HD Fury is working on an eARC solution for Sonos Arc - Full Audio & Atmos from any HDMI sources

Most of the matrixes I’ve been looking at seem to include an IR remote, which will work well for me. I’ve been a Logitech Harmony user for a LONG time because it makes my complex setups easy for the wife and guests to use (I set them up for friends and family for the same reason). As long as there’s an IR input, I can teach my Harmony Hub the codes and we’re off to the races. 

Good to know.  Don’t have a harmony remote myself right now, but think it might be about that time.  I assume then you could right some sort of macro/routine so that output 1 and 2 always match?

The Harmonys have always been pains in the ass to set up, but they make up for the annoying setup by being pretty damn flexible. Yes, you can create “sequences” within “activities” that can have pretty much as many steps as you want. For example, you could have a “Watch Apple TV” activity that does the following: 

• Turn on television
• Turn on Apple TV
• Set television to input X
• Set matrix output 1 to Y
• Set matrix output 2 to Z 

And since we’ll probably lose CEC volume control of the Arc by adding the matrix / Arcana, the Harmony can control the Arc’s volume via IR as well. 

Ideally, whatever matrix you / we choose will have a “discrete IR code" that will allow you to directly select an input per output (e.g., an IR code that tells the matrix “set output 2 to input 3”). If not, the Harmony can cycle through inputs until it lands on the right one. It’s not an awesome way to do that because it can get “out of sync” and be a pain to fix, but it can work. 

(Super-ideally, the matrix will also have the ability to simply set both outputs to whichever input is selected which would render this last bit moot) 

Off-topic for this thread but I’m trying to get my Arc controllable via IR with the Harmony Hub and can’t work it out. If you have a moment to look here I’d be very grateful.

https://en.community.sonos.com/home-theater-228993/logitech-harmony-volume-control-in-an-activity-6843475

I’ll take a look @tomwhitaker, but I’m currently controlling my Arc volume via CEC through the TV so I’ll have to add the Arc as a device to my Harmony Hub first to be able to be able to speak intelligently about it. 

Arcana sprints closer to reality. Preorders coming in about a week. Pre-order price point of approx. $100 (full price approx. $150). Sounds like they need to reach at least 400 orders to go into production. 

To get on the list and see some more proof of concept videos, go to their Discord channel: 

https://discord.com/channels/314050739771146241/570996082557976577/724788312967086120

This is ridiculous.  I’ll be spending close to $400 or $500 just to get uncompressed ATMOS.  Not worth it.  I wouldn’t mind spending $200 but beyond that is crazy.

Depends on what you’re trying to accomplish.

If all you want is to get full range audio from a single external source (like an Apple TV), you can get away with just the Arcana and a cheap amazon splitter. At pre-order prices that should only cost about $150 total. 

if you’ve got multiple external sources, you’ll need a matrix that has multiple inputs and at least two outputs which can still be had for around $50 on Amazon so your total would still be in the $150 range. 

where things get spendy is if you want full range audio from multiple sources AND From the TV’s built in apps. For that you’ll need one of HDFury’s expensive devices like Vertex2 and yes, then you’re spending several hundred dollars total. 

Unfortunately, this is where Sonos Arc owners find ourselves. The Arc is what it is and, short of purchasing a new TV with eARC capability the Arcana dongle is the only known solution for getting full range sound to the Arc. If you want the Arc but don’t have an eARC TV, buying a new TV or buying the Arcana are going to be your only real options to get Atmos from external sources. Otherwise, there are many other less expensive options than the Sonos Arc on the market that provide Atmos and much greater input flexibility for a lower price. 

Any recommendations on a splitter or matrix?  My budget is around $50 - $75.

Not yet, no. I’m looking for a good one myself. I need a matrix that has four inputs, two outputs, and can handle Atmos, Dolby Vision, HDR10 and can be controlled by IR. I’m looking around and following others’ research on HDFury’s discord channel. Will report back here when I find something I like.