5Ghz or bust!!! Please Sonos!

I don't think he wants the speakers to use 5 GHz as the only option, just one of the options. I can understand why that still wouldn't be desirable because the average user may not be able to troubleshoot issues due frequency selected, and may opt to assume Sonos is just junk. Plus there is the additional cost of firmware development that will probably only help a small percentage of customers. Seriously, I would think most sonos customers don't have the volume of networks OP has, and also have the limited open space requirement.

Same here. I can count 24 different routers.
Hard wiring speakers with ethernet cable and changing the wifi channel and no interference at all. Unlike my Dot which will drop out from time to time.

Get a wifi analyser app if necessary to find what's the best channel for Sonosnet. Or what channel to set your router to.

You will have to eliminate domestic interence too e.g. Cordless phones, baby monitors, microwave ovens etc

I'm obviously asking for 5GHz just as an option, not a replacement. And you can't tell me that that's a concern for users thinking Sonos is junk because it can still default to 2.4GHz out of the box. Not to mention there's already countless ways (advanced settings menu) you could make Sonos work sub-optimally.

I just ask for the option to set 5GHz given that my speaker only has to go to the next room but I can't run Ethernet there. 5GHz is solid in smaller living areas, no problem so please don't regurgitate something you heard about 5GHz not going far enough. It's silly. All my other devices are on 5GHz with flawless speeds at 200Mb/s. I also work in the technology field so it's a bit funny seeing people try to tell me how 5GHz is inferior. It is not. It is just different. The lack of signal distance is actually a strength in a condo or townhome or apartment because you'll have less 5GHz networks from neighbors interfering with you.

Btw I'm accessing the network statistics web server running on each speaker via my browser to see the same packet stats that are included with the troubleshooting data you can submit to Sonos, so I know a little bit about this stuff and am not just spouting 5GHz without knowing anything about it.

I don't have the expertise to say why Sonos have not enabled this, but presumably if it were cheap and easy with no downsides they would do it. To address your problem as it currently stands...I too have operated Sonos flawlessly in a very crowded wifi environment. If you don't have a Boost it might be worth trying, as it is more powerful and has better interference resistance than other Sonos components (allegedly). Buy from Sonos and you can return for a full refund if it makes no difference.

Keep any wired component at least three feet from the router and experiment with channels (although I appreciate you may well have tried all this).

It might be instructive to see the network matrix. In a browser, type http://xxx.xxx.x.xx:1400/support/review, substituting the IP address of a player for the x's. Then click Network matrix. Post it here if you feel so inclined.

You will have to eliminate domestic interence too e.g. Cordless phones, baby monitors, microwave ovens etc

I'm finding that eliminating the usual 2.4 GHz suspects (above) isn't enough to keep Sonos gear happy, other electronic devices that don't even have a 2.4 radio in them can also degrade the Sonos network to where there are problems.

My WD, Western Digital Live Drive, an Ethernet connected external hard drive plays badly with my fairly new Play 3 if it is less than about 6 feet away. My Raspberry Pi, V2, the one with no WiFi chip needs about 3 feet before the network matrix goes to yellow.

Not too many neighbors, too close so the noise from their systems isn't too big a deal but I'd be happy to move to 5 GHz and add a second wired Boost if necessary to get away from my non-WiFi noise issues.

In my original post I said bridge mode... I meant Boost mode. I'm running Boost mode from my Playbar. I thought of trying the Boost device from Sonos as you suggested but to be honest I'm not a huge fan of having what is essentially an access point on my network that I don't control. I believe Sonos uses WPA2 and I have to hope they use some secure password but it's just not something I feel comfortable with. I like knowing I've secured my own network myself and no one else in the world has the password.

I may try the Boost device anyway, but I'm confident 5GHz would be a better solution for me. Glad to see I'm not the only one having problems with 2.4GHz despite trying the channel options etc. Ultimately channel selection doesn't do a lot of good because all routers default to automatically switching channels on their own when there is contention. So if I switch to a less occupied channel, my neighbors routers gravitate there too eventually and problems start again. All the networks are constantly bouncing around and at any given time all channels are pretty occupied. There is a point where there are so many networks that channel selection doesn't do any good and you need to switch to 5GHz which for me is far less crowded. That's the point I'm at now.

You clearly don't understand what the Boost is but I have tried to help and I wish you good luck.

Thanks for the attitude guy, but I know exactly what it is. It is effectively a 2.4GHz access point that prompts all Sonos speakers in range on the network to connect to your network and each other *through* the Boost. Obviously in order for that to work, the Boost device needs to be visible to the speakers somewhere on he 2.4GHz spectrum. Now this means there is some wireless device that is accepting wireless connections that is directly plugged into my otherwise secure network. So the security of my network now rests in Sonos' hands. Sorry, but I'm not comfortable with that.

You can do the same thing with any Sonos speaker by plugging it directly into the network... whichever speaker you do that with functions just like the standalone Boost device, effectively, but it's not as strong as the Boost device.

You clearly don't have anything constructive to offer to the thread, so feel free to stay out of it. Thanks!

So why are you worried about security of wiring a Boost but not a Playbar?