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Sonos S2 system not working well


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I upgraded my Sonos system to S2 a few weeks ago.  I have one Sonos Beam and two Sonos Play:1 speakers.  A complicating factor is that I also switched to a new router a couple of weeks prior to the update, but the system seemed to be working well prior to the software upgrade to S2.

 

Since the upgrade to S2, the connectivity to my speakers over the Sonos Mac OS X app has been very shoddy.  On many occcasions, one or more speakers will not appear on the menu.  Sometimes I will see the speaker on the menu, but when I attempt to play music I have difficulty getting a song to start.  There are some occasions when the system seems to work, but it seems sporadic. Additionally, my ability to use my Sonos speakers directly from the Spotify application has essentially ceased.

 

Please help!

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Best answer by benjamindm 4 October 2020, 00:53

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Userlevel 5
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Hi @benjamindm.

Thanks for reaching out and welcome to the community!

Sorry to hear about it, let me help you on figuring this out.

 

There are many potential causes when the speakers are dropping out of the system (Wireless interference, Gateway issue, Source issue, service issue, etc ).

This can cause audio interruptions during playback and with the Sonos performance as well.

 

If you’re having trouble using direct control, and your Sonos is not showing as the target device, I suggest trying the following steps:

 

Step 1 - Update both apps

  • Update the music service (Spotify) app and the Sonos app. Only the latest app versions work with Sonos
  • Please confirm that no updates are available and bot app are using the latest software version.

Step 2 - Ensure that Cloud Connections are active

  • In order for Sonos speakers to be discovered, they need to have established network connections.

Step 3 - Confirm the Sonos app displays all rooms

  • If the Sonos App can't see the Rooms, the Direct Control App won't work.

Step 4 - Please confirm that the device is on the same network as Sonos

  • It’s not uncommon for a mobile device to be streaming off of the cellular network.
  • Connect the device to the correct WiFi and test Direct Control.   

 

If the issue persists, kindly please submit a diagnostic report through the Mac’s Sonos app, and reply with the confirmation number.

I'd be glad to review your system further and it will also help in identifying what's causing the issue.

 

Let me know how it goes and if you have any other questions or run into any issues, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Userlevel 4
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Hi @benjamindm.

Thanks for reaching out and welcome to the community!

Sorry to hear about it, let me help you on figuring this out.

 

There are many potential causes when the speakers are dropping out of the system (Wireless interference, Gateway issue, Source issue, service issue, etc ).

This can cause audio interruptions during playback and with the Sonos performance as well.

 

If you’re having trouble using direct control, and your Sonos is not showing as the target device, I suggest trying the following steps:

 

Step 1 - Update both apps

  • Update the music service (Spotify) app and the Sonos app. Only the latest app versions work with Sonos
  • Please confirm that no updates are available and bot app are using the latest software version.

Step 2 - Ensure that Cloud Connections are active

  • In order for Sonos speakers to be discovered, they need to have established network connections.

Step 3 - Confirm the Sonos app displays all rooms

  • If the Sonos App can't see the Rooms, the Direct Control App won't work.

Step 4 - Please confirm that the device is on the same network as Sonos

  • It’s not uncommon for a mobile device to be streaming off of the cellular network.
  • Connect the device to the correct WiFi and test Direct Control.   

 

If the issue persists, kindly please submit a diagnostic report through the Mac’s Sonos app, and reply with the confirmation number.

I'd be glad to review your system further and it will also help in identifying what's causing the issue.

 

Let me know how it goes and if you have any other questions or run into any issues, please do not hesitate to reach out.

This is such a BS response. So many people are having major problems with S2 who had no problems with the old Sonos app.

Stop wasting people’s time telling them it is a problem at their end when quite obviously S2 is absolutely riddled with bugs. A big steaming pile of 💩 

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I am also having major issues with S2.  I have sat down with support for hours and submitted hundreds of diagnostics, but there is no issue to be found on my end.  In fact there were no issues until the exact moment I upgraded to S2.  

The irony is I’m a huge Sonos fan when it works.  And, like you, I want to provide my honest feedback to the vendor so the product is improved.  

*S2 is not just a new iphone app, it is a new OS and a completely new Sonos platform.*

Sonos should be listening to us instead of sending trolls to arrogantly minimize a real and growing issue.

IMHO they should’ve put S2 in tech preview for longer so the bugs could get shaken out by people that are willing to put up with them.  

My humble opinions!

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I am also having major issues with S2.  I have sat down with support for hours and submitted hundreds of diagnostics, but there is no issue to be found on my end.  In fact there were no issues until the exact moment I upgraded to S2.  

The irony is I’m a huge Sonos fan when it works.  And, like you, I want to provide my honest feedback to the vendor so the product is improved.  

*S2 is not just a new iphone app, it is a new OS and a completely new Sonos platform.*

Sonos should be listening to us instead of sending trolls to arrogantly minimize a real and growing issue.

IMHO they should’ve put S2 in tech preview for longer so the bugs could get shaken out by people that are willing to put up with them.  

My humble opinions!

Definitely. And they should have always allowed downgrading, and given the monumental balls up that S2 has turned out to be, they should allow that now as a priority until they can get their act together.

To put this another way, perhaps in terms that management might take notice: 

I had been seriously considering buying a Sub and/or some other Sonos products to add to my system. There is NO WAY I’ll be spending any more money on Sonos kit until this is sorted. Why would I? I’d be crazy to plough hundreds of £££ into something that doesn’t really work anymore. 

Userlevel 5
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Hi @RobinP  and @PrescottGoggins.

Thanks for the response and for the feedback.

Having these issues isn’t exclusively with just the S2 app, it can happen even before the S2 updates.

Most of the time, it is an IP address related issue after an update.

There can be many reasons for this but a common cause is duplicate IP addresses within your home network. 

Something to try that has helped a lot of folks is to refresh your local network:

  • Unplug all your Sonos devices.
  • Reboot your router.
  • Give the router a couple of minutes to come back up, then plug back in your Sonos devices.
  • Give them a couple of minutes to reboot and reconnect as well, then test. 

 

To prevent it, try to reserve an IP address within your router settings for all permanent devices.

This ensures that a device is never just allocated to the next IP address that the router ‘thinks’ is free.

 

While we don’t recommend downgrading your products to S1 after updating to S2, it is possible to downgrade.

An existing Sonos product running S1 software is required to downgrade an S2 product back to S1.

Note that all settings and preferences will be lost when downgrading a product from S2 to S1.

For more information, kindly refer to this article.

 

Let me know how it goes and if you have any other questions or run into any issues, please do not hesitate to reach out.

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So the solution to the major balls up is to find an old product and buy it so that a new system can be set up in order to downgrade? Why not just make it possible? And don’t tell me “it isn’t possible” because quite clearly it could be if Sonos management wanted it to be. 
 

Regarding your point about IP addresses. I’ve basically dismantled and reassembled my entire network over the last month or so trying to resolve this. Please don’t try to belittle this by telling me it is my network at fault. It isn’t. 
 

The evidence is widespread. S2 was not ready for prime time, was released with no fall back available and then the rug was pulled out from under many of us by abruptly and without warning stopping twitter support.

 

Userlevel 5
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Hi @RobinP.

Thanks for the immediate response.

I totally understand and I'll switch this thread over to an idea for you, that way people can follow the status in case there is any news in the future. 

 

If you have any other questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Userlevel 2

Totally agree with the comments above.

  1. No, we don’t have any wireless issues, I have three unifi access points in my setup and it’s working as it should, signal to the speaker is at 99% (-44 dBm). I have also done a wireless survey and selected the optimal (3) channels.
  2. No, we not have IP Address issues, it’s been sitting on the same IP address for months, 4ms ping times to devices. There is no IP conflicts.
  3. These issues did not exist with S1

Please stop giving out canned responses, there are serious issues with S2. Please fix it

 

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I have submitted a diagnostic.  Confirmation number 915306443.

In the interval period since I wrote the originally post, I have noticed that turning my router off and on SOMETIMES fixes the issue, but mostly, my Sonos rooms and speakers pop out of being available, both on the Sonos app and Spotify Direct Control, without any rhyme or reason that I can discern.  Continually frustrating.

Userlevel 5
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Hi @mike-uk.

Thanks for reaching out and for bringing up your concern to our attention.

I appreciate your feedback and I’d be glad to help, our Engineers are continuously working and closely monitoring the app to take action when there’s a need for improvement.

It’s also important to check a couple of things on your local system to see if you are actually running into trouble somewhere else. 

Can you please submit a diagnostic report through the Sonos app, and reply with the confirmation number, it can help us identify what is causing the issue.

 

If you have any other questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Userlevel 5
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Hi @benjamindm.

Thanks for your response and for your effort in getting the diagnostic.

Upon checking the diagnostic report, symptoms indicative of interference have been detected on the Sonos components.

I see that the Mac controller is connected on the 5Ghz Wifi network, can you try to connect it to 2.4Ghz where Sonos system was set.

Also, the wireless channel of Sonos looks congested, I suggest the following steps:

  • Change the router/AP's wireless channel to a different channel (1,6 and 11 are non-overlapping channels).

  • If the router/AP uses automatic channel assignment,  turn off the auto channel and try to manually set it.
  • Wait 3 minutes and get a new diagnostic.
  • Test it and please observe if the issue will persist.

 

Let me know how it goes and if you have any other questions or run into any issues, please do not hesitate to reach out.

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Does this mean that I have to be on the 2.4GHz (slower) network to use Sonos?

All Sonos devices, save the Move, connect to a 2.4Ghz (further, better wall penetration) network. 

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Right, but does my laptop have to also be on the 2.4Ghz network?

Depends on your router, actually. Some seem to block signals across the two bands, but most don’t. You could easily just test, and maybe read the router’s manual to see there’s a setting for that. 

Userlevel 2

Add me to the group with lag and dropouts since moving to the new App. Please fix this!! I already have all my sonos using reserved IP’s.

Add me to the group with lag and dropouts since moving to the new App. Please fix this!! I already have all my sonos using reserved IP’s.

Every time there is an app update, a vanishingly small, miniscule proportion of the Sonos user base comes on the forum and says 'the update is full of bugs'. It never is. S2 is working fine for me and the many other friends and family who have Sonos systems. 

If it was inherently full of bugs then we would all be having problems. We aren't . QED.

Userlevel 2

are you out of your mind with that response? I’ve been a network admin for 25 years, I know it’s not my network. We’re all having the exact same issues after upgrading. How dare you come and piss all over our issues just because yours works fine. You're the worst kinda internet troll. Piss off, there is a problem with the app update %100. going from S1 to S2. I’m listening to constant dropouts and the app itself slow down and locks up.

Userlevel 2

Thanks @Annazel S 

Diagnostic: 1138041335

 

@benjamindm - It won’t matter whether your PC/MAC controller is connected to 2.4/5Ghz or wired.

The issue I’m seeing with S2 isn’t in the controls but it’s the communications between the speakers. 

You can try using a S2 client on your phone when the speakers drop off on your Mac Client, chances are it won’t be on there either.

are you out of your mind with that response? I’ve been a network admin for 25 years, I know it’s not my network. We’re all having the exact same issues after upgrading. How dare you come and piss all over our issues just because yours works fine. You're the worst kinda internet troll. Piss off, there is a problem with the app update %100. going from S1 to S2. I’m listening to constant dropouts and the app itself slow down and locks up.

In my long experience on this forum providing helpful advice (not trolling) I have learned that someone being in netwrk admin makes it less likely, not more likely, that they will be correct about the nature of the problem.  I am not p***ing on your problems either - just pointing out that ff you don’t tackle whatever is causing the problems you are experiencing, but just call on Sonos to ‘fix’ it, you are never gong to find a solution.

And for a start, the app is just a remote control, so what you are doing if you blame the app update is the equivalent of blaming your TV remote because there is a problem with your  TV. 

So @bluezapfel , if you want to tell us about your network and Sonos set up, there are people on here ready to try to help - with no guarantee of course.  Mesh or conventional?  Access points, extenders, EoP?  Wifi or SonosNet?

Userlevel 2

Of course I'll help, that's why I spent the time to post.

I have an Orbi with 3 satellites, one  being an outdoor satellite. I have three play 1, one play 3,  one play 5, with  the sub connected to it and now Sonos move.

when I got the Sonos move I upgraded from s1 to S2. And that's when all the problems started. I had no issues before going to S2.  And it makes no sense to me why upgrading the app has started causing dropouts and lag issues. But it did. I don't know what their app does and how it communicates and configures all the speakers and keeps them in sync etc. 

Hi. The app does none of that, the system does, and in the same way S1 did.

First question.  Do you have any Sonos device wired to your network, or does everything connect via WiFi?

Second question. It is pure Orbi, no other router involved?

Userlevel 2

Yes just Orbi, all wifi. 

OK. Now please bumour me even if you don't see the sense in this. Take one of your Sonos speakers and connect it by Ethernet to your router, even if it means moving it from where you want it, just as an experiment. Don't place it right next to the router - leave a 3 foot distance if possible.

Then go into the Sonos app Settings, System, Network, Wireless Setup and remove (reset) your network SSID and password from Sonos. 

Wait a couple of minutes then look in the app to see if all speakers are present. Any that are not, power them off and on.

Can you fix the 2.4GHz channel on Orbi or does it have to be automatic? If you can fix it, choose 1, 6 or 11 then make sure Sonos is on a different channel. ( in Network Settings).

Basically I am switching you to a SonosNet setup. What surprises me is not that you are having problems with S2 but that you didn't have problems with the old app and system. 

Please give it a try and see if stability improves.