Roon keeps leaving something out When a track comes to an end, it always happens that a part of the next track (sometimes one, sometimes two minutes, sometimes considerably more) is skipped. This is independent of the file format, the playback zone and all other factors that I can recognize. Until recently, the music files were on a Linux server and I assumed it was because of it. Now they are on a Mac Mini, on which the server is also installed. But nothing has changed. The error is not reproducible. It sometimes occurs with the same file in the same place and in the same configuration, then never again or only after a very long time. Is there anything that can be done? Roon keeps leaving something out When a track comes to an end, it always happens that a part of the next track (sometimes one, sometimes two minutes, sometimes considerably more) is skipped. This is independent of the file format, the playback zone and all other factors that I can recognize. Until recently, the music files were on a Linux server and I assumed it was because of it. Now they are on a Mac Mini, on which the server is also installed. But nothing has changed. The error is not reproducible. It sometimes occurs with the same file in the same place and in the same configuration, then never again or only after a very long time. Is there anything that can be done? (Perhaps this also has to do with another strange phenomenon, namely that the timeline in Roon is sometimes not synchronized with the music: According to this display, the next track is already playing while the previous one is still playing. Or vice versa).
Describe your network setup
Der Router ist eine FRITZ!Box 7490. Der Server und die meisten anderen Geräte im Netzwerk sind via Ethernet angeschlossen, bis auf die Lautsprecher und Mobilgeräte selbstverständlich.
To add that too: It happens again and again that Roon plays one piece but displays another. Example: I’m listening to a trio sonata by Händel, my speakers are clearly playing a slow movement, but the Roon window shows that another movement of this sonata is being played, namely an Allegro etc. I suspect that the two problems are related. I suspect that the two problems are related. I would also like to add that the computer is brand new and has been set up from scratch. Roon was also set up from scratch, no settings etc. were imported from other installations.
What zone(s) are you noticing this issue occur on? Can you let us know the exact local time + date + track when you notice the desynchronization occur again? We’ll enable diagnostics afterward to see if there are any clues in logging, thanks!
I didn’t listen to much music yesterday, so there weren’t that many possibilities, but at these times it happened that part (sometimes more than half) of the new track was skipped during the transition to the new track:
17.3., 21:35
17.3., 22:09
18.3., 6:11
It happened again just now: 18 March, 10:02
By the way, I wouldn’t know what to call the tracks. But they are also irrelevant because the problem never occurs twice with the same track.
Thanks for letting us know. We’ve tried to enable diagnostics for your account, but it doesn’t look like logs are coming through properly. Can you use these instructions to manually access your Mac logs, upload them to the below link, and let us know once uploaded? Thanks!
Thanks for uploading those logs. From the timestamps you provided, we can see that the Berlin device appears to be receiving a pause command before losing connection to your Roon server.
Looking at your network setup, it seems that your speakers are the only devices not using a wired connection. Would it be possible to connect them via Ethernet to see if that helps stabilize the connection?
Let us know what you think, and we’re happy to assist further!
No this is not possible. And it wouldn’t help. I can’t fill my flat with wires. Übrigens hat kein anderes Programm Probleme mit diesem Netzwerk, auch Sonos nicht (mit dem es freilich andere gibt). Auch tritt dasselbe Problem auch in meinem anderen Haus auf, wo die Netzwerkkonfiguration eine vollkommen andere ist. Oder soll ich die Sache so verstehen, dass Roon für ein WLAN nicht geeignet ist?
Diagnostic logging from the Mac Mini shows three patterns with these Sonos endpoints that are reported by RoonServer:
First, the buffer feeding these endpoints encounters a short read. Data is not being received by the Sonos endpoint from RoonServer in the volume that it expects. This can occur due to network interference (EM interference on the particular WiFi frequency upon which you’re relying for your Sonos speakers), but if you have additional components in the network at L2/L3, like managed switches or mesh nodes, then specific network settings can be the cause.
Another possibility for the short read is misbehavior (an intermittent bug) within Roon/Sonos playback synchronization - the team has an open ticket to investigate discrepancies in this area. The symptoms match you’ve reported, namely: 1) tracks not matching what’s playing in the playbar and 2) track transitions occurring ungracefully or with audio missing
However, we also see another pattern in logs from RoonServer:
Other endpoints and remotes, unrelated to Sonos but relying on WiFi, are disconnecting due to network reachability changes. This pattern more resembles a network change on the part of the server. The server itself reports two separate IP addresses to our own servers, both in the same subnet - do you have two active ethernet connections on the Mac Mini? Try restricting the machine to a single network interface for testing.
Please elaborate on your network topology if it includes anything other than the Fritz!Box. Roon’s uncompressed network protocols have a tendency to reveal any latent packet loss; you’re also likely encountering an issue for which we can ship an improvement in an upcoming release.
In either case, my colleague was requesting you try hardwiring a Sonos unit (any of them, just one, will do) because this will activate SonosNET on top of the network.This may increase stability and allow for tighter synchronization between the Sonos units - see here: Change your Sonos system’s wireless channel | Sonos
I have found out three things: 1. there is actually a second FRITZ!Box (4040) in the network, which is connected to the router via Ethernet. It is needed to provide WLAN to the living room, which is separated from the rest of the flat by a thick concrete wall. (I had completely forgotten about it because it always worked without any problems.) 2. the server was connected to the router via both Ethernet and WLAN. 3. since I deactivated the WLAN connection to the router, Roon only plays for a few seconds before it stops working. This can be reliably replicated. Restarting the server and the router did not help. Reactivating the WLAN access for the server didn’t help either: Roon is now completely unusable, I’m not bothering with it any further for now and in the meantime I’m considering whether the clear advantages that the Sonos app has shouldn’t finally make me smarter: it plays the music reliably and without interruption, it uses the metadata that I enter (and not the one that it finds somewhere on the net and not infrequently misinterprets) and it costs nothing at all. I think with a bit of thought I’ll find other advantages that might outweigh the disadvantages (the confusing and aesthetically disastrous GUI, for example), but for now I’ll rest easy because I can’t spend my whole life identifying and possibly circumventing Roon’s shortcomings.
Roon and Sonos operate within distinct audio ecosystems but support mutual playback connectivity. As mentioned earlier, our team has an open ticket to address the specific playback issues you’ve reported, so you can expect improvements to Sonos/Roon integration in future Roon releases.
Additionally, if you prefer to bypass Roon’s metadata enrichment, you can adjust your import settings to prioritize local metadata.
From the network details you’ve provided, it appears that your second router is creating a separate subnetwork, segmenting some of your devices from the primary network where RoonServer resides. This network segmentation is likely the root cause of the connectivity issues. Since Roon requires all endpoints and control devices to be on the same Layer 2 network, resolving this will involve adjusting your network topology to ensure all devices communicate within a unified subnet.
I connected now one sonos device by ethernet. This made no difference.
»Additionally, if you prefer to bypass Roon’s metadata enrichment, you can adjust your import settings to prioritize local metadata.«
This is not true. This setting has no effect.
A colleague who is very familiar with such things has just been here. We have reorganised a few things on the network together. Most importantly, there is now only one FRITZ! box and the Sonos Amp is connected to the router by cable (via a switch).
The result: There is no noticeable change. It simply doesn’t work.
(It never worked before, by the way, and it doesn’t work in my other house either, which has a completely different network structure with completely different network hardware: there are the same dropouts. It must be something to do with Roon, even though I understand that everything is in perfect order).
Hi @Werner_Hintze,
Thanks for keeping us updated. We have a developer ticket open for this issue, and the team is actively working on it. While we can’t provide an exact timeline for a fix, we’ll be sure to update you here as soon as it’s available so you can test it out. In the meantime, let us know if anything changes on your end!
@support,
I installed the update to 2.50 today. It hasn’t solved the problem with the constant interruptions, but made it worse. I can now rarely listen to two tracks in a row without a large part of the second one being skipped or left out. Is there any hope that this problem will be fixed?
I’m really sorry to hear you’re still running into trouble — I know how frustrating that can be. While the latest update didn’t include any changes related to playback or connectivity, I understand it’s disappointing that things feel like they’ve gotten worse.
We do still have a ticket open with our development team, and it’s in their queue for further investigation. While we don’t have a timeline to share just yet, rest assured it’s on their radar and will be addressed in a future update. We’ll make sure to keep you updated as soon as we have any news to share.
