· A connected audio device is not appearing in Roon
What type of Zone is affected by this problem?
· *Network Zones* are affected.
How is the affected Zone connected to your RoonServer machine?
· Network - WiFi
Which network audio protocol is the Zone using with Roon?
· Airplay
Since this is an Airplay Zone, have you tried toggling Airplay Compatibility Mode for this Zone in the Device Setup window?
· There is no change in behavior.
Does the device play audio from another source when using the same connection?
· The device has no problems with another audio source
Have you checked that Roon is whitelisted in any firewalls?
· I've checked the firewall and the issue remains
Since you are using a network connection to the device, please ensure that your RoonServer is on the same subnet as the device
· My devices are on a single subnet but is not visible to Roon
Do you have a complex network setup?
· I have a *mesh network* with devices connected to multiples points
Your local network might need some re-arranging to support Roon.
· None of the suggestions have helped me. I'd like to submit a support request.
Do you have an approximate timestamp of when the issue last occurred?
· 28 June 2026
What are the make and model of the affected audio device(s) and the connection type?
· Hegel H360
Describe the issue
I have recently switched from Roon on NAS (Docker) to Roon on a Mac Mini, which is connected to the router over WiFi. My main audio is via Airplay to a Hegel H360 amp wired to the router; other audio zones are a desktop Mac (via Airplay), iPhone & iPad. Everything was working well until I installed a new TV (LG C5) which, when it is powered on, hijacks the Hegel audio, which then becomes a zombie zone (still appears for a while but audio controls don't work, and eventually disappears). Even when the TV is switched off, the Hegel doesn't return (or, in zombie mode, won't respond). The only thing that will bring it back is to power the amp off & on. Then it will play, even if the TV is already on & streaming from an app but will be hijacked again if the input is switched to HDMI (eg Apple TV). The TV is wired to the router. I have tried wiring the Mac Mini to the router & connecting the TV over WiFi, unplugging HDMI devices, disabling Airplay and HDMI-CEC on the TV but none of this changes the behaviour.
Describe your network setup
ISP supplied dual band (2.4/5 GHz) router, dual core Broadcom CPU with 256MB DDR3 RAM, 4x4 802.11ac WiFi, gigabit ethernet, in mesh mode with two TP Link Deco X20 hubs (wired).
Thank you for the detailed description and for all the troubleshooting you’ve already done - that narrows things down quite a bit.
To dig deeper, could you share a few exact timestamps (date and local time) of recent occasions when the Hegel went into the zombie state or disappeared? We’d like to match these events against the logs, so the more precise, the better.
One more clarifying question - does the LG C5 itself show up as a zone in Roon? And when the Hegel is in the zombie state, please check Roon Settings -> Audio and let us know under which section the affected entry appears - AirPlay or Chromecast. A screenshot of that page would be very helpful.
I put the Hegel into zombie mode (by turning on the tv) at 08.44 NZT, 7 July.
Re. whether the LG shows up as a zone in Roon: originally it did - I think Airplay was enabled by default when I set up the TV - but since disabling Airplay, it no longer appears in Roon. Chromecast is not enabled either. The TV is hooked up to both the Mac mini and Apple TV via HDMI but unplugging these didn’t seem to change anything.
Fyi, the Mac mini is a 2021 M1 16GB running OS 26.5.1. Music files are stored on the internal drive, with RoonServer on an external SSD.
Thanks for the timestamp and the extra detail on the Mac mini and TV connections - that’s very helpful.
I checked the RoonServer logs around 08:44 NZT and can confirm what happened matches what you’re seeing on your end:
08:43:44 - AirPlay to the Hegel starts losing packets
08:44:16 - the RTSP connection to the Hegel times out and Roon marks the device as disconnected
08:44:32-08:44:46 - Roon tries to reconnect and briefly shows the zone as "Playing" again, but no audio is actually flowing
08:45:47 - a reconnect attempt is flat out refused at the socket level (connection to the Hegel's AirPlay port times out completely)
08:46:47 - Roon gives up waiting for the Hegel to announce itself again and removes the zone
So this confirms the "zombie" behavior you're describing: Roon isn't losing track of the Hegel by itself, it's the Hegel's AirPlay receiver that stops accepting connections outright once the TV powers on / switches input, and stays that way until it's power cycled.
To help us narrow down whether this sits with the Hegel/AirPlay stack rather than Roon, could you try one more test the next time you put it into the zombie state:
Trigger the zombie state as before (turn on the TV / switch its input).
Once the Hegel is unresponsive in Roon, leave Roon out of it entirely and try to AirPlay directly from your iPhone (Control Center -> AirPlay -> select Hegel), the same way you would to any other AirPlay speaker.
Let us know whether the Hegel accepts that direct AirPlay connection and plays, or whether it's unresponsive there too.
(Disregard that last info re. Roon Core installation; it is on the Mac mini itself, not external SSD).
Went through this routine again at 08:38 NZT.
Opened Control Centre on the iPhone & Hegel not showing in the audio devices.
Variation on this: when I turned the amp off & on again, it showed up & was playable from the iPhone (Apple Music) but didn’t reappear in Roon. Restarting the Mac mini revived Hegel in Roon.
I have seen some commentary suggesting that assigning a static DHCP address to the Hegel could help; I have done this but it doesn’t seem to have made any difference.
Based on what you’ve found, and matching it against the logs on our end, this points to the Hegel’s AirPlay receiver locking up when the TV powers on or switches input, rather than something in how Roon discovers the device. The fact that power cycling the amp alone restores it for direct AirPlay from your phone, before Roon can see it again, supports that too.
We’d recommend reaching out to Hegel’s support team with what you’ve gathered: the amp stops accepting AirPlay connections specifically when the TV powers on or changes input, and only recovers after a power cycle. They’ll be in the best position to look at their AirPlay implementation.
If Hegel addresses that and the issue with Roon not automatically picking the device back up afterward is still there, please let us know here and we’ll take it from there.