Hey everyone, I wanted to share a solution I found for a common issue with Sonos and TTS. Many of us have struggled with Sonos not resuming after a TTS message or track playback. I had a specific need: I wanted my Sonos to play a streaming radio station, stop it when I left the house, play a TTS alarm message at a lower volume, and then resume the radio but keep it paused. After some experimentation, I figured out a reliable method using Rule Machine. Here’s how it works:
- Trigger Event: Set the trigger to activate when my security mode changes to ‘Away’.
- Actions:
- Stop the Radio: Immediately stop the current radio stream.
- Play TTS Message: Use Sonos to speak the alarm message at a higher volume (50%).
- Adjust Volume: After the TTS message, lower the volume to 14%.
- Resume Radio: Set the radio track to the same stream URL, ensuring it’s paused so it doesn’t start automatically.
I added delays between each action to prevent any overlap or issues with execution. This setup ensures that when I return home, I can just press play on the Sonos to resume the radio at the lower volume without repeating the TTS message.
This solution works perfectly for my needs, but I understand it’s limited to using the same content each time. I’m curious if anyone else has found a way to make Sonos resume whatever was playing before without relying on specific URLs. Maybe using variables to store the previous state could be a future project!
I hope this helps someone else avoid the frustration of Sonos not resuming properly. Feel free to reach out if you’d like more details on the rule setup. Happy automating! 
