Having trouble with Speaker groups? Read this first

[kelanfromgoogle]

Hi everyone, 

Thank you for continuing to notify us of the reliability issues you’re facing with your Speaker groups. I escalated these issues internally and the team is actively investigating a resolution. If you’re able, all feedback is appreciated! Please keep it coming by saying “OK Google, Send Feedback." Providing details, such as mentioning that the issue is with the "speaker group," is especially helpful.  As always, we appreciate your feedback and are working hard to alleviate the issues. 

Thank you for the patience,
Kelan

[kelanfromgoogle · Accepted solution]

Hey folks,

Thank you for your continued patience while our team has been working to address the issues with Speaker group functionality. I want to give you all an update and confirm that a fix was identified which will address a specific problem where some devices, when acting as the group leader, cause an issue with audio not playing on other speakers that are part of the same group. However, you may experience that the main (or leader) device will still play the media as expected.

The following devices will cause this behavior when used as the group leader:

- Chromecast with Google TV (4K)
- Chromecast with Google TV (HD)
- Google Home (Fixed as part of firmware update 3.73)
- Google Home/Nest Hub (first-generation)
- Google Home/Nest Mini (first-generation) (Fixed as part of firmware update 3.73)
- Nest Audio (Fixed as part of firmware update 3.73)
- Nest Hub (second-generation)
- Nest Hub Max
- Nest Mini (second-generation) (Fixed as part of firmware update 3.73)
- Nest Wifi Point
- Pixel Tablet
- A small percentage of third-party speakers were also affected

Note: the issue must be fixed on the device that is the leader of the group in order for the other devices in the group to start playing consistently

The fixes are specific to each device type, and are dependent on upcoming scheduled update rollouts. We will update this post as the fixes begin rolling out for each device so you can test your own speaker groups.

There may be some devices that take longer to receive the update so if you’re still encountering issues, you can try these temporary workarounds:

Cast directly: if you’re trying to play audio in multiple rooms, cast the audio directly to the individual speakers.

Restart your devices: If you’re having trouble with your speaker group and are unsure which device is the group leader, try restarting all devices that are part of the speaker group. This can often resolve the issues.

As always, we deeply appreciate the feedback and your patience. If you are still running into issues with Speaker groups, please leave a comment below with clear descriptions of the behavior you're encountering. This feedback will help the team further investigate and mitigate anything else that might be causing this feature to not work as intended.

Thanks again, we're working diligently to get everything back to how it should be.

Kelan

[GreggeGregg]

For some weird reason, after I spent hours on this the other day...it all worked fine today. I was able to go back in and recreate speaker group. Way to go Google for seamless consistent reliable customer experience!

[scragin]

I hope this helps diagnose the issues. Every time  my Google Max speakers lose their connection (which is a inevitable and ongoing), I have  to reset to factory, re-link them to Google Home, rename them Left, and Right and then pair them as Stereo. Then they work for a while. But I did notice is when I went into Spotify and changed the speakers there, it shows up as Left instead of Stereo (still plays on both speakers). When I go into the Google Home app, it shows Stereo playing. 

How can this issue have been going on for years with no fix?

[marcolopes]

Stereo pairs have a few issues.

The main one is the naming! 

The pair is seen on the network by the LEFT device name!

You must rename the pair after pairing!!

And guess what? When you rename the pair, you are really renaming the LEFT device!! You can check this after you unpaired the stereo pair, as the LEFT device has the stereo pair name.

[RussdaFuss]

Yes, I have had similar experiences with my stereo pair of Google Home Mini speakers. I wonder if any Google developer has ever tried this crap themselves. What kind of quality control is that?

[scragin]

Thanks for the tip. I'll rename when they permanently disconnect. But so far, they have been able to reconnect by themselves after a disconnection. It still sucks that sometimes they are disconnected, but most of the time, they stay connected, which definitely wasn't the case in the past, so somthing has changed... or has it?

[Dastud]

I hope this is a sign of improvement. I have a tile that runs a routine to play Godsmack on garage speakers, which are 6 2nd gen minis set as 3 stereo pairs, 2 audiocast subs and a 2nd gen hub. I pressed the tile and EVERYTHING PLAYED!! Hub included. Been a minute since that has happened. 

[Dastud]

....and tonight it's playing 2 of the 8 speakers. Back to normal.

[RussdaFuss]

Friends, a miraculous self-healing is not to be expected! We are dependent on a bug fix from Google. The fate of our devices lies in the hands of a large corporation.

[Sherwin]

Hi, I am trying to use speaker groups to display my Spotify on my Chromecast but have audio playing on my nest audio. However, when using the speaker groups to have the music to play, it only plays on the nest audio but not the Chromecast. Any ways to fix?

[mrxree]

Pixel Tablet + 5 other third-party devices with Chromecast built-in (three streamers + 2 speakers with integrated streaming).  Many issues initiating streaming from apps on Pixel Tablet.  This all worked perfectly for several months, but for the last couple it has been a daily nightmare.

[rickjforbes]

Okay guys, let me give you a brilliant example of how pathetic Google are.

I have been compiling data (screenshots and screen recording, images, movies) about my issues with Google. I use this to illustrate the problems and to show agents that I undertake these steps. I have a server at home so I don't need storage, but I keep the data in Google photos and I am paying. I have currently hit my storage limit due to these files and Google have been crediting me with 14 days extra storage to accommodate it. (which was the right thing to do) However..every 14 days I would get a notification that it was expiring and every time I had to write to them again to re-explain myself (rather than them just taking care of it) and now..this time the team have told me that their "tool no longer allows them to do it and they recommend I upgrade my storage plan"

I have exchanged 10 emails now with some dimwit who I keep explaining to that his tools are not my problem and there is no **bleep** way I am paying Google to store files they need to fix their problems, and I don't even seem to be able to land this simple point. They just think it's acceptable to be this way.

The last set of solutions the agent had was (and I am not joking) was to turn off all the speakers I am having a  issue with and (get this) report back on whether I am still having the issues. These guys are either the world's best trolls or the world's worst service department..and I think they would be proud of either moniker.

I could not make this up. I've never seen any service as inefficient, ineffective and with such a poor understanding of their products and how customer service works.

[StefanHannie]

My Chromecast with Google TV can't join a speaker group. 

I've had a speaker group setup with the Chromecast with Google TV and a Chromecast Audio that was working for several months, but just a few days ago the speaker group dropped the Chromecast with Google TV and I'm not able to add it back.

The Chromecast with Google TV no longer shows up as an option as an available speaker when creating groups. All I see is the Chromecast Audio when trying to create a speaker group.

I'm able to cast to both the Chromecast with Google TV and Chromecast Audio separately without issue.

[SWTS5]

I have the same issue. 

My Chromecast with Google TV used to be in a speaker group, now it's not. And I can't add it to a new one

[smithjohns409]

If your Chromecast with Google TV isn't appearing as an option to join a speaker group, try these steps:

1. Restart all devices involved (Chromecast with Google TV, Chromecast Audio, router).
2. Ensure all devices are on the same Wi-Fi network and have stable connections.
3. Check for firmware updates on your Chromecast devices.
4. Reset the Google Home app or clear its cache.
5. Remove and recreate the speaker group setup.
6. Verify compatibility and settings in the Google Home app.
7. Contact Google Support if issues persist for further assistance.

[SCFrance78]

No, that is not correct. That does not work for Chromecast with Google TV. 

[Z_Twe12e]

I also have this issue. I even tried factory resetting my Chromecast, but that didn't work. 

[SCFrance78]

I've got the same issue. I can add my Google Nest Mini and Google Nest Hub devices to a speaker group, but I cannot add my Chromecast with Google TV (neither 4K nor HD). The instructions on this page are inaccurate and misleading : https://support.google.com/chromecast/answer/7174267?hl=en#zippy=%2Ccontrol-speaker-groups-in-the-go... ... I assert that one CANNOT add a Chromecast device to a speaker group in Google Home, it does not allow it. Very frustrating.

[StefanHannie]

Can we get an acknowledgement from the devs that this is a bug? Is this a new bug or a known one? And do any tickets exist we can follow along with?

[Sphillips]

I have the same issue. I called support and they told me it's a bug with the Google home app after a recent update.

[StefanHannie]

Nice. Thanks.

[CHAZZER]

Then they should do a roll back to a stable update

[SCFrance78]

I absolutely agree. We should get acknowledgement that this is a bug, and an ETA for a fix.

Google provides a set of instructions for setup of a speaker group that includes Chromecast with Google TV - these instructions are visibly unverified and inaccurate.

I am a Google customer who has largely bought into the "Google verse" for the connected home.

In my home, there are: 2 Nest Hubs, 3 Chromecast with Google TV, 2 Nest Cam, 1 Nest Doorbell, 3 Nest Mini, 1 Nest Protect, 3 Pixel telephones, 2 Pixel Buds Pro, 3 Fitbit bracelets ...

Google Assistant is everywhere in my home, and for any connected appliance, if it doesn't say "Works with Google Home" on the label, I don't buy it. 

So, you get the idea. I'm pretty well invested into the Google universe of products, what you would call a loyal customer. Do I expect all of these Google devices to work together seamlessly? Of course I do. Do I expect to be able to easily connect all of my Nest Hubs and Chromecast with Google TV together in a speaker group to be able to stream Youtube Music and Spotify throughout my Google Home ? Of course I do ! 

Please Google ... Fix ... this ... issue !   

[rickjforbes]

Hi @StefanHannie, @SCFrance78 and @Z_Twe12e 

Hopefully this is useful to you. I have had multiple agents achkinowledge it as a bug and also that there is no ETA for fix that they will share/commit to. Infer what you like about Google from this information, but don';t let anyone tell you it isn't a bug

all the best

Rich

[Lardo]

This was in MARCH???? And we're still here in July waiting for this to be fixed! It's their OWN ecosystem of devices, it should be broken for a matter of days... not months!!! 

This whole issue just gets on my **bleep**... I've always been a supporter of Google and their devices, but this has really got me wondering if Alexa is the platform I should move to! Frustrating to the MAXXX!

[Jaygjenning]

They sold me all of these devices on the premise that it already works, Not that "we'll  make it work sometime, if we can." 

[rickjforbes]

Agreed.

See my summary of experience here

https://www.googlenestcommunity.com/t5/Speakers-and-Displays/Another-Dead-Thread-False-Promises-No-r...

[rickjforbes]

@Lardo 

That's nothing. I haven't had a single issue fixed on dozens of cases across the Google ecosystem since October 2022. They never commit..and they think it's okay to advertise features that don't work at all or consistently for customers

See my thread here

https://www.googlenestcommunity.com/t5/Speakers-and-Displays/Another-Dead-Thread-False-Promises-No-r...

[rickjforbes]

 its supposed to work. Get it fixed Google or get them their money back

[binarydad]

Me too. I have a group of 8 speakers, a mix of Chromecast pucks, Google Home/Mini, and the device in question... a Nest Mini. I noticed the one speaker, the nest mini, is no longer playing as part of the group, while the other 7 play fine. I can cast to it directly, however.

Also, weirder, is if I join it to a group with one other speaker, it sometimes plays with the other speaker. Adding more speakers causes the others to play, but not the nest mini. I can't seem to find a pattern to it. I've done a reset of the nest mini and rebooted all other devices (pretty sure I did).

Hoping this gets resolved. Luckily the speaker that is not working, as part of the group, is in a bathroom, so it's not noticeable.

[Uncle-Googs]

Company coming over today.  Barely anything is working today.  Groups dont play.  Some pairs work... Some dont.  Cant wait to show them this great ecosystem throughout my house.

"Oh yeah.... All those speakers you see?  Yeah - those on the wall I mounted? - for the last year they have been crap.  They want play together. They do tell me the mic is off however.  Google could care less..."

"Why aren't they all playing?.... Well... That was a feature that worked when I bought them... Then google got sued by Sonos... rather than paying fees keep its millions of customers happy... It took away features... "...

"Sure - the few that are working now sound nice.  But

.. Dont make the mistake I did.."

[rickjforbes]

I have a Google Home Max (not the hub, the massive speaker)
During my recent interaction where we briefly talked around swapping the faulty devices, the agent just said, "we don't have that one anymore" and that was the end of it, like I wouldn't notice the "half-solution"
Funny thing is I don't think they keep playing a round with the Max software, and it's the best working device out of the lot, the Hub Max's being the primary dog poop, followed by the Nest Mini 2s, then the WiFI minis, then the older stuff gets progressively better (relatively)

[KatrinSchaper]

I start realising the problems with speaker groups some weeks ago. It is 2 out of my 3 Nest, that disturb the group. When disconnectiong them from the group, all works fine. the group contains of multiple mini, Nest and other Google compatible devices. when do you expect updates for the different devices? Really inconvinient without Speaker groups and realy frustrating buying expensive google products and they are the ones causing the problems!

[Uncle-Googs]

Hey all.  I am the guy (if you have been following) that has factory reset all his Nest Speakers (14+) --- and realized that the "name change" process or just naming process in general was very buggy.  I had learned that names and name changes were not taken consistently.  I had done the following.  As setting up new speakers that I knew were going to be part of a "pair"... calling them "Name - R" and "Name - L"... prior to joining them as a Stereo pair.  Then - when creating the pair... calling it "STEREO - Name"... so like "STEREO - Living room".  Then... making sure eash of these "Pairs" functions correctly.... before making Groups.  With Groups.... I used a naming standard of "GROUP - Group name"... so like "GROUP - Garage".

Although I have came back a few times and ranted.  Most recently - when having company over.  Eventually things starting functioning correctly.  Honestly about 10 minutes after that "company" rant.  Things started working fine. 

Its been about 4 weeks now - where things have honestly been working decent.  Are things slow to show up sometimes?  Yes.  However - this is the most consistent things have been in the last year.  Instead of spending 45 minutes waiting for group to show up (if ever)... withing 5-10 mins max - I am playing on "GROUP - Garage"... and happy.

Although it sounds like there are firmware updates coming - I really suggest taking a look at your names, pairs, and groups... and getting consistent.  With the naming standard above like above.  I now know when my "GROUPS" show up - vs- wondering... is that the group name?  Or is that just one of the Speakers?

Its honestly been working pretty good.

I think its worth the try.  I am not sure if the Factory Reset played into my fix also - as I did the "consistent naming" right after the reset.  Maybe start with Naming?  Break apart all your Groups/Pairs.  Name them as such... then rebuild?

Good luck all...

[RussdaFuss]

I can't confirm that! From the beginning, it seemed logical to name individual speakers, speaker groups and stereo pairs consistently. But I still have all these problems. One should not fall into the error of seeing such a simple and inherently logical action as a solution. If that were the solution to the problems and Google knew about it, wouldn't Google have pointed it out long ago and suggested it as a solution to the problems? No, it's not that simple. It is a mistake to believe that the user has any influence on the behavior of the speakers.

[Uncle-Googs]

Welp.  Sharing what worked for me.

Multiple people have stated that names and pairing names (Stereo) have been buggy.  As are renames of Stereo pairs and groups..  Prior to my rebuild process I outlined... in the "Home" app - pairs, and groups were flickering back and forth with one speaker name,.. then flip to stereo name... then back to one speaker name.  My casting list was like playing whack-a-mole.  Things coming and going.  One speaker... Then the pair... Back to one speaker of the pair... Then disappearing again.

Since stabilizing things one step at a time   Speaker names.  Stereo names.  Then group names... Its been drastically better for me.  I used to spend 45+ minutes waiting for a group to show up... Ultimately just giving up in frustration.  Now - 5 min... and I see the group I am looking for.

I am not suggesting "what" you name your sprakers matter.  I am saying - when you create a stereo pair... do not rename it!  Break it apart... and give it a new name when you re-pair them.  Same with groups.  Delete the group. Rebuild.

Get all your stereo pairs functional to your liking... Wait... Confirm things are functional and that you are happy with all your names (cause u don't want to rename pairs).... THEN build groups.

[JohnLand]

I have also been able to get speaker groups to work for several days decently, till I have to rub my stomach CC with one hand and tapping my head with the other, all while standing on one leg. But the new firmware has broken all the magic tricks. Clearly Google has no interest in fixing this or atleast being upfront with us. Way to much wasted time and money just to listen to music!

[DallasGG]

Google Speaker groups is about as effed up as it can get.  One minute a group works and then the next it doesn't.  It appears that the "system" is picking one speaker in the group and assigning the group name to that device and then only playing music on that device.  C'mon Google, fix this mess.  These used to work but now it's a big old cluster.  I was thinking of buying a Google Nest Audio but if the speaker groups don't work, what is the use?  Please fix something that used to work.  I used to think that Google had the setup and settings work way better than Amazon echos but at this point Amazon is head and shoulders above Google.  At least their speaker groups work!  Ugh!

[mrxree]

I think my environment is a little different from most posters so far, but some of my observations may be useful for getting a clearer understanding of what is vs isn't functioning well.  It might even help Google to resolve the issue, assuming that the community manager, @kelanfromgoogle, remains engaged with the discussion (clearly not a given since that user doesn't appear to have posted anything since 6/27).

1. Other than my Pixel tablet, all of my other endpoints are OEM devices (Primare, JBL, KEF, Wiim) with Google Chromecast Built-in.  The overall Chromecast implementation in the Pixel Tablet appears to be the least reliable device, by a considerable margin.  The issues occur somewhat less often if I avoid using that device as a source, and considerably less often using groups that don't contain that device.

2. I do not use left vs right configurations for devices, as others have described, so I have insights into that particular configuration is unusually susceptible to issues.

3. In addition to casting to my Chromecast speaker groups from Android applications (primarily Pocket Casts), I also use Roon.  This is where things a get interesting wrt to the earlier posts re: dependencies on which device is the lead for a given group, and I hope the following observation, courtesy of Roon, sheds light on the issue in general, independent of that application.  Roon can stream to Roon-ready endpoints, but it can also stream to Chromecast endpoints, including speaker groups.  Unlike every other application I'm aware of, in the audio configuration for my Roon server, I can see multiple instances of each of my Chromecast speaker groups.  Also unlike every other application I'm aware of, Roon specifies the IP address for each speaker group instance.

From this perspective, it would seem that Roon sees more than one device in a given speaker group broadcasting itself as a lead device.  I can imagine why various applications only appear to display a single group instance, but the fact that Roon displays more than one might be an indication that multiple devices in the groups are attempting to function in the "leader" role.  

I realize this is a bit of leap, but on the face it appears that Roon may be perceiving multiple Chromecast endpoints in a given group to be operating as the "group leader", (a concept I first heard about in in an earlier post on this topic).  That earlier post seemed to imply that there is supposed to be a single leader device for each group.  Could the crux of the issues everyone is experiencing simply be that the Chromecast protocol, application integrations, etc. are predicated on a single leader for each speaker group, but that for some reason the stability of the "group leader" assignment in groups currently has a defect? For most applications, users may be thinking they are always selecting the same group, but without realizing that their application is inconsistent with regards to which group instance (aka which lead device) the application is streaming to. All because the applications aren't designed to handle conflicting instances of the same speaker group - I don't mean conflicts by name, to be clear.

4/Bonus, which I hope @kelanfromgoogle can address directly, and which may either inflame or mitigate the general aggravation/distrust with Google right now regarding Chromecast audio in general and Chromecast speaker group functionality: why on earth does the "Speakers that work with Google Cast" link at Introducing Google Cast (formerly Chromecast built-in) - Google Cast Help now point to Discover how Android helps connect your devices | Android - a site with literally no information about OEM Google Cast enabled speakers/devices and little/no information about Google devices that ostensibly have this capability?  I'm nearly certain that this site, or a similar Google one, used to list dozens of third parties that integrated this capability into their devices (I assume through a licensing agreement, and, if I'm not mistaken, on condition of a vetting process with Google)?  Google sites appear to be disappearing this entire concept, leaving users like the ones posting to this thread feeling hung out to dry and raising pretty serious questions about the state of the relationship between Google and the Hi-Fi OEMs that have been selling devices such as those listed at chromecast built-in at Crutchfield.

[Annie_aan]

Hi!

I have a random issue, I have a music group with all my speakers (10 speakers). It’s been working fine for years. But now, randomly don’t play from all speakers in the group. I open spotify and select the group, every time it plays from all except 1-4 of the speakers in the group.

Then when I open the Google Home app, I can see it playing - and when I open up to see where it’s playing I can see that not all speakers are selected. But I can select the “skipped” speakers manually and then it will play on all.

I have tried resetting the speakers, I have tried creating new groups with different names, delete all groups, new groups with only some, then add all etc. It always skips a few speakers (which ones are random). 

The same happens if I ask Google to play music on a group, I can see it does not start playing on all speakers in that group and have to manually select the “skipped” speakers. 

I have also tried creating multiple groups and switching in the Google Home app, and when I switch to a group with all I can see it starts playing on most - but always skips some.

Why? And how do I fix this? 
I started noticing these issues the last week.

Thank you!

[milnivlek]

What you described sounds just like the known problem that Google acknowledged in the "recommended answer" above in this thread.

Basically, whenever we cast to a speaker group, one of the speakers in that group is designated internally as a "leader". But there's a bug that makes the leader unable to communicate with some of the other speakers in the group. That's why you are getting only a subset of speakers playing music. But if you cast to the other speakers directly, it works since it's not going through the leader.

The solution is to restart the leader. But unfortunately we can't easily tell which one is the leader (and it may change over time). You might be able to figure it out indirectly, since the leader is one of the speakers that does still play the music. But otherwise the only sure-fire solution is to restart all of the speakers in the group.

It's super annoying. But this seems to solve the problem every time. The problem will recur again after a while though, so you'll just have to restart them again (maybe once a day or so). That's the best we can do until Google releases their fix.