Another Playbase user with WiFi problems

Firstly, I’d suggest you generate a diagnostics report and contact Sonos to see whether a problem shows up and whether they can offer a resolution. But if your wifi and network are the same environment, I would have thought the Playbase can be used for streaming sources, music library, etc? 

Thanks Nik. My wifi network is created by a MESH system which is connected to the same router but anything connected directly to the modem/router is outside this MESH-created wifi network (the router creates a separate wifi network). It’s possible I could set up the MESH as a repeater which might solve the problem but there are other reasons I don’t want to do this. I really need wifi connectivity from the Playbase to get full functionality.   

Hi.  Which mesh system?  Does the primary mesh device have an Ethernet LAN port?  Which device is acting as the DHCP server?  Is the router WiFi network really still running alongside the mesh WiFi?

Maybe your Playbase has a faulty WiFI card.  Or maybe your network is set up sub-optimally.

Thanks John - It’s a Deco Mesh. The primary has an ethernet port but I need to use that to hardwire one of the remote Deco units. The main wifi and DHCP comes from the Deco system. Yes, the router wifi is still running - I use it occasionally. The router/modem is a Zyxel VMG8623 for the record. If I connect the playbase to the Zyxel router via ethernet and connect to the Zyxel’s wifi I can then see the playbase alright, but that’s not very practical, and it means it’s on a separate system to my other Sonos speakers around the house (all of which connect to the Mesh network). I could of course connect the entire system to the Zyxel wifi but that is not practical either. What I want is for the Playbase wifi to work! 

I ran a diagnostic on the playbase btw - 1413646936. Where am I supposed to send this exactly?

What I think you should do (and what everybody else does) is turn WiFi and DHCP off on the router, wire a Sonos device (might as well be the Playbase for you) to the primary mesh device (using a cheap unmanaged Ethernet switch if more ports are needed) and connect everything to the mesh.

I say everyone - I mean almost al those who don’t go down the alternative route of putting the mesh into bridge mode.  You seem to have a halfway house that creates unnecessary problems for Sonos.

Thanks John - I realise I can do what you suggest but why is this the best solution?

I’m not aware that the Zyxel wifi or its DHCP is interfering in any way with the Mesh. The main Deco unit needs the router and its DHCP to get the internet connection. The mesh then uses its own DHCP to connect clients - its setup is entirely within the Deco recommendations.

The Playbase is supposed to have wifi connectivity and it doesn’t work. I don’t want it to be hardwired. I don’t understand how my setup creates problems for the playbase?

You may need to keep the DHCP on the router just for the primary DECO, which I assume is wired to the router. But if the router WIFi is still on, what stops other devices picking up an IP address from the router? What stops the Playbase getting  an Ip address from there?

Where is your controller device getting its IP address? To which WiFi signal is it connecting?

For Sonos to work all speakers and controllers must be on the same subnet. How are you ensuring this with 2 DHCP servers and 2 WiFis running? 

No other devices can pick up an IP address from the router wifi because it’s password protected and only I know the password.

In addition to that, what stops the playbase getting its IP from the router WIFI is the fact that the playbase wifi does not appear to be working. 😉

The controller normally connects via the mesh wifi. The whole home network is off the mesh.

However I’ll have a go at turning off the router wifi and see if that makes any difference to the playbase’s ability to connect to the Mesh (not optimistic!)

So which wifi credentials are currently in your Sonos system?