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Why is Tidal Dolby Atmos content playing on Beam (Gen2) as Multichannel PCM 2.0?

J

Hi,

I'm using a Samsung TV TU7000 and have connected the Sonos Beam (Gen2) through to the TV's HDMI (e-ARC) port with the Sonos HDMI cable.

I have a Tidal HiFi Plus subscription and am running this on the native TV Tidal app. However, Tidal's Dolby Atmos content plays as "Dolby Multichannel PCM 2.0".

I've been trying for the past week (power cycling had changed the format to "Dolby Digital 2.0" which is also not correct. The format for that same track has now since switched back to "PCM 2.0" I'm not even sure how/why). I would like to point out that Netflix content automatically plays as "Dolby Atmos" so I doubt it is a problem with my set-up.

How do I get Tidal Dolby Atmos music to play as such on the Sonos Beam?

If it helps my Tidal TV app is from Samsung's native app store: Build 2020.12.16

 

Thanks in advance for assisting me in troubleshooting!

Best answer by GuitarSuperstar

Yes, the following streaming devices support Dolby Atmos on TIDAL:

  • Apple TV 4K (running tvOS 13 or later)
  • Fire TV (Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Gen 3 2017, Fire TV Cube 1st Gen or 2nd Gen)
  • Nvidia Shield TV and Shield TV Pro (2019 and newer models)
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10 replies

G

I’m pretty sure Dolby Atmos audio isn’t supported on the TIDAL app on Samsung TVs.

FYI… set the TV to the settings that results in “Stereo PCM” audio from the TIDAL app.

"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." - Rashi
J
  • Joe_dcc7
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 2 replies
  • December 25, 2022

Thanks so much @GuitarSuperstar, I had my suspicions when I saw the app build was 2020 ..

Would you know, if I got one of the supported streaming devices (e.g. Apple TV 4k / Fire TV 4k) connected to the TV's non-eARC HDMI port, and I streamed from the Tidal app there, would I be able to get Dolby Music then on the TV eARC connected Sonos Beam?

G
  • GuitarSuperstar
  • Lead Maestro
  • 10449 replies
  • Answer
  • December 25, 2022

Yes, the following streaming devices support Dolby Atmos on TIDAL:

  • Apple TV 4K (running tvOS 13 or later)
  • Fire TV (Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Gen 3 2017, Fire TV Cube 1st Gen or 2nd Gen)
  • Nvidia Shield TV and Shield TV Pro (2019 and newer models)
"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." - Rashi
E
1 person likes this
  • E
    EricOB
106rallye
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  • 106rallye
  • 6248 replies
  • December 25, 2022

Not sure the TV would pass through Atmos though…..

G
106rallye wrote:

Not sure the TV would pass through Atmos though…..

The TV is equipped with eARC so it shouldn’t be an issue.

"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." - Rashi
Airgetlam
  • Airgetlam
  • 43003 replies
  • December 25, 2022

I’ve got a pair of TVs that have ARC, but won’t pass a Dolby Digital Plus signal from an HDMI input, but will play one from a ‘smart app’ on the TV. 

Don’t make an assumption that just because you have eARC, that your TV will pass through any specific codec. Double check. 75% of the time, you’re likely correct, it’s that other 25% that bites you viciously. 

Bruce
E
  • EricOB
  • Lyricist II
  • 3 replies
  • January 15, 2023

Thank you for posting the question, @Joe_dcc7

 

We are in the same boat with a Sonos_ARC + a pair of Sonos_SL, connected to a Samsung TV (4K, 2022).

How to access Dolby Atmos on Tidal (or Apple Music & Amazon Prime Music Unlimited) ?

Cheers and thanks

 

106rallye
Forum|alt.badge.img+18
  • 106rallye
  • 6248 replies
  • January 16, 2023

So even this newer TV does not pass through Tidal Atmos? Maybe the HDFury Arcana could work? I do not use this myself, so maybe others could elaborate on this.

J
  • Joe_dcc7
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 2 replies
  • January 16, 2023

Hi there,

Would love indeed to update & share about my eventual set-up to help!

So, I have the Sonos Beam plugged to the TV's eARC, and the Apple TV plugged to the TV's regular HDMI.

Dolby content loaded through the Apple TV applications (Tidal, Netflix, notably the two I use) work perfectly.

The only downside (wrt Tidal), if I would add, is that there doesn't seem to be volume equalization, so Dolby tracks are in fact super soft, and if you crank it up, in a mixed playlist (with non-Dolby songs), then the non-Dolby songs that come after are mega loud. Running after the remote to control the volume each time. 😂 But I suppose this is just an issue Tidal needs to work on its app.

Hope this helps!

Q
  • Quack
  • Lyricist II
  • 3 replies
  • January 22, 2023

Thanks, I been having the same issue with my Samsung tv and was wondering what was wrong  

 

Taking this into account it makes me wonder of it's worth it to have tidal at all? It seem that Sonos is no able to stream it at it's best quality 

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