I recently set up Trueplay on a couple of Play:1s that I own. When testing out the post-Trueplay calibration sound I discovered bass distortion once I dialed up the speaker to about half-way on the volume bar (my EQ had bass and treble right in the middle and Loudness was turned off). At first I thought it was an issue with my speaker, but turning off Trueplay removed the distortion issue. The best way to describe the distortion is that it is a deep popping bass sound like occurs intermittently (maybe once every couple of seconds, but that depends on how bass heavy the song is).
Anyone else having this issue with a Trueplay-tuned Play:1?
This topic has been closed for further comments. You can use the search bar to find a similar topic, or create a new one by clicking Create Topic at the top of the page.
Page 4 / 7
Guys, of course I was speaker to Sonos support! I'm just going through with what they told me, I knew it didn't sound right what he was telling me, but I didn't push him on it, as call center staff in general are quite often loose with the truth.
He said it has a built in microphone which would sense the unit was moved and disable the TruePlay tuning, as he had tested this himself and even moving the unit by 1 inch disabled the TruePlay as it was that sensitive.
He also talked me through re-tuning the Play 1 myself, I didn't suggest that he did this for me.
Call reference was: 160728-001121, and also note he was very good on the phone, he was helpful, patient, and took me clearly through the whole process, so I cant fault him on that at all.
Guys, I don't really know where we're going with this thread now, I only wanted to add on here that I too have experienced problems with the Play 1 in hope it adds some weight that there could be some issue that needs fixing. I've accepted that the Play:1 is not the speaker for me, and may purchase a Play:3.
He said it has a built in microphone which would sense the unit was moved and disable the TruePlay tuning, as he had tested this himself and even moving the unit by 1 inch disabled the TruePlay as it was that sensitive.
He also talked me through re-tuning the Play 1 myself, I didn't suggest that he did this for me.
Call reference was: 160728-001121, and also note he was very good on the phone, he was helpful, patient, and took me clearly through the whole process, so I cant fault him on that at all.
Guys, I don't really know where we're going with this thread now, I only wanted to add on here that I too have experienced problems with the Play 1 in hope it adds some weight that there could be some issue that needs fixing. I've accepted that the Play:1 is not the speaker for me, and may purchase a Play:3.
Userlevel 7
+26
But anyway, it appeared while i was on the phone that the issue was resolved by re-tuning, but on further listening the issue was still there.
This doesn't sound right - I can't see Support making such a silly mistake in connection with the supposed mic in the play 1 unit. And the unit won't disable Trueplay on its own by some magic if relocated - it can't - but on moving the speaker, the tuning will become inaccurate and the best options would be to retune, or if that isn't possible, turn Trueplay off. AFAIK, Trueplay only gets turned off automatically if you change speaker configuration like stereo pair it, or bond it to a Sub. Very odd, what you are reporting - are you sure you were talking to Sonos Support?
And Support cannot retune - they can only suggest that you do so. Did you? And if the problem was resolved, did it automatically resurface with no other user input or location change?
That's a bit odd to me as well. The PLAY:1 doesn't have a microphone. They never did, even going back to the beta versions. I'll pull up the notes there and take a look at the incident.
Just out of curiosity, and if I missed it here please let me know, have you tried factory resetting one of those units, then adding it back in and testing the audio before Trueplay? If you do this, does it still have any sort of bass distortion?
But anyway, it appeared while i was on the phone that the issue was resolved by re-tuning, but on further listening the issue was still there.
This doesn't sound right - I can't see Support making such a silly mistake in connection with the supposed mic in the play 1 unit. And the unit won't disable Trueplay on its own by some magic if relocated - it can't - but on moving the speaker, the tuning will become inaccurate and the best options would be to retune, or if that isn't possible, turn Trueplay off. AFAIK, Trueplay only gets turned off automatically if you change speaker configuration like stereo pair it, or bond it to a Sub. Very odd, what you are reporting - are you sure you were talking to Sonos Support?
And Support cannot retune - they can only suggest that you do so. Did you? And if the problem was resolved, did it automatically resurface with no other user input or location change?
Yep, They were very helpful, and we spent a while on the phone placing the speaker in other places and retuning etc... They did tell me something which doesnt seem to be true though. He said if i move the speaker, the Play 1 will know it's moved as it has an internal microphone which will sense it's in a different room and then disable TruePlay. This didn't happen and it remained on.
But anyway, it appeared while i was on the phone that the issue was resolved by re-tuning, but on further listening the issue was still there.
I should also point out i have had others listen to the Play 1's who also commented on the issue and the poor sound quality from them, so it's not just something I'm hearing, lol.
In fact one persons words were: "I dont know how much you paid for that, but i'd be sending it back as it sounds crap" :(
Anyway, maybe this thread will grow with others with the problem over time, we shall see.
But anyway, it appeared while i was on the phone that the issue was resolved by re-tuning, but on further listening the issue was still there.
I should also point out i have had others listen to the Play 1's who also commented on the issue and the poor sound quality from them, so it's not just something I'm hearing, lol.
In fact one persons words were: "I dont know how much you paid for that, but i'd be sending it back as it sounds crap" :(
Anyway, maybe this thread will grow with others with the problem over time, we shall see.
Have you contacted Sonos support and if so, what do they say? I have 4 play units in different parts of the house and they have been/are brilliant music makers; Trueplay did little to change that, probably because I had taken some care over their placement in the first place. It certainly did not add even a hint of distortion; actually I have found that the biggest impact of Trueplay is of dialling down/smoothing the bass response arising from poor placement and logically this ought to reduce the chances for any distortion to arise.
But working with Sonos Support is the way to go, I suggest.
But working with Sonos Support is the way to go, I suggest.
Just listened to that, and that has an intentional distortion throughout it, but no my issue does not sound the same as that.
Correct
Userlevel 1
+1
If you listen to something like Christine and the Queens iT. It has distorted bass samples throughout the song. Is this the sort of distortion you have been hearing on other songs?
The JBL flip 3 I bought does stereo pairing too; but because I can't be bothered setting up two speakers when travelling/by the pool or on the beach means it isn't worth it, even though a pair will cost less than one 1. And no single box speaker can be anything but mono out of doors, at the usual listening distances that prevail there, even if it is a stereo unit. The only convenient way to get stereo outdoors is via earphones, as far as I know.
Having stereo in two, physically separated speakers will give far better imaging than a single "stereo" speaker can ever achieve. I'm only aware of one BT speaker product (there may be others) that is capable of pairing; the Libratone Zipp. It costs more, and does not sound as good as the Play:1.
http://www.whathifi.com/libratone/zipp-2015/review
http://www.whathifi.com/libratone/zipp-2015/review
And they are all of them effectively mono, unless the listener is no more than a few feet away from them. Once further away, the speakers become point sources. Which is why JBL offer stereo pairing as an option if one needs that and is willing to buy two units.
Good points you raise there Kumar, although i definitely find that having stereo in the speaker makes a difference to the depth of the sound. I may well have to go for the Play 3 (which is more than i wanted to spend) but to have the quality of the Sonos interface I think it's my only option! 1st world problems eh? haha.
I did not look at the Sony, but the JBL Charge doesn't come within touching distance of the 1; even the Extreme that is a bigger more expensive speaker than the Charge, doesn't. IMO, obviously. Indeed one well known tester of bluetooth speakers uses the play 1 as his reference standard for his tests.
And they are all of them effectively mono, unless the listener is no more than a few feet away from them. Once further away, the speakers become point sources. Which is why JBL offer stereo pairing as an option if one needs that and is willing to buy two units.
And they are all of them effectively mono, unless the listener is no more than a few feet away from them. Once further away, the speakers become point sources. Which is why JBL offer stereo pairing as an option if one needs that and is willing to buy two units.
Having just come away from extensive comparison of these because I had to buy one for travel, I find this hard to believe - the one I bought just last week is excellent for the application, but doesn't come close to my 1 units. Which ones specifically have you found to be so? - I might want to check them out even now!
I cant remember all of them, but they were in Currys in the UK. Ones such as SONY SRSXB2B and JBL Charge, both are stereo as well. I think the mono aspect of the Play 1 really bothers me also.
Having just come away from extensive comparison of these because I had to buy one for travel, I find this hard to believe - the one I bought just last week is excellent for the application, but doesn't come close to my 1 units. Which ones specifically have you found to be so? - I might want to check them out even now!
Speakers ARE subjective things, but your experience with the 1 units is very clearly an outlier that only defective units can explain. How one person can end up with three of these is a puzzle though.
http://stereos.about.com/od/Wireless/ss/Sonos-Play1-Measurements.htm
I've just been listening to a Trueplay'd stereo pair of Play:1s attached to Flexon floor stands, positioned up close to a wall in a fairly large room, playing "The Flow" by Melanie De Biasio [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niORGSImsbI ] streaming from Google Play Music. A long time ago I used to listen to a bunch of audiophile stuff, and I can only marvel at how the above Sonos setup can sound so ridiculously good for the very little it cost me.
I realise this is of no help whatsoever for those experiencing problems, so sorry for that, but there you go - some deserved positive feedback from me for a change!
Cheers RDog, I setup both Play 1's in stereo pair and compared back and forth to the Play 5, and the Play 5 was a lot better. It has a warmer sound and you get to hear a lot more of the instruments clearer in the tracks. Overall they were really disappointing to me (issues aside), particularly more with any music that contains a beat. Appreciate the input though, speakers can be a subjective thing anyway 🙂
Cheaper Bluetooth speakers do sound better to me, that's just an opinion which I'm entitled to make 🙂 I'll demo some others in the shops though and see what's about, may even go with a Play 3.
Read back through the thread. Certain combinations of content and Trueplay compensation profile appear to be the trigger. Since everyone's room is different it could well be that it only affects a small proportion of installation situations.
It's possible in some cases, but it does happen without Trueplay too. I've never experienced anything like this, I'm listening to some tracks now and I'm getting like extra pops, and beats every now and then its very odd! Drives me up the wall, it's going back! lol
You took it off topic by claiming that cheap BT speakers sound better than Play:1s. I'm challenging that assertion. I am calling BS.
Self Powered? by the mains electric you mean? Self Contained? Look at any wireless speaker on the market. But we're getting off topic now.
http://stereos.about.com/od/Wireless/ss/Sonos-Play1-Measurements.htm
I've just been listening to a Trueplay'd stereo pair of Play:1s attached to Flexon floor stands, positioned up close to a wall in a fairly large room, playing "The Flow" by Melanie De Biasio [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niORGSImsbI ] streaming from Google Play Music. A long time ago I used to listen to a bunch of audiophile stuff, and I can only marvel at how the above Sonos setup can sound so ridiculously good for the very little it cost me.
I realise this is of no help whatsoever for those experiencing problems, so sorry for that, but there you go - some deserved positive feedback from me for a change!
Hmmmm. I'd sure like to know of any self-powered, fully self-contained wifi speakers that measure better and cost less than the Play:1s.
Read back through the thread. Certain combinations of content and Trueplay compensation profile appear to be the trigger. Since everyone's room is different it could well be that it only affects a small proportion of installation situations.
@philljp: Trueplay is not just EQ, it's digital room correction. Oh, and PLAY:1 is a mono speaker, capable of being bonded in stereo pairs.
Yes, it does appear that the hardware isn't faulty as such, but something strange is going on. I have also noticed it with TruePlay off, but its barely noticeable, but can be heard.
I'm also aware the Play 1 can be paired, which would then cost you £320, and 2 units to cater for. (But that's a different discussion again). There are better sounding speakers for less money, but its a real shame as i wanted it to all link together seamlessly with the Sonos app. My other option is to get a Play 3.
But mainly, just adding my findings to this discussion as others are getting the same problem, hope this helps some way to finding the root cause.
http://stereos.about.com/od/Wireless/ss/Sonos-Play1-Measurements.htm
Wrong, I have had plenty of speakers in the past, and have Monitor Audio floor standers in the living room. Plus all 3 speakers cant be faulty as such, there's something else going on here, but I'm not sure what. There's a problem that's for sure, but I cant put my finger on where, or explain how thousands of other Play 1 owners aren't getting the same issue.
Also, as I say I love the Play 5.
Page 4 / 7
Enter your username or e-mail address. We'll send you an e-mail with instructions to reset your password.