Intermittent Playback Stops and Audio Zone Disappearance on Rock NUC6CAYH (ref#DA9Q4B)

Support
1

What best describes your playback issue?

· Music stops playing unexpectedly

What type of Zone is affected by this problem?

· *Network Zones* are affected.

Is the affected network Zone connected with Ethernet or WiFi?

· Ethernet

Does the issue affect all file formats?

· The issue affects *multiple/all* file formats.

Does the issue happen with local library music, streaming service music, or both?

· *Only streaming* music is affected.

Please select the streaming service(s) with which you're encountering playback problems.

· TIDAL

Have you tried logging out and back in again to your streaming service in Roon Settings?

· Logging out and back in had no impact, the issue remains

Do you have an approximate timestamp of when the issue last occurred?

· That was your mother

What are the make and model of the affected audio device(s) and the connection type?

· Merdian 218 via ethernet

Describe the issue

Using Roon for 14 years. Rock is a NUC Intel NUC6CAYH. In the last few months playback can suddenly stop. The device disappears(Meridian218) and it says select an audio zone. This sometimes can be triggered by clicking on home. It is very sporadic.

Describe your network setup

Ethernet, Netgear Orbi

3

I did some further troubleshooting. It happens with local files too. Trying to click on albums or home pages in the Roon UI causes it sproadically. Also prior to filling out this form. I reinstalled ROCK OS and reset database and settings. Current track quit Gris-Gris Gumbo Ya Ya by Dr. John. Switching from Album page to Tidal tab caused endpoint to disappear.

4

Hi @Ian_Slater,

Thanks for writing in and for sharing your report! And wow, 14 years with Roon! That’s incredible, thank you for sticking around and giving us a chance to get your issues sorted out.

From a fresh server diagnostic report, we can see the Network becoming unstable, causing a chain-reaction zone dropout.

We can see the zone destruction event is directly preceded by this:

Warn: [ping to [192.168.1.202:57497] timed out in MeridianZonePlayerEndpointStreamingClient after 5000.604ms
Info: [meridian] connection failed to 192.168.1.202 management=57498 control=57497
Info: [transport] destroyed zone Meridian218 was playing? False

The Roon server lost its TCP control connection to the Meridian 218, which caused the zone to be torn down.

Critically, this coincides with a broader network disruption event, multiple other zones (HTP1, Patio) also dropped simultaneously, and the NUC itself briefly lost internet (Network is unreachable).

This doesn’t seem to be a Meridian firmware issue or a Roon software bug, it’s the network dropping out intermittently and taking the Meridian with it.

The simultaneous dropout of all zones (Meridian 218, HTP1, Patio) points to a brief but complete network outage, not a device-specific issue. With Orbi mesh systems:

  • Check if the NUC is connected to a satellite node rather than the main router. If so, move it to the main Orbi router via ethernet.
  • Check if any Orbi firmware updates are available and install them.
  • Log into the Orbi admin panel and check for backhaul errors or satellite disconnects in the event log.
  • If the NUC currently connects via a switch, try connecting it directly to the Orbi router to eliminate any intermediary switch issues.
The MacBook is also losing its Roon connection every 1–2 minutes throughout the session. This is unusual and could be contributing to network load/instability. To test:
  • On the MacBook, go to System Settings → Battery → Options and ensure "Enable Power Nap" is off, and check that "Prevent automatic sleeping" is not causing Wi-Fi to drop.
  • Alternatively, use a different remote (phone, another computer) and see if the cycling stops. If it does, the Mac's network behavior is a contributing factor.

It may also help to assign a static IP to the Meridian 218. Log into the Orbi router and create a DHCP reservation for the 218’s MAC address. This ensures it never changes IP.

Let me know the above goes, thank you Ian! :raising_hands:

5

Thanks for all the places to look on the network. I am sure one of these will solve it.

6

Fixed. Turned out to be bad Ethernet patch from network to router. I appreciate your taking a look and indicating the problem was on my end. Here’s to another trouble free 14 years:)