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Trending Lyricist I
December 6, 2019
Answered

My great Vinyl dilemma: the line in source level Bug and sonos lack of response

So I am ecstatic over using a new play 5 gen 2 as my sweet little hi fi compact setup in my bedroom for playing vinyl and digital there.  sonos does a better job translating vinyl to the digital realm and back than any other sub $1000 system.  I bought and returned a few, including the Bluesound.  play 5 gen 2 a BIG step up in SQ.  

But I now have a 2 month problem that Sonos is aware of and won’t fix.  my turntable has always had better than cd fidelity at source level set to level 9.  well now level 9 is with a bug and won’t work.  levels 1-8 work fine, but at a cost of lower fidelity from the digital volume reduction, making it pointless to spin records.  yes, level 10 is still operative, but only if you select 9.  selecting 10 leaves you at the last level you were on.  thus 9 is now skipped altogether.  the end result is if you toggle from 8 to 9, what is really happening is (listening) you are going from 8 to 10.  closing app and reopening verifies all this.

why the big deal?  because level 10 distorts with my albums and 8 or less sacrifices fidelity.  this all started about 2 months ago.

so...I have emailed and called Sonos REPEATEDLY about this problem.  they keep giving a standard line that it’s identified as a bug to fix and prioritized to fix it.  but after one month of calls and emails (they know me well now) nothing fixed.  finally in exasperation I asked for an engineer to call me.  after no less than 3 separate requests for this, finally a Kevin C. from software engineering calls me.  he’s very nice, but explains that he cannot divulge where the team is in the process.  he states essentially he’s not allowed.  when I stated that I just wanted to know if the bug will be fixed in a month or two more, he states he can’t tell me. when I asked if he can reassure me that it will EVER  get fixed, he states he cannot.

so I am going to the Community on this.  Is ANYONE else observing this bug and bothered by it enough to speak up here?  PLEASE POST HERE IF YOU FEEL THE WAY I DO ABOUT THIS BUG.  I clearly need a louder megaphone to move the needle on this issue.

Thanks to all!

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    Ryan S
    Ryan SAnswer
    Retired Sonos Staff
    December 6, 2019

    Hey Tlcocks, I just checked in for you with the team on that ticket and the status. It is still being investigated and worked on. I know it’s frustrating not having an ETA or not knowing what the exact status is, but those things can change and we don’t want to give an ETA that isn’t definite. The right team is on it, but they have other things on their plate as well. The support team will make sure to let you know when it’s resolved, but they can’t keep you updated with every change that the ticket goes through.

    Mark good posts by pressing the like button, and select the best answer on questions you've asked to help others find solutions.

    83 replies

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    December 13, 2019

    So the distortion on level 10 is mild and not constant. Also, I don’t have it for older albums recorded before the “volume wars” with all the compression etc used in latter day studios. Level Nine was a cd volume matched perfect level for my tt. 
    thanks again guys for your interest here. 
    briefly, yes, I think 24/96 high end dac playback has many advantages and sounds up to snuff with vinyl. Thanks God for Qobuz and Tidal!  Use em a lot. 

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    December 13, 2019

    From the aforementioned article:

     

    I love vinyl records, but I’m under no illusion when it comes to the compromises. On paper, digital is superior in almost every way from a technical standpoint. However, specifications can also be deceiving, and current mastering practices often lead to vinyl releases having greater dynamic range than their digital counterparts, which is ironic.

     

    couldnt agree more

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    December 26, 2019

    No resolution yet. Just keeping this post alive until Sonos fixes this bug. 

    Senior Virtuoso
    December 26, 2019

    I admire your optimism, if nothing else. Good luck. 

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    December 26, 2019

    Thanks. 
     

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    January 5, 2020

    My weekly post. No solution by Sonos to this simple bug verified in their lab yet. 😞

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    January 5, 2020

    Going on 3 MONTHS!

    jgatie
    January 5, 2020

    Going on 3 MONTHS!

     

    I assure you, even using an agile process, the software development, test, and release cycle is longer than 3 months.

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    January 5, 2020

    That’s the most useful info I’ve gotten yet. 
    thank you, jgatie😊

    TlcocksAuthor
    Trending Lyricist I
    January 13, 2020

    Weekly check in. Not solved yet. Know it may take a while, but just keeping this thread alive.