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Contributor I
December 2, 2021

surround music sound quality

How do I get the same music listening quality from my surround setup without having to stream through my TV?

I have a pair of Sonos ones, 3rd gen sub and an Arc sound bar. 

The sound quality seems so much better and richer streaming through the TV  vs the Sonos app with the TV off. 
Is it possible the get the Arc to fire in the same way at all times?
 

 

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12 replies

Lead Maestro
December 2, 2021

With music in stereo, most users actually prefer the sound quality through the app because you can set the Music Playback setting under Surround Audio to Full and get full stereo audio from both the Arc and Ones as opposed to just getting ambient sound from the surrounds when playing music through the TV. What do you have Music Playback currently set to?

What music streaming apps are you using? Are you listening to music in just 2.0 stereo or also in Dolby Atmos or 5.1 surround?

"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." - Rashi
jgatie
December 2, 2021

Try this:

  1. Open the Sonos app for iOS or Android.
  2. From the  Settings tab, tap System.
  3. Under Products, tap your Sonos home theater room.
  4. Under Sound, tap Surround Audio.
  5. Set Music Playback to ‘Full’
CambeAuthor
Contributor I
December 2, 2021

Music audio is already at full. What I am finding is that the audio from the Arc is less dynamic than if it’s been played through my TV Spotify app. 

CambeAuthor
Contributor I
December 2, 2021

Music plays in stereo 2.0 and Dolby 5.1 at times. Is that a result of the source weather it plays in either of those format? I only get Dolby Atmos when watching atmos content on Netflix, Apple TV or Prime.

Lead Maestro
December 2, 2021

I wonder if your TV is performing some sort of audio conversion. What type of audio is displayed on the Now Playing screen on the Sonos app when you play music from the TV’s Spotify app? What model TV are you using?

EDIT: If you are getting Dolby Digital 5.1 audio from Spotify, this tells me the TV is converting the audio. Because, as far as I know, Spotify doesn’t offer any 5.1 music.

"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." - Rashi
CambeAuthor
Contributor I
December 2, 2021

The TV is a Sony Bravia 900 series (Android OS). I checked the audio output and it states it’s Dolby Digital Plus 2.0

Lead Maestro
December 2, 2021

The TV is a Sony Bravia 900 series (Android OS). I checked the audio output and it states it’s Dolby Digital Plus 2.0

The Sony TV is converting the stereo audio from Spotify to Dolby Digital Plus 2.0. That’s why it sounds different than what you hear from Spotify on the Sonos app. Since the Sonos app will not perform the same audio conversion, you will not be able to get the same audio quality from the Sonos app as you would through the TV.

"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." - Rashi
CambeAuthor
Contributor I
December 2, 2021

That’s disappointing because the audio through the TV is so immersive. It seems to use all the atmos surround features from the Arc’s speakers when playing.

CambeAuthor
Contributor I
December 2, 2021

What would you suggest as the best settings for my configuration or should I just cough up the money for a pair of five? I find Truplay still needs to have the settings tweaked after it’s done it’s  thing.

Lead Maestro
December 2, 2021

That’s disappointing because the audio through the TV is so immersive. It seems to use all the atmos surround features from the Arc’s speakers when playing.

Sonos has recently announced it will soon support Dolby Atmos music from Amazon Music directly from the Sonos app. In the future, I would imagine this feature could be available from more music services like Apple Music and TIDAL so we won’t have to rely on a TV app or an external media streamer connected to the TV to play multichannel music.

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