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Cannot group Sonos system with Google Home devices

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E
Userlevel 2
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I don’t think that people are complaining that two different systems are not working together completely, more that when one claims, as Sonos did, that Sonos and Google Home could now ‘work together’, people would obviously expect that speakers of different types could be grouped together. I don’t think that is an unreasonable expectation. But yes you are right; each to their own. The market will sort out what customers want. But my personal opinion is that it’s a dangerous game that Sonos are playing. I think a LOT of people want whole-house audio which options - to be grouped and controlled by touch, voice, possibly with a display in some cases. That means Google/Echo over Sonos.

B

So I have a a mix match of brands for speakers in the house (5.1 bose with chromecast audio in the office, chromecast ultra with the tv in the living room hooked up to vizio 5.1 system, and google minis in bedroom areas) and saw the Sonos has Google Assistant capabillity and went out and bought 2 Sonos Play:1s yesterday. I hooked them up in the kitchen/dining room area and they blanket the space very well with their stereo pairing. I then went to enable them to be grouped with the other Google speakers which are grouped and then was majorly disappointed. I wish I found this post before I went through the trouble to purchase Sonos and set them up! Oh well, back to the store they go and now I’ve got my eye on JBL Link 20s and Harmon Kardon Citation Ones. 

 

Btw, I called Sonos yesterday and talked with a representative about if they might have a Chromecast project in flight to enable Sonos speakers. He put me on hold for about 10 minutes after speaking with an engineer and didn’t make me feel confident there is an actual project in flight. He said the google system and assistant is “complex” from an engineering standpoint. I got the sense they are looking into it but not sure if they really are. If Sony, JBL, Harmon Kardon, Bang & Olfusen all have chromecast enabled, it seems more of a business decision on behalf of Sonos not to offer, or at least drag their feet on while they wait to make a decision. In any event, the Sonos Play:1s I bought are being returned.

Good luck to everyone with their audiophile needs!

 

melvimbe

This would likely be one of two things, or a combination of both. First, the method by which data is transmitted to each device is different, and second, Google doesn’t want to allow Sonos into their ‘walled’ garden, so that Google gets the hardware sales, not Sonos.

Given the legal issues between the two companies, I wouldn’t expect this to change any time soon. 

 

I am pretty sure Sonos doesn’t want it’s customer to pick Google speakers to fill out their Sonos system either.  Although Sonos does support Apple airplay.

Danny
M
Userlevel 1
Now I understand why Sonos' stock went down from ~$20 per stock to ~$10. If they do not align to what people are expecting "smart functionality" they are not going to be able to sell more.
P
Userlevel 2
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So disappointed with the limited GA integration by Sonos, espically after nearly 2 years of work on this launch. I have advertised my Sonos Play 5 for sale. As soon as it goes it's Google Home Max for me.
B
Team, I figured out a way to group the Sonos system into the Google Play Room Groups. I had a Chromecast audio that I plugged into the Sonos AMP. The Chromecast Audio is like a speaker so once I set the Sonos delay (slightly off from Google Home Speakers I can group all my Sonos and Google Home Speakers together as one Home Group, voila, SOLVED!!!!! Sure the AMP is pricey, but I needed it for my outdoor waterproof speakers anyway. Let me know if you have any questions!!!!!
N

It can be done With a little untraditional work-around. I got a chromecast connected to my TV and a SONOS Beam connected to the TV with a HDMI cable to one of the TVs HDMI ARC ports. I got to one gen 2 speakers paired with my beam. In my bedroom, kitchen and bathroom I got Google home speakers. For this to work the TV must be turned on though… in the google home app you then create a group with your TV(chromecast) and your Google speakers. That’s it. You now have music playing through (in my case) a beam, 2 one gen 2 and all my google speakers at the same time. You can adjust sync between the speakers through the app, if need be. By default it is set at 76 ms. Cheers from Denmark. 

F

Wow the post is 2 years old and it still can’t add to a Google music group… I bought today a Sonos Roam with the Google Assistant especially to do that. After I set my Sonos (now future ex Sonos), created an account, linked with my google account, I searched for how to add the speaker with my Google music group and I didn’t found it. After a search on the internet, I found this tread and found out this is not possible… I am truly disappointed. I will return it in the store tonight...

Anyone know a good brand of Bluetooth speaker with Google Assistant which is able to be add in a Google Music Group?

 

Thanks,

J

My point is that no price guarantees any particular feature should be included.

If Sonos doesn't provide a feature that is important to you then you have to consider whether the features it does have are worth the price.  If not then it is logical to send it.back.

The only statement you will get from Sonos is 'we have no information on this to share at the present time'. So I wouldn't wait too long hoping for anything else. 

T
Being able to form a speaker group with my google home speakers is literally the only reason I bought this Sonos One. I am very, very disappointed to discover this is not possible and feel tricked that it was never called out in any of the product literature
M

More then 150 comments?Can you finally make that feature available? Its sad my SONOS Beam is the ONLY device that cant be grouped in google home.

J

Honestly I don't even know why I bought an Arc being unable to group the speakers. They almost never get used for music because of this. 🤦‍♂️

 

Just implement the feature already.

Just sell your Google speakers and  buy Sonos already . You either have a Sonos multiroom system or you don't. 

C

Wow the post is 2 years old and it still can’t add to a Google music group… I bought today a Sonos Roam with the Google Assistant especially to do that. After I set my Sonos (now future ex Sonos), created an account, linked with my google account, I searched for how to add the speaker with my Google music group and I didn’t found it. After a search on the internet, I found this tread and found out this is not possible… I am truly disappointed. I will return it in the store tonight...

Anyone know a good brand of Bluetooth speaker with Google Assistant which is able to be add in a Google Music Group?

 

Thanks,

I have the exact same disappointment. In all my research, this is the one thread that has eluded me. Dammit. I wish I had found this thread prior to purchasing. What a wasted purchase.

O

Come on already. Fix that problem Sonos!!!!!

K

I'm looking for this as well, group the sonos speakers with the google nest / home. Should be nice if Sonos will make anothet statement after a year of this TS.

D

Like others I am extremely disappointed that Sonos and/or Google hasn’t resolved this issue with grouping speakers (Sonos One’s and Beam’s with Google/Nest speakers). This clearly is a feature that everyone has expected and want with the Google assistant integration.

It has been some months now, since the original post was created and we as the customers still have no insight to whether this feature is being worked on or not, it would be great if Sonos could at least comment on whether it was in development and/or something that is never going to happen. From there it will give us the ability to decide if we should invest in a fully integrated OR part integration with Sonos and Google Assistant environment.

It can be done with Alexa so I don’t see why this can’t be done with Google Assistant.

106rallye
Userlevel 7
Badge +17

This thread is about Google groups, not Alexa. You could check elsewhere at the forum for Alexa groups on Sonos.

S
Not to pile on here, but count me as another disappointed customer. I bought my recent Sonos setup under the assumption that I would be able to add them to my other speaker groups within Google Home. Now, when I play music in my "Upstairs" group, for example, my living room has only my dinky Google Home rather than my Playbar/2xPlay:1 to add to the chorus.

Essentially my Sonos will only be used for the TV, which is a huge waste.
106rallye
Userlevel 7
Badge +17

@Simbadagr8 Please show where Sonos advertised the ability of Sonos speakers to be part of a Google speaker group?

S

What in the actual f*ck. 

 

I finally got myself a Sonos One with the idea of pairing it with my other google devices. Brought it home, set it up, only to find out I can’t play music on my google home and Sonos at the same time?! 
 

Looks like there are posts going back 6 months on this!!! Give us an ETA or I’m returning this thing and getting something that works. 🤬

M

Same frustration. Home is networked through google. Waited months for the integration. Every other third party speaker I own can be grouped using Google (unlike Amazon/Alexa groups), and their spokespeople have been telling press this would be part of the functionality. Hugely frustrated to have my highest quality speaker disconnected from my home and rarely used as a result. I would like Sonos to be definitive - one way or the other - on whether this basic feature is on the roadmap.

 


I follow the press about Sonos pretty closely, and I never saw this type of feature touted as part of the functionality. Furthermore, I wouldn't expect it to be, because you cannot do it with Alexa devices either. I'm curious if you can provide links to these press statements?

 

Couldn’t have put it better myself - seems like they have omitted a basic feature and it is very frustrating for people with Sonos speakers and very much into the Google ecosystem. Question is do you slowly switch to the Apple ecosystem or slowly switch the Sonos speakers for alternative high-end speakers (which are more Google Cast friendly)?

L

Sonos,

After all this waiting. And after multiple articles. And after multiple phone calls to your service reps (including today), I’m now being told that you cannot group your Sonos system devices with your Google Home devices (after being told for months and more than a year that the aid be able to group them). Even the rep I spoke with today tried to help me and didn’t find out it wasn’t possible until he spoke to a system engineer. You can do it with Amazon devices, but STILL not with Google devices

In all honesty, what is the point of adding Google assistant to Sonos if you can’t even use Sonos speakers with Google Speakers together in a group? It’s pretty useless for me to be in living room, have to get up and walk to my kitchen to say “hey google, play x in my Living Room” and then walk back.

I've owned my Sonos Move for one day and it's being returned. My entire house is connected with 20 different speakers through a Google speaker group so that the same music can be played throughout the entire house at the same time. Funny that my $400 Move is the only one incompatible. Very frustrating.

Imagine my shock to read on a blog one of your own programmers comment how inferior the concept is to group a speaker with other cheaper speakers. The arrogance in his words should prompt him to be disciplined within the company. Time to move on.

S

What in the actual f*ck. 

 

I finally got myself a Sonos One with the idea of pairing it with my other google devices. Brought it home, set it up, only to find out I can’t play music on my google home and Sonos at the same time?! 
 

Looks like there are posts going back 6 months on this!!! Give us an ETA or I’m returning this thing and getting something that works. 🤬

 

You are not going to get an ETA, and it’s doubtful that this will ever happen.  Sonos and GA (and Alexa and everyone else for that matter) use different patented multiroom protocols to play audio together.  Sonos isn’t likely to drop their protocols in favor of GAs, nor would GA give up theirs...and vice versa.  Even if both companies did decide to do this, it would take quite some time to develop and test it all out. Can’t see this happening wiithout a major shift in the market for whatever reason.

 

I would recommend picking a speaker brand for multiroom audio system  and sticking with it instead of trying to mix and match.  Pick Sonos and use GA for control...or pick GA and use their speakers and others that are stand alone speakers only (not part of their own multiroom system). 

 

Not trying to undermine anyone’s frustration with this, as it’s understandable why people assume it all works together like that, just that it doesn’t match the reality.

 

The frustration arises out of the misleading positioning of Sonos working with Google Assistant/Home. 

They omit to mention that if you want to group speakers you’re shit out of luck. While I’d love to empathise with their cross platform protocol powergrab bullshit, the user experience has to be the driver. In this particular case, they dropped the ball and I’m returning their shitty speaker for one that will work with GA as advertised. 

E
Userlevel 2
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Well I think this may explain a lot of the seemingly-inexplicable missing features within the GA-Sonos ‘integration’. As I suspected it’s nothing to do with any technical limitations.

https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/8/21056198/sonos-google-statement-lawsuit-ces-reaction-big-tech

jgatie

Sonos Move and next Arc owner here.

 

Thinking of returning if this isn’t going to change. At home we have 5 Google Assistant speakers (one of them it’s a Smart Display from Lenovo) and we want to group all devices with the SONOS Move and Arc.

 

Not so happy with them, they aren’t cheap and I bought them because they announced Google Assistant’s compatibility.

 

Any news SONOS, can you tell us something? Any feedback? We’ll be glad to hear from you and know we’re heard.

 

Sonos isn’t going to tell you this, but if it hasn’t happened by now, it’s not going to happen. 

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