unable to play podcasts through Sonos app
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If the title of the show is “ABC”, then the message is:
Unable to play ‘ABC’ – unable to connect to Pocket Casts.See this screenshot:
https://i.imgur.com/MirecNo.jpeg -
Auslegungssache – der c’t Datenschutz-Podcast
https://pca.st/wg9r4p5m
or
https://pca.st/podcast/d9a6ae00-dead-0137-b6c4-0acc26574db2
Lage der Nation – der Politik-Podcast aus Berlin:
https://pca.st/ldn
or
https://pca.st/podcast/9b9769d0-cb52-0133-2e8b-6dc413d6d41d
still don’t work! -
The link you’ve shared to the screenshot isn’t working for me. That said, I do recommend you try the following steps, as they usually resolve such issues:
- Tap your account in the Profile tab and verify you are logged in and see are no errors there
- Still on the mobile app, unsubscribe to the podcast you’re not able to play on Sonos
- Re-subscribe to the podcast
- Head back to the Profile tab and click “Refresh Now”
- Check if the podcast now appears in Sonos
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Hello @staff-mobilefox, I followed your 5-point solution suggestion, which you recommended to @drfink11, to no avail. Unfortunately, I can’t listen to the following podcast on the Sonos app, but all other podcasts work for me. State of the Nation – the political podcast from Berlin: https://pca.st/ldn or https://pca.st/podcast/9b9769d0-cb52-0133-2e8b-6dc413d6d41d
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Hello @staff-mobilefox, I followed your 5-point solution suggestion, which you recommended to @drfink11, to no avail. Unfortunately, I can’t listen to the following podcast on the Sonos app:
LAGE DER NATION
Lage der Nation – der Politik-Podcast aus Berlin:
https://pca.st/ldn
or
https://pca.st/podcast/9b9769d0-cb52-0133-2e8b-6dc413d6d41d… but all other podcasts work for me.
Thank you
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Can you please confirm with us if you are using the Sonos S1 or S2 Controller?
The S1 controller does not have support for some newer security features which some RSS Feeds use, so upgrading to an S2 is the only solution for those cases.
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Hi @staff-mobilefox,
thank you for your answer. I followed your 5-point solution suggestion, but both podcasts:
Auslegungssache – der c’t Datenschutz-Podcast
https://pca.st/wg9r4p5m
or
https://pca.st/podcast/d9a6ae00-dead-0137-b6c4-0acc26574db2and
Lage der Nation – der Politik-Podcast aus Berlin:
https://pca.st/ldn
or
https://pca.st/podcast/9b9769d0-cb52-0133-2e8b-6dc413d6d41dstill don’t work with my S2-Sonos Controller.
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Hi, i have the same issue with the podcast Deep Questions with Cal Newport
Link to the podcast https://pca.st/mj8i0i6r
I am using the S2 controller and have tried staff-mobilefox potential solution, but it did not work
The error message i receive is “unable to play episode xxx … unable to connect to pocket casts”
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Thanks for those examples, @drfink11 & @nootnoot11
Our team is looking into this since this is happening on the S2. We will post back on this thread if we require any additional information.
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While Pocket Casts strives to support a wide range of devices, Sonos has specific technical requirements that some audio files might not meet.
The good news is, there’s a workaround! You can try using AirPlay to stream the podcast directly to your Sonos system. Here’s a handy guide from Sonos to help you set it up: https://support.sonos.com/en/article/stream-airplay-audio-to-sonos.
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Well, you can use AirPlay if you have a iPhone, iPad or Mac. I use an Android smartphone.
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If you’re unable to play podcasts through the Sonos app, try updating the app and your Sonos system firmware. Ensure the podcasts are compatible with Sonos and check your network connection. If issues persist, contacting Sonos customer support for further assistance is recommended.
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@nootnoot11, if supported, you could also look into using Bluetooth to connect to your speaker.
what is the issue with the audio file for these podcasts?
If we know the issue we could also flag to the podcast producer.
Based on our investigation, Sonos connects directly to the podcast host. However, Sonos has many technical requirements for audio playback to work correctly, and things like redirect count can cause playback to fail (and will depend on dynamic ad insertion).
I dont understand, you were able to fix the issues for other podcasts (within this very thread), why can the same action not be taken for the podcasts @drfink11 and I have identified.
The same fix has been applied for all podcasts, but since these specific podcasts still don’t play, it either has too many redirects in the episode files, or does meet certain Sonos technical requirements, hence the error.
Our team is looking into these matters, but using a workaround like Bluetooth might be a good idea for now.
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@philipsalt703 regarding your issue, make sure you are using the S2 controller. Additionally, does this happen with all podcasts or just specific ones?
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I am now having this same issue with the Marketplace podcast and only the Marketplace podcast. I can play episodes through Pocket Casts but not through Sonos.
For me this issue started a few days ago. Before that I listened to Marketplace through Sonos just fine for the past two-ish years.
It is happening with both new episodes and episodes I had already downloaded and even started listening to through Sonos.
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@kutchko To be sure we’re checking the correct podcast, are you referring to this Marketplace podcast?
If you are referring to a different one can you please reply with a share link?
Sharing Podcasts, Episodes, and Clips
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