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Roam wont pair until setup with S2?


Userlevel 1

Received two new Roams. I’m waiting for a sub and two new 5’s, so still using S1 controller. I thought I could use the roams as Bluetooth speakers. They won’t pair with my iOS devices until I set them up on S2? And I can’t setup S2 until I get my new speakers which are back ordered? 
Roam should function as a Bluetooth speaker standalone should it not?

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Best answer by airforceteacher 23 May 2021, 20:56

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18 replies

Userlevel 6
Badge +15

Set them up as S2 speakers for now, just to use the Bluetooth. You can always reset the Roams before adding them to the final S2 system.

What is the final S2 configuration going to be - if you’re trying to maintain settings like playlists or favorites, then are you planning to add the Fives to the S1 first to copy settings over?

Userlevel 1

I’m so confused. I was a very early adopter and spent a fortune on connect, bridge, etc. I no longer use Sonos for my tuner or surround, but I have 3 old 5’s and a 3 that I’m upgrading along with 3 play One’s to what I hope is a new S2 system. 
in the end I’ll have 3 One’s,a  Sub, two new 5’s and the 2 roams that will work on S2.

I’ll have three 5’s, one 3, a connect and a bridge that will be obsolete—and either recycled or sold/given away to my kids who may be able to use the 5’s on the old controller in a small apartment setting.

 

I hope that makes sense. 
 

I’m still confused as to how to keep my current system running on S1 while setting up the Roams on S2 before I migrate my entire home. 
 

im sorry I’m such a techno-moron 

The Boost I purchased recently helped a ton since I live in 4 story townhome, btw.

 

 

Userlevel 6
Badge +15

Unless you absolutely need the Bluetooth capability now, you might as well just wait until the new speakers come in, then.

Userlevel 1

Airforceteacher—That’s what I decided to do. It’s frustrating to have new toys and not be able to use them, but it seems like the best option. 
I do want to thank you for being patient in your responses. Someone berated me in a Sonos subreddit for complaining about the Roam Bluetooth functionality not working until you set them up on the app. I do still think that Sonos should make it clear that they aren’t true Bluetooth speakers without being setup on Wifi first though. I bought two because I’m going f to use them when traveling, I would’ve bought them and been disappointed if I immediately took them on a trip. 

regardless of all that, you’re very kind and considerate and I appreciate your responding. Thank you, and of course, thank you for your service. 
 

 

Userlevel 1
Badge +1

I’m so confused. I was a very early adopter and spent a fortune on connect, bridge, etc. I no longer use Sonos for my tuner or surround, but I have 3 old 5’s and a 3 that I’m upgrading along with 3 play One’s to what I hope is a new S2 system. 
in the end I’ll have 3 One’s,a  Sub, two new 5’s and the 2 roams that will work on S2.

I’ll have three 5’s, one 3, a connect and a bridge that will be obsolete—and either recycled or sold/given away to my kids who may be able to use the 5’s on the old controller in a small apartment setting.

 

I hope that makes sense. 
 

I’m still confused as to how to keep my current system running on S1 while setting up the Roams on S2 before I migrate my entire home. 
 

im sorry I’m such a techno-moron 

The Boost I purchased recently helped a ton since I live in 4 story townhome, btw.

 

 

Seriously, don’t apologise. This is a clear cut case of ***** (bad) design and decision making by a company that should know better. I have hte same issue except the S2 app wont set the roam up because it detects older S1 only gear on my network. Poor design decisions, or an enforced upgrade has reduced My roam to being a costly paperweight. 

*Moderator Note: Modified in accordance with the Community Code of Conduct.*

Userlevel 4
Badge +3

If you don’t want to wait, other people in your situation have successfully set up their Roams by unplugging all of their S1 devices before running the S2 app. See here for example;


This particular user recommends deleting the S1 app before running S2 (and then reinstalling after setup) or using a different device, but I haven’t seen that step mentioned in other posts so not sure if that’s necessary.

Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Thanks for the heads up, I'll give that a try. It's frankly pretty dismal that sonos have broken their own ecosystem. Would a controller that controlled both be such a difficult thing to code? Even a restricted feature set on older S1 gear would be preferable to the mess we currently have

I couldn't be anymore disappointed with my sonos roam.

1. Can't get it to connect to my Bluetooth on my phone

2. Now as I read these posts (and I hope I'm wrong) I can't use my roam AND the thousands of dollars worth of gen 1 equipment I already have?????????

3. Sonos offices are closed so I can't get any technical help

  1. It has to be set up first in S2
  2. Yes, you can use both, just not grouped together. Your S1 app will continue to operate your ‘old’ equipment, S2 will operate the Roam.
  3. So, you post here, and get technical help from other users. 

Thank you...thats good news

 

 

 

the S2 app wont set the roam up because it detects older S1 only gear on my network. Poor design decisions, or an enforced upgrade has reduced My roam to being a costly paperweight. 

*Moderator Note: Modified in accordance with the Community Code of Conduct.*

We ran into the same problem when we wanted to use the brand new Roam as a BT speaker outside by the fire. Had to carry it inside to connect to the Wi-Fi to set it up then ran into the S1/S2 app issue. So it was either no music or miss the fire while I spent three hours sorting these issues out. Seriously? When a $9.99 BT speaker can work right out of the box?

Userlevel 7
Badge +18

Can the $9.99 speaker also do all the synchronised playing and streaming your Sonos devices can do? 

Userlevel 7
Badge +17

@gpclay You have not bought a bluetooth player, but a hybrid bluetooth/multiroom player. Is it so awful that this takes an extra step to set up (that should not have to last three hours - how did you manage that)?

Userlevel 7
Badge +16

The Move would been a better bet if you are on S1.

I've just added a brand new one to our S1 and it took a couple of minutes, sounds great. 

We ran into the same problem when we wanted to use the brand new Roam as a BT speaker outside by the fire. Had to carry it inside to connect to the Wi-Fi to set it up then ran into the S1/S2 app issue. So it was either no music or miss the fire while I spent three hours sorting these issues out. Seriously? When a $9.99 BT speaker can work right out of the box?

 

I don’t get why people are making these assumption regarding compatibility and setup requirements for the Roam, particularly by people that already have Sonos speakers and should have some familiarity.    Why would someone think Sonos would split modern and legacy devices (roughly) into two systems, then create new products for the old system?  Yes, it’s possible and there are surely some examples of where something similar has happened, but most certainly shouldn’t be an assumption.

As far as setup goes, it’s not just a bluetooth speaker, and it’s not advertised as such.  It’s a portable smart speaker that has bluetooth capabilities.  Again, it’s possible you could use bluetooth without doing setup (possible to imagine, not necessarily technically possible), but there’s no reason to assume that.  It’s sort of like assuming you’d be able to make phone calls on an iphone without doing any setup because you could do so on your 15 year old flip phone.  Yes, they both make phone calls, but one of these is built to do a lot more.

Some friends came over this weekend and brought some JBL portable speakers. They blew our Roams out of the water. Crisp full sound made the sonos sound like paper cups on a string.

   SUPER DISAPPOINTED IN SONOS BUT TOO LATE TO RETURN THEM.

Userlevel 7
Badge +17

So now even the sound isn’t any good? You didn’t audition any speakers before you bought the Roam?

@106rallye it's tough to "audition" a speaker online (think before you speak). I based my purchase on the fact we loved all our 1st gen. Sonos products.

(Also take reading lessons) I said the JBLs blew the Sonos out of the water. I didn't say the sonos were no good, I said the JBLs were MUCH BETTER.