix this or I'm rethinking my setup.
BUT.... when you say you are streaming music from your PC, you presumably mean via a line-in? Because the compression setting only affects the audio through a line-in. But are you playing your music files that way, as well as YouTube audio? If so you are causing yourself unnecessary grief.

Are you talking on the behalf of Sonos? If yes, I find your reply quite disrespectful to customers.

And if no, this is your opinion and I can respect it. But we are a few here to disagree with you. iTunes is my library for more that 15 years now (> 30 K tunes) and it allows me to listen to my music the way I want using categories, playlists, smart playlists, comments, search, etc. I don't always like the way it evolved over the years but, fortunately, most of the its orignal features set has been preserved.

This is what I expect from a software developer: improve existing features, add new features, BUT keep existing features.

And I'm listening to my iTunes library from my computer as well as many other sources of sound, all this using the line-in with audio compression just because it is required if I want to play it in some other rooms.

I don't see any acceptable reason for having removed the compression option from the Windows app (especially since this option is still available in the app!). If it was because compression would not be required anymore (let's dream), I would understand. But, in my setup, audio compression is needed.

If I could suggest a change (why not), it would be to make this option more easily accessible. But, for now, I'll have to do it a much longer way using my iPhone...
Sonos representatives are clearly marked. John B is just a user, like you or I, albeit a very knowledgeable user.
@jgatie: Thanks for the precision.

@John B: Sorry for the tone of my message. Because I was upset by the Sonos decision from Sonos, I replied unfairly to your message.