Enthusiast II

Answered

Sonos Arc - Metallic Sound

1017 replies
128965 views

Hi All.

It’s a relief that Sonos has identified the bug that’s causing the bass distortion in Sonos Arc. Thank you @Ryan S for working with the Sonos Communty to identify the problem quickly.

Having said this, I believe that Sonos still needs more work to make the Arc sound as it was advertised. Currently, multiple people on Reddit including myself are reporting the highs being too high which sort of feels “harsh”. This improve the speech clarity and brings out details in the movies, but the warmth in speech is lost because the voices sound thin and metallic (for eg. actors I know having heavy voices don’t sound heavy). I was expecting the mid-range to be a lot better considering the Arc has 8 woofers.

I have tried TruPlaying twice without success (Turning TruPlay off produces muffled sound). Adjusting the treble also did not help much. Loudness turned on and off does not make a big difference either. May be, this is how the Arc is tuned?!

Anyone else feels that Arc is over-emphasizing the highs with compromised mids?

This topic has been closed for further comments. You can use the search bar to find a similar topic, or create a new one by clicking Create Topic at the top of the page.

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Scott - SonosAnswer

Sonos Product Management

Hello everyone. I’m a product manager at Sonos. Thank you for sharing your experiences with Arc. The development team is monitoring this community and listening to your feedback.

As we do with all Sonos products, we’ll continue to improve the experience for Arc through numerous software updates into the future. Last week we issued our first update (12.0.1) to fix a bug some customers were experiencing with low-frequency distortion at higher volumes.

If you have specific music tracks or timestamps for TV shows and movies that you want to bring to our attention, please use this form. It is helpful if you can submit a diagnostic when you’re listening to the content. Instructions for doing so can be found here.

Show previous replies

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davidmsilver18

Lyricist II

Hello all,

While we are aware that some are experiencing or have experienced audio issues with their Arc,we are working on it but I do not have an update for you at this time.

If you are experiencing a thin, tinny quality in your audio that I see that some are describing as “cheap radio” sound, I would encourage you to test playback through a streaming music service of your choice and then make an audio or recording on your mobile phone or camera. Then reach out to us directly so that we can log the issue and evaluate the units on an individual level.

For those that have already exchanged your units, did this resolve the audio quality issue?

@Jean C. - I chatted with support this afternoon, submitted diagnostics, and was told there were no problems they could detect and I should contact Sales via phone. I mostly hear the tinny audio with dialogue. What should I do since chat support didn’t ask for any more information.

M

mewantsonos

Trending Lyricist I

Hello all,

While we are aware that some are experiencing or have experienced audio issues with their Arc,we are working on it but I do not have an update for you at this time.

If you are experiencing a thin, tinny quality in your audio that I see that some are describing as “cheap radio” sound, I would encourage you to test playback through a streaming music service of your choice and then make an audio or recording on your mobile phone or camera. Then reach out to us directly so that we can log the issue and evaluate the units on an individual level.

For those that have already exchanged your units, did this resolve the audio quality issue?

@Jean C. - I chatted with support this afternoon, submitted diagnostics, and was told there were no problems they could detect and I should contact Sales via phone. I mostly hear the tinny audio with dialogue. What should I do since chat support didn’t ask for any more information.

Mine is going back soon I’ve bought a full 7.2.4 system with proper speakers so this arc is going back 😁

A

antx

Lyricist III

Hello all,

While we are aware that some are experiencing or have experienced audio issues with their Arc,we are working on it but I do not have an update for you at this time.

If you are experiencing a thin, tinny quality in your audio that I see that some are describing as “cheap radio” sound, I would encourage you to test playback through a streaming music service of your choice and then make an audio or recording on your mobile phone or camera. Then reach out to us directly so that we can log the issue and evaluate the units on an individual level.

For those that have already exchanged your units, did this resolve the audio quality issue?

@Jean C. - I chatted with support this afternoon, submitted diagnostics, and was told there were no problems they could detect and I should contact Sales via phone. I mostly hear the tinny audio with dialogue. What should I do since chat support didn’t ask for any more information.

Mine is going back soon I’ve bought a full 7.2.4 system with proper speakers so this arc is going back 😁

Could you let me know what system did you go with? I am also planning to go with the traditional route of receiver + speakers. I am pretty novice with this setup. Any input and suggestions would be great. I know this is not the correct forum but still throwing it out here since Sonos doesn't seem to help in anyways here.

A

arpatil1Author

Enthusiast II

Hello all,

While we are aware that some are experiencing or have experienced audio issues with their Arc,we are working on it but I do not have an update for you at this time.

If you are experiencing a thin, tinny quality in your audio that I see that some are describing as “cheap radio” sound, I would encourage you to test playback through a streaming music service of your choice and then make an audio or recording on your mobile phone or camera. Then reach out to us directly so that we can log the issue and evaluate the units on an individual level.

For those that have already exchanged your units, did this resolve the audio quality issue?

@Jean C. - I chatted with support this afternoon, submitted diagnostics, and was told there were no problems they could detect and I should contact Sales via phone. I mostly hear the tinny audio with dialogue. What should I do since chat support didn’t ask for any more information.

Mine is going back soon I’ve bought a full 7.2.4 system with proper speakers so this arc is going back

Could you let me know what system did you go with? I am also planning to go with the traditional route of receiver + speakers. I am pretty novice with this setup. Any input and suggestions would be great. I know this is not the correct forum but still throwing it out here since Sonos doesn't seem to help in anyways here.

If it helps- I live in an apartment and I am going with KEF Q150s bookshelves as R/L, Q650C center, and Denon X1600H receiver. It will be a 3.0 system. I need to wait till the sale drops though as you can get them (Reciever is extra) at the cost of Arc. I have heard this 3.0 system, and man, it will put the Arc to shame.

S

shane_sd

Lyricist III

Just recently found this thread, would anybody be so kind to summarise this thread up for me so i don't have to read through all the 418 replies haha. Is there a solution to the metallic sound or anything that helps/reduces it?

No - not for those affected by the issue. Sonos has been pretty silent on the issue as well. There may or may not be a hardware issue/bad batch as some people don’t seem to be having any issues/complaints whatsoever. Others think all the issues can be fixed with software updates.

Bottom line is - your guess is as good as anyone’s at this point!

@dhewitt Try it out. Many are happy with their Arcs! I have 0 complaints about metallic sounds… Lots of replies doesnt mean everyone here is complaining theres tons of back and forths and also people posting examples of their problem content. So not 418 complaints

Issues exist. So many people can’t be wrong at once (Few YouTubers have also acknowledged). Arc is still very much a beta product. LPCM support is also a few months away (this matters a lot if you do gaming, use Apple TV 4K, etc). Unless you absolutely cannot live with what you have right now, I would wait it out. Just my 2 cents.

Dont necessarily agree with this you could get the Arc today and be satisfied and happy with it. Many are keeping theirs. LCPM support was never promised at launch, and yes it means your gaming wont have surround but stereo gaming sounds great and good enough for me for the time being. In terms of apple TV not sure how it even matters (basides some TVS having issues if they hasve LPCM and the arc doesnt) but my apple tv plays surround just fine and sounds great

The beta product statement I dont agree with either, because my functionality isn’t reduced or buggy. During normal use I do not notice any issues. And theres manyt people saying this on reddit and here. They got their arcs and are happy with the arc and will be keeping it. So the only way of knowing is trying it out! @dhewitt no need to wait months . Unless you decide you dont want to deal with a potential return hassle (not even that big of a hassle but ok)

Are you on the Sonos Defense Council? This isn’t the “Sonos Arc Rich and Full Sound” thread. We’re trying to get to an issue 95% of us are expressing in this thread and you’re acting like we need non-qualified customer support. Glad you’re enjoying yours. Start a thread about it.

Guys it sounds like Sonos isn’t seeing issues with the Arc. It’s unfortunate but it’s okay. I’ve made several speaker purchases that I regret. I know the Sonos ecosystem is a big investment so I’d just keep what’s working and maybe start looking for another home theater solution. That’s what I’m doing. I’m keeping my Play 5’s for music and moving on.

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antx

Lyricist III

Hello all,

While we are aware that some are experiencing or have experienced audio issues with their Arc,we are working on it but I do not have an update for you at this time.

If you are experiencing a thin, tinny quality in your audio that I see that some are describing as “cheap radio” sound, I would encourage you to test playback through a streaming music service of your choice and then make an audio or recording on your mobile phone or camera. Then reach out to us directly so that we can log the issue and evaluate the units on an individual level.

For those that have already exchanged your units, did this resolve the audio quality issue?

@Jean C. - I chatted with support this afternoon, submitted diagnostics, and was told there were no problems they could detect and I should contact Sales via phone. I mostly hear the tinny audio with dialogue. What should I do since chat support didn’t ask for any more information.

Mine is going back soon I’ve bought a full 7.2.4 system with proper speakers so this arc is going back 😁

Could you let me know what system did you go with? I am also planning to go with the traditional route of receiver + speakers. I am pretty novice with this setup. Any input and suggestions would be great. I know this is not the correct forum but still throwing it out here since Sonos doesn't seem to help in anyways here.

If it helps- I live in an apartment and I am going with KEF Q150s bookshelves as R/L, Q650C center, and Denon X1600H receiver. It will be a 3.0 system. I need to wait till the sale drops though as you can get those at the cost of Arc.

Cool great, thank you. I was looking at the KEF Q series, B&W 606, or 607 series or ELAC debut 2.0 B6(read good reviews of ELAC and a pair cost only about $300) bookshelf to pair with a receiver. Just waiting for some deal and probably add a SVS sub later when it goes on the deal. Probably need to spend over the ARC but getting rid of ARC + Sub I should be good to use that money for this setup. Let me know what do you think?