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Question

Sonos Arc Ulta: Touch Buttons Not Working When Trying To Re-Find Hardware

  • July 25, 2026
  • 4 replies
  • 51 views

Sometimes my Sonos App loses my Arc Ultra and I have to use the option inside the app to re-find my hardware.

There is a button inside my Sonos app which cites the name of my home WiFi network and prompts me to look for Sonos hardware on the aforementioned home WiFi network.

The search successfully identifies my Arc Ultra and goes through the reconnection process. OK, fine so far. But the problem which eventuates is that the Sonos App asks me to check to see that the < and > touch buttons on my Arc Ultra are flashing and for me to press them.

Unfortunately neither button flashes and it is completely unresponsive to any physical contact. So basically my Sonos is disabled. The only workaround I’ve found is to do a full factory reset and setup the Arc Ultra from scratch. This setup process works because it does not ask me to check the < and > buttons are flashing and touch them: it uses a chime to detect the Arc Ultra and then completes the setup process from there.

 

Can Sonos please have a look at their software setup to see if an update has caused this issue? I know when I got my Arc Ultra for the first time earlier this year I had absolutely no problem with this setup feature: the < and > buttons would flash and there would be no issue. I could re-run the discovery process multiple times and no issue. But then all of a sudden one day this issue materialised.

 

My touch buttons work. After I do my factory reset, I’ve tested all of my touch buttons and they all work as expected. I thought maybe what had happened in the past is that I disabled touch buttons in my Sonos App and then there was a bug in the software which carried forward the “disable touch buttons” settings even when the Sonos App is trying to flash the < and > buttons and nothing happens. But I’ve confirmed that I’ve had the touch buttons enabled and the problem still manifests itself when my Sonos App forgets my equipment.

 

Other than that, everything works perfectly. Thankfully the factory reset option does not use the flashing touch buttons feature but I’d appreciate a response from Sonos Technical Support to understand if there is a bug that needs to be patched in the next software update?

I’ve been ignoring this issue for a while now but I can’t be the only person experiencing it and it is really frustrating. I’m just grateful I’ve found a workaround.

4 replies

  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • July 25, 2026

AFTERTHOUGHT: I do like to disable the “Status Lights” in my Sonos App Hardware settings (I still keep the “Touch Controls” active). I don’t know if this setting is what causes the interference with the setup process? Trying to flash buttons when I’m saying disable lights and the app can’t override? Potential software bug?


Stanley_4
  • Grand Maestro
  • July 25, 2026

If you want Sonos support you need to call Sonos, they rarely visit these user to user forums.

Some of your issues sound network related, visit the support site (link above) and look for wifi to find suggestions.


  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • July 25, 2026

If you want Sonos support you need to call Sonos, they rarely visit these user to user forums.

Some of your issues sound network related, visit the support site (link above) and look for wifi to find suggestions.

I agree that the occasional losing of hardware off the WiFi network would be connection related.

But the issue with the setup and the flashing buttons is clearly hardware related and that's what I am flagging. The process shouldn't take more than a minute when working properly and it wouldn't bother me if I had to re-run it every now and again. Instead I have to use a cumbersome factory reset work around which only works because it uses a different setup process compared to re-discovery of already identified equipment.


Stanley_4
  • Grand Maestro
  • July 25, 2026

And that second part really needs to brought to the attention of Sonos, nothing we users here can do about it.