Only works with Ethernet

  • 16 January 2016
  • 33 replies
  • 39316 views

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I am frustrated with SONOS. If the router changes or if a new network is used it is virtually impossible to have SONOS working smoothly. I own a pair of Play 1s, but the system only works if one of them is plugged in directly to router via ethernet. I have attempted to reset, reboot, re-install, and nothing works. It cannot be this difficult to set up the system. Getting ready to return. Nice sound but very flawed.

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33 replies

It isn't that difficult to set up the system, usually. Have you done any investigation into wireless interference in your property?

How often are you changing your router? Everything should be rebooted if you do that.
If the router changes or if a new network is used it is virtually impossible to have SONOS working smoothly.
Why does the router or network keep changing? If you're using the Sonos players on WiFi (aka 'Standard Setup') you'll obviously need to temporarily wire a unit to modify the stored WiFi details when the router/network changes.

I own a pair of Play 1s, but the system only works if one of them is plugged in directly to router via ethernet.

This is the SonosNet ('BOOST Setup') mode, which sets up its own wireless mesh and ignores your WiFi. It's more resilient in general than WiFi mode.

It cannot be this difficult to set up the system. Getting ready to return. Nice sound but very flawed.

It's simple. If you can't figure it out just give Sonos Support a call. They'll straighten you out.
Unbelieveable. I had to create an account just so I could respond to this. I am having the exact same issue. It just started last week. Not sure if there was a firmware update recently? But after working perfectly for the last year my system is screwed. I have two 1's, a bridge, and a 3. My network/firewall settings havn't changed. I connect a 1 to the network so I can setup the "advanced" wireless settings (why you have to connect an ethernet cable to setup wireless is beyond me). Once done it works. BUT! If I now want to disconnect that 1 to move it to another room it completely shuts down the entire network when I unplug it. I've done this multiple times. I've tried connecting and setting up different ways as well.
I consider myself network capable. (no illusions of being an expert) but have setup up and wired our house to multiple systems and media boxes. But for some reason this Sonos has me stumped.

I have run every diagnostic I can on my router and wireless network. No interference. All ports are open. TBH, its driving me freakin crazy.
Unbelieveable. I had to create an account just so I could respond to this.
That's how forums work. You have to create an ID in order to post.

I consider myself network capable.

But you evidently hadn't noticed the difference between SonosNet and WiFi modes.
https://sonos.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/3046/~/choosing-between-a-standard-and-boost-setup

You had your system in WiFi (aka 'Standard Setup') mode, which is why wiring a unit to the router flipped it to SonosNet (aka 'BOOST Setup') mode and allowed access to additional Advanced Settings options.

If unwiring a unit -- which flips it back to WiFi mode -- causes trouble then there's either something incorrect in the WiFi details (SSID/key) you entered or something amiss with your router.
Jesus. Thanks for the sarcastic response! Seriously. Gotta love this support.
Yes, I understand the difference.
No, there is nothing wrong with my SSID key or router. You know, I don't care. I can sort it out. Thanks for your "help".
Gotta love this support.
Sonos Support are clearly identified.

We're not Support. We're longstanding Sonos users who provide voluntary assistance. And I'm afraid that coming on the board with a bit of an attitude doesn't endear one much to the community.

That aside, I interpreted "completely shuts down the entire network" as meaning that you lost contact with your Sonos units if you unwired the wired unit. Assuming SSID/key are correct they should reconnect to your WiFi, but you have to give them a couple of minutes to do so.
Noted. Thanks for your help. Apologies for the short response.
Aaah, ratty, I've never been so proud of you, you've made a fat Essex boy very happy!

Starkz, consider yourself lucky, Ratty is the boss dogg round here, fully justified, what he doesn't know isn't worth knowing, so he's worth listening to, unlike myself. If I'd got here first you'd have seen the true power of sarcasm young "Jedi"...
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If I'd got here first you'd have seen the true power of sarcasm young "Jedi"...

The sarcasm can definitely get a bit strong around here, but that's part of the charm sometimes as long as it doesn't go too far.

I know we've got two threads going with this same discussion and same posters, so I'll be closing the other one, might as well keep it all in one place. The other thread is here and has some good suggestions from ratty already.

In most cases where the system works well on SonosNet but not on your wireless it's due to problems with that wireless, the network credentials, or the network access devices.

Just to make sure we're all on the same page, when you have a Sonos device wired to the network, your mobile controllers all work fine. You've gone into Wireless Settings and added the network credentials for your network (confirming that they're correct). Then you go to unplug the wired device and all of your Sonos players drop off. From that point, does restarting any of them bring anything up?

If you were to wire the unplugged device back into the network, what other steps do you have to take to bring the units back up? Or do they come on their own after a couple minutes?

If the players will reconnect on their own, can you follow those steps with disconnecting the wire, give the players a couple minutes, then wire it back in if they didn't come on wirelessly, and wait for them to come back up. Once you've got that going, can you submit a diagnostic from your Sonos system and reply back with your confirmation number?

Also, I know you mentioned none of the network settings had changed, do you know if any of your network devices had updated recently? Was there a firmware update for your router that was just installed? What is the model number of the router as well?

Stick with us a bit, the community is a great resource and we'll do what we can to help.
I was as frustrated as some of you, and surprised with the support as some of you too. Found how to fix the problem. Without going step by step in detail what I can say is that once you have your speakers playing while is connected to the local Ethernet (cable) in the Sonos App GoTo Settings > Advanced Settings > Wireless Setup. Took me 4 hours to find out this fixes the issue. I had to do the same for each of the speakers and then all of them were working OK.

EXTRA: Speakers won't start playing immediately, you gotto Group them or select them in the Music section, this is in the main Album / song selection, on the very top of the screen (ROOMS).

Hope this works for everyone. Viva Mexico!
Thanks Ratty and others!!! Had to change my router/time capsule setup and could NOT figure out why Sonos quit when I would disconnect the unit I'd used for re-setting up my system. Appreciate the info.
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I was as frustrated as some of you, and surprised with the support as some of you too. Found how to fix the problem. Without going step by step in detail what I can say is that once you have your speakers playing while is connected to the local Ethernet (cable) in the Sonos App GoTo Settings > Advanced Settings > Wireless Setup. Took me 4 hours to find out this fixes the issue. I had to do the same for each of the speakers and then all of them were working OK.

EXTRA: Speakers won't start playing immediately, you gotto Group them or select them in the Music section, this is in the main Album / song selection, on the very top of the screen (ROOMS).

Hope this works for everyone. Viva Mexico!


Thanks Zeerylo, this is the only thing that worked for me after trying everything else..!!
having the same problem.
have tried all the above. as soon as i unplug ethernet....controllers stop responding..... plug it back in .....it starts.
have gone into advanced....wireless...... reset....everything is on same wifi..... no new router...... all firmware updates done.....
what other options?
You say "controllers stop responding". Can you clarify what you mean? One possibility (just a possibility) is that your controllers are connecting to your router's 5GHz band. This has the potential to cause connection problems when operating in fully wifi set up - it will with some routers, not with others. Worth at least checking out, and forcing your controllers to connect to the 2.4GHz band if only as an experiment.
Hi
I had the same problem after installing a second Sky Q box but, thanks to visiting the forum I resolved the issue by following the instructions above. The problem is that now my Sonos speakers have knocked my network printer off the network. I have now resolved the issue by plugging one of my Sono speakers back in to the router and reinstalling the printer. Is there something I can purchase that I can plug into my router which sets up a Sonos network separate from the wifi without having to keep one of the speakers plugged in to the router ?

Ta
Is there something I can purchase that I can plug into my router which sets up a Sonos network separate from the wifi without having to keep one of the speakers plugged in to the router ?
That's what BOOST is for.
OK thanks
Wow !!
£99
Can you achieve the same result with a second router ?
Can you achieve the same result with a second router ?
No, it has to be a Sonos component.

Go to eBay and you'll find new BRIDGEs for much less. BRIDGE is the precursor to BOOST. It only has SonosNet 1.0 -- which has less range and resilience than the 2.0 that's in all recent components -- but it might do the job.
Cheers thanks for your help
I also own a pair of Sonos Play:1 speakers. Recently, I changed my wifi router and wanted to reassign the speakers to the new router. It was a VERY frustrating process, taking over an hour because their online instructions were not conclusive. If this helps anyone else, this is what worked for me:

1) Follow the instructions on https://sonos.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1072/kw/change%20wifi%20router#setup for Speaker 1.

2) After successfully connecting Speaker 1, unplug the Ethernet cable that you used during Step 1 (Ethernet cable should be connected to new router). Play some music to ensure Speaker 1 is working without the Ethernet cable.

3) Connect Speaker 2 to Ethernet. Unplug both speakers. wait a couple of secs, and plug them back in. Both should blink and then the lights turn white.

4) Try to play some music. You should hear music from both speakers. This is a positive sign!! However, if you unplug Speaker 2 from the Ethernet cable, it will stop working.

5) With Speaker 2 connected via Ethernet cable, go to the Wireless Setup settings. You should be able to enter a password for the wireless settings (just as you had to do for Speaker 1). After doing this, you should be able to unplug your Ethernet cable and it, too, will work using the new wifi router!
Sorry, but this is totally misleading. You do not need to repeat the entry of WiFi details on every single player in the system. For an extensive system of multiple units this would be utterly ridiculous.

Wire one unit to the router. Wait until all the units are visible in a controller. (They will take a few minutes to connect via SonosNet.) Enter the new WiFi credentials at Wireless Setup. They will propagate to all the units. Job done.

The Ethernet cable can then be removed. Again, wait a few minutes while the units switch over to the new WiFi. The system is then ready.
Hi Ratty, I agree that having to connect and enter the wifi password for multiple speakers is time-consuming and ridiculous. However, I don't have a BOOST adapter or Sonosnet. I'm also using a PC, not a smartphone. The instructions I shared are what worked for my two speakers. The other solution, as you mention, is definitely much better if you have the resources that I do not have. There may be better solutions, but I wanted to share what worked for me.
You did have SonosNet. It's set up automatically when you wire any Sonos unit.

And directions for changing the WiFi details from a PC controller are included in the FAQ.

Sorry, but you're simply in error. Lurkers should not be left with the incorrect impression.
Hi
Just wanted to drop a note to say thank you. My sonos was doing this and after much connecting, reconnecting app changing, hair pulling and even thinking it was the wifi providers fault, all it had done was drop the wifi password! D'oh!!

Thanks for the help x