Home theater

Discuss Ray, Beam, Arc. Playbar, Playbase, and the entire Sonos home theater experience. Should you get a Sub Mini or a Sub? Maybe two Subs? Which Sonos work with your TV? Talk about your Sonos Home Theater experience here.

  • 6,522 Topics
  • 53,904 Replies
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Omerpwnz
started this topic

Where should I place Sonos Era 300?

I got Sonos Arc and Sub under my TV, but I lack a rear/surround sound. So I consider buying Sonos Era 300. What do you think is the best pla...
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Tips & Tricks

Understanding Surround Sound and Sonos

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Ryan S
Ryan S
started this topic

Home Theater and Television Recommendation Megathread

Looking for information on Sonos home theater setups? Find answers about surround sound, Dolby Digital, TV recommendations, and all the rest...
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6522 Topics

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StupooContributor I
asked in Home theater

Placing a sound bar or beam behind the sofa - Samsung Frame dilemma

Currently have a Sonos 3 and a couple of 1s in the house. We have invested in a nice new TV (Samsung Frame) but don't want to go down the route of buying a Samsung sound bar - i'd rather keep all my music on one platform. Besides i'm blown away by the quality of Sonos and am happy to stick wtih them. One of the features of the Samsung Frame is that all the TV gubbins (e.g. HDMI, Audio, Scart, Coax/Sky) are in a separate box which is connected via a proprietary Samsung fibre optic "invisble" cable to the TV screen. So we took the decision to place our Sky box and our Samsung TV gubbins on a book shelf snug down the side of the sofa. The invisble cable is routed along the ceiling/wall to the TV screen at the other end of the room. All very minimalist. Now my dilemma is - the Sonos Beam needs an HDMI cable from the TV. Which means if we want to put the Beam underneath the TV then we will have to route a lengthy HDMI cable from the corner of the room by the sofa (from the TV gubbins

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ratty
5 years ago
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MMastrogiacomoContributor I
asked in Home theater

Mixed wired-wireless home theater system

I would like to implement home theater system in the new flat, but on the opposite to the current flat, I do not want nasty long cables to the surround and rear speakers anymore! I would like to implement a scenario with wired front/center/sub and only for surround adopt a wireless connection. Wireless is not a way for front/center because of quality audio, but for surrond I can accept it. This could also be a good opportunity in order to be ready for multiroom audio in the future. My understanding I need a Sonos Connect connected to the AV receiver and 2 o 4 surrond Sonos speakers, could be Play:1 or Play:3 , or even Play:3 and Play:5. Question is: there will be delay ? Anyone experienced such a mixed configuration ? Thank you Marco M.

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melvimbe
5 years ago
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tjdavis72Contributor I
asked in Home theater

Disappointed....

New Sub arrived, Discovered the only way I can connect to my already +$1000 Sonos home set up is through existing play bar or other sonos.. No solo control over the Sub to match up with the deep bass I’m looking for. $699 and no Sub “only” control??? I’m pissed.

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pwt
5 years ago
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MoBeatsListener
posted in Home theater

Another dj question unfortunately

Firstly before anyone jumps down my throat, we bought Sonos for our kitchen as a kitchen set up not for djing. Im not that bothered if ive got a delay although it would be nice not to. I've been reading through the forum and it doesnt look like this question has yet been asked that i can see of. If you can use sonos as a surround sound with a playbar does this negate the 70ms delay. As a 70ms delay would be as bad for watching tv as it would djing would it not. Do people find a delay using their sonos surround? And if not, could this be a way around the dreaded 70ms delay? You can get mixers with an optical out, so the signal is already digital before it hits the system.

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J
5 years ago
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Matty1988Contributor I
asked in Home theater

SONOS Beam volume low

hello I have just purchased a SONOS BEAM, connected via the optical audio port (no ARC on TV). I am having to turn the volume up on the Sonos app to above 75% to 80% to get any sort of acceptable volume level when watching the TV (music apps are at the normal levels as when I'm using my other Sonos devices) the TV is a SAMSUNG UE40H5000AK I cannot seem to select a Dolby output under my TV sound settings when using the beam also my remote control although recognised by my Sonos app, cannot control the volume (the message eon screen states, adjust volume on the connected speakers directly), any help here also would be appreciated. any help would be great thanks

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M
5 years ago
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HeijnielsContributor I
asked in Home theater

Netflix 5.1 sound has hiccups. ‘Normal’ sound works flawless

Hey guys, I’m having issues with this for a while now and it’s bugging me. My setup is as follows: Sony Bravia smart tv Sonos Beam connected through HDMI ARC Whenever I stream a Netflix title with 5.1 sound (which is default), the sound hiccups once in a while. Could be every minute, once in a few minutes or multiple times in a few seconds. As soon as I switch to the non 5.1 sound, everything is fine. Also, if I pull out the hdmi arc cable with a 5.1 netflix title streaming and sound switches to built in tv speakers, everything is fine as well. Any ideas how to remove the hiccups? Thanks!

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H
5 years ago
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Eggy5514Contributor I
posted in Home theater

Beam LG OLED

I have tried everything to fix this issue including most of what I have read on the community boards. I recently bought a new beam set up was simple by the ARC connected to my LG OLED tv simply won't work. NO SOUND from tv. I am using Apple TV (Hulu) as my tv provided (HDMI 1) but this shouldn't matter. All setting on LG seem to be in line with all recommendations. Any help would be appreciated.

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S
5 years ago
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petelrobContributor I
asked in Home theater

ARC & Optical Connecting Issues w/ Beam

My LG Television will not connect to my newly purchased Beam. Have tried both the ARC and Optical with no luck. The sound does work with Spotify but not the TV? Anyone with similar issues that has a resolution?

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S
5 years ago
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DeltroContributor I
posted in Home theater

Utilizing Sonos Playbar with Projector

I realize there is about 1,000 different posts on this subject at this point, but I feel like I've spent weeks reading every thread and not really found a clear and precise answer. I've had a Playbar for some time now, and recently decided I'd like to purchase an entry-level projector, I was thinking the Optoma HD142X, as it's well-reviewed and not terribly expensive. The obvious hiccups with audio emerged, so I was wondering what is the best solution to have the Playbar in the front of the room and the projector in the back of the room without running cables everywhere. Devices: - Sonos Playbar - Optoma HD142X - PS4 - Chromecast As I understand it I will likely need a wireless HDMI setup, along with an HDMI / Optical Audio converter. I'm just worried to invest a couple hundred euros to only be disappointed by either the setup not working or the audio lagging. Any advice on a specific setup, and specific equipment (available in the EU) that will help accomplish what I'

5
R
5 years ago
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kljusticeContributor II
asked in Home theater

Confused...so does Sonos my beam support 5.1 or not?

I've tried everything trying to get 5.1 surround. I even bought a new TV, I have the beam and two play 1's (okay 5.0). Beating my head against the wall for weeks trying to figure this out, I stop feeding the optical chord to my TV and I buy a fosom splitter to go directly to my PC, the option to go 5.1 is finally no longer grayed out on my PC. I select it and I can' wait to hear my sound test....low and behold, still no 5.1. After countless digging I'm now hearing optical chords don't support 5.1, but instead mixes down to a 2.1. But that can't be true because SONOS said 5.1. So which is it? Does my Beam support 5.1 dd or not? Is it the optical chord that's down mixing 2.1? Will buying an HDMI splitter fix this annoying problem?

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K
5 years ago
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Just_WestyTrending Lyricist I
posted in Home theater

New Sonos Sub and Atmos surrounds ...

Just saw this tonight relating to possible new Sonos products can anyone shed any more light on this ? [b]Sonos wants to know if you’d pay $700 for wireless Atmos speakers The leaked survey also showed a new, cheaper subwoofe[/b]r https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2019/1/10/18176624/sonos-dolby-atmos-reddit-survey-sonos-core-sub

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V
5 years ago
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ticketybooContributor III
posted in Home theater

Sonos Beam and audio control

Syncing TV remote and iPhone / iPad with Sonos Beam. I have recently set up a Sonos Beam. the initial setup was pretty straightforward and i adjusted the speaker settings on my Sony TV to external Audio. This gave me volume control of the beam with my tv remote. I can also control the beam volume with my iPad / iPhone. Worked great for a bit, then the volume on the beam control started being a bit crazy. If i turned the volume on the tv remote to minimum, i would still get audio at a reasonably loud volume from the beam. If i turned the volume control on my iPhone to minimum, the volume level on the tv woul dbe at a reasonably loud level. (see photos). Sometimes I have the volume on the tv remote at 80 (out of 100) which is incredibly loud on the internal tv audio, but on the beam it is barely a whisper and barely audible. also on the iPhone sonos control, if i set it to full, the beam is barely audible at times, and at other times it is deafening.................Any ideas? Also the ba

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T
5 years ago
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coloradotravContributor I
posted in Home theater

Beam 5.1 with Sony A8F and youtube

Equipment: * 2018 Sony A8F (https://www.sony.com/electronics/televisions/a8f-series) * Sonos Beam * Sonos sub * 2 Sonos One as rear surround * Connected via HDMI ARC on input 3 of the Sony TV * Xbox One X Software: * Android TV (7.x) * Youtube I have the equipment and software described above and I AM able to experience Dolby Digital 5.1 from Netflix on my Sony Android TV app, However I am only getting stereo input sent to the Sonos Beam from: * The Sony Android TV youtube app when running every type of Dolby Digital surround test * From the Xbox One X I've tried sound set to Auto 1 and Auto 2 on the Sony, but this doesn't change things. On the Xbox, I have it set to output Dolby Digital 5.1. I've looked through these forums and didn't get a quick answer. The biggest thing I've determined is that the Beam only supports PCM and 5.1 (not DD+, Atmos, DTS, DTS:X). Of course 5.1 is all it can support in this set up, but I can't seem to figure out how to fo

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106rallye
5 years ago
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Austin LubbersContributor I
posted in Home theater

How to determine if my Sonos system is using the Sonos mesh network and not home WiFi

I hooked up my playbar and hard wired it to my router after I had hooked up a wireless play 1. I would prefer to use the Sonos Mesh network how can I verify its setup this way?

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D
5 years ago
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Tejs Dyrvig Ernst
asked in Home theater

Sonos Beam not detected as Simplink-device (LG HDMI-CEC)

I have a Beam hooked up to an LG Smart-tv (pre WebOS). The tv supports HDMI-CEC (LG Simplink) and ARC. Setup vas generelly very smooth and I had sound and remote-control via IR working in minutes. Unfortunately, I am not able to control the TV via Alexa. I went through the tv's various settings for Simplink, which included doing a full reset of the TV to set everything up from scratch. Simplink is enabled and works perfectly for the attached Chromecast, which is immediatly detected by the tv as a Simplink-device, enabling control over the tv via the Chromecast. The Beam is however not detected as a Simplink-device and consequently Alexa has no control over the tv. The TV will turn on if I ask Alexa to turn on the Beam, but that is it. I noticed that other members have wrongfully concluded that HDMI-CEC must be working because their tv's were turning on as I describe. However, this is likely because of another function ( I think the name is HDMI auto-switch or sim

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Ryan S
5 years ago
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TheTallManContributor I
posted in Home theater

Beam and PS3 Audio Problem - Help Please

Hi all, I’m hoping you can help me out with a sound query. I’ve just got a Beam which sounds great on Netflix and Prime video, but flat when playing DTS Blu Rays through my PS3. I didn’t know that Sonos doesn’t support DTS so I only get stereo sound, which is disappointing. Having read quite a few threads on various forums I’m none the wiser as to a solution. Seems the Beam’s lack of optical input means I can’t split the audio like Playbar users can. Is there a workaround, as I still like my Blu Rays and naturally want the best sound from them. Thanks in advance.

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M
5 years ago
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bbcoolContributor I
asked in Home theater

af8 oled from sony how to setup with sonos 5.1 setup

hi, im not sure how i connect correctly the oled tv with my sonos system. can everyone help me. whar should i do on tv menu to force the 5.1 passthtough arriving from my appel tv 4k? thank you very much

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C
5 years ago
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Kenneth GoodwinContributor III
posted in Home theater

HDMI-ARC Cable Properites

Can the cable provided with the Sonos Beam be used as a regular HDMI cable? Somehow in my mind I wonder if the provided cable only works for ARC audio since the cable diameter is smaller than any of the other HDMI cables I've recently purchased (HDMI2). I also am mystified why there seems to be no way of distinguishing the various classes of HDMI cable (ARC, Ethernet, HDMI2, etc.) and data transfer speed capability. I've never seen any markings on any of the HDMI cables so how do I know if I have HDMI or HDMI2 or etc. Is seeing that it doesn't work the only method? And I am not sure what would manifest itself as not working. Drop outs/no data connectivity/etc.?

5
Airgetlam
5 years ago
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HighDriveContributor III
asked in Home theater

Is it ABSOLUTELY definitive that NO Samsung Smart TVs passthrough 5.1 via the optical port?

...because I have now called Samsung multiple times to ask if my model (UN46ES6150) will preserve 5.1 sound via the optical port when the source is connected via HDMI (cable box, DVD player, etc. - NOT native app on the TV itself)...and each time the Samsung rep has assured me that it can indeed passthrough 5.1 sound. Any advice or clarity would be much appreciated before I spring for the full Sonos home theater setup. Thank you!

9
S
5 years ago
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JMiseryContributor I
posted in Home theater

Sonos Beam - Action/Music Too Loud

Hey guys, I recently bought a Sonos Beam (around a week ago) and although the sound is great, I am still having the same issue I was having prior to even having a soundbar, which was the main reason I bought one in the first place. I have Voice Enhacement enabled and even 'Night Mode' where it supposedly suppresses louder noises and raises lower volumes. But I am having constant issues with still having to adjust the sound constantly throughout watching a film/TV show. The dialogue is perfect but then any music or sound effect comes on and it is craaaaaaazy loud. I've looked on the SONOS app and cannot find any fix or solution to this. Unless I'm missing something. I am very concerned and am unfortunately considering returning this for another soundbar with more in-depth controls. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

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R
5 years ago
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Barkley2Avid Contributor I
posted in Home theater

Beam and Comcast Xfinity Dolby Digital 5.1 Help

I have a Apple TV connected via hdmi to my Samsung TV and then the beam connected HDMI-ARC to the Samsung TV. When I play Dolby Digital content it works. However, when I plug my Xfinity (Arris XG1v4) to the Samsung TV. I go in the settings and it only allows me to select stereo or audio expert mode. I select audio expert mode and then my tv has Dolby Digital grayed out. No way to get my cable box to send the DD5.1 signal to my Beam. Has anyone had this issue with Comcast Xfinity? I am going to pick up another box XG1v3 and give that a try today.

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106rallye
5 years ago
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Rchull69Avid Contributor I
posted in Home theater

Help with Apple and Dolby

Hello, this subject may already be covered elsewhere in a post, but let me explain what I am trying to do first. I recently cut the cord from U-Verse, they sucked, done. I signed up with DirecTV Now, loving it. I am currently using the Apple TV 3rd Gen I believe that does not have the optical out, therefore I am running an HDMI Audio extractor, which optical is going directly to Sonos Playbar, which I have 2 Play:1’s as surrounds and the Sub. In my Apple menu under sound I have 5.1 Surround option on. It sounds good, I could live with, but am I getting true Surround this way? Is there a test I could perform to determine that all 5 channels are working? I performed an experiment where I redirected an optical cable from TV through a TOSLINK switcher, and when I jump between the extractor and the TV optical out, the extractor sound is much better. On TV sound settings I have HDMI Audio Format set to Bitstream and Audio Format to PCM. For now sticking with the audio extractor as the

6
R
5 years ago
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Trev78Contributor I
asked in Home theater

7.1 Surround Sound Possible ?

I currently have the sonos beam and 2 sonos one speakers. I'm planning on purchasing the sub asap to create 5.1 surround sound but I wondered if I was to purchase another 2 sonos one speakers, could they all link together to create a 7.1 surround sound system ?

5
I
5 years ago
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RMP1Contributor I
posted in Home theater

Beam: Switching from Airplay 2 to Apple TV

Hi all: I've got an interesting problem. I have my Beam connected to my (CEC-enabled) Samsung TV via HDMI-ARC. I then have my Apple TV plugged into the TV via HDMI. I got everything to work when switching the Apple TV on with it's remote, which then turns the TV on automatically and enables the Beam. It also works in reverse when turning the TV off with the remote. Secondly, when everything is off and I stream Apple Music from my phone to the Beam (via Airplay 2), the music plays great. Note, the TV is not on when playing music. Now, the problem: after streaming music and wanting to go back and watch Apple TV...the Apple TV remote function described above does not work. Is the Beam somehow switching the TV input (despite it being off) when I stream music since it is plugged into HDMI-ARC? Then the Apple TV doesn't recognize the TV because the TV is on the HDMI-ARC input (the Beam) rather than the Apple TV input (regular HDMI)? Also not having much luck turning the TV on via Alexa.

0
R
5 years ago
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WBChunxContributor I
posted in Home theater

Dolby Digital 5.1, Sonos Beam & 2xPlay:1 - Dialogue in the surrounds?

Guys, Hoping you can help? I have recently moved from a Sony 5.1 Amp and separate speakers. When playing a movie in 5.1, as you'd expect the centre speaker is used for dialogue with the front and rear surrounds used for directional effects etc. Am now using a Beam with 2x Play:1's (for surround) and am playing Plex/NetFlix/NowTV Movies via a Roku 4K USB streaming stick (plugged into a LG TV) The TV is plugged into the Beam via HDMI ARC. Both TV & Roku stick are configured specifically for Dolby Digital. For some reason, I get quite alot of dialogue in the surrounds. To the point that it doesn't feel like 5.0. It feels more like a ghost mode and the sound from the bar is simply replicated at a lower level in the surrounds. Any ideas what the problem could be? Thanks in advance??

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W
5 years ago
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