I have the same problem. It’s a really bad an annoying flaw. Constant rapid clicking. Loud enough to make me want to return the product. Very very poor Sonos!!!

This evening I moved the Sub from one side of the room to the other. It is now close to the Arc. The hum has remained the same but I can now hear the “crickets” more clearly. This feels like some sort of shielding issue?

The more of these comments that appear the more I am convinced that there are at least two sources of the noise, both a result of a lack of shielding in the audio path.

The hum noise is certainly just good old fashioned mains pickup at 50 or 60hz depending upon the local mains supply frequency.

The ‘ticking’ , ‘crackling’ or ‘hard drive’ noise could be due to crosstalk from the switched mode PSU or even a demodulated WiFi signal or similar.

My current unit generates mostly a humming noise although on careful listening I can hear the feint chirp of the switched mode poser supply.

I have a similar issue, tried a reset and moved the sub to a new location, I’m currently within the 14 day return window so trying to decide what to do, will call Sonos support on Monday and take it from there. 

Reading through all the new comments and it sounds like almost every g3 sub has this issue in some form. At this point, I’m thinking this has to be coil whine from the PSU due to how it increases in volume when the sub is no longer idle and is drawing more power. There is nothing Sonos will be able to do software side if this is the case and I imagine they will argue that this is in the normal range of electrical hum for a consumer electronic. Pretty huge disappointment for a high end audio product.

This solved my issue. I’ve had the Arc and Sub3 from release date. My issue was a little different as any deep bass in 5.1 or greater would result in a tinny rattling sound from the sub. The ARC replaced the role on my network that my old zone player had as the hardwired device to my router. Everything else was WiFi and I used Channel 6 and 11 to keep it separated. Since the Arc and Sub have no distance issues to my router I connected the Sub via Ethernet and shut off WiFi. Problem solved. No more annoying, intermittent rattle. 
 

Thank you!

I too have had these issues with the Sub Gen 3. Purchased end of November. The noises are as described above. Most clearly heard when I pause the TV. But could be heard quite clearly when the tv sound is on and from a couple of meters away when the tv is actually off. A constant noise, somewhat ironically, perhaps most like the noise of a CD loading up. I purchased from John Lewis but phoned Sonos, they asked me to send them a video and within a day issued a replacement. Given everything above I was a bit dubious as to the value of getting a new one. I would recommend it though. There is a very faint noise (electric/digital) from the new one but you have to have your head virtually in the Sub to hear it. Whilst I guess there should be no noise, it isn’t going to affect anyone at the level it is now. Definitely a huge improvement on the first one I got. 

Any update on this one? I too have a Sonos Sub Gen 3 bought in Germany and returned the first sub to my dealer. The second Sub makes the same crackling sounds …

Anybody without any noise so far?

Guys, no progress on this one? Can’t believe it takes Sonos so long?

What about the replacement subs? :-)

My first replacement is a little quieter, but the noise is still there. It’s bearable as you have to be pretty close to the sub to hear it but there shouldn’t be any noise in my opinion. At this point in time I’m hesitant to try another replacement in case it’s worse than the one I have now! 

I have requested 4 replacements and finally received one with only minor issues (very faint clicking noise). I can live with it since who knows if the next replacement will better or worse. I am not going to request more replacements until Sonos finish the so-called investigation with the gen3 sub. What annoys me the most is that sonos never made a statement recognizing the problem, which is clearly very wide-spread from a lot of people’s experiences. The customer service people are pretty helpful, but sonos really should take up some responsibility and admit they have either developed/produced a faulty product and provide a true solution to the users.

Received my first gen 3 sub today and I can confirm I have all the above issues. Probably not to the same level as some said but I can hear the creaking, crackling, as well as hard drive / fireplace flame flickering type of sounds and issues.

I’m planning on sitting with it for a few days and see how it goes before reaching out to Sonos.

I had one without the sound issue and I asked for a replacement (Original had white scratches on the piano black 5-6 cm long).

Any update on the sound? I've had my sub since Christmas and no idea why, I never noticed it before. 4-5 loud cracks happened tonight and now I can only hear this cracking/hissing sound.

I’ll try to plug it over ethernet tomorrow to diagnose the problem. But my router is in another room (40ft away), so it can’t stay wired.

Since it is censored, I can’t refer to your case number for my problem...

I have the same issue with a noise like a harddrive. I switched my Beam and the Sub to wired and disabled the wireless on the sub. It did the trick - now the noice is gone. 

Update: This was only a temporary “fix” of the noise issue. The noise is back - so the trick with wired connection did not help :-(

I really look forward to a real fix.

Agree, Sonos need to respond to this problem. Even if wiring sub solves the issue it does not feel ok to me. If users cannot use Sonos’ speakers wirelessly they cannot market their products as wireless speaker systems.

I too have the same issue - I bought my Beam, Sub and 2 x One SLs for a home theatre set up in November. The original sub had this humming issue in which a replacement was sent out to me very quickly. The new sub which I have received still has the same issue but only when I put my ear in between the gap on the sub, and even then it is a faint hum, where as before it was that loud I could hear it 2 metres away.

One thing I have noticed is that it stops when streaming music from Apple Music, but happens when audio is received from the HDMI connection...

Received mine today. Same issue with a hissing/electric sound, mostly can be heard when you have music playing and turn volume to zero, but also audible when you sit close to the sub and volume is lower.

Will need to replace if there’s no other way to fix it. Following to see how Sonos handles this and if it makes sense to replace now or later.

Version: 12.2.2

HW version: 1.32.1.4-2.1

Series: A200

Sounds good otherwise, but this is unacceptable.

System: Arc + 2 x One SL + Sub.

I ordered mine a few days ago as I was waiting for the Gen 3 to get back in stock. Seems that most places sold out over the holidays and both the Arc and Sub gen3 are in backorder with Sonos UK. 
 

i’m hoping they have sorted the issue. Sonos website says it won’t ship until the end of the month. I’ll report back on whether it still has this issue. I have a couple of Gen2 subs to compare it too. Not noticed any noise from any Sonos speaker in the past and I have over 20! 
 

At rhis price point there really should not be this kind of issue - and since the audio internals are largely unchanged the should be no excuse for this not to have been picked up in QA. 
 

Fingers crossed! 
 

as the only reason I’m getting it is to try out the ‘2 sub’ feature. If the fault is still there then it’ll be sent back in the returns period. 
 

PS: excellent work by the early adopters to demonstrate the issue! Thanks. 

Received my replacement Sub3 from Sonos today. So far so good.

that encouraging. Hope it lasts. Keep us posted.  

My Gen3 Sub has just shipped. fingers crossed the issue is resolved! Will know soon enough I guess. 

Good luck. My replacement unit hasn’t given me any issues so far.

My replacement Gen 3 sub has also been without issue. Good luck.