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I have a PLAY:1 speaker that hasn’t been connected to my Sonos system (consisting of approx. 15 speakers) for a few months or so.  This means that the speaker has not received any software updates lately.

In the meantime, all my other Sonos speakers have been updated AND my Android Phone has received the absolutely HORRIBLE (sorry Sonos !!!) Sonos app update.

BUT: Now I’m trying to add the old PLAY:1 speaker to my system… It simply doesn’t work.  I tried all of the following:

  1. I simply powered on my old PLAY:1 and hoped that it would connect to the system (via WIFI) so that I would be able to see it in the app and then update it… But I don’t see the speaker, and if I select “Add Speaker or Component”, then the “Searching for nearby products...”-window just hangs indefinitely.
  2. I tried to factory reset the PLAY:1 (power on while passing down a few buttons and waiting  for flashing orange light), then I repeated the “Add Speaker or Component” procedure, but the result was the same!!!
  3. I connected the PLAY:1 via Ethernet, repeated the “factory reset process”, and repeated the “Add Speaker or Component” procedure… still the same problem!!!
  4. I downgraded the Sonos App to the previous -- and much better -- version (by side-loading an APK), and now I was immediately able to see that I have a PLAY:1 speaker on my network that is not connected to my system.  I then tried (in the old Sonos app) to add my PLAY:1 to the system, but now Sonos forces me to update to the new (broken!) app… Hence, I’m back to the problem with the “Add Speaker or Component” procedure hanging indefinitely!!!  I’m caught in an infinite loop, it seems!

Come on, Sonos… What is happening???  Why will you now allow me to use the old app to add my PLAY:1???  How do I get my PLAY:1 speaker re-connected to my system?

I don’t know what the solution is to the phone app failure, but try using the Sonos app for Windows on your laptop/PC to install the Play:1, as that is an updated app but still allows for ‘older’ processes it seems.

Thanks a lot for the suggestion Rhonny.

I now opened my Windows Sonos controller (version 16.2, build 79153290) and I think that the possibility to add speakers has been removed.  I remember that there used to be an “Add speaker” menu item in the “Manage” menu, but that item seems to have been removed.

Oh okay. I’m a Mac user so not sure on this. If anyone else knows if it’s possible on Windows, I’m sure they’ll be along soon…!

I now re-tried the factory reset without plugging in an Ethernet cable.  This time the behavior was a bit different:

  • In the new Sonos app (Android) I selected “Add Speaker or Component” (again!)
  • The app moved my phone over onto a new, temporary WIFI network (obviously, created by the PLAY:1 speaker), this worked fine.
  • The PLAY:1 speaker played a “chime sound” (this lasted a few seconds)
  • The app now displayed a message saying that now the PLAY:1 speaker will connect to my WIFI (the same WIFI used by all my other SONOS speakers)
  • BUT: The in the end the app says the following:
    • The connection to your Play:1 was lost. Move your mobile device closer and make sure that the Play:1 is powered on.

First of all, the speaker is powered on.  My phone is less than 1 foot away from the speaker.  The speaker is approx. 1 foot away from the WIFI access point.  What else can I do?

BTW: The LED on the Play:1 is now flashing green… but, obviously, it is not connected to my Sonos system.

 

UPDATE:

I have now been able to add my Play:1 speaker to my system after spending just 1½ hours (yes, this is sarcasm, sorry!).

I repeated all the steps in my previous comment over and over again (more than 5 times); i.e. I didn’t use and Ethernet cable.  All of a sudden, the following message popped up on my Sonos app:

  • Your Play:1 has been added, but may not appear in the System Settings. If so, unplug the power cord and plug it back in to finish setup from the System Settings.

Now I was able to go the “System Settings” and here I was finally able to find the Play:1 speaker.  So, I could now finish the last registration step so that it could be added to my system…

Sonos: Something tells me that there are some serious corners in your software that need polishing.

BTW: I have also had trouble moving my Sub Mini from one room to another with the new software (it used to work smooth in the good old days). But I don’t have the time to describe the long list of problems today… perhaps some other day (unless the software gets fixed before then).

 

 

 

 

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