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14.12 Update

Caroline V.
Userlevel 4
Badge +2

Changes to volume mapping and impact on Sub output

 

Thank you for your feedback regarding the recent 14.12 software update with Enhanced Clarity for Arc. 

 

In this update, we made a change to Arc’s audio profile to improve dialogue clarity and the overall sound experience. This change is based on feedback from our listeners in the field and brings Arc in line with our other Home Theater products, resulting in a more accurate representation of the sound as intended by the content creator. 

 

The updated tuning adjusts the spectral balance of Arc+Sub to achieve a more accurate representation of the sound and an improved sound experience. While the Arc+Sub output capability remains the same,  the mapping of volume across the 0-100% range has been adjusted with this release which means low and mid volume levels are relatively lower compared to the previous tuning so you may need to adjust the volume slider to achieve your pre-update volume level. The maximum volume and bass output are unchanged. We acknowledge that this change was not made more clear in the release notes and in the future we’ll be sure to make sure we communicate these rare changes more effectively. 

 

Please note, we have identified an issue for some users of Arc, Beam and Ray whose configuration includes a Sub (with or without surrounds), who may find their Sub output is lower than desired after performing a new Trueplay tuning. 

 

Users with Beam or Ray bonded with Sub can increase the Sub level for a more powerful low-end response, however this won’t have the same impact for Arc users. Customers using Arc bonded with a Sub (and/or surrounds) who find their Sub output is lower than desired following performing a new Trueplay tuning, should temporarily disable Trueplay on Arc until this is addressed by an upcoming software update. 

 

Trueplay tunings for Home Theater configurations without a bonded Sub are unaffected, including standalone soundbars and those bonded with surrounds only.   

 

 

If you would like any assistance adjusting the sound of your Home Theater setup, the community is here to help. You can also contact Sonos support.

251 replies

S

I live in a NYC apartment and have the arc as well as the Sub.  When I purchased the sub 6 months ago it was a fantastic addition that brought a fullness to the sound without overpowering the base or the neighbors.

Now the Sub is just a big white box sitting on my floor that does absolutely nothing.  Sonos needs to fire their engineers or whomever was responsible for putting out this POS update.

N
Userlevel 4
Badge +2

Finished early and just given my ears some TLC. Ungrouped my 1SL's from the Arc, Stereo Paired them and added Sub. I'm pleased to say that Sub is still there in all its original glory, performing like it should and how it did pre-14.12, no volume issues either in this setup. The 1SL's got slightly louder when I toggled the Sub on, like everything used to before. An all round volume 25 was just as it was before too. A joy to listen to again.

I selected the Arc to play alongside the new stereo and sub setup, couldn't hear it, was so quiet and it added nothing to the party. Such a shame

So it's absolutely Arc and Sub related issues, for me at least.

I'll also backtrack my previous comment about thinking the 1SL's sounded different and quieter, certainly with Sub added they get a little gain.

Meh, just want a fix for the main stage. Come on

D
Userlevel 4
Badge +6

Finished early and just given my ears some TLC. Ungrouped my 1SL's from the Arc, Stereo Paired them and added Sub. I'm pleased to say that Sub is still there in all its original glory, performing like it should and how it did pre-14.12, no volume issues either in this setup. The 1SL's got slightly louder when I toggled the Sub on, like everything used to before. An all round volume 25 was just as it was before too. A joy to listen to again.

I selected the Arc to play alongside the new stereo and sub setup, couldn't hear it, was so quiet and it added nothing to the party. Such a shame

So it's absolutely Arc and Sub related issues, for me at least.

I'll also backtrack my previous comment about thinking the 1SL's sounded different and quieter, certainly with Sub added they get a little gain.

Meh, just want a fix for the main stage. Come on

First paragraph was exciting and hopeful, a nail biter and teaser…afterwards, the let down that it really didn’t solve the issue. 😂

S

I came to this forum looking for help and only saw this version 14.12 issue now; Unfortunately I trusted the multiple youtube video reviews where it was mentioned that the Sonos Arc + Sub + One’s sound quality is an experience to behold. I started off by just getting 1x One and it was amazing. This finally pushed me over the edge and I ordered the Arc a Sub and another One SL to complete my dream setup. My packages arrived 2 days ago, I plug everything in - giddy to be blown away by the amazing sound. It was one of the biggest let downs in my life.. $2000 later I have a system that sounds like a tinny mess - no bass, and intelligible speech unless you really boost the volume. My $50 JBL soundbar sounds 100x better than this. I really do hope that this is a software thing and it can win back my confidence.

G
Userlevel 7

I came to this forum looking for help and only saw this version 14.12 issue now; Unfortunately I trusted the multiple youtube video reviews where it was mentioned that the Sonos Arc + Sub + One’s sound quality is an experience to behold. I started off by just getting 1x One and it was amazing. This finally pushed me over the edge and I ordered the Arc a Sub and another One SL to complete my dream setup. My packages arrived, I plug everything in - giddy to be blown away by the amazing sound. It was one of the biggest let downs in my life.. $2000 later I have a system that sounds like a tinny mess - no bass, and intelligible speech unless you really boost the volume. My $50 JBL soundbar sounds 100x better than this. I really do hope that this is a software thing and it can win back my confidence.

Are you testing your system with 5.1 or Dolby Atmos audio? The audio format will be displayed on the Now Playing screen in the Sonos app.

Also, disable Trueplay tuning until the Trueplay/Sub issue is fixed.

"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." - Rashi
S

I came to this forum looking for help and only saw this version 14.12 issue now; Unfortunately I trusted the multiple youtube video reviews where it was mentioned that the Sonos Arc + Sub + One’s sound quality is an experience to behold. I started off by just getting 1x One and it was amazing. This finally pushed me over the edge and I ordered the Arc a Sub and another One SL to complete my dream setup. My packages arrived, I plug everything in - giddy to be blown away by the amazing sound. It was one of the biggest let downs in my life.. $2000 later I have a system that sounds like a tinny mess - no bass, and intelligible speech unless you really boost the volume. My $50 JBL soundbar sounds 100x better than this. I really do hope that this is a software thing and it can win back my confidence.

Are you testing your system with 5.1 or Dolby Atmos audio? The audio format will be displayed on the Now Playing screen in the Sonos app.

Also, disable Trueplay tuning until the Trueplay/Sub issue is fixed.

Currently my TV doesn’t support eARC or Atmos - this was going to be my next upgrade. I forced it to do Dolby 5.1 in passthrough mode. Sonos App also confirms this. Disabling and enabling Trueplay didn’t make any difference in my case.

H
Userlevel 3
Badge +4

Really happy with the new sound signature of the arc and surrounds. Sounds a lot more balanced. Sub has taken a hit but I’ll wait for that bug to be addressed. 
Struggling to find the thousands of complaints online however - seems more like a vocal minority posting over and over. 
 

With that said I don’t think it’s fair to owners to completely change the sound signature and have no option to roll back or adjust full EQ to their liking. 

S

Really happy with the new sound signature of the arc and surrounds. Sounds a lot more balanced. Sub has taken a hit but I’ll wait for that bug to be addressed. 
Struggling to find the thousands of complaints online however - seems more like a vocal minority posting over and over. 
 

With that said I don’t think it’s fair to owners to completely change the sound signature and have no option to roll back or adjust full EQ to their liking. 

It would seem like only certain setups / users are affected by this change. As I just mentioned in my post above - my 8 year old JBL 2.1 sound bar system sounds so much better than my new Sonos setup which I received 2 days ago. And it is not me being picky and nitpicking (as I never had a “pre 14.12” experience) This is just sound that is terrible. I am pretty sure my TV speakers does a better job. So please take that into consideration when you say it isn’t fair to owners who have no issues or quarrels about how great their system still sound.

N
Userlevel 4
Badge +2

I came to this forum looking for help and only saw this version 14.12 issue now; Unfortunately I trusted the multiple youtube video reviews where it was mentioned that the Sonos Arc + Sub + One’s sound quality is an experience to behold. I started off by just getting 1x One and it was amazing. This finally pushed me over the edge and I ordered the Arc a Sub and another One SL to complete my dream setup. My packages arrived, I plug everything in - giddy to be blown away by the amazing sound. It was one of the biggest let downs in my life.. $2000 later I have a system that sounds like a tinny mess - no bass, and intelligible speech unless you really boost the volume. My $50 JBL soundbar sounds 100x better than this. I really do hope that this is a software thing and it can win back my confidence.

Are you testing your system with 5.1 or Dolby Atmos audio? The audio format will be displayed on the Now Playing screen in the Sonos app.

Also, disable Trueplay tuning until the Trueplay/Sub issue is fixed.

Currently my TV doesn’t support eARC or Atmos - this was going to be my next upgrade. I forced it to do Dolby 5.1 in passthrough mode. Sonos App also confirms this. Disabling and enabling Trueplay didn’t make any difference in my case.

I would take it all back whilst you still can get a refund (assumingly). Don't fall into the same trap that some of us are in, unable to return, whilst you await a fix. Monitor what the fix is, if it happens and see what the impressions are of it before buying it again. There was no official mention of the sound profile going back to how it used to be, just merely touching the surface of the heap of issues 14.12 brought. Get your money back whilst you can, be one of the lucky escapees.

H
Userlevel 3
Badge +4

Really happy with the new sound signature of the arc and surrounds. Sounds a lot more balanced. Sub has taken a hit but I’ll wait for that bug to be addressed. 
Struggling to find the thousands of complaints online however - seems more like a vocal minority posting over and over. 
 

With that said I don’t think it’s fair to owners to completely change the sound signature and have no option to roll back or adjust full EQ to their liking. 

It would seem like only certain setups / users are affected by this change. As I just mentioned in my post above - my 8 year old JBL 2.1 sound bar system sounds so much better than my new Sonos setup which I received 2 days ago. And it is not me being picky and nitpicking (as I never had a “pre 14.12” experience) This is just sound that is terrible. I am pretty sure my TV speakers does a better job. So please take that into consideration when you say it isn’t fair to owners who have no issues or quarrels about how great their system still sound.

Not following you. Did you read my comment?
 

I never said what you are implying. 
 

I said “I don’t think it’s fair to owners to completely change the sound signature and have no option to roll back or adjust full EQ to their liking”.

S

Really happy with the new sound signature of the arc and surrounds. Sounds a lot more balanced. Sub has taken a hit but I’ll wait for that bug to be addressed. 
Struggling to find the thousands of complaints online however - seems more like a vocal minority posting over and over. 
 

With that said I don’t think it’s fair to owners to completely change the sound signature and have no option to roll back or adjust full EQ to their liking. 

It would seem like only certain setups / users are affected by this change. As I just mentioned in my post above - my 8 year old JBL 2.1 sound bar system sounds so much better than my new Sonos setup which I received 2 days ago. And it is not me being picky and nitpicking (as I never had a “pre 14.12” experience) This is just sound that is terrible. I am pretty sure my TV speakers does a better job. So please take that into consideration when you say it isn’t fair to owners who have no issues or quarrels about how great their system still sound.

Not following you. Did you read my comment?
 

I never said what you are implying. 
 

I said “I don’t think it’s fair to owners to completely change the sound signature and have no option to roll back or adjust full EQ to their liking”.

You are right - apologies I misread your comment. My point still stands in regards to the various other users posting “Why is everyone complaining, it sounds great! Great Job Sonos! keep it up.”

A

System sounds absolutely horrible. Unbelievable that they can just send an update to destroy the system entirely. There’s got to be some rules or laws in how they swindled people and made people spend thousands of dollars only to change the way it sounds completely. 

A

Looked it up and what they did is pretty much “bait and switch” tactics and completely ruined thousands of peoples systems. I think a class action lawsuit is in order. 

Airgetlam

Please let us know how that works for you and your lawyers. 

Bruce
K

Looked it up and what they did is pretty much “bait and switch” tactics and completely ruined thousands of peoples systems. I think a class action lawsuit is in order. 

Bait and switch would need intent at the time of the sale to be proved; That isn't the case here, so it can’t be proved. And this is too small/trivial for a class action lawsuit, although stranger things do happen in the US with the ambulance chasing lawyers and their tribe..

What may be worth exploring - if one is really afflicted - are the small causes/consumer grievance redressal tribunals. The ones in India are quite effective, and do not need a plaintiff to even have a lawyer. They handle individual cases, not class actions. And since they can be a nuisance to company senior executives who may have to attend in person in distant parts of the country, customer interest is served quickly in 30-45 days, if the case is visibly genuine. The company would rather refund the sales price and move on with life, because these cases almost never go into consequential damages and the like.

But the viability of this route will vary from country to country; from what I have read, the EU may have similar protections.

H
Userlevel 3
Badge +4

Looked it up and what they did is pretty much “bait and switch” tactics and completely ruined thousands of peoples systems. I think a class action lawsuit is in order. 

Where are these thousands of people you are referring too?

R
Userlevel 1

Anybody else just had a prompt on their app to run the true play again? Hoping it’s been sorted.  

S
Userlevel 4
Badge +4

It says trueplay and sub issues to be fixed, nothing about overall volume and the sound signature. 

 

It literally says the max volume is unchanged just the mapping of the volume overall.

so if you were at 50 before change it to 58. Or whatever it is that sounds at the same volume.

i haven’t heard such a big difference I just noticed the audio was very clear now, and don’t really need speech enhancement anymore or it sounds almost too clear.

But they’re specifically stating max volume is unchanged so not sure what the volume issue is 

S
Userlevel 4
Badge +4

System sounds absolutely horrible. Unbelievable that they can just send an update to destroy the system entirely. There’s got to be some rules or laws in how they swindled people and made people spend thousands of dollars only to change the way it sounds completely. 

People are so dramatic I swear.

 

i legit had 5 coworkers over yesterday for a movie night/ they all left saying that my soundbar is amazing. I checked and I have 4.12 installed on arc plus surrounds. Never thought anything of it until I see this post.

 

one of them even worked for bose and is an acoustic engineer. So I get you might not prefer the new changes but you’re just exaggerating this whole thing way too much.

 

if it’s trash give it away to someone who will happily  enjoy it LOL.

 

btw you can at least adjust things through bass and treble levels not full EQ but it’s there 

D
Userlevel 4
Badge +6

System sounds absolutely horrible. Unbelievable that they can just send an update to destroy the system entirely. There’s got to be some rules or laws in how they swindled people and made people spend thousands of dollars only to change the way it sounds completely. 

People are so dramatic I swear.

 

i legit had 5 coworkers over yesterday for a movie night/ they all left saying that my soundbar is amazing. I checked and I have 4.12 installed on arc plus surrounds. Never thought anything of it until I see this post.

 

one of them even worked for bose and is an acoustic engineer. So I get you might not prefer the new changes but you’re just exaggerating this whole thing way too much.

 

if it’s trash give it away to someone who will happily  enjoy it LOL.

 

btw you can at least adjust things through bass and treble levels not full EQ but it’s there 

So evidently you don’t or haven’t had issues with your system. Great .. good deal. But for those that do, we’re going to discuss and post the issues. Exaggerating?? Not. Sonos wants to know and reads these posts. That’s one reason this so is community is here for. 

K

So evidently you don’t or haven’t had issues with your system. Great .. good deal. But for those that do, we’re going to discuss and post the issues. Exaggerating?? Not. Sonos wants to know and reads these posts. That’s one reason this so is community is here for. 

Quite right - A mature adult is one that does not need to put down a different view to bolster their own.

J
Userlevel 2

System sounds absolutely horrible. Unbelievable that they can just send an update to destroy the system entirely. There’s got to be some rules or laws in how they swindled people and made people spend thousands of dollars only to change the way it sounds completely. 

People are so dramatic I swear.

 

i legit had 5 coworkers over yesterday for a movie night/ they all left saying that my soundbar is amazing. I checked and I have 4.12 installed on arc plus surrounds. Never thought anything of it until I see this post.

 

one of them even worked for bose and is an acoustic engineer. So I get you might not prefer the new changes but you’re just exaggerating this whole thing way too much.

 

if it’s trash give it away to someone who will happily  enjoy it LOL.

 

btw you can at least adjust things through bass and treble levels not full EQ but it’s there 

One of them worked for Bose? Where does he work now? Sonos?🤔 Because if it’s true what they say around here, that ex-bose employees running the show now @ Sonos, it might be possible that they have chosen to roll out this last update.
You might not have the Sub, but especially for the sub-owners this update is a nightmare.
 

You might say that people are so dramatic, but I will support those people who are saying (including me), their system is way off since the last update. Imagine you buy yourself a brand-new car and show it to me. I decide to kick my foot in your front door. Fact…. The car is as good as before, only it’s a bit changed on the outside. You are probably pissed @ me for doing that. And then I say “Hey, don’t be so dramatic about it”

Do you get the picture? 🙃

S

I have taken the advice from a previous poster and refunded my system - unfortunately I couldn’t stand it watching tv over the weekend where everything sounded it came from a coke can. Hopefully Naim will provide a better experience.

N
Userlevel 7
Badge +18

I have taken the advice from a previous poster and refunded my system - unfortunately I couldn’t stand it watching tv over the weekend where everything sounded it came from a coke can. Hopefully Naim will provide a better experience.

Do Naim offer a multi-room compatible Home Theatre product now? They didn’t, last time I looked. 

K

Before moving to the overrated and even more expensive Naim, I suggest something like this if your TV has audio out jacks, or even headphone jacks:

[Pioneer DJ DM-50D 5-inch Active Monitor Speaker]

Moderator Note: Modified in accordance with the Community Code of Conduct - link removed.

This will be better than almost any bar based solution - you won’t get centre channel control but you do not have much of that today anyway. You also won’t get Atmos, but I doubt that reflection based Atmos solutions are of much use.

And unless a bass head, you won’t feel the need for a Sub.

As you can see, this one for just USD 200 for the pair.

 

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