Skip to main content
Contributor II
January 3, 2024
Answered

Sonos has become really unstable over the last month or two

Hi - I have a connect amp, two play 3s and two two play 1s. Everything about the system has become really unreliable recently, the iOS app constantly attempts something and fails (e.g. ‘unable to play) and says to ‘try again’. Recently it’s been unable to play certain playlists too. The connect amp has been dropping in and out constantly. Has anyone else been seeing odd/bad behavior? I’ve tried restarting everything, restarting my router, restarting the wifi etc., and I probably try killing the app once every few days at a minimum. I have been a huge fan and promotor of Sonos, but this has become really frustrating, it kills the Sonos value prop of ‘just works’.

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.
Airgetlam
AirgetlamAnswer
January 3, 2024

Despite your efforts, it’s still most likely the network. Make sure your Sonos devices are unplugged when you reboot the router. If that ‘fixes’ the issues you’ve been experiencing, I’d suggest looking in to your router’s manual on how to set up reserved IP addresses. A router that has gone astray once could do it again. 
 

However, if that doesn’t fix this, I’d submit a system diagnostic within 10 minutes of experiencing this problem, and call Sonos Support to discuss it.

There may be information included in the diagnostic that will help Sonos pinpoint the issue and help you find a solution.

When you speak directly to the phone folks, they have tools at their disposal that will allow them to give you advice specific to your network and Sonos system.

To answer your direct question, no, my system continues to be stable. 

Bruce

26 replies

Airgetlam
AirgetlamAnswer
January 3, 2024

Despite your efforts, it’s still most likely the network. Make sure your Sonos devices are unplugged when you reboot the router. If that ‘fixes’ the issues you’ve been experiencing, I’d suggest looking in to your router’s manual on how to set up reserved IP addresses. A router that has gone astray once could do it again. 
 

However, if that doesn’t fix this, I’d submit a system diagnostic within 10 minutes of experiencing this problem, and call Sonos Support to discuss it.

There may be information included in the diagnostic that will help Sonos pinpoint the issue and help you find a solution.

When you speak directly to the phone folks, they have tools at their disposal that will allow them to give you advice specific to your network and Sonos system.

To answer your direct question, no, my system continues to be stable. 

Bruce
billqAuthor
Contributor II
January 3, 2024

Thanks - I’ll try support (I submitted a diagnostic). I asked here because the app is also (incredibly) unreliable lately, which shouldn’t be directly related to any subtle network issue (it loses its mind even when the system is working fine).

Stanley_4
Grand Maestro
January 4, 2024

You do need to call support as they don’t pull up the diagnostics to look at until you contact them.

106rallye
January 4, 2024

@billq The app is a remote to the system, that it connects with using your network. If it can't connect to the system there all the more reason to believe  the network is your problem.

billqAuthor
Contributor II
January 9, 2024

Thanks, and understood re calling support ;) Talked with them, the most acute issue seems to have been an issue with the connect amp, several power disconnects seem to have fixed it.

Regarding the app, I understand it’s a remote, it’s not just connecting to the speakers that’s an issue, it has problems playing albums and playlists that I play all the time, and frequently can’t even display recently played or other status, that doesn’t seem like something that should be related to the network. I think lots of other apps would be breaking. Unless it’s funneling everything through the connect amp, which would seem like an odd choice? Regardless, thanks all for the help.

Airgetlam
January 9, 2024

Remember, the app isn’t really doing anything but showing you what’s going on in the computers on the devices. So it may not be the app’s connection to the devices, but the devices’ connection to your network. 

Most apps you use run locally on your device. Sonos, for all practical purposes, doesn’t (well, it does, but only after getting all the necessary information from the speakers/CONNECTs).

When you initiate playback, you choose the initial device (room) that controls what’s going on. If the device that you start with is your CONNECT, it’s considered to be the ‘hub’ through which all the music runs through to be distributed to all the other connected devices.

Try starting playback from something other than your CONNECT, and then group the CONNECT with that ‘room’, and the first room in the list, which you started with, becomes the ‘source’ of the music stream. When you do that, the CONNECT is no longer the parent device (hub), but the child. It also can sometimes help if you start playback from a wired device. Which means it may benefit you to unwire the CONNECT, and instead wire another device, which you would then start playback on. 

Bruce
buzz
Grand Maestro
January 9, 2024

Occasionally my Gateway’s WiFi gets its knickers tied into knots and needs a reboot. Wired network clients don’t have the issues. I need to remember to reboot it every month or two, else things start to get weird. An Internet search digs up some ‘fires’ burning around this Gateway. There can also be periods of interference. A WiFi scan can discover about 70 nearby access points. And, there is a medical facility next door. I wire as many network clients as possible.

Lyricist I
January 12, 2024

You’re not the only one billq. We noticed our system going in/out for months especially when using the connect amps, Then we noticed the playbar (as center channel) dropping out frequently...And as of today...Sonos says cannot find my system. Nothing changed here. Nothing with the network...the only thing that did change was adding two new Sonos Moves to the system. But the connect amp issues were prior. (Yes, I have done many resets...and since I have so many products its takes up too much time.) SO I JUST GAVE UP...This is on Sonos end.

Airgetlam
January 12, 2024

‘Nothing has changed with the network’ is a bit hard to accept. Many routers automatically update their software, they lose their place in the DHCP table and hand out bad IP addresses when the Sonos asks for new ones when it updates it’s software, and outside influences can change. You certainly may not have made a change, but that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a change. 

And it’s also possible this is an issue with the Sonos. The only way to be sure about that is to submit a system diagnostic within 10 minutes of experiencing this problem, and call Sonos Support to discuss it.

There may be information included in the diagnostic that will help Sonos pinpoint the issue and help you find a solution.

When you speak directly to the phone folks, they have tools at their disposal that will allow them to give you advice specific to your network and Sonos system.

Bruce
Contributor I
March 1, 2024

Ive been having issue with Sonos for a lone time now, although ever since the launch of the latest S2 App, its been dreadful, i have a large set up, 6 x play 1s 1 x play 5, 2 x play 3s 3 play bars, and a Arc plus a Sub. So I invested heavily, Sonos ALWAYS blame your network, ive been told its my Hive, then it was my Mesh network (provided by Virgin) then my Router (Ive gone through 3 now) then its because they are wireless and not wired, due to logistics of the house running miles of cable wasn't feasible. then they blamed the Boost they made me buy in place of the old Bridge, out went the Bridge in came the boost, now im told the Boost isn't supported. I reboot all my products daily, makes no difference which way in circles we go round, the end result remains the same. Drops out are something you have to live with despite investing close to £10k on these products, the app is S**T, its unresponsive, unreliable, slow, and as glitchy as hell, will loose speakers, or when you attempt to turn the volume up or down, it just dosent respond. I would NEVER recommend sonos as a reliable system to use, the speaker sound are literally the best you'll get but try watching a movie, with the surround speakers going up and down a lot is irritating to say the least. its live with it or move on, and on we go with never ending support tickets, and tinkering which seems to make no difference what so ever. maybe a smaller system would work better, but its a little too late for me for that, as I was told this was the best, which the speakers are, sadly the app you need to work the system is utter junk

 

Moderator Note: Modified in accordance with the Community Code of Conduct.