Question

Simply want it to play next track


Is it me or can sonos not do something basic like play next track. If I select a track in an album, playlist etc. It just plays that track and doesn't continue to play the next tracks. What's that about?

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61 replies

Userlevel 6
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The only way to do that at the moment is by clicking 'All Songs' at the top, click Play Now and then select the song you want to start from in the queue.
Userlevel 2
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I second the original comment. In most music apps, if you select a song in the middle of an album, it will automatically play the rest of the album when the song is over. With Sonos, if I want to listen to the second half of an album, I need to play "all songs" and then fast forward through the next songs. Sonos should know when I pick a song from an album view and play the rest of the album.
Userlevel 7
Badge +26
There are several threads on this topic where we've talked about this in depth so I'll share some of the main details here for you. This thread is asking for a similar feature, though starting with tracks played from a playlist

A big factor to remember here is that Sonos is designed with multiple controllers all functioning at the same time in mind. If you start playing music on your phone, you can change or add tracks with your computer, and then stop or add rooms to it with your tablet. We are constantly trying to improve the control experience, to make it even easier to have your music playing in your home, any room, from the most likely controller you have at hand.

Any controller should be able to control your system at any time. To make this happen, all controllers connect directly with the players themselves for status on what's going on within them. This is why there's a play queue, a list of the tracks queued up within the players. The queue is stored on the players containing the list of the one or many sources (multiple computers or music services) the tracks are coming from.

If you use your phone to tell Sonos to play a track off of an album, that track gets added to the queue for all to see. This is in part so other controllers can manage what's playing too. The queue is core to a lot of functionality and versatility with the system.

The Album view, or any other browsing section within the music library or service listing is independent to the controller you're working with. When you select a track from there to play, that controller sends the information of where the track is located (service listing or locally stored) and it's added to the queue. Other controllers only see that file added to the queue, as they don't know where your other controller is currently browsing within the app.

There's an Idea thread here on getting rid of the queue which you can take a look at too. Any change to this would likely involve a very significant change to the core Sonos playback process and coding. I'm happy to share your suggestion and interest with our development team too, they like hearing all your feedback.

This post got a little long, so my apologies if I went too far into the explanation. Let me know if you have any questions. 
Userlevel 2
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Well how about changing the app so that if you've selected a song from an album or a playlist in a music service, Sonos could automatically queue up the remainder of the album or playlist? It would solve this problem without reinventing the queue.
Userlevel 7
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Well how about changing the app so that if you've selected a song from an album or a playlist in a music service, Sonos could automatically queue up the remainder of the album or playlist? It would solve this problem without reinventing the queue.
That would be a way to work in what you're looking to accomplish, but it would cause trouble if you're trying to make a queue with just specific songs. It might require adding more options and buttons, you might need something along the lines of "Add just this track" and "Add this track and those below it" when you go to select a track. There's a careful balancing act that takes place all the time to keep things easy to use but still having the most functionality possible.

I've made sure to share your interest on continuous play with the development team so they can look into it. We keep future development for software and hardware private, so I don't have any news to share, but the development team loves hearing suggestions.
Userlevel 7
Badge +22
Well how about changing the app so that if you've selected a song from an album or a playlist in a music service, Sonos could automatically queue up the remainder of the album or playlist? It would solve this problem without reinventing the queue.
How about work as it does now but if you hold down the song and bring up options there is an option call "play album from here forward" or "play playlist from here forward". Just another option in the dialog.
Userlevel 7
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Well how about changing the app so that if you've selected a song from an album or a playlist in a music service, Sonos could automatically queue up the remainder of the album or playlist? It would solve this problem without reinventing the queue.
P.s. I prefer a queue well above the way other players work. A big "don't like" to the remove queue idea thread.
Well how about changing the app so that if you've selected a song from an album or a playlist in a music service, Sonos could automatically queue up the remainder of the album or playlist? It would solve this problem without reinventing the queue.
Agree with Chris. Please let us have the choice to "Play from here" from an Album or more important an playlist. About your queue system, not all users like this "always to add to queue" functionality. But why not keep the foundation as it is, but add a choice in the settings to select between default behavior "as it is now" and "play listed songs from here". Of corse, they are first added to the end of queue but this info doesn't need to be in the text showed for the users. The dialog view for More must then adapt and view appropriate options depending of the setting. Could this work?
Userlevel 1
Well how about changing the app so that if you've selected a song from an album or a playlist in a music service, Sonos could automatically queue up the remainder of the album or playlist? It would solve this problem without reinventing the queue.
I'd love to see "Play from here".
I also agree that a setting for "default click action" would give users flexibility that they seem to be asking for.
Userlevel 7
Badge +17
Well how about changing the app so that if you've selected a song from an album or a playlist in a music service, Sonos could automatically queue up the remainder of the album or playlist? It would solve this problem without reinventing the queue.
I agree that I prefer to keep the queue concept.  However I would like to see a choice (tickbox) above the menu options 'Play Now, Play Next, Add to Queue' etc which gives the choice 'This Track Only' and 'From This Track Forward'

something like this:


'This track forward' would add the track and all those after it from album/playlist/search etc with the appropriate menu option. 

In the Settings the user could indicate what the default setting should be on their system (or maybe controller).

Simples !
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I fully support the "This track forward" idea!
My vote is to keep the Queue as it is.

If you want to operate in the CD emulation mode, simply "Replace Queue" with your CD, then select the starting track.
There's an Idea thread here on getting rid of the queue which you can take a look at too.

Well, that's helpful - not...

"You are not authorized to access this page.
Sorry, you have no access to this page."
Userlevel 7
Badge +26
There's an Idea thread here on getting rid of the queue which you can take a look at too.

Well, that's helpful - not...

"You are not authorized to access this page.
Sorry, you have no access to this page."


That thread hadn't been categorized on the new community yet so the link wasn't working. It should be all set now.
I still get "You are not authorized to access this page.
Sorry, you have no access to this page."


I really hope we see some improvement to the queue handling and also which track it plays. I would appreciate it playing from the actual play-lists within the Spotify part of the Sonos app.
Userlevel 7
Badge +26
I still get "You are not authorized to access this page.
Sorry, you have no access to this page."


If it's still not working it should forward you here: https://en.community.sonos.com/controllers-software-228995/get-rid-the-queue-5652422
"This Track Forward" makes perfect sense as an extra line option when you click and hold the track. Right now I see
Play Now
Play Next
Add to Queue
Replace Queue
More ....

Should be very easy to insert an option between Play Now & Play Next - "Play This Track Forwards"

No big complex issues, surely?
Oh, & FWIW (perhaps not much, I have only been an owner for a short time!).....I don't think we should ask to remove the queue, it is a simple way to build a playlist as you go along!

thanks
Userlevel 7
Badge +21
To me, the simple solution is... select "All Tracks" at the top of the album listing or playlist, add everything in the album or playlist to the queue, then go to the queue and select the song you want to listen to. Voila, all is great, and you'll hear the rest of the album or playlist following that song. Yes, it's a couple more taps (unless you're using the Windows or Mac controller software), but I'll live.

I prefer the queue and am not a fan of the "select one song and play everything after it" mentality, especially for albums (for playlists, I can accept it since you're selecting a song from a list that you've created). There are plenty of times that I just want to hear one song and that's it.
MikeV - why does there have to be a fundamental choice (queue vs. play from here)? As consumers/fans we should Have the option to use either method. Should be strictly user pref. We are all right bc its our pref.

The steps you outlined, adding to queue etc., are just that additional STEPS. If I've done the "work" in Spotify to create my playlists, why should I essentially repeat those steps by adding to a queue?

There times when I feel like hearing a specific grouping of songs on my Spotify created playlist. This grouping may be 10 songs into the master playlist. Unless I take additional steps and add those songs to my sonos queue, I have to manually advance to the next song. So frustrating.
MikeV - why does there have to be a fundamental choice (queue vs. play from here)? As consumers/fans we should Have the option to use either method. Should be strictly user pref. We are all right bc its our pref.


Sonos was designed to use a queue. It is a fundamental element in the Sonos architecture. To give you the "option" to do it your way, they would have to completely redesign the entire system, and that's not going to happen. So though you may think it "right bc it is (y)our pref." (I got a 12 year old to translate that for me, btw!), reality is it is Sonos' design, and if it is not "right" for you, there are others out there which meet your needs (Airplay is one).
MikeV - why does there have to be a fundamental choice (queue vs. play from here)? As consumers/fans we should Have the option to use either method.

Really? Why? What other music playing software or hardware gives you that choice? I can't think of any and I've used quite a few.
Not exactly the same thing but in the Spotify app for IOS, you can pick a song anywhere on a playlist, when that songs ends the next one begins to play. Spotify also gives users the option of "add to Queue" from within a playlist or album. I've never used this function but I just looked and its listed.

My apologies. To clarify, I'm using the term "play from here" and the ability of a playlist to automatically advance as the same thing. I'd prefer that a "play from here" option wouldn't be needed (hence auto advance) but that seems like a popular solution on this thread.
Jgatie - Most "non-queue" proponents seem to be looking for one thing, if you pick a track halfway through a playlist, when that track ends, play the next track automatically. I have some experience, remember I'm only 12yrs old, in programming. The ability to automatically play the next track shouldn't undermine/destroy the supreme architecture of the entire Sonos system.

And Sonos SHOULD care what its customers want they are in business. Limiting options limits the ability of your product to reach all types of consumers. The ideology that "this is how we do it, don't like it find something else" is not a trait of a successful business. "Hey we only use light starch on shirts, you don't like it, find another dry cleaner".

It shocks me how big of deal this is. I don't want to take away your precious ability to use the queue feature, just automatically play the next song on a playlist no matter where I play my first track.
JonnyUtah, so what happens in your scheme when I just want to listen to one track and then decide what to do afterwards but I can't stop it carrying on playing the next track whether I want it to or not. That would drive me nuts, has done a few times in the paste in fact when djing and someone shoves an iPhone in my face and says "play this!", so I play it and instead of stopping at the end it carries on, infuriating!

Play from here makes sense, i don't have to use it but changing everything so it automatically follows on, end of story for me, the lot goes on eBay and I find something else to use, it's that much of a big deal for me.
Grear scenario, you don't like next song but it automatically plays, thus you need to pick up the device and either stop, or pick another track. This is what I have to do everytime I pick a song in the middle of a playlist. When that song ends, I've got to grab my device and select something else to play. So I COMPLETELY understand how frustrating it is.

To be clear, I think dropping the queue feature for what I prefer helps no one. It would make some happy and discourage others. We'd be in the same spot. I think both options should/are possible.

Going back to your frustration with auto playing next track, which could annoy me. Why can't you add that one track to your queue? That's what I'm being forced to do in this interface.