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Sonos Arc Muddy/Bottoming out Bass

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1406 replies

R
Userlevel 2
Badge +3

Please correct me if I am wrong - You as a ‘beta’ tester should NOT be discussing in anyway information regarding this new software release if there is one. Discussion of any information relevant to the SONOS beta program is breaking the NDR which you signed. You should be disqualified from anymore beta testing. If you are not than SONOS obviously doesn’t care much about NDRs and may as well do away with the mandatory signing of them. 

W
Userlevel 5
Badge +9

Please correct me if I am wrong - You as a ‘beta’ tester should NOT be discussing in anyway information regarding this new software release if there is one. Discussion of any information relevant to the SONOS beta program is breaking the NDR which you signed. You should be disqualified from anymore beta testing. If you are not than SONOS obviously doesn’t care much about NDRs and may as well do away with the mandatory signing of them. 

Yes, should not discuss about it here...

A
Userlevel 2
Badge +1

Not said anything apart from I have performed all the actions required of me. 
Not disclosed anything. No details of what those actions were. No details of what I was asked to do. 
Not entirely sure what your ranting about

S
Userlevel 7
Badge +15

Some people need something to complain about.  He's said he is a beta tester (against T's & C's?) and has done his testing.  Not said what the tests were or how they went and people are calling for disqualification.  Hilarious.

splogue
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It is the “The bass issue has not been fixed by the beta update.” part that is a clear violation of the NDA. It might be a good idea to delete that post.

No attacks, please - I’m honestly just trying to help.

Sean

S
Userlevel 7
Badge +15

Yes, I only saw the post on this page. Although I don't know if it is referring to a general beta or one related to this issue, I agree it potentially contains information about a beta content - and that's not allowed.  I've seen much more revealing posts though.

Smilja

Not said anything apart from I have performed all the actions required of me. 
Not disclosed anything. No details of what those actions were. No details of what I was asked to do. 
Not entirely sure what your ranting about

 

Beta testers aren’t even allowed to disclose that they are partaking in a beta test.

»And the world is like an apple whirling silently in space, Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind.« (›Windmills Of Your Mind‹ [1967]. Music by Michel Legrand ; English lyrics written by Alan & Marilyn Bergman)
S
Userlevel 7
Badge +15

It's disappointing that talk of Fight Club has detracted from the Arc situation.

A
Userlevel 2
Badge +1

Ok, to draw a line under this muddiness, Thought I was contributing a valid bit of news to Sonos community members without breaking the NDA.

All your comments and advice noted, thank you.

Looking forward to the fix.

What’s beta? :grinning:   

Smilja

It's disappointing that talk of Fight Club has detracted from the Arc situation.

 

Since you’ve been reluctant to migrate to S2 you don’t even own the Arc.

»And the world is like an apple whirling silently in space, Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind.« (›Windmills Of Your Mind‹ [1967]. Music by Michel Legrand ; English lyrics written by Alan & Marilyn Bergman)
S
Userlevel 7
Badge +15

It's disappointing that talk of Fight Club has detracted from the Arc situation.

 

Since you’ve been reluctant to migrate to S2 you don’t even own the Arc.


And?

buzz

Beta testers aren’t even allowed to disclose that they are partaking in a beta test.

This is a typical NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement) for beta testers in any industry.

Things don’t always go well during a test and it is counterproductive when testers shout out ‘fail’, ‘fail’, ‘fail’. Generally, we learn better lessons recovering from ‘fail’ than as a consequence of accidental success. If you are a student of mine, you’ll fail from time to time because I’ll assign tasks that I know are slightly ahead of your current capability. As you recover from this fail, your confidence grows and you’ll be more likely to be able to handle the curves that Mother Nature will throw your way. Mother nature is never fair.

Part of a beta test might be designed to measure what percentage of users can follow the directions, as written. Further, one should not assume that all testers have been given the same set of test conditions. 

I realize that it can be an ego boost to be invited to be part of a beta test. Valuable beta testers quietly file good reports and respect their NDA, if any. Not so valuable testers will probably not be invited to participate in subsequent beta programs.

C
Userlevel 6
Badge +11

Hypothetical question, as we are not allowed to talk about the beta test, but would the original beta testers for the arc product  launch also be involved in beta testing of updates for the arc, ie is it the same ‘ears’ or different ‘ears’ ? 

melvimbe

Hypothetical question, as we are not allowed to talk about the beta test, but would the original beta testers for the arc product  launch also be involved in beta testing of updates for the arc, ie is it the same ‘ears’ or different ‘ears’ ? 

 

Hypothetically….maybe.  I get your point, but not sure why it matters. If there is a patch coming, we’ll know whether it fixes the issues when it’s applied to our systems.  There’s not a whole lot of value in validating or invalidating the testing process, the results are all that matters.

Danny
K
Userlevel 1
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You don’t have to be part of a beta in order to know that most companies run A/B tests on their customers.

 

Group A could be getting a potentially more experimental fix, for which they need more data to confirm if it comes with side effects.

While Group B could be getting a confirmed fix, which might, however, also come with known issues or compromises.

 

If group A is successful, it will be the one that gets released. If Group A fails (in which case you’ll get beta testers yelling around the internet that the patch did not work), they will either go for Group B’s solution or do another version/patch upon Group A.

 

What I am trying to say is, it is good to follow the NDA and not jump to conclusions right away. They might have purposely given you an experimental version to see what can go wrong.

 

Enough about it I’d say. Is there any official news regarding the patch? 

 

Ps. I am in no way confirming this is the case for SONOS. This is simply an assumption that is based on my own personal experience working in the tech branche.

Game programmer and music enthusiast
S
Userlevel 4
Badge +5

You don’t have to be part of a beta in order to know that most companies run A/B tests on their customers.

 

Group A could be getting a potentially more experimental fix, for which they need more data to confirm if it comes with side effects.

While Group B could be getting a confirmed fix, which might, however, also come with known issues or compromises.

 

If group A is successful, it will be the one that gets released. If Group A fails (in which case you’ll get beta testers yelling around the internet that the patch did not work), they will either go for Group B’s solution or do another version/patch upon Group A.

 

What I am trying to say is, it is good to follow the NDA and not jump to conclusions right away. They might have purposely given you an experimental version to see what can go wrong.

 

Enough about it I’d say. Is there any official news regarding the patch? 

 

Ps. I am in no way confirming this is the case for SONOS. This is simply an assumption that is based on my own personal experience working in the tech branche.

That sounds like you’d do some placebo tests? Like giving a group of people a “no fix” and some a “fix” update to see if your testers are even properly testing and finding that the “no fix” does not work?

Sounds like an interesting approach.

L
Userlevel 5
Badge +10

My Arc arrived today, well ahead of the estimated July delivery date. Really hoping the software fix that is being worked on will fix the issue. I ran the 40hz test tone on Spotify and as soon as the volume slider got above around half way, the pulsing bass kicked in. I have a Sub on order but it would be good to know that the stand alone Arc can be “healed”!!

M
Userlevel 2
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We have identified a bug that has potential to cause distortion when playing bass-heavy content at higher volume levels on Arc. Our team is working on the fix now. We expect the software release to be implemented as early as next week. I'll share any additional updates here.

Can we get some info as to when an update is coming ASAP? Return windows are closing fast and the Arc in this current state is not going to cut it for $800. Please!

F
Userlevel 2
Badge +1

My Arc arrived today, well ahead of the estimated July delivery date. Really hoping the software fix that is being worked on will fix the issue. I ran the 40hz test tone on Spotify and as soon as the volume slider got above around half way, the pulsing bass kicked in. I have a Sub on order but it would be good to know that the stand alone Arc can be “healed”!!

My sub is being delivered on Wed despite a estimated delivery of 10th July.

I will let people know whether its night and day as reported.

Ryan S
Userlevel 7
Badge +26

We have identified a bug that has potential to cause distortion when playing bass-heavy content at higher volume levels on Arc. Our team is working on the fix now. We expect the software release to be implemented as early as next week. I'll share any additional updates here.

Can we get some info as to when an update is coming ASAP? Return windows are closing fast and the Arc in this current state is not going to cut it for $800. Please!

@Masterpopper, we are working through all the feedback and are expecting the update this week. I’ll let you all know when it’s available.

Mark good posts by pressing the like button, and select the best answer on questions you've asked to help others find solutions.
A
Userlevel 2
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Those of us who don’t yet have one are as interested in the outcome as the albeit slightly more anxious ones who do. I would certainly have one ordered by now if it wasn’t for finding this out, and will wait until I’m certain about the result before committing. 
 

Ryan S is it in your remit to be able to say if the production models now shipping are identical in their hardware and come from the same factory as the ones which received glowing reviews from various trustworthy sources a couple of weeks ago? 

R
Userlevel 2
Badge +3

Personally knowing the SONOS products I would lean more toward believing this is a software/firmware issue and quite fixable - SONOS will have a pretty large black eye if it is not and a LOT of ARCs to RMA and replace. Mine comes Thursday and I certainly hope this is fixed by than - I have a great deal of confidence they will resolve this - They always do..

B

I’ve had my ARC installed for a week and I am experiencing the same bass issue. I hope the software update addresses this. The frustrating thing is if it doesn’t, it forces owners into purchasing a sub to address a manufacturing error. Let’s see the results. Makes me wonder why the ARC wasn’t bundled with a sub from the get-go if it can’t handle bass. 

S
Userlevel 3
Badge +2

I’ve had my ARC installed for a week and I am experiencing the same bass issue. I hope the software update addresses this. The frustrating thing is if it doesn’t, it forces owners into purchasing a sub to address a manufacturing error. Let’s see the results. Makes me wonder why the ARC wasn’t bundled with a sub from the get-go if it can’t handle bass. 

No one is forcing you to buy a SUB and you absolutely shouldn’t if this isn’t corrected. You shouldn’t have to pay $799 and then have to spend another $700 just to get the bass to work properly.

A

I’ve had my ARC installed for a week and I am experiencing the same bass issue. I hope the software update addresses this. The frustrating thing is if it doesn’t, it forces owners into purchasing a sub to address a manufacturing error. Let’s see the results. Makes me wonder why the ARC wasn’t bundled with a sub from the get-go if it can’t handle bass. 

Even with a Sub the bass from there Arc is not 100% perfect. The update needs to address it. if it doesn’t and there are still issues, the answer shouldn't be spending more money on a Sub. The answer should be returning the Arc. 

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