My set up as follows:
Older TV
Roku Ultimate box
Beam gen 2 connected to tv
2x SL Gen 2 Speakers set up as stereo pair.
2x SL Gen 2 Speakers set up as surround sound.
Please note I am a beginner in theater set up...
My questions.
The surround speakers located behind the couch at head height does not seem as loud as I thought they would be, are there anything else I should do? I increased the volume on the surround but I dont know if this setting will stay that way or will I need to increase the volume every time I watch tv?
When listening to audio via the TV input, you aren’t going to hear much from surround audio channels if the content isn’t recorded in surround. Sonos doesn’t simulate audio in the surround channels when the source material is strereo.
Form music streaming sources, you have the option of setting the Sonos room to ‘full stereo’ if you want the rear channels to play stereo for stereo sources, or not if you want them to be silent and only hear stereo from the ‘front stage’
Regarding the stereo pair, should I have them placed next to the beam? They are currently about 2 feet removed from the beam, left and right.
They are technically a separate Sonos room, even though you have them in the same physical room as your Beam + surrounds. You should place them where they sound best to you, but typically, you want them to be as wide apart as they are distant to you. So if you sit 5 feet away from the speakers, the speakers should be 5 feet apart.
I made a grouping of the stereo pair and the surround. However when I listen to music on my other Sonos speakers, not including the stereo pair and then watch TV, I need to manually include them in the tv sound, am I doing something wrong?
No. Groups are meant to be temporary. TV audio is meant to play in the Sonos room connected to the TV. You can group a 2nd room to it temporarily (usually a separate physical room), but the 2nd room will be slightly delayed and not really meant to be in sync with the video on the TV.
Any other tips to make the experience great? I will buy a Sub later when my budget allows it.
I would not use your stereo pair with TV. Using a pair as a second Sonos upfront doesn’t improve TV audio. it does not turn the Beam into a center channel only speaker. It’s just duplicating the stereo audio. It won’t be involved in trueplay tuning either. It also can’t be used for atmos audio. Some people like to use a stereo pair for music instead of the home theatre setup, but not really to be grouped and used together.
