Not sure where to post but I need to chime in. I love this forum, but a question for all the complainers of DTS not being supported. Did you actually research before you purchased this very expensive equipment? I have read so many people whining “I’m going to return my Sonos” or I’m selling my gear” or “wahhhhhh I’m not buying Sonos unless they give me DTS”. I spent hours researching before I even went to the store to give it a listen. It very clear and in no way hidden that this equipment is geared towards streaming media and music. It clearly states that DTS is not supported. To be honest, I didn’t even know people still watch DVDs! Wait....are VCRs still around too?? People think that Sonos is not listening. I believe they are listening and their answer is NO. They have a very specific brand with one goal in mind. Add music easily throughout your whole home. I think the 5.1 is a bonus but it’s not their claim to fame. I have the 5.1 set up and a couple Play 5s and could not be happier with them. Movies AND Music sound great.
Please stop complaining. If the equipment is not exactly what you want, don’t buy it and please don’t whine that you would buy it “if”. Should I call Apple and tell them I’ll buy thousands of dollars of their brand if they “would simply integrate windows 10” to their interface? Ok, enough venting for 1 day. Phew, that felt good! Bring on the hateful comments, I can handle it.
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Yes, I have 5.1 with Play 5's in one room and Play 1's in the other and they sound great. The worst issue is that I cannot decode the DTS, Dolby Atmos or anything less compressed and better that Dolby Digital 5.1! Yes, those codes sound better and were invented for just that. It is true if one wants true 'home theater' in a room, one needs to spend a much larger amount of money and buy all separates with enough power to drive them, NOT a soundbar with wireless speakers. I do know because I have done it about 15 years ago when 'home theater' was pretty much a new thing. Soundbars and Sonos didn't exist then. I do have the experience with Microsoft operating system and went to Apple when I learned how much better the MAC is. Windows was basically a copy of so much of Apple's MAC system so why would Apple need Windows? Back to DTS now...DTS, Dolby Atmos, DTSHD and more do sound much better basically because they are much less COMPRESSED audio and do sound better in films. Sonos become a publicly owned company and raised enough cash to invest in new products to expand on services. Many streaming services are now offering much more that Dolby Digital in their services. Apple iTunes does, Amazon Prime, Netflix and more are there and more items arrive every month. If Sonos at a bare minimum had HDMI ARC in all the new items they would sell more. If they had HDMI 2.2 recognition and or passthrough with DTS, Dolby Atmos an all audio decoding then they would double the sale and then the stock price. I am a shareholder so I will mention it when I attend the shareholders meeting. This is not a wah,wah, or boo, hoo. It more like a step up and catch uo with what all the other manufacturers of Soundbars/Subs/Suooround are already doing and selling. This is about the bucks, and the sound. Both are better.
I do believe that in order to increase their revenue, Sonos will have to enter new markets or increase their market share in existing markets like home cinema. If they are serious about increasing their market share in home cinema, I predict that Sonos will eventually release a proper Dolby Atmos soundbar with support for DTS Virtual:X as well.
If they do I will likely be early in line to upgrade what I have now. I am already considering the Samsung HW-N950 soundbar that includes rears as my next purchase. If the sounders don't catch up, it will be Emotiva with all separate speakers. I would prefer to keep a bit of the cost down but basically if it truly sounds better, I will pay up.
I'm kinda in a similar boat: while I'm currently happy with my dedicated Pioneer Elite + Energy Encores 5.1 setup that provides way more power than I'll ever need, I'd get in line to cut the cords and migrate to a Sonos system. At one point earlier in my life I was very particular about having proper 5.1 for my home cinema, but now that I'm older with kids I don't mind trading all that for a close approximation if it means a less cluttered living space and more convenience.
I just dug up this older article:
https://www.whathifi.com/amp/features/sonos-talks-dolby-atmos-dts-sound-quality-and-beam-soundbar
Pertinent quotation:
__Sonos works with a host of music and movie industry professionals on the performance of its products and clearly takes a lot of their feedback on board. One such person is Academy Award-winning sound mixer, Chris Jenkins (Mad Max: Fury Road, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Love & Mercy). And he wasn't taken with Atmos sound from existing soundbars.... "We found in a product this size… when we listened to some products which were way more expensive that did Atmos…" Martin tails off, making a somewhat unimpressed face. "Chris said to me, 'that’s got good height, but I didn’t put that stuff up there'. And we have to get it right. It would be a good thing to stick on the side of product but it has to work."__
It tells me Sonos will only release an Atmos soundbar only after they have perfected the implementation of Atmos in a soundbar form factor. It has to pass the Chris Jenkins test; if Chris is not impressed with even $2000 Atmos soundbars, then we have a long ways to go. This reminds me of the way Apple approaches things: they wait for others to come out with a new feature, then take their time to release the same feature but exquisitely executed and "just works".
It's possible we'll never see a Sonos Atmos soundbar if they are never happy with the end result. In that case I hope they release individual speakers with the addition of height drivers.
https://www.whathifi.com/amp/features/sonos-talks-dolby-atmos-dts-sound-quality-and-beam-soundbar
Pertinent quotation:
__Sonos works with a host of music and movie industry professionals on the performance of its products and clearly takes a lot of their feedback on board. One such person is Academy Award-winning sound mixer, Chris Jenkins (Mad Max: Fury Road, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Love & Mercy). And he wasn't taken with Atmos sound from existing soundbars.... "We found in a product this size… when we listened to some products which were way more expensive that did Atmos…" Martin tails off, making a somewhat unimpressed face. "Chris said to me, 'that’s got good height, but I didn’t put that stuff up there'. And we have to get it right. It would be a good thing to stick on the side of product but it has to work."__
It tells me Sonos will only release an Atmos soundbar only after they have perfected the implementation of Atmos in a soundbar form factor. It has to pass the Chris Jenkins test; if Chris is not impressed with even $2000 Atmos soundbars, then we have a long ways to go. This reminds me of the way Apple approaches things: they wait for others to come out with a new feature, then take their time to release the same feature but exquisitely executed and "just works".
It's possible we'll never see a Sonos Atmos soundbar if they are never happy with the end result. In that case I hope they release individual speakers with the addition of height drivers.
I am fine with the Atmos issue. I am much more influenced by DTS, DTSHD, DOLBYHD and 7.1 decoding. If they can't go all in with 7.1 decoding, at least have a format that 'downplays' 7.1 Dolby and DTS into 5.1 I would be very pleased with that. Those that truly enjoy using Discs to view films 'n such and don't have an option in the owned UHDTV/HDTV to drill what it receives down to Dolby Digital 5.1 it becomes a real problem. The Oppo-UHD-203 that I use has that option so that is what I use. Basically, I route everything through the Oppo to get the audio I want since the Oppo Playbar only accepts optical inputs and only decodes Dolby Digital 5.1 if you want surround. Yes, it will do PCM and basic stereo that sounds way better than a UHDTV, but most of us want surround. You are well versed in these items, probably more than me on most. Thanks for the input
Ah, I see your perspective. Yeah, I guess for the time being people who have DTS discs will have to rely on Blu-Ray players that can transcode from DTS to DD in real time. In fact, I see that there's already a thread on this :)
https://en.community.sonos.com/home-theater-228993/blu-ray-player-that-converts-to-dolby-digital-5-1-6736040
I like my Sonos beam, but I'd like DTS support as well. I have a lot of previously bought media that requires quite a bit of effort and/or money to be playable with Sonos HT. And most of that media is much higher quality than what you get from Netflix. As it is, I backup my stuff on my computer and use PLEX via Fire TV stick to watch stuff transcoded into AC3. This is a very time consuming process, and to anyone who does not know how to do this easily, I recommend solutions other than Sonos. Implement DTS support, and I will immediately yell to everyone to use Sonos for any HT scenario.
So, yes there's consumer demand (referring whathifi? interview). If I could have wired the walls of my flat for speakers instead of dragging wires across my flat, I'd have gotten a traditional AVR system. But hating wires(more than ripping and transcoding Blu Rays), I'm going with Beam, and soon with symfonisk bookshelf speakers (my budget is very limited). If the Beam didn't come into market with much lower price than playbar or playbase, and symfonisk bookshelf announced priced at >=100 euro with full HT integration support, I'd have gone with Yamaha's soundbar + wireless satellites.
My understanding is that using HDMI-ARC requires that Dolby signals (7.1, Atmos) are going to sent to the Beam as DD 5.1. That doesn't do anything for DTS sources of course, but just saying that Dolby isn't an issue. Also adds to why Sonos isn't going to put out Atmos if the end result doesn't really sound better than DD 5.1.
june 2019. I just bought Denon professional DN-500BD MKII (at B&H Photo in NYC) and, out of the box, plays dvd dts 5.1 over my bravia/sonos sound bar with surround speakers listening now. easy! (couldnt really tell from the online research i did, so i just went for it and it works. about $400
I’ve got a 5.1 Sonos setup in my main living room which has worked great for years and I’m very happy with.
Never actually realised there were issues with DTS until I recently bought the Beam for the kids family room where the kids watch tv. We have lots of streaming services but also buy some blu rays for the kids and couldn’t actually work out why the blu Ray works fine on my main living room setup but not the family room setup.
now if the kids want to watch a blu Ray I’ve got to put it on the main living room or unplug the beam and listen through the tv speakers.
Is the lack of DTS support on Sonos a hardware issue or is it something they could fix with a firmware update? I don’t need the sound to be 7.1 and would be happy if they just downgraded the audio to 5.1 or stereo for the kids room.
if it’s a hardware issue then I think they should have added the hardware in the beam before releasing it but if it’s a software issue then they should seriously think about upgrading the software. I mean, why would they want to frustrate a portion of their loyal client base instead of update the software?
Never actually realised there were issues with DTS until I recently bought the Beam for the kids family room where the kids watch tv. We have lots of streaming services but also buy some blu rays for the kids and couldn’t actually work out why the blu Ray works fine on my main living room setup but not the family room setup.
now if the kids want to watch a blu Ray I’ve got to put it on the main living room or unplug the beam and listen through the tv speakers.
Is the lack of DTS support on Sonos a hardware issue or is it something they could fix with a firmware update? I don’t need the sound to be 7.1 and would be happy if they just downgraded the audio to 5.1 or stereo for the kids room.
if it’s a hardware issue then I think they should have added the hardware in the beam before releasing it but if it’s a software issue then they should seriously think about upgrading the software. I mean, why would they want to frustrate a portion of their loyal client base instead of update the software?
I gave my sonos 5.1 to my father-in-law and switched to a Denon AV receiver + 5.1 passive speaker set up. Better sound and support for all codecs for less money.
No more compromises. No more need for optical switches. No more transcoding. I still have 3 Sonos products for music listening but I will never be back for home theater applications. I mean whats the appeal of Sonos for home theater? Besides not having to install speaker cable, but use power cables instead, there is none. Every AV receiver now supports streaming music Spotify connect, airplay etc. It comes with serious drawbacks and like everyone here, I had to find out the hard way.
Forget about Atmos. Its TrueHD and DTS Master that you are truely missing. The lossless sound just blows you away and the detail creates such immersion.
No more compromises. No more need for optical switches. No more transcoding. I still have 3 Sonos products for music listening but I will never be back for home theater applications. I mean whats the appeal of Sonos for home theater? Besides not having to install speaker cable, but use power cables instead, there is none. Every AV receiver now supports streaming music Spotify connect, airplay etc. It comes with serious drawbacks and like everyone here, I had to find out the hard way.
Forget about Atmos. Its TrueHD and DTS Master that you are truely missing. The lossless sound just blows you away and the detail creates such immersion.
if it’s a hardware issue then I think they should have added the hardware in the beam before releasing it but if it’s a software issue then they should seriously think about upgrading the software. I mean, why would they want to frustrate a portion of their loyal client base instead of update the software?
For the Beam specifically, I seriously doubt there's a hardware limitation. There is surely a licensing cost and support/development costs to consider. What those are? I don't know. The resulting lost sales from lack of DTS support? I don't know.
No more compromises. No more need for optical switches. No more transcoding. I still have 3 Sonos products for music listening but I will never be back for home theater applications. I mean whats the appeal of Sonos for home theater? Besides not having to install speaker cable, but use power cables instead, there is none. Every AV receiver now supports streaming music Spotify connect, airplay etc. It comes with serious drawbacks and like everyone here, I had to find out the hard way.
Forget about Atmos. Its TrueHD and DTS Master that you are truely missing. The lossless sound just blows you away and the detail creates such immersion.
I like the idea but I’m already invested in Sonos and don’t want to have to sell it and buy anything else.
I love that I can have music playing throughout my house and when the outdoor area is finished I’d like Sonos outside too. But, if they don’t fix this issue then they’re just not appreciating their current customers and it may come back to bite them in the future.
I love that I can have music playing throughout my house and when the outdoor area is finished I’d like Sonos outside too. But, if they don’t fix this issue then they’re just not appreciating their current customers and it may come back to bite them in the future.
Whether or not one wants DTS support or not, I don't think you can say that the decision is going to come back and bite them in the future.. The statistics show that consumers spend more and more time streaming video (dolby) and less and less time watching blu-rays (DTS). Therefore consumer pressure to adopt DTS would be decreasing, not increasing. Whatever problem lack of DTS causes for Sonos, the worst of it should now be in the rear view window.
That's not to say that trends won't change, and Sonos needs to pay attention to what codecs people are using. Absolutely they do. It was leaked a while back that Sonos sent out a customer survey asking about interest in Dolby Atmos. I think that shows that they are at least looking at trends.
That's not to say that trends won't change, and Sonos needs to pay attention to what codecs people are using. Absolutely they do. It was leaked a while back that Sonos sent out a customer survey asking about interest in Dolby Atmos. I think that shows that they are at least looking at trends.
Netflix / streaming services for now only deliver compressed image and sound due to bandwith issues. If bandwith became less of a problem Netflix would move to HD sound. Why wouldn't they? They have done so in the past.
Then Sonos for home cinema will be truely obsolete.
Atmos is irrelevant since Sonos only does 5.1. I'm talking about higher quality sound with more detail.
Everybody would be enjoying higher definition sound, except Sonos users, who will be stuck on 30+ year old dolby digital or select the stereo track.
But thats the future. Currently, if you want uncompressed image and sound, UltraHD Bluray is your only option. The difference between physical and streaming in terms of quality is still immense. That means, that if you want the best quality you don't end up at Sonos. That is not something I knew when i bought Sonos, I only found out once I owned it.
IMHO, nobody concerned with having the "best quality" home theater sound would ever consider a soundbar in the first place.
That's not to say that trends won't change, and Sonos needs to pay attention to what codecs people are using. Absolutely they do. It was leaked a while back that Sonos sent out a customer survey asking about interest in Dolby Atmos. I think that shows that they are at least looking at trends.
Netflix / streaming services for now only deliver compressed image and sound due to bandwith issues. If bandwith became less of a problem Netflix would move to HD sound. Why wouldn't they? They have done so in the past.
Then Sonos for home cinema will be truely obsolete.
You're assuming that Sonos HT products don't have the ability to update firmware accordingly. I can't say that's true for the Beam and Amp, but the others are surely limited by the optical connection.
Atmos is irrelevant since Sonos only does 5.1. I'm talking about higher quality sound with more detail.
I brought up atmos to show that Sonos is looking at the market. Perhaps they will introduce new products or setup where atmos, or something approximating it, is supported.
Everybody would be enjoying higher definition sound, except Sonos users, who will be stuck on 30+ year old dolby digital or select the stereo track.
Right. Because everybody except Sonos users have AV equipment that supports whatever HD codec happens to be dominating the market in a few years?
But thats the future. Currently, if you want uncompressed image and sound, UltraHD Bluray is your only option. The difference between physical and streaming in terms of quality is still immense. That means, that if you want the best quality you don't end up at Sonos. That is not something I knew when i bought Sonos, I only found out once I owned it.
Correct, we're talking about the future.
Not all streaming services are doing the lossy Dolby Digital 5.1. Many, in the attempts to get and retain customers are starting with 4k broadcasting and adding DTS, Dolby HD, and even Dolby Atmos. That, and if one wants the best video with the best sound, Blu-Ray, 4kBlu-Ray with DTS and up is actually like being in the theater. To decode other than Dolby Digital there are licensing issues and while I am not an engineer I assume a chip issue also. The only solutions one can find is when pruchasing a new 4kHDTV, or UHDTV ask, research and make sure that one can choose what is output into the optical output. Many people don;'t know that the vast majority of manufacturers in the past basically 'dumbed down' the audio it was receiving for the optical output. You may have HDMI inputs to the TV and it can decode Dolby Digital 5.1 and up but the Optical Output is done in just stereo. It works fine with SONOS bit it is not 5.1 decoding. I have a Sony XBR-49X900e in the bedroom that gives me that choice. In the media room. I have a great picture Panasonic 60" ZT Plasma that was the last model anyone made in plasma so it only outputs in PCM/Stereo. Many Disc players have the option of choosing the audio output though and in my case I can choose Dolby Digital for that and I can input an item to it using and HDMI connection. Well to have a Ps4, AppleTV, DTV for inputs yo one place I had to add a simple HDMI switch box. It works and sounds fine but would be mush better if SONOS just decoded everything.
The SONOS Playbars don't have and HDMI(arc) input and bandwidth and chip issues make a firmware upgrade a virtual impossibility. The majority of the newer Soundbar manufacturers all are starting to decode pretty much everything better than Dolby Digital. Some may thing you are getting 5.1 in what you have set up but it is very possible you are not, You can simply open the Sonos controller app and check the Sonos in the upper left corner. Click on 'about my SONOS System' and your entire systems will appear. As you read down you can see what the audio input is. You may be surprised that what you think is 5.1 is just stereo. I did for. long l time until I listened closely, learned and figured a few things out. In my book, one should just be sure what one is paying for.
The SONOS Playbars don't have and HDMI(arc) input and bandwidth and chip issues make a firmware upgrade a virtual impossibility. The majority of the newer Soundbar manufacturers all are starting to decode pretty much everything better than Dolby Digital. Some may thing you are getting 5.1 in what you have set up but it is very possible you are not, You can simply open the Sonos controller app and check the Sonos in the upper left corner. Click on 'about my SONOS System' and your entire systems will appear. As you read down you can see what the audio input is. You may be surprised that what you think is 5.1 is just stereo. I did for. long l time until I listened closely, learned and figured a few things out. In my book, one should just be sure what one is paying for.
I think it’s really easy to understand WHY people complain about this. People who buy Sonos products aren’t audophiles or interested in home cinema at that level that they even know what the difference is between Dolby Digital or DTS. Yes they probably mostly watch streamed movies from Netflix, but sometimes they just want’s to play a bluray from their Playstation 4 and then they don’t understand why there is no sound. There is still a lot of movies that’s only released on bluray or even DVD.
I really don’t think that there is such a big difference between Dolby Digital or DTS (and I also know how to set up my Playstation 4 and what cable I need), but just for making it as easy as possible for people to use their technology, Sonos should just support as many formats as possible.
CES 2020 is the week and so far, Sonos is way behind the curve. One get a Nakamichi 7.1.4 system that sounds better the Sonos for a lower cost. Pay up fo Sonos gets you nothing in advantage. Bid steps back in disadvantage
Don’t even think they sell Nakamichi here in Sweden…
I think it’s really easy to understand WHY people complain about this. People who buy Sonos products aren’t audophiles or interested in home cinema at that level that they even know what the difference is between Dolby Digital or DTS. Yes they probably mostly watch streamed movies from Netflix, but sometimes they just want’s to play a bluray from their Playstation 4 and then they don’t understand why there is no sound. There is still a lot of movies that’s only released on bluray or even DVD.
I really don’t think that there is such a big difference between Dolby Digital or DTS (and I also know how to set up my Playstation 4 and what cable I need), but just for making it as easy as possible for people to use their technology, Sonos should just support as many formats as possible.
Agree, My wife being that type.. I just can't justify spending over a 1000 USD and sometimes not having sound. That is not considered progress but a downgrade. With the repetitive conversation about it; “Why did we need that expensive ‘speaker thing’ while had speakers, and it is sometimes not even working.”
Not sure where to post but I need to chime in. I love this forum, but a question for all the complainers of DTS not being supported. Did you actually research before you purchased this very expensive equipment? I have read so many people whining “I’m going to return my Sonos” or I’m selling my gear” or “wahhhhhh I’m not buying Sonos unless they give me DTS”. I spent hours researching before I even went to the store to give it a listen. It very clear and in no way hidden that this equipment is geared towards streaming media and music. It clearly states that DTS is not supported. To be honest, I didn’t even know people still watch DVDs! Wait....are VCRs still around too?? People think that Sonos is not listening. I believe they are listening and their answer is NO. They have a very specific brand with one goal in mind. Add music easily throughout your whole home. I think the 5.1 is a bonus but it’s not their claim to fame. I have the 5.1 set up and a couple Play 5s and could not be happier with them. Movies AND Music sound great.
Please stop complaining. If the equipment is not exactly what you want, don’t buy it and please don’t whine that you would buy it “if”. Should I call Apple and tell them I’ll buy thousands of dollars of their brand if they “would simply integrate windows 10” to their interface? Ok, enough venting for 1 day. Phew, that felt good! Bring on the hateful comments, I can handle it.
So something you don’t to hear about everyone should stop talking about?? Thats pretty bizarre. Don’t like it then don't read it.
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