Starting a week ago, Amazon Music no longer works on my Sonos 1 system!!

  • 30 October 2021
  • 37 replies
  • 4177 views
T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Starting about a week ago, I can no longer play Amazon Music on Pandora. Specifically:

  • Everything seems OK; I can see all stations, suggested play lists, and so on
  • But: When I play anything, it takes a long time to connect, then it plays for a few seconds, but only on one of my (7) speakers/amplifiers/rooms, switching back and forth between them
  • Eventually, after a few seconds, or sometimes right from the start it says: Insufficient connection speed to play

However, I have 300Mps speed confirmed through the house, and Pandora plays just fine. I also confirmed that I can play Amazon music through the laptop without any problems. 

 

Any idea how to troubleshoot this? I already disconnected and then reconnected (added back) the Amazon service to Sonos 1 (I was an early adopter, so all my equipment is the old equipment). 

Any ideas? Anything to do with Amazon’s latest offer of “HD” (not sure exactly what that is)

Greatly appreciate advice!

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.

37 replies

Stanley_4
Userlevel 7
Badge +22

My Amazon music has been acting up again, sometimes it just stops playing music for a moment to a minute but a couple times it stopped playing music for several songs. The Android screen showed them playing and changing but no sound.

Changed to a different Amazon station and it started playing with no issue. Next time it happened I switched stations for long enough for it to start playing and switched back and the original station resumed.

System looks good, the WiFi channel isn’t heavily congested, matrix is all green and local FLAC files stream with no issues. I’m looking at Amazon as the source of the glitches and if they continue past the holiday, and I get less busy, I will submit a diagnostic and support request.

Airgetlam

Any changes to what Amazon is sending to Sonos would be changed on the settings of your Amazon account, not from within Sonos, who doesn’t have access to that sort of data. 

Bruce
T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Ken: To be frank -- I am happy it’s working at this point (without Amazon Unlimited “HD”….). To move the system to a different WIFI would -- I think -- make the system inaccessible from my various tablets and laptops, which are running/signed into the Velop system. Even if the Velop mesh is to blame -- I am reluctant to mess with it because I think my employer has secured it further remotely, to allow my laptop access to confidential info through VPN. 

Also, as I posted a few messages back, the error log in Sonos had numerous messages like this:

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:25 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'King of Carrot Flowers Pt. 1' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Not sure how Velop Mesh would “corrupt” the binary file streamed to Sonos...(?). This rather looks like Sonos S1 -- or one or more of its components -- isn’t prepared to deal with the 24 bit compression format, and fails to properly sync up with other components. That’s what it feels like.

As I said, hopefully, Sonos will allow me somehow to turn off HD 24-bit compression for/through Amazon unlimited. Currently, I am 100% certain that Unlimited and the default format how it streams music is what had caused the problem (at least preceded it; “root cause” is something deep in the soft/hard.ware I suppose).

Ken_Griffiths

My understanding is the 24-bit Amazon Music service is only available on an S2 Household - I’m quite sure it’s not available in an S1 setup, in fact very little has changed in S1 since the move to S2.

I have an S1 setup here as mentioned with Play:1 and it’s still working fine with Amazon Music HD/UltraHD Unlimited, which is the primary music service I use, aswell as Deezer. So it’s all very odd.

I would be interested to know if the Velop mesh system was switched off and removed from the equation and perhaps just the router primary hub only was used with the Sonos devices, if the issue then goes away. I can’t recall the last audio. dropout I had with the players here and the Amazon service. It makes me wonder if the Velop system is playing a role in this, despite the coincidences seen so far when switching the type of subscription service. 

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

If you go up this thread, John, I described the “malfunction”: It was very weird. I was able to play the Ultra HD music through my (mostly...) S1 system components, but the music would jump across component/station to component/station. It worked if I did not play through more than 4 or so synchronized speakers/connections/amps at the same time. If I played through all 11 current speakers/connections/amps at the same time, then the music would “migrate” from speaker to speaker. After my Amazon Unlimited subscription finally got cancelled it all worked fine again (this happened twice: I cancelled, it worked, Amazon gave me 1 month free extension of Unlimited, it broke again, as of this morning Unlimited is canceled again, it works again).

That’s the summary… 

I really hope that Sonos finds a way to configure their (S1) service so it will by default disable HD streaming from Amazon (something I can do on my Amazon Music client, on my laptop...).

J

By 'HD', Amazon mean 16-bit CD quality, which every Sonos player has always been able to play. 

24-bit is labelled 'Ultra HD'. I have an S2 system, but within this some players are not capable of Ultra HD. On those, Amazon Music just plays HD.

I would have expected S1 to play HD versions rather than not to play at all. But apparently not? (Note: 24-bit is not available on S1 at all, with any player)

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

So I think it all is clear(er) now: According to KEN’s clarification of RIO’s posting above, Sonos Connect and Connect Amp Gen 2 should work with 24bit audio -- but mine are Gen 1 (the cost of being an early adopter).

Also, and as I wrote before, Amazon had extended automatically my Unlimited trial by one month, but that trial finally expired as of this morning (1/1/22) -- and it all works again. So this is the second time around that I got to perform this test/experiment, with the same outcome both time.

Conclusions: I have several very old pieces (Gen 1) that do NOT support HD streaming. Hopefully Amazon or Sonos will figure out a way to turn HD off (I can on my Windows Amazon Music APP; but not in the Sonos S1 controller). Until then I will unfortunately have to give up on Amazon Unlimited for now. 

PS: I never could hear the difference between HD 24 bit streaming and the regular streaming. I guess I am not and “Audiophile” -- or just plain too old and have listened to too much loud music. Either way, not worth the few k$’s to throw away my old equipment and replace with the new of basically the same functionality...

Ken_Griffiths

The Chicago Tribune (Dec 2021) reports “ Sonos speakers support up to 16-bit audio, which means some high-res audio formats can’t be played back. This won’t be a problem for most users, but audiophiles with 24-bit audio files may need a different solution (like Sonos’ competitor, Bluesound).”

I think thats what they call ‘fake news’ many Sonos products Support 24-bit audio.

The Sonos devices that support 24-bit streaming audio are:

  • Roam
  • Arc
  • Beam (both generations), 
  • Five
  • Sub (all generations), 
  • Move
  • One
  • One SL
  • Port
  • Amp
  • SYMFONISK Bookshelf
  • SYMFONISK Table Lamp
  • Play:5 (Gen 2)
  • Connect (Gen 2) (Summer 2017–> onwards)
  • Connect:Amp (Gen 2)
  • Note: Using Qobuz - the older Playbar supports 24bit streaming audio too.
R
Userlevel 2

The Chicago Tribune (Dec 2021) reports “ Sonos speakers support up to 16-bit audio, which means some high-res audio formats can’t be played back. This won’t be a problem for most users, but audiophiles with 24-bit audio files may need a different solution (like Sonos’ competitor, Bluesound).”

Ken_Griffiths

I assume if the Cox device is a router, that it’s own WiFi network is switched ‘off’ and that the Velop Hub is set one metre or so away from the Cox device. Also that the wired Sonos device is a metre away from both, as that’s normally where most interference can arise if they are close to each other.

That said, I too would choose to cable one Sonos device only to the Velop primary hub and ensure the SonosNet channel is set to the least used channel.

One thing to not do, is wire another Sonos product to a secondary Hub as that can cause issues. It’s also best to not have any WiFi credentials saved in the Sonos App ‘Settings/System/Network/Manage Network’ area, although that is unavoidable if using any Sonos ‘Portable’ products, like the ‘Roam’ or ‘Move’.

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

So I have a COX modem for voice and internet and TV; that is plugged by wire into the VELOP system, which has a default setup that was also recently changed by my employer for better end-point-security. One of the S1 Amplifiers is plugged into the Velop node that is plugged into the Cox modem. So -- many moving parts.

Let me try to move the Sonos system directly to the Cox system next. Actually, I may just wait for 30 days until my Unlimited trial expires and see if things start to work again -- which for the time being solves my problem….

Will keep you posted.

Ken_Griffiths

It must be something related to your local network and it ‘not liking’ the Amazon service - maybe it’s not coping with the 16/44 encoded files that Amazon falls back to for your older S1 setup. The S1 and S2 system I use here, still appears to be okay so I’m guessing it must be something on your network, possibly to do with the Velop Hubs mentioned earlier.

Are you running all with just one Sonos device wired to the main Velop Hub only when it’s in router mode, or are you running the Velop system bridged off another router and have the Sonos device wired to that router instead? Also if there are any switches in the mix (managed or unmanaged) consider changing those, or any connecting cables. 

There hasn’t been that many complaints here about the Amazon Music service in recent times to make anyone think there is a problem with that service - so I would definitely look into the matter as it possibly being something local to yourself… if practicable, even try your S1 setup on a different LAN, with the Velop system switched off.. to try to rule it out. The fact other devices connect to the internet is somewhat irrelevant as it’s the communication between all the Sonos devices across the LAN, not just their ability to access the internet that makes it different to most other network linked products.

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Bummer, the exact same symptoms are back, BUT:

  • Everything was working great, then I went for a short trip for a week last week, and when I came back it returned to the same problems
  • Turns out that Amazon extended my “Unlimited” (with Ultra hid HD or something like that) for 30 days for free, and with that the same symptoms returned (skipping songs, going only to a few of the speakers at a time, shifting across them; everything works fine with Pandora, was working fine with Amazon before unlimited, and is also working great with my music library)

So at this point I am 95% certain that the problem has to do with Amazon’s “high-HD encoding”; I looked at the error logs and saw today: 

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 4:55 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'Take Five' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 4:55 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'Take Five' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:01 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'America' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:06 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'Kind & Generous' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:16 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'River' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:19 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'Highwayman' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:19 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'Highwayman' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:24 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'Feeling Good' - the song is not encoded correctly.

Saturday, November 27, 2021 - 5:25 PM Central Time
Unable to play 'King of Carrot Flowers Pt. 1' - the song is not encoded correctly.

 

Anyone from Sonos paying attention to this conversation?

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Well, what do you know: I applied the latest S1 Firmware update this morning -- and now it works. Unfortunately, at the same time my Amazon Unlimited lapsed as of yesterday, so I still have two possible root causes -- but I am a happy guy. 

I wonder if there is anyone from SONOS monitoring this forum and conversation, and could confirm that the latest Firmware update fixed an issue that would have enabled continuous streaming on the S1 system with many rooms? Would be good to know so I can get Amazon Unlimited back….

Thank you Ken!!

Ken_Griffiths

Ken: Really appreciate the investigations. Frankly, still a total mystery. Perhaps it is the combination of specific equipment? As I wrote, I will try again this weekend, after my Amazon Unlimited as expired. If the problem persists, I will inventory the specific equipment/stations/rooms. Also will figure out how to record extended log-info.

Will definitely keep you posted! 

 

Thanks again!

 

There was a Sonos S1 App/Firmware update this evening - so if you haven’t done that update yet, that might be worth checking out and seeing if that might fix the issue for you.🤞

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Ken: Really appreciate the investigations. Frankly, still a total mystery. Perhaps it is the combination of specific equipment? As I wrote, I will try again this weekend, after my Amazon Unlimited as expired. If the problem persists, I will inventory the specific equipment/stations/rooms. Also will figure out how to record extended log-info.

Will definitely keep you posted! 

 

Thanks again!

 

Ken_Griffiths

@THill182,
Update: I played an assortment of tracks and playlists from Amazon Music on the S1/Play:1 till shortly before 7pm local time (non-stop) but didn’t encounter the issue. So that hasn’t revealed anything, but I did see this report in the community. See link:

But that is slightly different (I think 🤔?) and relates to saved Amazon playlists/tracks as Sonos favourites etc. So just wondering if this is perhaps also the issue reported here in this thread?

Ken_Griffiths

Anyhow, to try to assist with this reported issue,  I selected an Amazon Playlist called ‘Chilled Hits’, just at random, as it had 50 assorted tracks by various artists  …and I set that playing around 12.50 hrs local time (or thereabouts) on the S1 Play:1 and it’s still playing as we speak (15.05 hours)

I grabbed  a screenshot after approx. 2 hours playback and a diagnostic report from the S1 setup; 572545676 just for good measure.

None of the tracks have stopped playing and no interruptions or error (network or encoding) messages seen so far.

All seems to be ok with Amazon Music on the S1 system here in the U.K., but I will keep things playing and will go onto try other playlists/tracks. (Let me have suggestions of a playlist/tracks to try, perhaps?)

I obviously cannot rule out that the issue might be a local issue with the AM service of course.

1 Attachment
Ken_Griffiths

@THill182,

As mentioned earlier I’m in the U.K. (so that’s already a difference perhaps by itself), but I too subscribe to the Amazon HD/Ultra HD unlimited service (and Prime) and it’s been okay here the last couple of days running on S2, but I have setup a Play:1 speaker to run on the S1 Sonos App and so will try that here for you for a few hours and let you know how that goes and report back.

3 Attachments
T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

I know I have a number of components that are not S2 compatible: I tried to update to S2 and a number of my components failed the compatibility check.

But I come back to the key symptom: “Traveling music”, that moves from room/station to room/station, but only when I simultaneously stream to all or most rooms/stations from Amazon Music (a music station, play list, ...) only, sometimes accompanied by different error messages on my Windows-based controller (indicating that the internet connection is too slow, or that the file format is corrupted, or just “cannot play”/”something went wrong”). Everything else works fine, and my Wifi has download speeds typically better than 100Mbps++ (in my previous home I had <50Mbps with identical hardware, including the Velop Mesch Wifi, and it worked fine, including Amazon Music….). 

This strongly indicates to me that something changed with Amazon music, how it is delivered to my system, or the format in which it is delivered. 

As I wrote, my Amazon Unlimited music expires today. I’ll try again in a week to see if that made a difference. It said on the Amazon website that Unlimited delivers music in HD format, while regular Amazon Prime music does not. So that is an unambiguous test of the root cause, if that is it (and if not I’ll re-subscribe, because it is a great service while travelling/driving).

PS: I am also surprised that nobody else is reporting exactly this problem, although I have read many threads which appear to describe similar issues, sometimes traced to HD music.

PS 2: At some point I may need to find a few hours during the week to call back Sonos support to see if I cannot ask them to search deeper into their issues-database that they must maintain internally...

J

I don’t think this is an S1 vs S2 issue at all.  Sonos has been capable of playing lossless files from the very start.  

Speakers are not S1 or S2.  They are compatible with S1 only, with S2 only, or with both S1 and S2.  Ikea speakers are compatible with S1 and S2, as are Play:1s and Play:3s.

I have S1 and S2 systems, and both can play lossless tracks from Amazon Music Unlimited HD.

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Thanks again John; my subscription was going to run out tomorrow; so I just cancelled to see if I can get to the limited music services without a hitch. If I can, then I think that is the root cause. 

In Sonos S1 I see no option to disable HD quality. I can do this on my laptop, but assume that this is client-side-only configuration, not account-wide (any client) configuration (I tried to disable it on my laptop, and it made no difference). As a side note, I was a very early adopter, so practically all my equipment (including a speaker from Ikea, and two integrated speakers from Sonos, Sonos) are S1 and “old” (but with system software updated). 

 At some point I may contact Sonos support again by phone or chat -- but last time that wasn’t useful (hence the earlier rant; they take me through a check list of turning stuff off/on and resetting things, even though I have done all that and told them so; so it takes a long time to get anything useful out of them if at all). 

Will follow up in a week or two once my Amazon Unlimited subscription has lapsed...

J

In the UK it is possible to have Amazon Unlimited without going HD (lossless). At least it was last time I looked.  Amazon Prime is a very limited streaming service.  As has been mentioned already, things may differ between countries, but make sure you know what you would be losing before you cancel Unlimited.

The problems that some people have recently had with Amazon Music HD do seem to have been associated with older Sonos speakers, especially Play:1s.

FWIW, I am also playing Amazon Music HD without a hitch on my system, but I don’t have any Play:1s (except as surround speakers) and rarely group large numbers of rooms.

T
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Really appreciate your comments and details. Seems like the options for Amazon are a bit different than what I see in the US. Also, I have the “oldest” S1 system, and understand that the newer S2 systems has more options and likely improvements (.e.g, more memory for sure, to deal with HD I understand). 

Anyway, it’s all stable with 5 stations for now, which is good enough (the others are in rooms that we are usually not occupying simultaneously). 

I think I may try to cancel my Amazon unlimited subscription and see what happens, using just Amazon Prime. I now suspect that is the problem, because Amazon Unlimited defaults to HD (something I can configure on my Windows Amazon Music Client APP, but not in Sonos), or so it looks to me at this point..

.

Ken_Griffiths

I subscribe to Amazon Music HD/UltraHD, but I’m over in the U.K. so not sure I can really comment or compare with the service in the area where you are, but it’s been okay here in recent weeks - I have quite a few devices about the Home, but I rarely play to more than 3 physical rooms, which usually equates to 4, or occasionally 5, Sonos Rooms and that plays okay here.

The ISP speed from my ISP is 200MB/s download and 20MB/s upload. 

I do have the choice to either run my devices on SonosNet, or on the WiFi signal and both have been okay, but these are the things I just choose to do FWIW. The detail below may not help as you have a Velop mesh setup, so I post this mainly just for info only:

  • If running on WiFi, I set the routers 2.4Ghz band at ‘fixed’ channel 11 (the second least used non-overlapping channel) and the channel-width to 20MHz only.
  • When running on SonosNet, I only ever wire one device (Sonos Port) direct to the main router and that is more that 1.5 metres away from the router on SonosNet Channel 1 (The least used channel here). In this setup, I do remove my 2.4Ghz Wifi band from the Sonos App Network settings, but leave the 5Ghz band in place as I need that for use with my Move/Roam speakers. If I didn’t have those then all the WiFi credentials would be removed.
  • I also reserve all the Sonos IP addresses in my routers DHCP reservation table. I prefer to set them high up in the subnet, starting at 192.xx.xx.150 —> and higher, but that’s mostly my own preference.

In wired SonosNet mode, I do my level-best to keep my Sonos matrix ‘green’.. by not having anything too close to my speakers that might otherwise cause interference.

So I have no ‘other’ access points, or hubs and keep my channels ‘fixed’ so that as little as possible changes, but review the chosen wireless channels every now and again due to the closest neighbour sometimes changing their router channels from time to time.

I’m not sure if any of that may help, but post it in case it may help to provide some inspiration to check/change a few things in your own environment.

Terms & ConditionsCookie settings