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PCM 5.1 support on Beam

  • August 1, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 1835 views

Hi!

Why does the Beam not support LPCM 5.1? I find this very strange because the Beam is a soundbar and does not support the best and most basic codec. Is it a hardware thing or just software?

Kind regards/ Mathias

Best answer by controlav

I found a chart that confirms my statement: https://www.whathifi.com/advice/hdmi-arc-and-hdmi-earc-everything-you-need-to-know

eARC is necessary for uncompressed 5.1 and 7.1 audio, ARC cannot do them.
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3 replies

Forum|alt.badge.img+19
  • Senior Virtuoso
  • August 1, 2019
You'd have to ask Sonos that, not the user community.

Sonos only supports DD on all its (current) 5.1 devices.

Sonos do not share roadmaps; when a new product is ready, they announce it.

controlav
Forum|alt.badge.img+24
  • Lead Maestro
  • August 1, 2019
I believe it is because HDMI ARC cannot pass LPCM 5.1. Everything I have read about ARC says it supports the same codecs as S/PDIF which means PCM 2.0, DD 5.1 or DTS 5.1. (Sonos don't do DTS of course).

controlav
Forum|alt.badge.img+24
  • Lead Maestro
  • Answer
  • August 1, 2019
I found a chart that confirms my statement: https://www.whathifi.com/advice/hdmi-arc-and-hdmi-earc-everything-you-need-to-know

eARC is necessary for uncompressed 5.1 and 7.1 audio, ARC cannot do them.