the latest app

The app works fine for me. There are some minor inconveniences, but i have not had a connection issue, grouping issue, or volume issue lately. I had an issues with the volume for about an hour or so, but it was sorted out with an app reset.

Change is hard for some people. I am going through some software changes at my job and you wont believe the resistance. I happen to like the app’s layout.

Granted there is a learning curve, but if its not that hard for this 61 year old music and film lover to learn, it should be easy for you young folk out there who are always complaining.

No. In my experience the app is still bug-ridden! Most mornings have to regroup and power off and on the speakers, restart router and restart IOS app on phone after which (if I’m lucky) I get a stable system for the rest of the day. Today the SonoPhone app proved more reliable than the official app after the latter refused to recognise my system after the daily work around.  It’s a lottery and not acceptable after all these months of ‘fixing’ it. 

Historically I was involved in App design. The best test of a good app is that non techies like using it and find it easy to navigate. Up until the latest iteration my wife who is a non techies was an avid user. She has given up, finds it hard to do all the things she used to do without any explanation or training. In my mind worse still is my 25 year old tech savvy daughter describes this iteration as a pain and rubbish.

i’m in my 60’s but still sit on tech company boards I would be embarrassed if one of the companies I’m directly involved with had launched something this poor.

See the following critiques of the old app you are calling “easy to navigate”:

Amd ironically, I’ll cap it off with these gems:

Think you have misread what ​@Pswann said ​@jgatie? Did his post not end up as a critique? 

Pleased all is fine for you though ​@Pools-3015 - for the moment that is! 

The latest update is horribly buggy.  I’ve had non stop connection issues, can’t find my main system, the app is slow and takes literally minutes to load my recently played and various playlists. Just shows waves of grey.  When I try to play a playlist, again it spins for minutes and I give up trying to play anything. If I’m successful, the delay in response time is awful. I try adjusting volume or pause okay, and it takes minutes. I’ve restarted my internet connection, powered off/on speakers and my phone. Still issues. 

Incredibly frustrating and disappointing when Sonos keeps ‘updating’ yet the user experience suffers. I have received a Sonos ‘user survey’ for the speakers and app in a long time… probably cause they know they’ll get poor responses. 

It really should not be taking "minutes" and only a few seconds to load/display the Sonos App Home Screen - that does sound like you ‘may’ have a local, and/or wide-area, network connection issue. 

The new Sonos App here takes a few seconds to startup (from a fully closed state) and that’s with a fair amount of Sonos ‘rooms’ discovered over the LAN and connection to quite a few music services aswell. This is what I see during startup using a (now old) iPhone XR Sonos controller (please see attached). 

Presumably a much newer mobile device with a faster processor would even be much quicker than my old iPhone.

I am using a WiFi 6 mesh setup, rather than the slower SonosNet (wired) connection …and where available, have steered the Sonos products over to the faster 5Ghz WiFi band, with all device SNR levels that show in the Sonos App set at 45dB, or higher. (Strong connection)

I also use non-overlapping channels for the 2.4Ghz WiFi band and channel-width for that band of 20Mhz only to help reduce wireless interference. I have opted to reserve the Sonos IP addresses too in the routers DHCP reservation table, but that’s perhaps optional, but helpful with updates and multi-product reboots with some local DHCP servers.

I just use the general Cloudflare public DNS servers too - 1.1.1.1/1.0.0.1

I’d suggest to perhaps at the very least check your local network setup and if the problems of responsiveness persist, to perhaps reproduce the issue(s) seen and immediately submit a Sonos system diagnostic report from within the Sonos App, note it’s reference and contact/chat with Sonos Support Staff via this LINK and see what the Staff can perhaps suggest to help you to resolve the matter.

Amos’s,

Describe your network for us, give model numbers. What is wired to the network? Wireless? Which SONOS components are you using? Refrain from Factory Reset of any SONOS components without further consult.

I have a high end professionally maintained UNFI WIFI network with one SONOS directly connected by ETHERNET.

And yes I have submitted system dumps to SONOS support.

but doesn’t this rather miss the point. SONOS is meant to be a RETAIL MARKET PLUG AND PLAY SYSTEM. You shouldn’t need to have attended MIT or similar and have a masters in computer science to use. Unless of course SONOS wants to only serve nerds (among which I count myself.

Couldn’t agree more, I read some of the replies on here on how to ‘fix’ my system, a system that previously worked fine, and they just sound like an intro to a Masters in IT and computer networking! A well designed retail product should not require me to delve into the inner workings of routers, and a host of acronyms that I have not interest in whatsoever. I just want a music system that plays music reliably, and sadly my Sonos system simply does not do that anymore. I often have 3-4 minute delays in choosing music and changes to volume. Every day I have to fully close the app and then cross fingers that it will then work when I open it. Long since given up trying to connect various rooms - too frustrating. Most days I have to switch trying to control the system between iPhone and iPad as one will work and the other will not despite nothing changing in our house. Goodness, I wish I hadn’t invested so heavily in this system - I love the sound, but the control is just rubbish. The most Sonos-related ‘pleasure’ I’ve had recently is chucking all the recent Sonos email offers in the bin - there is not a glimmer of a chance I will buy anymore of their kit or advise others to do so.

Ken, no offence, and I’m sure there are many who really benefit from your extensive knowledge and willingness to help out, but your reply perfectly encapsulates the problem many of us are experiencing - I can read all the words you type, I just don’t really have a clue, or for that matter, an interest in what it all actually means! When I first bought my Sonos products, it took me minutes to set and it all worked from the get go - that was the brilliance of the product - a high quality music listening experience for the vaguely IT literate! They now seem to require me to take a Masters in IT to once again ‘make’ their system work properly. It is really frustrating as I want to do other things than faff around every day just trying to get my system to work. 

Why are you running the setup on SonosNet when you could be running the setup on the much faster 5Ghz band? - Did you correctly configure your setup for multicasting as per the Ubiquity Manufacturers instructions on their website for using their devices with Sonos?

Ken thanks for the helpful input. I’ll check again that we have optimised our other technologies to get the best out of our system.

But this still sort of misses the point. I do understand the technology and have got it working, but boy do you have to put effort in…..

It just fails the plug and play test. And to make it more fun the app is so buggy you get the fun of constantly having to force close and restart.

Other applications we have installed including a multi cast TV system just seems to function without the nannying SONOS now seems to need.

For the majority of folk I’m sure it is the case that Sonos devices will work straight out the box with a default setup, but as with a good many network-based products, it’s not going to be the case in every instance.

I’m sorry if you find my earlier post too technical to follow, it really only suggests running the majority of your Sonos products on the faster 5Ghz WiFi band and reduce WiFi interference and maintaining a strong signal to all.

Wireless interference can quite often creep into any ISP provided auto-configured router, particular if left unmonitored. So the settings I outlined were only trying to perhaps improve communication over the LAN. Certainly some EoP adapters and WiFi extenders can be problematic too as mentioned in the Sonos System requirements.

I actually did not go into any detail, nor mention the problems that can arise with some mobile controller devices either, just so it did not confuse, but even they can have a role in slowing things down and preventing the discovery of devices over the LAN especially if they have security software running on them such as a VPN client, or Firewall etc.

Even if you do not understand these things, like everything else of a similar nature, you sometimes may have to find a friend, or colleague, that does …and of course there’s also Sonos Support Staff that maybe able to assist aswell, although some local network configuration or administration maybe outside their remit to resolve.

Personally speaking, I would not choose to run Sonos on SonosNet these days. Particularly if the products in a setup can use the much faster 5Ghz WiFi band and can still achieve a strong SNR signal over that band which is detailed in the Sonos App.

These products all support the faster 5Ghz WiFi connection…

• Play:1
• Play:3
• Play:5 (Gen 2)
• Sub (Gen 1)
• Sub (Gen 2)
• Sub 4
• Era 100
• Era 300
• Move 2
• Roam
• Roam 2
• Roam SL
• Five
• Move
• One (Gen 1)
• One (Gen 2)
• One SL
• Port
• Sub (Gen 3)
• Sub Mini
• Arc Ultra
• SYMFONISK Bookshelf (Gen 2)
• SYMFONISK Floor lamp
• SYMFONISK Picture frame
• SYMFONISK Table lamp (Gen 2)
• SYMFONISK Bookshelf (Gen 1)

… and just to add, ‘device discovery’ in the Sonos App and responsiveness in some instances is only as good as the slowest device over the LAN and it certainly should not take minutes to load/display the App Home Screen… If all is well, it should display within a few seconds.

I agree with a part of your beliefs. But when dealing with network audio, I, like you, still have a hard time doing it all wirelessly. I just do not want to be bothered with any WIFI interference because I live in a crowded neighbourhood. And, I have had my network (Unifi by the way) crash with systems from the URC’s Total Control line and with Sonos before I found the settings I needed to avoid that. So while Sonos should be somewhat plug and play, when hardwiring, there is some configurations that are NEEDED.

RSTP, mDNS an IGMP snooping along with static reservations have made Sonos very stable on my network

I may be one of the lucky ones, but the new app changes have not affected me other than some minor annoyances.

I still have more than half my speakers hardwired (6 out of 11) with zero connection issues.:

Living room: Arc hardwired, with Sub and Era 100s wirelessly connected to the Arc                                                      Connect S15 with turntable, hardwired

Dining room: Play 1 hardwired

Kitchen: Five, hardwired

Bedroom: Five wireless on Sonosnet

Basement: Connect S15 hardwired. This is also connected to an Onkyo receiver.

Portable: Play 5 Gen 2: wireless on Sonosnet. I move this around a lot during warmer weather.

Here is a screenshot of my Sonos devices:

FWIW - Whenever I connected a laptop to a Sonos devices Ethernet connection, which in itself was running on SonosNet (obviously), and it was connected ‘direct’ to a Sonos Boost, or other wired Sonos product, if I ran a Speed-test App on that laptop I’d achieve a download speed of around 12MB/s, on average. So that’s the outcome I saw over a SonosNet link. 

Some community users reported seeing slightly higher, at around 20MB/s.

If I then took the same laptop and connected it to a WiFi Mesh satellite Hub linked over a 5Ghz WiFi link to the primary mesh router, then the average download speed turned out to be 625MB/s.

So that’s my own personal reasons for ‘stepping away’ from SonosNet. WiFi mesh systems these days, when configured correctly, can help to provide much quicker communication over the local network.

The following products do not support SonosNet by the way…

• Roam/SL/Roam 2
• Move/Move 2
• Era 100
• Era 300
• Arc Ultra

Some further suggestions that may perhaps assist some users…

One thing to never do with older Sonos products that support SonosNet, is to wire those to a WiFi mesh satellite Hub and leave their WiFi adapter enabled - always avoid doing that as it may affect the backhaul communication and I suggest not disabling the radio adapters on a primary Sonos Home Theatre product unless there is absolutely no alternative and that will mean that any surrounds and Sub will need to be cabled too, preferably to the same switch

Is this actually true? IIRC some of those speakers support 802.11a 5ghz which is not “fast”. 802.11n also imo isn’t “fast”. I would talk to Sonos support before abandoning Sonosnet ymmv  

If you have no "A" devices, then having the router set to allow them won't change the performance to your "N" or "AC" devices. The amount of bandwidth is determined by the device, the configuration of the router, the router, the distance, the interference, etc. So it’s is not an easily predictable answer, but it’s clear that Sonos themselves are choosing not to include SonosNet in their newer devices and I see a clear difference in both performance and discovery of my 25+ (mixed) device setup, with all running on a mesh WiFi signal.

The following products do not support SonosNet by the way…

• Roam/SL/Roam 2
• Move/Move 2
• Era 100
• Era 300
• Arc Ultra

Some further suggestions that may perhaps assist some users…

One thing to never do with older Sonos products that support SonosNet, is to wire those to a WiFi mesh satellite Hub and leave their WiFi adapter enabled - always avoid doing that as it may affect the backhaul communication and I suggest not disabling the radio adapters on a primary Sonos Home Theatre product unless there is absolutely no alternative and that will mean that any surrounds and Sub will need to be cabled too, preferably to the same switch

Having a difference of opinion while still respecting each other, is one of the things I love about this community, in comparison to another community that's just filled with negativity

I have alway had my main HT speaker hardwired with the surrounds and Sub paired to its private WIFI. From my understanding, this is not Sonosnet when the new soundbars or Amp is used for the front channels. I would never recommend hardwiring a Sub or surround, if the main speaker was not also hardwired. That's just asking for trouble. I did have a Playbar with Play 1s until I upgraded to the Arc a year ago. Era 100s were added after the release of the new app without issues.

While I agree that everything can be wirelessly connected and work fine, however, I have seen too many horror stories where someone has a party and cant get their speakers to work when their home is filled with guests.

I entertain A LOT and have never had my system not work, even with 50 people at my home, with many on my guest WIFI.

So sure, things may work a little slower having my system setup the way I do, but reliability is more important to me than speed. I have a mix of older and newer speakers and the older Play 1s and Connects, have not suffered from being connected with a cable.

My network is a Xfinity gateway with one Pod ( extender ).  I don’t have issues connecting to Sonos devices.  I would like to understand better why Sonos is so slow compared to WiiM which is almost instantaneous when surfing through the WiiM Home app.  I also have Amazon Echo, BlueSound and Squeezebox.  None of those suffer from the slow response noted when using Sonos.

I’m of course fine with this setup, I was just expressing my own preference and indeed fine with any setup that works to the users expectation, but if it’s taking someone "minutes", rather than a few "seconds" to have their Sonos App Home Screen load and their devices to perhaps not show up quickly too, then it’s quite likely not going to be the current iteration of the Sonos App and my suggestions are to maybe look at their local network situation. Some may not want to, or be able to, implement all the suggestions made, whether they use a ‘Wired’, ‘SonosNet’ or ‘Wireless’ approach, but I’d at least explore those suggested things, rather than perhaps hoping the Sonos App updates might be able to fix the issues seen.

If these things were being caused by the Sonos App or hardware, then we would all be waiting minutes for the App to load & discover each of our Sonos products and that’s clearly not the case (as my earlier screen-capture recording shows) and according to Sonos "responsiveness" issues are also not the case for the majority of their users either. See link…
https://support.sonos.com/en-us/article/the-new-sonos-app-and-future-feature-updates

Last time I referred to the above link however, some users posted back that they simply did not believe what Sonos was saying about the 5 categories listed below either being equal, or better, than the previous S2 App, but their the ones that do hold the data and the performance of my Sonos setup indicates that’s undoubtedly the true position…

• “Add Product”/Setup Success rate
• “System not found” and “Products not found” errors
• Configuring stereo pairs and home theater
• App responsiveness
• Crash-free sessions