Let's get this settled ... Who's happy with their Arc?

S
Userlevel 3
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I have 20 days left to return my Arc and continue to hear harshness in the treble, lack of midrange, and the unpleasant subtleties when listening to music over movies. 

With all of the comments, posts, and quotes from the community … there are issues with Arc, hardware and/or software related, with or without the Sub, software update 12.1 and/or Trueplay with or without an older iPhone.  Houston we have a problem.

I’m interested hearing from Arc owners who are enjoying their purchase.  Owners who have either owned a Playbar or Playbase in the past.  Maybe I’m crazy or I truly have a defective unit that needs replacement.  I’m looking for a sign of hope that will keep me from flat out returning my Arc thus severing the head of my Sonos ecosystem.

For owners happy with their Arc … where you at??

 

 

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17 replies

Bumper
Userlevel 6
Badge +12

I have 20 days left to return my Arc and continue to hear harshness in the treble, lack of midrange, and the unpleasant subtleties when listening to music over movies. 

With all of the comments, posts, and quotes from the community … there are issues with Arc, hardware and/or software related, with or without the Sub, software update 12.1 and/or Trueplay with or without an older iPhone.  Houston we have a problem.

I’m interested hearing from Arc owners who are enjoying their purchase.  Owners who have either owned a Playbar or Playbase in the past.  Maybe I’m crazy or I truly have a defective unit that needs replacement.  I’m looking for a sign of hope that will keep me from flat out returning my Arc this severing the head of my Sonos ecosystem.

For owners happy with their Arc … where you at??

 

 

If you are unhappy return it or buy the sub cause it seems most (all?) happy arc owners also have the sub (which is expensive but is a solid product)

Airgetlam

I’m certainly happy with both Arcs I purchased. 

But who cares that mine are working without issue? It certainly seems as there are those who are still having issues. I don’t know if that’s a local issue, a software issue, or a hardware issue, but it’s no less a valid concern just because mine are working perfectly.

It’s not a democratic issue, we can’t ‘vote’ to make the issues go away. Those who are experiencing issues will need to continue to work with Sonos to dtermine where their particular issues are, and get them resolved in some satisfactory manner. 

Bruce
S
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@Bumper  I have the sub 3.0 coupled with Arc.  Movies and TV are where the Arc shines.  Music is where it fails.  The Sub simply masks or augments some of the Arc’s issues.

I’m hesitant to return as I’ve been a happy Sonos customer for some time and would like to think that they’re going to somehow fix the problem that what looks like majority of Arc owners are experiencing.

I see comments from owners mentioned they love their Arc and I’ve also watched every single 5-star review, which leads me to hope I have a defective unit.

Unfortunately, Covid has made it impossible to head in to Best Buy or any local Theatre shop to audition the Arc and how it is supposed to sound.  None of the places I’ve trekked to have one for display.

S
Userlevel 3
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@Airgetlam Amazing!  So good to hear you’ve got 2 and you’re happy with both of them.  Are both Arc’s coupled with a sub or standalone?  Also curious, are you happy with music performance on both or you mostly use them for TV & movies??

G
Userlevel 4
Badge +5

I’m good with mine

M
Userlevel 4
Badge +3

Happy with mine as part of a surround set up with a sub and two ones. Good for music although must admit not played at loud volumes. Issues on eArc connectivity which are being addressed and well documented here. I'm sure more tweaking will happen via future updates, so yes happy.

H
Userlevel 6
Badge +7

I wrote up a lengthy post with my thoughts on my Arc / Sub 3 / One SLs over on Reddit if you want a deep dive into my experience with it: 

https://www.reddit.com/r/sonos/comments/he1lv9/arc_one_sl_sub_review_from_firsttime_sonos_owner/

The short version is that, despite a few relatively minor issues, I’m really very happy with my Arc system and have been enjoying the heck out of it. 

Arc + Sub 3 + One SLs = Awesome and Loving It!
N
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

I am happy with my Arc purchase. I had metallic sound initially, however trueplaying with the iPhone 7 fixed the issue for me. I have it setup with a sub and two one SL’s in surround. For my setup in an apartment, I am really happy with the TV and movies with it. At night, I can watch my content at a volume level of 15-20. For stereo setup, I have put my surrounds in “Full Mode” and have boosted them to +3. I am really happy with that arrangement and gives me a good sound separation. I had the Bose soundtouch 300 before and I think I did the right thing to move from Bose to Arc. I keep reading the forums, people definitely have some issues .There is a scope of improvements to the DSP which Sonos has to work on, I believe they would keep working to improve it with feedback from listeners. Honestly I have never gone about volume level 60 and wont be able to go beyond that in my apartment setting. However if there are issues beyond that level, those definitely needs to be addressed by Sonos.

I
Userlevel 2
Badge +3

I received arc and OneSLs ahead of the sub.  It was so so.  Once I received sub, it was a game changer.  I do agree with above poster, it shines on movies; particularly DA.  Regular everyday TV watching is good.  Music is much better with sub than without, but still struggles a bit and seems like it needs tweaked quite a bit on some songs.  Some songs can be cranked 70% volume and sound really good.  The next song might only sound good at 25%.  I think some software/firmware adjusts can fix this in time.

to me it really depends on why purchased?  If you you wanted the cranking system for music, you bought the wrong system, return it.  If you want great sounding movies, it’s great.  
 

 

Bumper
Userlevel 6
Badge +12

@Bumper  I have the sub 3.0 coupled with Arc.  Movies and TV are where the Arc shines.  Music is where it fails.  The Sub simply masks or augments some of the Arc’s issues.

I’m hesitant to return as I’ve been a happy Sonos customer for some time and would like to think that they’re going to somehow fix the problem that what looks like majority of Arc owners are experiencing.

I see comments from owners mentioned they love their Arc and I’ve also watched every single 5-star review, which leads me to hope I have a defective unit.

Unfortunately, Covid has made it impossible to head in to Best Buy or any local Theatre shop to audition the Arc and how it is supposed to sound.  None of the places I’ve trekked to have one for display.

 

Have you considered the Amp? Get some good passive speakers and third party sub, some Sonos lamps or SLs. Will be amazing for movies and music. Just an

option since you don't seem to be happy with the ARC.

 

A
Userlevel 2
Badge +2

Mine is awesome. Arc, Gen 3 Sub and two One SL’s. 

Dismayed to here that some aren’t happy. If you’re not happy just return it and carry on. Life’s too short to have a Soundbar make you miserable. 

A
Userlevel 3
Badge

I sold mine today.  I was going to return to Sonos but I ended up selling for

$25 more than I paid.  In the end it was just too bad with music for me to keep.

No warmth/midrange, sound didnt project forward from speaker and awful

reproduction of drums/cymbals were the three things that drove me insane.

 

ill admit it was good with tv/movies, but even then the lack of midrange in vocals 

was annoying.  
 

 

B
Userlevel 2
Badge +1

Hi,

Came from (Playbar entertainment set) consisting of Playbar, sub gen 2 and Play one as surround. Also a Play 5 gen 1.  

Bought (Arc entertainment set) Arc, Sub gen 3, One SL as surround. (order 7 July, delivered 13 Jul - 6 days gap)

Definitely sound much better than Playbar setup. (Oh, this is subjective but it’s music to my ears.)

Use S1 with Play 5 gen 1, no issue. NAS music folder still accessible. Nothing changes that affect me using Play 5 gen 1.  No disruption to online music streaming.  

Separately, use S2 with the Arc entertainment set, no issue. NAS music folder still accessible. No disruption to online music streaming.  

Migration from S1 to S2 was seamless.

Have not experience intermittent loss of sound when watching free to air TV using Arc entertainment set. 

HDMI-ARC (Sonos supplied) through my 10 years old Sony TV.

Best sound format I have is Dolby digital 5.1 served from Xbox One S.

Using hardwired ethernet to Sonos ARC. Network address reservation use for all Sonos. 

Google assistant (Hey Google) through Sonos Arc works well. Use it to verbally switch on 3 air conditioners and other house automation.

Home automation messages (e.g front door light is switch on, garage door is opened) is also sent through Sonos with no issue. 

Linksys Velop for mesh wireless. 

3 ipads, 2 laptops, 4 samsung phones, 1 iphone all using wireless.

12 Poe cameras, server rack, 2 desktops hardwired to Synology router.

Multiple others Zwave home automation devices.

Fiber to the house (FTTH) Internet.  

Never experience any of the connection issues reported in community.

So I am happy.    

My advice on equipment. Get a Sony TV, Synology router, TP-link switches, Synology NAS, Linksys Velop / Synology Mesh. 

My advice on networking. Reserve IP address for Sonos, NAS and TV and Xbox and… just about everything. 

My advice on sound. Tune it until you like it, or learn to like it or buy something that you can ACTUALLY tune. 

My advice on life. Lots of 1st world problem in a pandemic, and the best sound? Able to hear my own breathing - staying alive

Sure will irk someone, hopefully not many. 

T
Userlevel 3
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I have 2 Arc’s - both with Sub’s and One SL’s and I love them both. 
99% of my listening is TV and Movies though. I have Homepods and Play 5’s in the house for music. 
I don’t hear the “metallic” sound that some are unhappy about - I actually appreciate the clarity in the vocals
I have a Beam in my bedroom and yeah the Arc has a very different sound - but one that I quite like. 
Everyone has different tastes - so like others have said - if you don’t like the sound then just return or sell it and move on to the next one. 

M
Userlevel 5
Badge +7

No from me at the moment. Coming from a Samsung Q90R and also have a beam, the ARC is no where near as good as it should be, it just sounds so tinny to me and the mid range is not there, it doesn't bring me into the movie like the q90r did, I do wish Sonos would let you adjust the decibel levels of each individual speaker, maybe that would help also. Im hoping out for a fix for the issue and have my name down for an exchange with my retailer just to rule out if its just a bad batch of sound bars that have this issue. Time will tell.

T
Userlevel 3
Badge

No from me at the moment. Coming from a Samsung Q90R and also have a beam, the ARC is no where near as good as it should be, it just sounds so tinny to me and the mid range is not there, it doesn't bring me into the movie like the q90r did, I do wish Sonos would let you adjust the decibel levels of each individual speaker, maybe that would help also. Im hoping out for a fix for the issue and have my name down for an exchange with my retailer just to rule out if its just a bad batch of sound bars that have this issue. Time will tell.

It’s funny how we all hear things differently. I also came from a Q90R and am so glad I made the decision to sell it and go with Sonos instead.  
I had muddy boomy bass with the Samsung sub and rears that would cut out frequently - and unless playing something with Atmos there was barely any presence of the rears even when turned up to +6. 
I do agree though that Sonos should be letting us adjust individual channels to suit our own tastes. 

M
Userlevel 5
Badge +7

No from me at the moment. Coming from a Samsung Q90R and also have a beam, the ARC is no where near as good as it should be, it just sounds so tinny to me and the mid range is not there, it doesn't bring me into the movie like the q90r did, I do wish Sonos would let you adjust the decibel levels of each individual speaker, maybe that would help also. Im hoping out for a fix for the issue and have my name down for an exchange with my retailer just to rule out if its just a bad batch of sound bars that have this issue. Time will tell.

It’s funny how we all hear things differently. I also came from a Q90R and am so glad I made the decision to sell it and go with Sonos instead.  
I had muddy boomy bass with the Samsung sub and rears that would cut out frequently - and unless playing something with Atmos there was barely any presence of the rears even when turned up to +6. 
I do agree though that Sonos should be letting us adjust individual channels to suit our own tastes. 

Yeah its strange, don't get me wrong the Q90r had its flaws, speaker disconnections etc, but for me it had a much fuller sound, but peoples hearing, different shape/size rooms etc etc can all change opinions. I do hope its just my unit and that if I exchange it will give me the same experience you are getting.

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