Works fine but with intermittent loud pops and cracks

Question

Sonos Play 5

SONOS PLAY 5 is the original, bigger room, bigger sound, all-in-one Sonos music player.

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Martin Abbott @martinabbo80434

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crwdns2931729:0crwdne2931729:0: Sun 30, 2025

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Works fine but with intermittent loud pops and cracks

I've been given an old Play 5 which I've given a factory reset and update, and it's now on my S1 network with half a dozen other Sonos products, all of which work fine.

This Play 5 seems to work perfectly, except that every now and then it emits a loud pop or crack noise. These usually come in bursts for a few seconds, and then it can be a few minutes of an hour or so until it does it again. The volume of the noise is the same, irrespective of the volume level of the speaker, it also occurs when the speaker is paused,

Interestingly, it does not come through headphones if they are plugged into it, but it does appear that when headphones are plugged in that the speaker may still be emitting a very low volume pops or cracks.

I've tried all the different app related settings for the speaker, including volume limiting, EQ, Loudness, etc, I've also tried changing the wireless channel and using wired LAN, but nothing changes the issue.

I'd be very grateful if anyone has any ideas as to what causes this and whether it's fixable.

Thanks, Martin

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Hello again,

I finally got around to taking it apart.

I didn't find anything glaringly obvious, but I thought that the two largest capacitors perhaps looked a little swollen (in the 1st & 2nd pics I've added), so I ordered a couple of replacements and have just swapped them out.

I've just tested the speaker and unfortunately it's still popping intermittently, but at least my surgery hasn't made it any worse!

I took some photos of the boards before I worked on it and thought I'd share them in case anyone is able to spot anything else suspicious.

Any assistance will be appreciated!

crwdns2934271:0Yan 13, 2025crwdnd2934271:0 Martin Abbott crwdne2934271:0

I've done nothing with this for the past couple of months so I thought I'd have another good look over the boards to see if I missed anything but drew a blank.

I reassembled it and tested it again. I have now noticed that the pops are only on the right hand side speakers and they come in pairs: the first results in the higher frequencies being lost: it's hard to tell, but I think the small RH tweeter falls silent until the it pops again, when the full range of sound returns.

I hope this bit of info might help suggest where the fault may lie as I am reluctant to throw the speaker away.

Thanks in advance

crwdns2934271:0Dzi 14, 2025crwdnd2934271:0 Martin Abbott crwdne2934271:0

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crwdns2933313:01crwdne2933313:0

Hello again,

I finally got around to taking it apart.

I didn't find anything glaringly obvious, but I thought that the two largest capacitors perhaps looked a little swollen (in the 1st & 2nd pics I've added), so I ordered a couple of replacements and have just swapped them out.

I've just tested the speaker and unfortunately it's still popping intermittently, but at least my surgery hasn't made it any worse!

I took some photos of the boards before I worked on it and thought I'd share them in case anyone is able to spot anything else suspicious.

Any assistance will be appreciated! — Martin Abbott
I've done nothing with this for the past couple of months so I thought I'd have another good look over the boards to see if I missed anything but drew a blank.

I reassembled it and tested it again. I have now noticed that the pops are only on the right hand side speakers and they come in pairs: the first results in the higher frequencies being lost: it's hard to tell, but I think the small RH tweeter falls silent until the it pops again, when the full range of sound returns.

I hope this bit of info might help suggest where the fault may lie as I am reluctant to throw the speaker away.

Thanks in advance — Martin Abbott

score 0 · Answer 1 · 2025-01-30T07:44:35-07:00

jayeff @jayeff

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crwdns2931729:0crwdne2931729:0: Sun 30, 2025

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Hi @martinabbo80434

Check that the electrolytic capacitors on the power board are all OK and not bulging (domed) or leaking.

A faulty capacitor can introduce unwanted noise into a circuit.

If you find any, their specifications are on the can itself. When searching for replacements you need to know their capacitance value (usually in micro Farads - either MFD or µF) and their working voltage rating (V or VW). Lead (legs?) spacing may be an issue but if the leads are long enough usually not.

Search either Digikey.com or mouser.com for any hard to find ones that you can't find easily using a general Google search. For example when searching for a 100µF 63V electrolytic radial capacitor

If for whatever reason you find one with the correct capacitance value but not the correct voltage value, get one with the same capacitance value and a higher voltage rating, never a lower voltage rating.

Electrolytic capacitors are polarity dependent so take note (or pictures) of their orientation the way they're soldered on the board. The -ve leg of the capacitor is indicated by a broken stripe down the side of the capacitor. Conversely, the +ve leg of the capacitor is marked on the board.

If you reverse it when soldering in a new one it will blow at some time very soon after the power is connected.

Apologies if you know all this already.

Here's the ifixit Sonos Play 5 repair guide that will help to gain access to the board

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Hello, thanks so much for such a speedy and comprehensive response! I was toying with taking it apart to see if there was anything visibly suspicious with the boards, so your information has given me the confidence to do so. I'll keep you posted once I've found some spare time and had a look.

crwdns2934271:0Sun 30, 2025crwdnd2934271:0 Martin Abbott crwdne2934271:0

@martinabbo80434

Sonos doesn't release the schematics for their products so it won't be easy but if it is the RH tweeter then it could be the amp associated with that speaker.

The user guide states that there are 6 dedicated amps, one each for the 3 tweeters and 3 woofers used.

You would have to chase the wires back from the RH tweeter and see where they connect to the board and then follow the traces to see which components it's associated with and hope to see something there.

It could be something as simple as a dry joint solder connection. Maybe the individual amp is losing power.

Last resort if possible is to disconnect the tweeter and check if the pops disappear and that the sound is still OK.

If it is you may have to leave it that way.

crwdns2934271:0Dzi 14, 2025crwdnd2934271:0 jayeff crwdne2934271:0

@jayeff That's great info and advice, thanks for your input!

crwdns2934271:0Dzi 14, 2025crwdnd2934271:0 Martin Abbott crwdne2934271:0

@jayeff I have disconnected the RH tweeter and that has eliminated the pops. Maybe not a 'fix' in the truest sense, but a totally workable solution! I've notched up the treble slightly to compensate and for the purposes of which I'll be using it, it will be completely un-noticeable.

crwdns2934271:0Dzi 15, 2025crwdnd2934271:0 Martin Abbott crwdne2934271:0

@martinabbo80434

Depending on which end you disconnected and how easy it is to check, but look for a loose or dry joint connection either on the tweeter itself (perhaps the wires from the tweeter driver (cone) to the terminals where the wires from the board connect to - usually they're on the underside) or where they are terminated on the board.

Vibrations from the speaker could easily cause a loose connection to come and go i.e. connection or no connection.

Glad you got it working good enough to use anyway.

Cheers

crwdns2934271:0Dzi 15, 2025crwdnd2934271:0 jayeff crwdne2934271:0

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Sonos Play 5

Works fine but with intermittent loud pops and cracks

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