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Beam IR sensor stopped recognizing remotes

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I have a beam connected to optical on TV. Remote was paired and everything was working fine. One day remote volume control stopped working. I tried to set up the remote again but the IR sensor did not recognize when buttons were pushed. Tried a different remote and it didn't recognize that either. I can still control volume with the app but IR sensor does not seem to receive any signal. Any suggestions?

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AirgetlamAnswer

There are some cases where an IR remote sensor gets overwhelmed by the light coming from the TV. You may want to try putting a 3x5 card tenting the location of the sensor, to ‘shade’ it from the TV’s light, and see if that makes a difference. If it does, then you can experiment further to find a solution. If it doesn’t work, then you’ve at least tried.

Bruce

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Sub-Xel

Lyricist III

@Sebastien D.

Thank you for your reply, however you seem to be missing the point where we all point out that without changing anything (location, ambient light, temperature etc.) - the issue is resolved by a simple reset.

After discussing this issue with your technical support again and again over phone, I don’t feel like doing that any more. We all share the same problem here, which is most likely due to a FW issue.

What’s the problem of looking into a returned unit ( I will be shipping mine in the next couple of days ) and witnessing the problem by Sonos people?

Sebastien D.

Sonos Staff

Reports of weak IR are a real thing. But we don’t know prevalence or what the root cause is (mfg defect, software issue, etc.)

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Sub-Xel

Lyricist III

Weak IR can’t be resolved by a restart….

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Sub-Xel

Lyricist III

@Sebastien D.

Just wanted to update - I was able to identify the problem in my case.

My Sonos Beam was placed right in front of my plasma Samsung TV. It seems that the IR radiation from the plasma, blinds the IR sensor of the Beam. Nothing to do about it. If the TV is off, everything works fine.

I would suggest for people who still struggle with these issues, to place the Beam in another room, just to make sure it is not an issue similar to mine.

Airgetlam

Not the most elegant solution, but I’ve sometimes recommended taping a 3x5 card on the Beam so it shades the sensor from the light emitted by the Plasma TV. There’s probably more attractive ways to shield it, but it’s an easy test.

Bruce

Sebastien D.

Sonos Staff

@Sub-Xel,

Thanks for the update. Yes, that might help for reducing IR interference due to (direct sunlight, Plasma TV’s,

Fluorescent lights, etc.)

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Sub-Xel

Lyricist III

@Airgetlam - Sorry I’m not sure what you mean by 3x5 card, could you perhaps send a link?

I’m guessing you’d need something to attenuate IR radiation, for that you could use aluminum, glass (depending on the frequency emitted)...

Airgetlam

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-Ruled-Lined-Index-Cards/dp/B00V5DQJWY

Any basic paper should block the visible emissions, even cardboard. As a temporary solution/test case. Once it’s proven that it’s the issue, a more attractive effort could be made.

Bruce

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Sub-Xel

Lyricist III

Thanks!

This is what I suspected, however visible light was not my issue.

Airgetlam

For all practical purposes, a 3x5 card will block any IR radiation as well. IR is effectively light, albeit it at an extreme end of the visible spectrum, and not what could be considered electro-magnetic enough to pass through normal card stock.

Bruce

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