Question

Playback keeps stopping

  • 17 December 2017
  • 7 replies
  • 945 views

After a recent software updates (why are there so many?), playback through my speakers keeps randomly stopping. I've been using my system for years with little issue. Nothing else (ISP, position/location of router, etc) has changed.

I'm running the 8.2.2 Controller from a MacBook Pro (OS 10.10.5 Yosemite), but it also happens when running the Controller (recently updated to 8.2.2 as well) from my Android phone (v 6.0).
My guess is the same will happen if I use the Controller from my wife PC.

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7 replies

Exactly the problems I am having. It has now got worse! From 6pm last night I haven't managed to get anything to work. Turned everything off and on. Can't get a response
From computer or tablet or phone. I think this is linked to the update where Spotify was linked directly to Sonos. I have to wait until business hours to get sorted! Sonos is going backwards!!
Exact same issue here. The last couple of software releases have had a massive impact on my Sonos - constantly either stops and skips to the next track or just cuts out. It is driving us CRAZY and renders the speakers and system utterly useless. Appalling software development!! Please fix this ASAP.
As has been explained in multiple threads, the "stops and skips" issue has more to do with issues within the local wifi network, rather than Sonos' software. What happens is that the soft reboot which is part of the Sonos software update process exposes issues within the local router, which results in duplicate IP addresses being handed out to the speakers. Then, when the speaker is attempting to stay connected while streaming, it runs in to the duplicate IP address, gets bumped off the network momentarily, and stops. When it reconnects, it thinks it has finished the one track, and requests the next.

There are two ways to fix this. For the short term, unplug your Sonos devices. Then reboot your router. When the router comes back up, connect your first Sonos device, particularly the one that's wired to the router, if you have one. If not, choose the speaker closest to the router. Wait for that device to finish booting before moving on to the next, and plugging it in. Repeat for as many Sonos devices you have.

The more permanent solution is to pull out the manual for your router, and figure out how to reserve IP addresses for your Sonos equipment. Each manufacturer does it differently, which is probably why Sonos doesn't do this for you during the install process.
Unfortunately I don't buy this. Why? Firstly DCHP is designed to avoid sharing IP's for Mac addresses; I cannot see how collisions on IP's could even happen and, in my case, I can confirm that the same IP is issued to each device, which is what most routers do anyway.

Secondly, this issue does not happen AT ALL when using a sound source that is not a music / audio service. When piping the audio from a TV, this issue never happens; it only happens when an audio or music file is streamed and played by the Sonos system. This leads me to believe that there is a memory overrun happening with the Sonos software itself as the buffer becomes overloaded. Obviously this is a hypothesis, but given that the issue never occurs with the TV as a sound source, I find it extremely hard to believe that this is a network issue.
Thanks, Airgetlam. I will try that. Hopefully, it will fix the issue.
Apologies for not searching the archives first. I have extremely limited time and don't relish sifting through several dozen issues that may or may not (I won't know until I've read them) be exactly what I'm experiencing. Whatevs.

By the way, does anyone from Sonos read (or reply) to these messages here? Or is this just a place provided for us to gripe to one another?
Mike_255,

Yes, they do. Unfortunately, with the release of both the Sonos One and voice commands recently, combined with the holiday season and the fires near their offices, they're somewhat reduced in ability to respond to each and every post. There are several folks who do their best to help people just for the hope that they can get people to the same place that they're in, a fully functional and stable system.


batman21,

I'm not here to argue with you in any way. I offer a solution (that I did not come up with, I own my knowledge to others on whose shoulders I stand) that works in what seems to be 99% of the situations. Perhaps my explanation isn't as good as you want, but the functionality works. I've had this situation in my own home, and know that it works. I also know that all routers that I've dealt with, not that many, do not have the capability of showing duplicate IP address issues. They only show what is connected at the moment the report is pulled, and don't provide an indication that another device has been connected to that same IP address over X amount of time.

One thing to note is that Sonos has said that different streams have different levels of tolerance for network disruption, so what happens with Pandora, for instance, may not happen with Amazon Music. And since your TV is a local stream, and works across the 5Ghz spectrum by design, rather than the 2.4Ghz network that streaming music works across, there may also be differences.

If you're able to prove that there's some sort of memory overrun in Sonos software, I'd be delighted if you would provide that data to Sonos. The more information of issues that can be substantiated and presented to them, the better chance we have of continuing software updates hardening the quality of the system.

But I'm not a network engineer. I'm just trying to help others. There's no requirement for you to follow any of my suggestions.
Unfortunately I don't buy this. Why? Firstly DCHP is designed to avoid sharing IP's for Mac addresses; I cannot see how collisions on IP's could even happen and, in my case, I can confirm that the same IP is issued to each device, which is what most routers do anyway.

Secondly, this issue does not happen AT ALL when using a sound source that is not a music / audio service. When piping the audio from a TV, this issue never happens; it only happens when an audio or music file is streamed and played by the Sonos system. This leads me to believe that there is a memory overrun happening with the Sonos software itself as the buffer becomes overloaded. Obviously this is a hypothesis, but given that the issue never occurs with the TV as a sound source, I find it extremely hard to believe that this is a network issue.


Buy it or don't buy it, no skin off our noses. What I know is over the last 9+ years I have been giving the advice to refresh IP addresses, the people who do "buy it" and perform the necessary reboots and reserving of IP addresses never suffer from any of the symptoms again. So argue with us until you are blue in the face, nothing wins an argument like success. 🆒