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Badgercop
Enthusiast II
April 23, 2019
Answered

Beam: Keeps switching back to ARC from Bluetooth - how to stop?

Hi. I have an LG C8 OLED TV and a Beam, connected Via HDMI Arc. I also have some Sony Bluetooth headphones. Whenever I try and play the TV audio via Bluetooth after 2 seconds it switches back to Arc. Is there anyway to prevent this? I have to pull the HDMI lead out of the Beam, but can it be disabled via the app or some other way? Thanks.
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    chucky999Answer
    Lyricist I
    August 12, 2019
    I have the same problem as Badgercop. It seems that this is pretty common as shown by these similar threads in the sidebar to this thread. The best, though not optimal, solution seems to be to turn off the HDMI-CEC connection on your TV. It would be nice of SONOS would fix the APP to handle this situation. The problem is not solely with LG systems - both Samsung and Sony are referenced in the other threads.
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    Roland-v
    Lyricist I
    March 21, 2021

    Unfortunately I have this same issue. Every time my girlfriend watches TV with headphones we need to disconnect the ARC in order for the LG CX to connect to the headphone. Could SONOS please look for a solution?

    Thank you.

    Jhni
    Lyricist I
    March 25, 2021

    I can confirm it’s a Sonos issue.

    Downstairs: Sonos Beam / Samsung The Frame ”65 / Bose 700 HP = problem

    Upstairs: Harman Kardon Citation / Samsung The Frame ”55 / Bose 700 HP = No problem

    Fix would be nice so you don’t have to manually turn E-ARC off.. every.. time.. and.. back.. on.. every.. time.. 

    yellowdog22
    Lyricist I
    March 31, 2021

    I've not been able to get any Bluetooth headphones to work with my LG C8 for ages and I kept thinking it was the headphones. It was only until I recently bought a pukka pair of cans that I realised its the Sonos! To get round it I've used the optical to hdmi adapter so the Stuipdos doesn't use hdmi anymore. Now I can swap between both outputs easily. The only downside is that I can only control the volume on the sound bar from the Sonos app.

    106rallye
    106rallye
    March 31, 2021

    You can command the Beam with it: https://support.sonos.com/s/article/3402?language=nl_NL

    jamesakabob
    Lyricist II
    April 26, 2021

    @Ken_Griffiths Thanks for helping me find that SimpLink/HDMI-CEC on/off setting on the LG C9 TV. It’s exactly where you said it was.

    Still--with no disrespect intended towards you or anyone else taking a side here--this sequence of button presses and remote-mouse movements is overly burdensome for anyone but the expert user. The whole thing boils down to: “I keep selecting one thing, but getting another.”

    AirPods for some viewing sessions (e.g., don’t wake-up the other members of the household) and Sonos Arc for others (e.g., normal or group or daytime viewing) seems like a pretty modest ask. Yet the number of button pushes and remote-mouse movements is pretty intensive just to switch between the two audio outputs. Makes me want to build a man-cave instead (as yet another workaround to the original problem).

    Who knew getting a really nice flat screen TV and pairing it with a really nice soundbar would lead to such disappointment. Very frustrating.

    I understand and to some extent I agree, but I see this as being something TV manufacturers in general should fix with their software - the user should be able to select the Bluetooth option and it either switches off CEC, or it simply allows both audio outputs at the same time (my preferred option). I think that is a better solution than perhaps having Sonos fix this.

    I really don't get your logic. Multiple OEMs have ARC products working perfectly, Sonos does not. Sonos implements CEC in a way that doesn't work and now multiple TV manufacturers should all separately fix this for them?!

      astarcg
      Contributor I
      May 7, 2021

      I'm in the same boat, recently purchased an LG-Cx 65" and invested in the sonos arc to replace my my sonos playbar for  the dolby atmos experience which works great with my sonos sub (gen2) and two play 1's, this all works great together, unfortunately my blutooth Sony m3 headphones keep knocking off after 2 seconds and and the sound source switching back to the sonos arc. Will this bug ever be fixed? I have seen this problem all over the place now after a little Googling around. I know there is a workaround by switching off the hdmi cec but we shouldn't have to do this, starting to regret my sonos purchase, it's the little things like this that bother me. 

      pbryman
      Lyricist I
      May 25, 2021

      i have the same issue with LG CX and sonos arc.

      I have to go to TV sound menu and toggle the eARC switch off then on.  Then the bluetooth headphones will connect 100%.  Its an annoyance to have to go through this but proves its a software problem that can be fixed.  It’s a SONOS problem if folks with multiple TV brands are experiencing it.  

      SONOS, are you listening?  I see replies on other forums but not this one.

      I love the soundbar so much I bought your stock.  Hello?

      pbryman
      Lyricist I
      May 25, 2021

      Hi folks, thanks for reaching out with the Sonos Community! I understand that we all want to keep the Sonos Arc/Beam and headphones connected to our TV at the same time and that kind of behavior is based on your TV on how the HDMI connections work because you are connecting two output devices to your TV. As others suggested this is more and can be handled appropriately by the TV manufacturers. You can try optical for better options but it will still up to you on how to proceed. Just let us know if you need anything. We and the community are always here to help.

      If you do this you lose the atmos function of the sound bar.

      OggieMan
      Lyricist II
      May 31, 2021

      Hi All, BOSE 300 WORKS

      I can confirm an Error with my Sonos Arc BUT works perfect with Bose soundtouch 300. Both tested on my Samsung Q80 75in

      I used a friends Bose and it does not switch back to HDMI once I select tv speakers or Bluetooth Buds.

      However, my Sonos Arc fails and does auto switch back to HDMI after 2 seconds when I select TV speaker or buds. I have videos to prove this.

      Typical Tech giant answers = Samsung says it works with Bose so contact Sonos because this proves our TV sees a soundbar correctly. Sonos says call Samsung because there TV is choosing what port to push sound out. We don't control it.

      Can anyone else please test or confirm if thier TV works with other soundbars after failing with Sonos and post back here.

      Why does Samsung TV see a Bose 300? What are they doing different?

      Can Samsung and Sonos please get together and resolve this issue. I'm sure it's a few lines of code because it's proved it works for 2 seconds already.

      So frustrating to buy High-end goods and get pushed back and forth. 

      Someone step up please.

       

       

        CYB
        Lyricist I
        June 4, 2021

        Can confirm same issue on my end (LG C1 65 + Sonos Arc / Sub). When activating bluetooth headphones, get audio for about 2 seconds before the switch back. 

        Will try to disable Simplink but can see this as rather annoying. I would have thought a firmware update would have already fixed this - so given the absence of one and any genuine acknowledgement from SONOS may actually point to a hardware related issue. Pity, i held out on getting on the Sonos bandwagon for many many years and am now considering returning the setup back to the store given this lack of this basic usability. 

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