Check the intended state, the player and the speaker path in that order. Use the recovery control shown for the problem, then confirm sound in the room; a moving counter alone is not that confirmation.
Audition a continuous station for the room
Decide whether silence is intended
Read the current status and mode in the account workspace. Paused means the current audio is paused. Collection finished means the ordered selection has ended. A scheduled gap or a special-date plan can also call for silence. Those states do not, by themselves, establish a playback fault.
If the room should still have music, check what was selected. A station continues in a shuffled order; an ordered collection stops after its remaining tracks. A collection can finish before its scheduled period ends. Use the station-versus-collection guide for that choice rather than repeatedly trying to reconnect a completed selection.
Separate player activity from speaker sound
If the track position is advancing but the room is silent, check the audio path: the browser tab, device volume, selected output, speaker connection and the speaker’s own level. Work on one control at a time so you can tell which change affected the result.
Listen from the space that should hear the music. The account’s playback diagnostics describe browser activity and timing; they do not confirm sound from the speakers. Avoid replacing the programme just to investigate a disconnected or muted output.
Use the visible play control after a pause or restart
For a paused player with an available Play music control, try that control and check the result. If the workspace shows an error instead, use the error’s recovery action. Inactive-device and media-load errors can show Retry playback.
Chrome’s autoplay policy can prevent sound from starting without an allowed interaction. A reopened page is therefore not proof that audible playback has resumed. Use the player’s visible control and listen for the result; this guide does not require changing browser policy or disabling privacy tools.
Chrome for Developers: autoplay policy and user interaction ↗
Reconnect according to the mode you were using
Keep the device awake, the workspace open and the internet connection available. If manual playback shows Retry playback after an audio or inactive-device error, use it after restoring the connection and check the current status. Do not assume that an old buffered track establishes a working current session.
If following the saved schedule stopped after a connection problem, the saved plan is retained. Use Resume saved schedule to evaluate what is due now. The result may be a programme or scheduled silence, depending on the venue’s current local time and saved options. A saved plan does not wake a closed or sleeping browser.
Keep recovery separate from schedule editing
Do not change normal opening hours, every programme or the venue timezone while diagnosing one interruption. Record the state you found, restore the intended mode and test a track change. If you deliberately choose a different programme manually, following the schedule stops in the current workspace; use Follow saved schedule when you want the saved plan again.
When switching devices is the chosen next step, use Stop listening before leaving the old device. The initial plan supports one simultaneous stream. Check the new device’s output and start playback there through the account; an additional tab or device is not an automatic fallback player.
Keep a useful observation if sound does not return
Note the time, venue, device, programme, current mode and exact visible message. Say whether the track position advanced and whether the speakers produced sound. Also note whether the interruption followed sleep, a lost connection, a reload, a device change or a collection ending.
In Playing at your venue, Refresh diagnostics updates the browser-session measurements. Use those observations alongside what you heard when contacting Open Hours. They can distinguish an audio-path problem from a player or connection problem, but they are not a guarantee that the next attempt will work. Keep the ordinary programme and the last useful observation available for the person handling the fault.
Put it into practice.
Music
Explore original background music for business. Hear station samples, compare genres and energy, then save your favourites and schedule music in your account.
Plan music through the day
Plan background music around your business hours, choose stations for each period and turn a daily draft into a practical weekly venue schedule.
Stations or ordered collections
Understand continuous station playback and finite ordered collections in Open Hours. Choose the right option for a long shift, a selected track or a scheduled slot.
Set music around conversation
Set business background music around normal conversation. Check customer seats, service points and speaker positions, then revisit the level during a quiet and busy period.
Music at shift handover
Check the playing device, programme, saved-schedule mode and temporary changes at staff handover. Keep a short music note the next operator can use.