Riddle me this. I Spent a solid hour yesterday on the phone with Sonos tech support after waiting for 1 hour, nice guy going through the pairing process on gen 3 sub. Im running 2x era 300 and arc on 5.1 surround. Have not been able to pair sub and have it stick, the sub is dropped almost instantly. Once this happens, the app does not drop the sub, I manually remove the sub, close app, factory reset and try again… over and over and over. Come to find out from tech, there is a “known spectrum issue with firmware updates on routers.” I was given 3 approved firmware updates in order to run wifi. 1.5.6, 4.4.4, 1.3.6. I call Spectrum today, have them monitor the system while pairing and setting up, they can't update my router because it is updated running 1.5.5.6, mind you Im pushing 600mbs down on speed at 2.4ghz. The sub runs at 5ghz and is not switchable to 2.4 from spectrums end like most products, so naturally when attaching to arc, it dumps the sub. Does anyone know if we can ethernet to arc and bypass 5ghz signal or switch in app. This seems to be the issue. The other solution is me running 75 ft of ethernet to run from router but that makes the sub a network of its own and limits how I can set Sonos, according to tech.
I spent $3000 as a first time customer for this *. If the app is trash, and indeed it seems as it produced inconsistent issues in initial setup for all products, then fix it. If the sub in fact is a 5ghz only product, then notate that before selling it. IS anyone else having this issue?
Yes, you can connect your Sub and the Arc via Ethernet cables to your router. It’s not the designed setup, but if you’re having issues, it should work.
Note, when ‘bonded’ to an Arc, the Sub doesn’t connect directly to your router, instead it connects to a ‘hidden’ 5Ghz channel created by the Arc.
Just as a note, I had nothing but trouble with both Spectrum provided hardware, and AT&T. I ended up using their devices as a gateway to my own router.
@Airgetlam, I was hoping to mitigate the issue by running ethernet to Arc from sub and then wifi out to router. They are on common wall, the router is 75’ around the room via wired connection on opposite wall. 15’ via wifi. Apparently this is not possible. If I owned the home, I would just drop a plug and everything would be wired, I don't.
Yea, it doesn’t work that way, to my knowledge. My understanding is that it needs the router ‘in the middle’ to direct the packets to the correct place. I’d at least try temporarily wiring just the Sub, though, since (I think) your Arc is connected, and staying so. I’d also switch to a 2.4 GHz channel for the Arc, just to leave clear the 5Ghz channel for the Sub. This is speculative, you didn’t say one way or the other.
I just got a new router from Spectrum today and am having a similar issue -- Sonos Ones are dropping immediately after adding them as surrounds. 5 hard reset cycles later and I’m waiting on the phone with tech support. Hopefully hard-wiring is not the answer. Let us know what you find!
@username12345 in short…
workaround for Sonos from their chats with spectrum is running 1.5.6 on spectrum 1 router specific model #. There is a 4.4.4 and 1.3.6 firmware update as well for other units model numbers. The issue I'm confronted with is my router is updated and running 1.5.5. There is no 1.5.6 according to spectrum tech. Im not in a position where wired makes sense either.
@Airgetlam According to spectrum tech monitoring the linking process. The arc and era 300s are connected and running 2.4 already. No issues with those, the sub is the only thing looking to run 5ghz.
End result from 2 technicians help (they were great and played their hand well.) , 10 hours of wasted personal labor, 4 of which on the phone…..
I need to run a mesh network or spend more money on hardware to fix a router issue after spending $3000 on failed products to potentially run a product line that has yet to work.
Word of advice for all pist off customers, rate this on better business bureau and each forum you can review these products until it forces the people with capital to expense the income to actually fix the issue. Call your representatives, email the ceo, get some ice cream and pray if that's your thing. What a waste.
I have to agree with @Airgetlam . Spectrum is not a good fit for Sonos. Spectrum’s router must meet the specifications in the link or you’re forced to use a wired solution.
My advise is to purchase your own router and just use the Spectrum modem. The upside is that you can switch ISP’s and/or move to another local and continue to use your own router. Sonos doesn't communicate with the ISP’s modem it's communicating with the router; either yours or the ISP’s.
I currently have Comcast as my ISP. In the past I’ve used Google Fiber and TimeWarner (which is now Spectrum). I’ve always used my own router and the ISP’s modern only.
@AjTrek1 Im not with spectrum by choice, its the only provider in my area and im using the top service they offer. The annoying part is engineering pigeon holed themselves into using an only 5ghz signal out of the sub for this product. I will be buying another router to fix this annoying issue but the reality is at this price point, I shouldn't have to. We should all send our receipts to the CEO for reimbursement.
@Airgetlam, I was hoping to mitigate the issue by running ethernet to Arc from sub and then wifi out to router. They are on common wall, the router is 75’ around the room via wired connection on opposite wall. 15’ via wifi. Apparently this is not possible. If I owned the home, I would just drop a plug and everything would be wired, I don't.
Hi @Macenzo, running an Ethernet cable between two devices will not work. That isn’t a Sonos limitation, it applies to any two devices, for example, you cannot run an Ethernet cable between your laptop and your printer.
As @Airgetlam explained, the standard communication between Arc and Sub is over a dedicated 5GHz Wi-Fi link. The very atypical thing about that dedicated link is that it does not go through your Spectrum router. So I would say tech support was off base saying your Spectrum router is at fault.
As an experiment I’d run an Ethernet cable between your router and Sub. That could help narrow down the problem.
@Macenzo to get everything paired up, you could temporarily try plugging the arc and sub into the spectrum router ethernet.
The end of the tech-note @AjTrek1 provided around spectrum and firmware versions suggest it’s a wifi only issue as it says
You can also solve this issue by using your Sonos system in a wired setup.
Sonos Subs have both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz support for connecting to wifi
In power+connectivity Connect to WiFi with any 802.11a/b/g/n 2.4 or 5 GHz broadcast-capable router.
When a Sub and Surrounds are added to a Sonos soundbar or amp, then as part of the bonding they form a private 5Ghz link to the soundbar or amp. Arc in your case. For home theatre consistent low latency is king, so Sonos remove external wifi access points or routers from the soundbar to sub/surround distribution by forming private 5Ghz links.
To bypass the Spectrum wifi based on the tech note, the Arc and Sub should only need to be wired initially when you add them to the Sonos App and then add the sub to the Arc. When you have added the Sub to the Arc the sub shouldn’t need a connection to the spectrum router.
I’d try leaving the long ethernet cable in the Arc and temporarily carry the Sub over to the router and plug it’s ethernet into the router. Add the sub to the Sonos app and then try adding the Sub to the Arc. If that is successful remove the ethernet from the Sub and put it wherever you want.
If that works you might need to do the same for the surrounds as I’d expect them to disconnect from the spectrum router and connect directly to the Arc when added. I may be wrong, but it would seem odd to have both a 2.4Ghz to the router and a 5Ghz private link at the same time.
