Sonos Amp and 3rd party subwoofer issue



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I purchased my Sonos Amp last weekend to connect to a Sony TV, 2 x B+W bookshelves and a B+W ASW610 sub. I read various posts to work out how to connect the sub and initially tried connecting via a split RCA. This gave me a weak, or non existent signal as described in a lot of posts in this thread. I was freaking out a bit. After reading about LFE channels, and re-reading my sub manual, I connected a single RCA from the amp to the left RCA input on the sub, which I think is the LFE input, and I switched off the low pass filter. It now works well in a surround set-up and puts out a lot of bass. I’m really enjoying the amp. The TV and Spotify sound great to me and I like the look of the amp. The app is really useful and I’ve found myself adjusting the sub level with the app which is really handy.

Just to provide some hope for people. I have the new Amp connected to an Energy sub and Mirage speakers. I’m not using it for TV. It’s all playing perfectly and the subwoofer is powering just fine.

I will say the line level is low and I had to the sub volume knob to about 75% and it’s all the way up in the Amp settings. 

It sounded good playing lighter rock music like Gin Blossoms and thumped when I put on In Da Club by fifty cent.

I've just submitted my ticket to support as well.  Hopefully there's an answer soon.  I'll update here if I get anything tangible.

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I am having the exact same issue as others have reported with a REL T/7i sub. No output at all from sub out on AMP. This sub works perfectly on another system. Diagnostic code is 1376304507. I took advantage of your upgrade offer and will have to return the AMP if it does not work with my third party sub. This seems like a serious design flaw. 

Hey, in order to get sound I need to turn the volume control on my sub way up, as well as turn the sub volume on the amp settings page in the Sonos app to +13. Just thought I would mention this in case you haven't tried both of these.  

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I am having the exact same issue as others have reported with a REL T/7i sub. No output at all from sub out on AMP. This sub works perfectly on another system. Diagnostic code is 1376304507. I took advantage of your upgrade offer and will have to return the AMP if it does not work with my third party sub. This seems like a serious design flaw. 

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Hi everyone, thanks for sharing your experiences with different devices and the Sonos Amp. We’re always interested in seeing what you have to say, and are eager to investigate any issues that might come up. Our engineering team has been looking into this issue and would love some more information. Currently, there isn't a major trend that has been identified, but they'd like to see some more cases where subwoofers and the Amp aren’t behaving as expected. 


If you’re having trouble with the Amp outputting low or no audio to a subwoofer and haven’t worked with our support team yet, please feel free to reach out to us using the contact details here. The support team will help sort out issues where possible, and if needed, they’ll gather the right information and get it up to the engineering teams for investigation.

 

Ryan - I appreciate your input. Is there a case number or something that we should reference when we call in? I spoke with CS at length at this issue a few days ago and was told that they “have never heard of this issue.” Given that this thread has 10K+ views and hundreds of users with the exact same issue, that was frustrating. Please let us know what we can do to facilitate a resolution to this issue.

 

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Hi everyone, thanks for sharing your experiences with different devices and the Sonos Amp. We’re always interested in seeing what you have to say, and are eager to investigate any issues that might come up. Our engineering team has been looking into this issue and would love some more information. Currently, there isn't a major trend that has been identified, but they'd like to see some more cases where subwoofers and the Amp aren’t behaving as expected. 


If you’re having trouble with the Amp outputting low or no audio to a subwoofer and haven’t worked with our support team yet, please feel free to reach out to us using the contact details here. The support team will help sort out issues where possible, and if needed, they’ll gather the right information and get it up to the engineering teams for investigation.

AWHS has it right about what to do with setting up your 3rd party sub. I have the Martin Logan Dynamo Sub 1600X with the Martin Logan Wireless kit connected to the Sub Out of the Sonos Amp. I also own Sonos Connect Amps (which were easier to set up with a 3rd party Sub). With the Sonos Amp I also drive a pair of Paradigm Studio 60 v3 tower speakers.

So yes, go to the Sonos Settings and add sub, stay away from the Sonos Subwoofer settings. This section should be a little more clear.

You may be best to have your 3rd party sub always on as opposed to standby. With the Sonos settings have the sub level up high and adjust other settings according to your sub manual and cater to your room size and placement. Sub adjustments can be a science. Note : The Martin Logan Dynamo Sub has an app to fine tune it’s settings from your couch via Bluetooth. No need to adjust the manual controls on their latest higher end subs.

As for the Sonos Sub, it is not over priced for what it does. It’s impressive, I use one in another zone with a Sonos Connect Amp. But it’s no match for the Martin Logan Dynamo 1600 :)

I got a sub working with my system.

I did not make any changes in my Sonos app and system settings except in the EQ to get the amount of low end I wanted. It kicks whether it’s flat or with the EQ boosted five points, which is my preference.   

The one I tried initially, the Sonos Connect Amp was either not pushing enough gain to trip the amp on or the sub was defective. So since my Martin Logan wireless transmitter has a Left and Right input for my Home Theater sub, I pulled out the right that connected to my Sony amp and used that channel for my Sonos Connect amp (subs are mono anyway so left and right in is pointless), and now I use the same sub for both my Sony entertainment system and for my Sonos zone in the kitchen (it’s one big room anyway). Problem solved for me! The ML wireless transmitter is its own preamp anyway so I don’t have to send a stronger signal to kick on the speaker since it’s wireless. 

The sub is a Cerwin Vega HT-S10A. So far phone support has tried running diagnostics, says the Amp detects the sub connection, and has gone round and round telling me to turn up the volume (because i turned it down… because I’m on the phone… to phone support 🤦

 

[edit] getting similar run around, unplug it, plug it back in. “oh it’s the sub's fault”, because perfectly functioning analog device knows to stop working just to mess with Sonos. 

 

“the problem is not with the Amp, everything looks fine from this end”

I don’t know the 3rd party sub you refer to, but presumably Sonos Support were referring to turning up the volume on the sub itself? I know their ‘classic series’ subs support that.

http://www.cerwinvega.com/manuals/home/Classic-Sub_manual.pdf

The sub is a Cerwin Vega HT-S10A. So far phone support has tried running diagnostics, says the Amp detects the sub connection, and has gone round and round telling me to turn up the volume (because i turned it down… because I’m on the phone… to phone support 🤦

 

[edit] getting similar run around, unplug it, plug it back in. “oh it’s the sub's fault”, because perfectly functioning analog device knows to stop working just to mess with Sonos. 

 

“the problem is not with the Amp, everything looks fine from this end”

Bump - this was a key reason i bought the AMP and investsed in this eco system in the first place and the fact it doesn’t work as expected and lack of response is VERY disappointing.

Could we PLEASE get somebody from Sonos to communicate with us exactly what needs to happen to have this working as advertised? I’ve tried everything in this thread (disabled surrounds etc.) and no luck with my Yamaha powered sub which was fine with every other receiver / source i plug it into.

I suspect they realise this is a critical issue with no resolution right now which is concerning :|

I’m connected to several hifi retailers and reviewers here - i will be communicating this issue openly to anybody even considering going down this route. Right now, you should NOT should consider buying the AMP if you have any interest in running 3rd party subs right now.

Which sub is it exactly (model no.) and have you telephoned Sonos Customer Care about the issue? What did they say?

Bump - this was a key reason i bought the AMP and investsed in this eco system in the first place and the fact it doesn’t work as expected and lack of response is VERY disappointing.

Could we PLEASE get somebody from Sonos to communicate with us exactly what needs to happen to have this working as advertised? I’ve tried everything in this thread (disabled surrounds etc.) and no luck with my Yamaha powered sub which was fine with every other receiver / source i plug it into.

I suspect they realise this is a critical issue with no resolution right now which is concerning :|

I’m connected to several hifi retailers and reviewers here - i will be communicating this issue openly to anybody even considering going down this route. Right now, you should NOT should consider buying the AMP if you have any interest in running 3rd party subs right now.

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Played around with this setup a bit more and changed the Sonos settings to max (Bass +10, Sub Level +15), and tweaked the sub crossover and volume to what should be a scary level of bass and I *am* getting *something* out of the subwoofer, but I’m not impressed so far

Yeah - it seems that the subwoofer output is miscalibrated. I hope that it is a software issue, and not a hardware issue (like a lack of voltage to that jack). 

 

I sure wish Sonos would pop by this thread and give us an update

Played around with this setup a bit more and changed the Sonos settings to max (Bass +10, Sub Level +15), and tweaked the sub crossover and volume to what should be a scary level of bass and I *am* getting *something* out of the subwoofer, but I’m not impressed so far

Just got my Sonos Amp and having same issue -- no output from powered sub that works fine. There seems to be no real resolution form Sonos on this issue.

 

I’m waiting on delivery of the upgraded speakers I was planning to use (including a matching powered subwoofer) and will see if this is resolved or if the new setup is acceptable without a sub (assuming nothing is magically resolved with new subwoofer)

Given that this issue is so easy to reproduce It is very frustrating that Sonos has yet to resolve (or even acknowledge it). 

The latter bothers me more and tells me to steer clear of the amp.

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Given that this issue is so easy to reproduce It is very frustrating that Sonos has yet to resolve (or even acknowledge it). 

I currently have 4 Sonos Amps that I’ve being using for the past 2 months with out any subs. Yesterday I got my SVS Ultra PB16 and for a good 3 hours I couldn’t get it to work, I thought I had a defective Sub, but after being on the phone with SVS support and messing with the Sonos App we came to the conclusion that the signal is way too weak, I was able to get a bit of base by cracking the level to +15 and setting the Sub to Max volume, which it sucks. We actually tested the sub with my Ipad by using RCA to Headphone Jack in the Ipad and its sounds amazing so this confirms the sub is fine. Unfortunately I can’t return my Amps and I dont want to return my sub, so what Im thinking of doing is buying a Yamaha receiver to power my In-ceiling speakers and sub for a true Surround system and control it with a Sonos Port.

Oh and by the way, if You have a Sonos Sound Bar and you want to create a 7.1 system, it wont let you, this is another reason as to why Im considering getting a Yamaha Receiver since Sonos is not all there yet.

I’m a Sonos noob ready to buy a Sonos amp to replace my old home theatre receiver but the wired subwoofer issue here is keeping me from purchasing. I have a good powered subwoofer I like and see no reason to have to buy a new $700 wireless Sonos one. I want to use the amp, 2 bookshelf speakers (with center channel emulation) and my sub which is easily wired to the amp. I’m not using any surround speakers, I have them now and have decide to give them up and the center channel too to keep things simple and clean. I don’t watch a ton of action movies, more likely to listen to music. 
 

So, does the powered subwoofer output work or not? I’m not buying it unless it does. 

So, i have noticed a few things here:

I fort got AMP when it came out, the version of IOS app allowed me to get granular and adjust sub. Perhaps the engineers need to go back and look at that version.  I also when i installed the AMP when it first came out, i was using a Polk SW10, worked great, lots of bass, actually had to turn it down.  I recently got a Klipsch 12 sub, hooked it up nothing, reset AMP, got nothing.  Hooked up Polk and did a reset as well, nothing.  Something with the newer app versions seem to be causing issues with sub out.

 

The also stark reality, is that you should NOT be adjusting to +15, as it will lead to blowing something out if you have it turned up.  With things at 0, if anything, by default, this AMP SHOULD only need minor adjustments, not a +15 just to get things working.  

 

I truly hope they get this figured out.

My issue is that the amp sometimes takes a bit to triggger my sub after my sub goes into standby.  Unfortunately my Kef sub doesn’t have a force on feature.  I’m not sure if this is related to the low levels everyone’s talking about.  For instance my children watched a show today and sub wouldn’t kick on.  I switched to Amazon music played a song, finally my sub turned on.  Then I went back and watched the show.  I just increased the sub levels to see if that helps with the triggering.  

Even if this works, it will involve clunky workarounds. Why bother? Why not just get a Sonos Sub?

True, but was hoping to save $100 and use my more powerful subwoofer (svs ultra). Having one less bulky device in my house would also make it easier with wife approval 😛

Even if this works, it will involve clunky workarounds. Why bother? Why not just get a Sonos Sub?

I’m about to buy the AMP to connect a 3rd party Subwoofer with a pair of Play:5 - Nothing else will be connected to the AMP.  Would I have the same issue as mentioned in this thread?

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