Spotify Connect needs a good overhaul

[andreaspet]

The Spotify Connect part needs a good overhaul, it's full of bugs and is sorely lacking featurewise...

Right now I'm struggeling with getting Spotify to play nice with my Sonos system.

I had two Sonos rooms connected via a Bridge and the default Sonos network:

- Living room (Soundbar + Subwoofer)

- Bathroom (Play:1)

Then I added a couple of speakers and rearranged the rooms:

- Living room (same as before)

- Kitchen (moved the Play:1 from the bathroom)

- Bedroom (a new Play:3)

- Hallway (a new Play:1)

After this Spotify Connect only shows "Living room" under devices that I can connect to. I can group the rest of the speakers from that 'device' in Spotify so the speakers are working fine but the actual grouping is done in the Sonos app.

So according to the many posts about similar problems I uninstalled Spotify on my Android phone and computer. I revoked all permissions granted to Spotify and signed out from all devices using the Spotify web application. I did a total reset of my Sonos system, this includes removing all speakers from the Sonos system, resetting the bridge, unplugging the router for a couple of minutes and removing the service subscription between Sonos and Spotify. Then I had to re-register the complete system which takes some time and trust me - you do not want to do this repeatedly...

But guess what - the only Sonos room I can find in Spotify Connect is the "Living room". I've repeated all the steps above a couple of times but nothing changes. Somewhere Spotify keeps a list over devices, this list is hidden from all users so when it becomes corrupt (as mine has) you're screwed.

Most of my friends who have a Sonos system has problems with Spotify and specifically with Spotify Connect. I would go as far as recommending any Sonos users to investigate if you can use a competing music service other than Spotify since the problems around Sonos/Spotify has been going on for years and Spotify either doesn't care or have decided not to address the problems.

I would welcome any reply from Spotify but I'm not crossing my fingers since they seem reluctant to interact with their customers at any level.

Sincerly

A sad, frustrated customer looking for a music service that actually works

[AndyJoel]

Hey @andreaspet!

Thanks for bringing this to our attention.

In this case, can you double check that you’ve enabled "Control Sonos from Spotify" in the Sonos app settings? Also, make sure both devices are connected to the same WiFi network.

Check out the Sonos guide for more information.

Let us know how it goes.

[andreaspet]

Hi @AndyJoel,

The Sonos guide says nothing about the actual configuration, just "Click devices and choose", so that doesn't help. The next thing is "Control Sonos from Spotify" - there is no such setting in the Android or Windows version of the Sonos app. You have a setting called "Control from other devices" and that one is checked.

Lastly, I don't know if you read my post but I have 4 Sonos speakers and 4 rooms. The only one that shows up in Spotify Connect is the "Living room (soundbar)", no other room/speaker is listed. All speakers are connected to the same Sonos Bridge (all through wireless) and all are working using the Sonos app.

So back to the actual problem: Spotify Connect has an internal list of devices hidden away somewhere and mine has become corrupted somehow but since those api's are hidden from users I can't reset/refresh the list.

To actually help me out you need to ask a Spotify developer where this list is maintained and how you can reset it. That would be helpful.

PS: Thanks for answering though, that was a pleasant surprise.

/andreas

[Alfredo]

Hey @andreaspet!

Just to confirm, are the devices Spotify can't see all linked to your Sonos Bridge? Also, the same happens regardless if you use your Android or computer?

In the meantime, please send us your Android, computer OS, and Spotify version numbers.

About the list of devices that's corrupted, we don't have any info about this. The only devices Spotify keeps an eye on are offline devices which are limited to 3 per Premium account. You can find the list of your Offline devices here.

Keep us posted.

[SpeedyMan]

Similar problems here...Spotify will only work with my Sonos speakers for a few minutes, then stops working at all. I have to use the Sonos app when this happens. Maybe the next day Spotify will again work but only temporarily. I've posted this last July but recieved nio response.
FYI, I also posted this issue at the Sonos help website. They tried to help --they were very responsive-- but nothing worked.

All I can guess is that Spotify does not support Sonos speakers anymore.

[JulianA_Bogota]

Hey @SpeedyMan! Thanks for letting us know about this.

Could you fire over the info requested by @Alfredo in his previous comment? Also - @andreaspet, it'd be awesome if you could give us an update about what's happening on your end so we can take a closer look.

We'll keep an eye open for your reply 🙂

[andreaspet]

Hej @Alfredo,

The specific setup is as follows, all Sonos devices are on the latest update.

Router -> TP-cable -> Sonos Bridge

Sonos Speakers -> Wireless Sonos Network -> Sonos Bridge

PC -> TP-cable -> Router

Android phone -> Wireless ->router

Android: Sony Xperia X Performance, version 7.1.1, Spotify version 8.4.21.508 armV7

PC: Windows 10, build 15063.608, Spotify version 10.64.399.g4637b02a

Both the Windows and the Android applications show the same incorrect devices. And on both platforms the Sonos application shows the correct speakers/rooms. The bridge is located a couple of meters away from the router since they started interfering with the wireless signals a couple of months ago after an software update from Sonos but it has been working fine until I started to add new speakers.

If you don't save a list with devices available for Spotify Connect you make a call to something to get the devices - what's that then? Do you broadcast a network request or call into a specific api?

/andreas

[Erika]

Thanks for the info @andreaspet!

Make sure alll your devices's firmware is up-to-date. @SpeedyMan Could you let us know the devices and operating systems you're using?

Likely, we have to report this to our relevant team. Thanks for your patience!

[MaríaCamila]

Hi there @andreaspet, and @SpeedyMan!

We're closing this thread as we didn’t receive an answer from you. If you're still having the same issue, just give us a shout.

Have a great day 🙂