Beam, Sony TV, Xbox Series X Audio Delay

Edit - ignore - saw you said the Beam, not Arc

Edit: typo 

​​​​​​@controlav thank you for the reply. I will give it a shot and report back.

Since the original post, I've identified a potential source of the delay. 120hz mode. When enabled on the Xbox (with the hdmi enhanced mode on the tv) the audio delay is present. When I switch the Xbox to 60hz mode, the delay is no longer noticeable.

Is this in line with what you mentioned? That the processing on the tv side is delaying the audio (as it has to pass through the beam) while the picture and input of the controller have even less delay than in 60hz?

Thanks again. 

The Sony has known issues with 120Hz (they are working on it), so that makes sense. Good work-around for now.

Hello, 

I have solved my audio delay issue while using a Series X. I purchased a Sony HT-Z9F soundbar which results in zero delay whether I’m running 5.1/7.1 uncompressed, or bitstream DD (as recommended with the Sonos Beam). 

I spoke to Sonos support on this issue and was told it is an issue with my TV (x900h) or the Xbox and it’s processing of Dolby sound. There was no resolution offered other than generic support articles that suggest using the lip-sync function. With my new purchase, it is clear that for some reason, the processing introduced by the Sonos is causing the delay with Series X content. 

For additional context, no settings on my TV or xbox were changed. I simply unplugged the sonos and plugged in the Sony soundbar via eARC. I then went back to the sonos again for testing and the same delay was introduced (roughly 300ms). Going back to my original reply, the 120hz mode is not an issue on the Sony (and makes quite a difference for gaming - I had not used it much given it’s impact on the delay with the Beam).

I have spent hours over the past few weeks tweaking settings on all three units, reading forum posts for Microsoft, Sony, Dolby, and Sonos, and learning a lot along the way. 

Moral of the story, if you do not want a 300ms delay, or want to play in stereo, you should avoid the Beam for gaming. It is objectively the source of the delay on my system at least. The Beam is a lovely unit with a sleek profile and great sound, but this issue is a deal breaker for me.

Thank you

A

If this is the case, then we should always see audio delays with the beam, which is not the case.  Perhaps the audio from the new xbox is different in someway, and perhaps it’s too early to tell. It’s also entirely possible that your Sony TV connects with your Sony soundbar differently than it does with the Sonos Beam, and that’s the reason for removing the delay.

TVs in general are notorious for adding audio delays, my opinion is to remove them from processing audio at all by going with a more traditional approach of using a HT receiver to process audio before content is sent to the TV, or using an extraction device to send audio via optical or HDMI-ARC/eARC from the source.

I cannot replicate a large variety of setups, however I can objectively state there is no setting on my TV, xbox series x, or sonos that eliminates the issue. I have a Samsung HW-M430/ZC Soundbar as well which has no delay issue when connected via optical (which I also tested on the Beam and could not remove the delay.)

My Sony soundbar is two years old, and the Samsung is 5+. I find it unlikely there is a difference in the way they are connecting to the TV. 

Food for though on TV processing. With the Beam connected, when I enable A/V Sync on the TV, the sound delay is gone. However there is now an obvious input delay from the controller to what is happening on the screen. The common variable here is unfortunately the Beam. 

Pass through solutions do not work if you want to take advantage of HDMI 2.1 features such as 4k/120hz, ALL and VRR. Optical is not ideal as you lose a ton of functionality in your Bluetooth remote as it now needs to be set up via IR if you want to control your soundbar with it. I’ve heard people suggesting the very pricey SHARC by Thenaudio as an option but it really shouldn’t be necessary when the Beam already has eARC.

You may have a point about TVs processing audio, but at the end of the day this problem is only present in the Sonos out of three competing soundbars (of varying expense). I have used the same HDMI cables and optical cables as well to eliminate the possibility of defect at that step.