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Cripesdude
Contributor I
October 15, 2021

Major dialogue and True play issues

Hi all - I’ve got a new Arc connected to an LG CX (eARC HDMI port, eARC enabled, pass through enabled).

I’m having MAJOR issues with dialogue (and Trueplay). 

For example, when watching a talk show or the news via digital terrestrial tv and the sound is dialogue only, it sounds like the voices are coming from a small muffled box. I held my ear to the Arc and during these kinds of scenes the vocals are only coming from the central speaker(s).

As soon as there is additional sound, say background music or effects, the vocals are boosted and sound perfect! When I hold my ear close to the Arc during these scenes I can hear that the dialogue is now coming out of the centre and also the left and right speakers. In a show where it switches from dialogue to dialogue with additional sounds though, the voices keep going from muffled to perfect. It’s awful. 

What’s worse is when I try a Bly-ray (in this case David Copperfield DTS-HD Master Audio (via a Sony UBP-X800M2) ALL the dialogue sounds muffled! This is in-spite is the dialogue seeming to come from the centre, left and right. 

I’ve toggled with night sound and speech enhancement but can’t tell any difference when I do. 

On top of all this I can’t get true play to work at all after many attempts. I have a iPhone 12 and no case (and checked my microphone ports were clear of any debris) but keep getting a “measurement problem”. I’m in a quiet open-plan rectangular living room and eliminated all background noise. 

Am I doing something wrong? 

Is this muffled dialogue just how the Arc works? 

Do I have a defective unit? 

It’s driving me crazy… if so the Arc is not for me. I had a Phillips Firestorm before at a third of the price that was significantly better!

The only ‘fix’ I have right now is switching to PCM and watching in stereo… only then can I hear dialogue clearly. 

Reviews have been so good I feel it’s worth checking if it’s me… any tips or comments welcome!

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17 replies

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Simmz
Prodigy I
October 16, 2021

Any chance of recording a clip and uploading with the issue sound wise also ?

CripesdudeAuthor
Contributor I
October 18, 2021

Should get sound on the bass without the sub, won't sound like a static sound will be a rumbling sound. Might need to turn volume up a bit to hear it. Also when playing the file does it display Dolby Atmos in the app?

I was using Airplay which I thought carries 5.1… it certainly sounded like it! Except, no matter how high I put the volume there was nothing on the bass channel… so maybe I have a defective arc? But then that doesn’t explain why bass sounds more than fine with stereo and music?


I spent 90 minutes troubleshooting with Sonos support today and I couldn’t get satisfactory dialogue in 5.1 or Atmos. We tried so many cable switch-outs, settings, removing other devices etc. All the diagnostic reports seemed ok. So again hardware failure seems unlikely (unless diagnostics can say all is well but I can still have a busted component?)… Again as soon as something was in Stereo no dialogue issues at all! 


I think, I don’t know, the arc either isn’t that great with dialogue in some set ups (others seem to have this issue), maybe my TV is struggling to pass through 5.1 and Atmos properly, or maybe the Arc soundstage isn’t for me. 
 

As for trying True Play tuning… I just gave up on that. Would a faulty Arc explain my endless “measurement problems”? 

Anyway, I’ve decided to return my Arc and try a Beam Gen 2 to see if there is any difference… wish me luck! I’ll update once I’ve tried it…

 

Thanks for all the help, though, appreciated

 

Simmz
Prodigy I
October 18, 2021

Sounds more like a defective unit, as I have the exact same TV.

 

Best test you could have done would have been the following:

Unplug all devices except the ARC HDMI cable going into the eARC port on the LG CX.

Use the built in netflix app.

Test a 5.1 & Atmos program and see if the issue still persists.

 

Make sure the following settings are switched on on the LG CX:

Sound out: HDMI ARC.

 

Additional settings:

DTV Audio Setting: Auto.

HDMI input audio format: Bitstream.

Digital sound out: pass through.

eARC: Enabled.

CripesdudeAuthor
Contributor I
October 18, 2021

Sounds more like a defective unit, as I have the exact same TV.

 

Best test you could have done would have been the following:

Unplug all devices except the ARC HDMI cable going into the eARC port on the LG CX.

Use the built in netflix app.

Test a 5.1 & Atmos program and see if the issue still persists.

 

Make sure the following settings are switched on on the LG CX:

Sound out: HDMI ARC.

 

Additional settings:

DTV Audio Setting: Auto.

HDMI input audio format: Bitstream.

Digital sound out: pass through.

eARC: Enabled.

 
Thanks! I tried exactly that with Sonos tech support! All those settings and tried The Witcher on Netflix with 5.1… Sonos app was saying 5.1… but the dialogue was still mumbly, muddy and way too quiet. On Stereo - all good. 
 

I could have tried another arc, but hey let’s see what the Beam Gen 2 can do… I’ve a small place and neighbours to think of so maybe the Arc was over-kill for now anyway…

Simmz
Prodigy I
October 18, 2021

Trueplay probably would have sorted it out. Mine doesn't sound that great until I use Trueplay.

However I agree it's rubbish you have to even use Trueplay on a device that has now been increased to £900 and doesn't work with Android. Only reason I have an old iPad purely to tune Sonos with it. 

Hopefully they utilise the inbuilt mic at some stage and get rid of the app tuning side of things. 

CripesdudeAuthor
Contributor I
October 19, 2021

Update: solved(ish).

 

I’ve just tried a Beam instead and OH MY. Night and day difference! All the mumbly muddy dialogue has gone with 5.1 and Atmos. Fantastic sound. 
 

I have no idea if it was a faulty Arc or just how the Arc was playing with my TV. But hey, the Beam is doing a great job and I’ve saved half my money. 
 

Moral: if you’re really not happy with the sound you’re getting it’s worth switching the hardware.

Simmz
Prodigy I
October 19, 2021

Probably the arc I'd say. Myself and 3 friends all have the arc and the CX TV and we have no issues. Glad you're happy with the beam though, enjoy :) 

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