I am having this issue with my SUB gen 3 only when using my firestick 4K. when playing a movie it’s fine but when I pause the movie i get that gargling, popping, crackling sound from the SUB gen 3 A202.

what I have tried,

change HDMI ports on ARC and Firetstick

factoy reset my entire sonos Home theatre (ARC, Ones and Sub) 

change audio on firestick to (PCM then Dolby, then Doly plus etc) 

all this does is mitigate it for a short while but after a few minutes its back.

The issue does not happen when watching netflix straight from the TV Netflix app e.g.

Hardwired the Sonos sub to the router via ethernet and dissabled wifi

The firestick is connected to a Philips sync box which in turn is connected to my LG OLED C1 eARC HDMI port 1. when connecting the Firestick directly I have the same issue.

I am still within 14 days return. This is a very expenisve product and I love it overall but I cannot accept this.

Please tell me what I should do. 

Thanks

JJ

Just went trough the support request for my two months old SUB GEN 3.

It is a rev 202, and having the same problem of yours guys… that crackle sound clearly hearable when running tv at low volume.

The really disappointing thing is that support confirmed that, as their policy, the swap even new products with B-STOCK units!!!

Don’t know what to say… hope they at least switch the drivers for brand new, and that the newer unit will not have the same problem

Was there ever an official solution to this? I recently moved to a new home and rearranged my system with the sub now closer to seating. It produces a noticeable electrical static hum at all times like I am sitting next to an electrical transformer, it’s truly horrible and distracting. Such a bummer because the rest of my Sonos system is top notch.

Have my Arc and Sub (Gen 3) about a week and out of nowhere the sub has started humming. It fills the room when quiet. Can’t believe such a premium product has this issue. Seems like poor shielding. Considering going straight for a refund for the sub rather than contact support because clearly it’s a long standing mechanical flaw. Wish I was aware before dropping €850. 

Did the replacement fix your problem?

Hello Everyone! Like many of you, I am currently experiencing the same issue with the ‘hissing/static/humming’ noise with my black sub (Gen 3). Located in the US.

Purchased both Arc+Sub back in late Apr 2022 and received it in early May 2022. Just talked to a CS person today (5/16) and was advised that I will be sent a replacement of another A202. They mentioned that many people were experiencing the same issue when I asked but some have resolved it with the replacement (case-by-case basis).

SPECS:

Serial #: F0-F6-C1…

Version: 14.6 (Build 6822...)

Hardware Ver: 1.32.1.7-1.2

Series: A202

Sub when watching tv/movies/music: ‘hissing/humming’ sound (even with tv muted)

Sub when standby/tv off: minor ‘static’ sound + no ‘hissing/humming’ sound (doesn’t really bother me)

IMO, it does feel like a hardware/electrical issue since the ‘hissing/humming’ sound is profound when the sub is currently on. Hopefully the new replacement has no issues! (will keep this updated)

Got a refurb replacement sub (and mine was NEW).

result? This one has the same problem and worse, there is an always on electrical/56k modem dialing noise that gets very loud when playing music.

@Sonos 

what do we have to do?

I would certainly try a different power-outlet and if still no joy, then submit a diagnostic report and make a note of it’s reference and maybe make a mobile video recording, showing the issue (if practicable), then contact Sonos Support Staff via this LINK 

Hi, to add to this thread, I’ve provided more details on the post linked below, but based on my recent conversation with a Sonos Technical Engineer in Sonos Support, I have been informed there are still ongoing issues with new Sub Gen 3 A202 units being manufactured in recent months (e.g. pop sound when the Sub amplifier powers up from standby or goes into standby) due to the ongoing manufacturing/supply chain issues. I’ve returned my Sub Gen 3 that I purchased from Sonos in July in order to obtain a refund as I’m not willing to accept a sub-standard audio experience at the high price point of the Sub. Hopefully the manufacturing quality issues will be resolved soon. 

Third sub = same problem.

Waiting for the fourth, this is incredible, I mean, INCREDIBLE

the latest refurb was a model A200…. so the first one manufactured.

did you solve?

Seems odd to have the issue repeatedly after trying several replacement Subs, might it be the electricity supply at the local property? Maybe give it a try setup at another premises (friend/relatives Home) and just see if the issue goes away. Worth a try, at least.

I have a number of Subs and not noticed the issue, although I’ve seen some others mention hearing the static/ticking sound when you put your ear really close to the Subs aperture. I dont hear the static, but maybe it’s the switching PSU power supply, hence my suggestion to try the sub powered up elsewhere, away from the Home, just to see if the issue changes and/or goes away completely.

So if you put your ear near the subs when they are receiving data you hear nothing? Unfortunately I have a conditioned power grid as I have a recording studio, and even at a friend house the last one did the same… can’t understand.

Not that I’ve ever noticed anything outside the playing low frequency channel audio. The Subs all seem to sound fine to my ears, what is it you actually hear when they are playing then, is it a clicking sound?

I’m on my hands and knees now (as I type) listening to Dolby 5.1 audio (Netflix Movie) and I’m not noticing it? I’m about 6 inches away from the opening I have two Gen-3’s attached to a Sonos Arc and Surrounds and listening close up. When the .LFE channel is not outputting audio at quiet moments in the movie too, I just hear nothing from the Sub ?

I can clearly hear the WiFi/data transmission buzzing, like an old modem

Dunno then ‍♂️ …are you able to perhaps grab/isolate it in a recording and post it online? I’m not hearing/noticing such a sound here. Maybe others will then chime in here too.

Perhaps it’s a sound/frequency your hearing has become sensitive too - it’s hard to say without hearing/knowing what I’m looking for, but will happily listen out for it if you post it online. I’m happy to explore these things.

I’ve had my Wife listening for sounds from the Sub too and she isn’t hearing anything either, she says, other than the obvious/usual low-level frequencies.

I have a video for each of the replacement units.. even the fourth is having the same issue.

could you perhaps try to isolate the sub and check ? If you start playing something (or even during the update! There is a data transfer.. the noise comes from the sub WiFi module) having the sub placed in another room, can you hear the data transfer noise from it? You should be able. At this point I think this is a “feature” (unbelievable for a near 900€ product), but every unit has this

@Vanx,
Can you perhaps post a link to your videos or the recordings, as that may help others here to understand the issue of what you’re hearing - why does the Sub need to be isolated in a different room to hear it? It sounds like it is hard to detect, so a video will hopefully assist. Then others here can perhaps chime in too. 

As you have a recording studio I assume you can isolate and perhaps highlight the issue so we can see/listen what to look for.

If every unit has it, I’m surprised that a lot more people are not reporting it here and elsewhere online .. could it be a case you have just become sensitive to the sound? It’s sometimes difficult to unhear things once you notice them, even when they are extremely quiet sounds. This would apply moreso if you have your ear right next to the speaker and actually looking for the noise instead of general-listening to audio say at the ‘sweet spot’, or some distance away, elsewhere in the room.

Is it affecting, or spoiling the audio when it’s actually playing, or is it just something you hear shortly before playback begins?

A decent recording from your studio of what you’re hearing perhaps may help as I’m not (yet) noticing anything here, even when listening up close.

First: the Sonos support team has been AMAZING, probably the best I've dealt with.

Second: I just got a new sealed Sub Gen 3 A202 (not refurb), and it is the worst I ever heard, the chirping sound is SO LOUD you can clearly hear it from the other side of the room.

I’ll now link an audio to make you better understand what the issues sounds like, even if the 9 pages of this thread have successfully highlighted every bit of the problem… not solved after 2 years! I mean, 2 years! So I think the design flaw is so big it can’t be solved before SUB GEN 4. I’m curious if the new Sub Mini suffers of the same issue or not.

The units I tested:

-1 Sub Gen 3 A201 BRAND NEW→ was chirping loudly, scratched from the box

-1 Sub Gen 3 A202 Refurb → was chirping but lower volume

-1 Sub Gen 3 A200 Refurb → was chirping loudly

-1 Sub Gen 3 A200 Refurb → was chirping but lower volume plus cracked finish

-1 Sub Gen 3 A201 Refurb → was chirping loudly plus panel not sitting flush (big bow)

-1 Sub Gen 3 A202 BRAND NEW REPLACEMENT → IS chirping immensely loudly plus panel not flush (big bow)

Not to say I'm utterly tired of breaking my back unboxing/reboxing/shipping the units plus wasting a lot of time and not being able to enjoy my near 2000€ Sonos system.

I hope some Sono rep./technician will chime in to solve this issue………

I mean it is like the sub got a small speaker that continuously emits wi-fi related modulating chirping sounds……….. this never stops. I can even hear it during playback, as it gets worse and if you don’t crank the system up it remains audible.

This is something serious going on, and at this point I'm not entirely sure I'll not publicly advise everyone through my channels to avoid Sonos products like a plague.

800+ € standalone subwoofer that got a major design flaw (audio related!) that was never fixed in 2+ years of it being acknowledged (read previous posts).

Here two audio samples, the first in “standby” (but it sounds like it is dying) and the second during playback.

Link to the audio file:

https://ufile.io/4fiznjty

@Vanx,

I could only see one audio file (size: 607kb) in the link. I listened to that ’clip’ several times over headphones here. Your bass audio recording sounds terribly muffled at the start and then, when all goes quiet, I hear a cricket/static-like sound. So was that audio clip done in your recording studio? I had my player volume set really high here to listen to it aswell.

Was it recorded with a mic close-up to the Sub itself, or was it placed a certain distance away, across a room? Maybe it’s me, but I find the recording quite poor, truth be told.

I definitely do not hear such a (cricket/static-like) sound from the Sonos Subs I have here. Are you sure it’s not related to the ‘conditioned’ power supply at your studio, which you mentioned earlier?

Also have you tried the Sub bonded to a different Sonos product, just in case that has any bearing on what you are hearing?

Maybe others here will listen to the posted ‘clip’ too and chime in with their thoughts.

My after-thoughts are,  maybe you are hearing the Subs built-in switching power supply perhaps? …but I know I don’t hear these things generally speaking from such quiet power sources, so your hearing is perhaps sensitive to these things? - My hearing just mostly hear the core music frequencies, so perhaps it’s outside my hearing range and I might only pick-up on such sounds when recording close up with a mic and then playing back the sound at a much higher volume level. I doubt I would hear such noise in a natural listening environment, but let’s see what others say/think about the audio ‘clip’.

Hello Ken, thanks for listening.

nope, I didn’t use any high end condenser microphone as it wasn’t needed.. and it would be really disturbing for your hearing.

the “muffled” sound you hear on the first track isn’t actually muffled, is the low frequency sound from the subwoofer (isolated, as it was placed in another room especially for the test). The other buzz, at high frequency, is the noise in mentioning.

in the second part of the clip it is clearly heard the fax/modem chirping type of sound it emits, unbearable. Yes, I’m sure it isn’t related to electrical/amp/power source. 

it disappears if you disable the sub WiFi and use a Ethernet cable. But the magic and convenience of the SONOS system is its style and, of course, wireless operation.

I can clearly hear the buzz by playing it in on iPhone, no headphones needed. Certain types of frequencies (higher ones) are difficult to be heard the more you get old, and if you strained your hearing through the years.

Not saying in any way you’re too old or destroyed your ears :)

this WiFi modulating chirping sound is on the higher spectrum of the frequencies

Yes, it could be my age, I guess. I certainly don’t claim to have the hearing of a youngster now I’m in my early sixties. My Wife (aged 21yrs) has much better hearing and she doesn’t hear anything from the Sub here either.

Ok I lied about the Wife’s age - she made me do it !!… ha but she doesn’t hear the noise in question from the Sub and she hears almost everything. ‍♂️

To me it sounds mostly like switch mode power supply physical noise, but there is some modulation that could be related to line power noise. Is the noise related to Volume setting or Mute? Is the noise level related to the physical location of the microphone relative to SUB? Do you have a spectrum analyzer associated with the microphone? The spectrum would be interesting, but might not tell the whole story because it or the microphone may have a limited bandwidth with respect to the noise. Is there any change in the noise if you turn OFF SUB in the SONOS controller? If you remove SUB from the surround system and have it sitting alone, not bonded to any product, is the noise the same? If you physically change SUB’s orientation does the noise change?

Wives never age.

If you change its orientation it stays the same. No related to volume setting or mute.

If you turn the sub off from the app or remove it from the system the noise changes (but remains).

You can clearly hear it changing as more data is exchanged by the wifi board of the unit, so it is really evident when you’re associating it with the system, when you stream music etc.

If you disable its wifi and attach an ethernet cable…. the magic happens, no more noise.

as stated by @TapDatApp on the first page:

“Just had my call with the Sonos folks regarding this. It sounds like they’ve done quite a bit of work on identifying the issue based on Andrew’s case and from what I was told, it sounds like they did identify a hardware issue that is causing this and confirmed the effect can vary based on WiFi traffic.”

This was and this remains, no fix released for this issue.
 

PS:

Tested:

-Different power cables

-Different rooms

-Different outlet/w or wo powerstrips/conditioning

-Different house