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Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

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Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#421

Post by tasty_freeze »

haimez wrote: post #233
tasty_freeze wrote: post #52

About 8(?) years ago my wife tasked me to get a whole-house audio system that was simple to use. After reading a lot, sonos was the clear choice, though pricey. We started with two play:3's, then added a play:5 and two more play:3's. And things were good. But for the past year the system has been a mess. Music stutters, some units can't be found, some units fail to upgrade through multiple retries/reboots. I've waste…

Honestly, sounds like you need a better wireless router or need to add a (few) repeater(s).

Sonos speakers form an ad-hoc mesh network. Although I know that I get > 50 Mbps to every spot in my house where there is a speaker, it shouldn't matter. If the router to sonos #1 gets a signal, as long as sonos #2 is in range of sonos #1, sonos #2 should be served even if it can't see the router.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#422

Post by tasty_freeze »

alt219 wrote: post #197
tasty_freeze wrote: post #52

About 8(?) years ago my wife tasked me to get a whole-house audio system that was simple to use. After reading a lot, sonos was the clear choice, though pricey. We started with two play:3's, then added a play:5 and two more play:3's. And things were good. But for the past year the system has been a mess. Music stutters, some units can't be found, some units fail to upgrade through multiple retries/reboots. I've waste…

Okay, I’ll throw my hat into the unsolicited troubleshooting advice ring— I had similar problems and it ended up being that the Sonos Bridge is no longer supported. Once I removed the Bridge from my system and plugged a Play:5 directly into the network, all the weird issues you described that I too was having resolved themselves. YMMV.

Thank you! It has been only a few minutes, but it seems to be working better (but I've said that before too!).

I had no idea that the bridge was not necessary. I seem to recall that when I bought the first sonos unit I had to buy the bridge too.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#423

Post by tasty_freeze »

CamperBob2 wrote: post #85
tasty_freeze wrote: post #52

About 8(?) years ago my wife tasked me to get a whole-house audio system that was simple to use. After reading a lot, sonos was the clear choice, though pricey. We started with two play:3's, then added a play:5 and two more play:3's. And things were good. But for the past year the system has been a mess. Music stutters, some units can't be found, some units fail to upgrade through multiple retries/reboots. I've waste…

Honestly, it sounds like you have some kind of local 2.4 GHz interference problem. Try unplugging unnecessary wireless devices or moving them well out of range while troubleshooting, don't run microwave ovens until you've ruled them out, and keep your phones and other gadgets well away from the affected hardware. See if you can make friends with someone who owns a spectrum analyzer.

Before when I said I had spent hours trying to debug this, I did exactly that. Turned off every single wifi device in the house, turning off every printer, phone, and the ring doorbell. I tried bringing up one sonos device at a time to figure to figure out if one of them was causing problems.

Also, I used wifiman on my android phone to sniff out other networks. Finally, I am lucky enough to live on 3.5 acres so there aren't any nearby wifi access points.

Anyway, another comment has pointed me to the apparent solution: the sonos bridge device apparently is not essential -- just connecting one of the speakers via a wired connection makes it the bridge for the sonos network.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#424

Post by freewilly1040 »

londons_explore wrote: post #75
rkochman wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I assume Apple and other companies sell the used products to liquidators who refurbish and resell them. Is that not true?

> I assume Apple and other companies sell the used products to liquidators who refurbish and resell them. Is that not true? For high brand value goods, generally no. Goods are crushed to become unserviceable. It's important to do that to maintain brand image, otherwise floods of not-very-old iPhones end up on ebay for $10, and the image of an iPhone as something that lasts and has resale value is shattered. High end…

Low end clothing retailers also destroy never worn merchandise if it doesn't sell, but it has more to do with how expensive it is to store / transport

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#425

Post by kjs3 »

WalterBright wrote: post #143
noodlesUK wrote: post #10

What’s intensely frustrating about this is that audio equipment is one of the few areas where old high end kit is still absolutely fantastic for current users. I have an NAD 3020 from the 1980s which works perfectly with the same pair of speakers that it was bought with. I can’t say the same about other tech, but audio just doesn’t age at the same speed.

My Carver amp and Dahlquist speakers I run all day every day. Bought them in 1980. I retired many computers in the 80's and 90's in perfect working order. None of them will power up today.

Concur that the 80s era Carver amps are outstanding.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#426

Post by colejohnson66 »

hootbootscoot wrote: post #415
gwright wrote: post #405

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"highly disposable"? I think if you consider the average useable lifetime of an Apple product they aren't as expensive as they may seem. Of course there are people who want a new model phone every year but that is their choice, certainly not something forced by the nature of the product.

How does that viewpoint square with 1) Deliberately slowed-down hardware (claimed concern about "older device batteries" don't wash with reality either...) 2) Planned obsolescence in the forms of A) Removing/altering physical ports, preferring proprietary "standards" to actual standards B) Irreversible OS upgrades, Internet Recovery Mode notwithstanding, and the deliberately hobbled functionality "older" hardware end…

What do you mean the older batteries concern is fake? Batteries literally lose capacity and capable amperage over their life. Yes, they way they handled it initially could’ve been better, but to say it’s not reality is to literally ignore reality.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#427

Post by kjs3 »

anoncake wrote: post #362
TylerE wrote: post #224

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why, specially, are audiophiles worthy of scorn on HN? Show some damn respect for others interest.

I think the kind of audiophiles who buy gold-plated HDMI cables because they sound better give the others a bad name.

Yeah...not that anyone should take a dump on the whole crowd, but spend much time in an 'audiophile' forum means wading through toxic levels of Flat-Earther calibre psuedo-science screamed as unassailable 'fact'.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#428

Post by colejohnson66 »

ben-schaaf wrote: post #319
tomc1985 wrote: post #304

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why are these devices so complex as to need security updates?

Because they're connected to the internet. Because IoT.

To expand on that: security. Without security updates, your devices could be hacked.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#429

Post by Marsymars »

Doji wrote: post #234
davidjhall wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious what you would recommend instead. Everyone is listing speakers they bought decades ago but what are the latest non-sonos speakers that people like?

Don't buy smart speakers. Just buy regular speakers. Then you can plug them into whatever you like, run whatever software you like (e.g. pi musicbox) etc. So you actually own them, and they should serve you well for many years, for whatever you may need. Also don't buy soundbars. Speakers don't want to be long and skinny. You'll end up paying a lot more for a lot less sound. Also consumer grade speakers are often mor…

> Also don't buy soundbars. Speakers don't want to be long and skinny. You'll end up paying a lot more for a lot less sound.

From a practical perspective, my home simply doesn't have room for anything but a soundbar for my TV. My options are built-in TV speakers, or a soundbar.

Re: Sonos's “recycle mode” intentionally bricks devices so they can't be reused

#430

Post by kjs3 »

acomjean wrote: post #373
davidjhall wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious what you would recommend instead. Everyone is listing speakers they bought decades ago but what are the latest non-sonos speakers that people like?

I usually use a mini jack and and old stereo. but “powered stereo speakers” are speakers with a built in amp. Most have analog inputs and Bluetooth (some even have turntable input). They can range in price up to almost 1000$. I feel those analog inputs are important in making the device future proof. Crutchfeild is a catalog seller but has good examples of this class of speaker: Eg: https://www.crutchfield.com/S-wbA5…

Ah, Crutchfield. Glad to see they're still around. Pre-Google, their catalog was a great place to see and compare a ton of different audio kit in one place.
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