Beyond thrilled to receive the new Sonos Arc. True played my room and I have loudness on as well connected to LG B8 using Tidal and Spotify. Most of the sound range is phenomenal, aside from the bass. At even half volume the woofers are extremely muddy and sound terrible. Not sure if this is because I have under two hours of use but I wasn’t expecting to have to break-in the speaker. I own set of speakers next to it in the same room (KEF LS50W) and the difference is night and day. There have also been posts on Reddit regarding this issue. It is interesting given no reviewers have mentioned this issue but more than a few recipients have. Has anyone else experienced similar issues? Turning loudness off helps but it is disappointing for such a highly anticipated product.
Sonos Arc Muddy/Bottoming out Bass
Best answer by Scott - Sonos
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.
+1What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Just tried that Mike. Getting distortion, cracking and popping.
Don’t know what’s going on.
That's strange isn't it? Before this update over 60% volume I got massive distortion now after the update I can run it at max volume with a steady noise
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Just because it’s not there for the 40hz test, doesn’t mean it’s gone.
My first test was the beginning scene of The Greatest Showman or really any action movie and turn the loudness up and have the bass at 0 or 1-2 like many would do… it bottoms out still. It’s not as bad as it was previously but the issue still exists.
If you download any Dolby Digital trailers for movies and watch them, whenever a loud scene happens with action/cars/planes, etc you will hear it.
The only way it doesn’t sound muddy/bottom out is if I turn the loudness off and the EQ for bass down.
At least that’s just been my experience.
Do you really think Sonos engineers haven't tested every single frequency though? I've only listened to music so far but personally itsit tons better already.
I'll have to see how it sounds when I watch a Dolby Atmos movie as they have some very loud thumping scenes
Do you really think Sonos engineers would release a software that failed from day one? Well they did. It could be more than one issue. Perhaps there is a hardware issue present on some models that require a software fix… who knows. That would make more sense than Sonos not properly testing but again… only conjecture.
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
If mine is still the same at the end of the week it’s going back.
I was so looking forward to this.
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Just because it’s not there for the 40hz test, doesn’t mean it’s gone.
My first test was the beginning scene of The Greatest Showman or really any action movie and turn the loudness on and have the bass at 0 or 1-2 like many would do… it bottoms out still. It’s not as bad as it was previously but the issue still exists.
If you download any Dolby Digital trailers for movies and watch them, whenever a loud scene happens with action/cars/planes, etc you will hear it.
The only way it doesn’t sound muddy/bottom out is if I turn the loudness off and the EQ for bass down.
At least that’s just been my experience.
Some crackling still exists. I have been saying this from the start- Bass issue exists below 50% too. I played the Ozark scene where the woofers basically farted at 35% before. Now it’s mitigated to a great extent, but not fixed entirely.
I think the update is a good step in right direction, but it’s not the final solution by any means.
Also I just tested penetrator by pleasurekraft on YouTube. The bass crackling is still very pronounced at volume 32. If the issue persists through this Friday my Arc is definitely going back.😞
+1What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
Forget it 😂 it's literally a bass test tone to test a speaker, mine sounded absolutely awful before the update and had major bass wobbles now it has a steady tone and sounds great
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
Forget it 😂 it's literally a bass test tone to test a speaker, mine sounded absolutely awful before the update and had major bass wobbles now it has a steady tone and sounds great
Do you listen to single frequency tones in your free time or songs? I am curious.
Unsure why some report it still has issues. Had noticed the issue before with the test tones, and in some certain scenes. Toystory 3 2:58 showed the issue. I have a playbar to compare to and definitely crackled/farted a bit during this scene. After the update issue is gone. Turn up to 100 percent with 40Hz tone, played bassy music (hiphop) and played the toystory scene all sound good.
Remember guys this is a soundbar. the bass wont compete with a subwoofer or bigger system. Maybe you are expecting different bass from what the arc is supposed to produce. Right now Arc sounds great. I turned off my surrounds and sub for these tests.
I dont think a thing as “step in the right direction” is even a thing. This wasn’t tuning was likely a bug with the DSP that was fixed to avoid this issue from happening.
However, just as a comment I’ve seen people on here and reddit claiming their SONOS one sound bad and distort horribly. Even shared clips. I cant hear much on the clips from my phone, or headphones. I wonder if these people are new to sonos and expecting home theater experience with the arc and sonos ones?
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
Forget it 😂 it's literally a bass test tone to test a speaker, mine sounded absolutely awful before the update and had major bass wobbles now it has a steady tone and sounds great
Enjoy listening to bass test tones with 800$ product😂 Jokes apart, I was only stating my experiences.
+1What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
Forget it 
it's literally a bass test tone to test a speaker, mine sounded absolutely awful before the update and had major bass wobbles now it has a steady tone and sounds great
Do you listen to single frequency tones in your free time or songs? I am curious.
It's a test tone I used to test if the bass wobbled because I seen it in a video. It did pre update it now doesn't end of discussion
Moderator Note: Post edited to keep things friendly.
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
Forget it 😂 it's literally a bass test tone to test a speaker, mine sounded absolutely awful before the update and had major bass wobbles now it has a steady tone and sounds great
Enjoy listening to bass test tones with 800$ product😂 Jokes apart, I was only stating my experiences.
Music bass tones are composed by frequencies... this is why this is the quickest way to test it.
some are saying they’re playing on YouTube have you tried other sources I’m not sure YouTube the best sound quality
Also I just tested penetrator by pleasurekraft on YouTube. The bass crackling is still very pronounced at volume 32. If the issue persists through this Friday my Arc is definitely going back.
Try another source, Amazon Prime or Netflix for example, rather than poor quality Youtube videos.
Unsure why some report it still has issues. Had noticed the issue before with the test tones, and in some certain scenes. Toystory 3 2:58 showed the issue. I have a playbar to compare to and definitely crackled/farted a bit during this scene. After the update issue is gone. Turn up to 100 percent with 40Hz tone, played bassy music (hiphop) and played the toystory scene all sound good.
Remember guys this is a soundbar. the bass wont compete with a subwoofer or bigger system. Maybe you are expecting different bass from what the arc is supposed to produce. Right now Arc sounds great. I turned off my surrounds and sub for these tests.
I dont think a thing as “step in the right direction” is even a thing. This wasn’t tuning was likely a bug with the DSP that was fixed to avoid this issue from happening.
However, just as a comment I’ve seen people on here and reddit claiming their SONOS one sound bad and distort horribly. Even shared clips. I cant hear much on the clips from my phone, or headphones. I wonder if these people are new to sonos and expecting home theater experience with the arc and sonos ones?
I do remember that it's a sound bar. The issue is that my old beam has better bass quality and clarity than the new £800 Arc.
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
Forget it 😂 it's literally a bass test tone to test a speaker, mine sounded absolutely awful before the update and had major bass wobbles now it has a steady tone and sounds great
Do you listen to single frequency tones in your free time or songs? I am curious.
I listen to songs you weirdo. It's a test tone I used to test if the bass wobbled because I seen it in a video. It did pre update it now doesn't end of discussion
Test more then, you genius. Passing 40 Hz test is not a proof of concept. Play the movies in which you actually noticed the issue. I did, and issue is not 100 % gone (I would put my money on it). I can still hear the crackling.
Well all I can state is that my experience with it post update, is it’s slightly better.
The Greatest Showman scene plays better for me when I turn the loudness on, bass +1 or 0 but the key is turning OFF trueplay. It still isn’t perfect and I think the playbar handled it much better and my beam + rears plays it much much better overall than the Arc + rears right now.
Also, I can play the same opening scene with loudness ON, trueplay ON and bass in the EQ to +10 if I want and it doesn’t distort the bass at all. I wouldn’t choose to listen to it this way but point being, I can do it without any worry. I feel like I would harm the Arc if I did the same during the opening scene with those settings.
If I turn trueplay back on, it is much much worse for the Arc though. It’s a significant difference in the amount of bass hitting too low and sounding like it’s bottoming out.
When it comes to music, I think it’s better than before. I don’t notice it much at all unless it’s a very heavy bass song and only certain bass frequencies in songs.
Perhaps Sonos is focusing on the music fix first, they did after all ask to test songs and not movie clips that are readily available, so maybe the next phase of the tweaks will focus on downloading clips to plug into your TV via USB or something. Not sure but it would make logical sense to do that but wish they would communicate this to people.
Again this is just my experience, I know everyone’s ears are different but coming from the playbar + rears to arc + rears… right now I would recommend the playbar but I’m hoping that changes very soon while Sonos continues to tweak the Arc.
Well all I can state is that my experience with it post update, is it’s slightly better.
The Greatest Showman scene plays better for me when I turn the loudness on, bass +1 or 0 but the key is turning OFF trueplay. It still isn’t perfect and I think the playbar handled it much better and my beam + rears plays it much much better overall than the Arc + rears right now.
If I turn trueplay back on, it is much much worse for the Arc though. It’s a significant difference in the amount of bass hitting too low and sounding like it’s bottoming out.
When it comes to music, I think it’s better than before. I don’t notice it much at all unless it’s a very heavy bass song and only certain bass frequencies in songs.
Perhaps Sonos is focusing on the music fix first, they did after all ask to test songs and not movie clips that are readily available, so maybe the next phase of the tweaks will focus on downloading clips to plug into your TV via USB or something. Not sure but it would make logical sense to do that but wish they would communicate this to people.
Again this is just my experience, I know everyone’s ears are different but coming from the playbar + rears to arc + rears… right now I would recommend the playbar but I’m hoping that changes very soon while Sonos continues to tweak the Arc.
There’s no such thing as movie/music audio difference though. If there’s an issue playing low frequency sounds it will show up across all content. Including test tones (hence why those tests show the issue AND the fix). Also, I am now wondering if the source content some are playing isnt good. I’ve heard the bass on the beam before, and the bass on the playbar I don’t understand how someone can claim the Beam has more clarity and bass than the arc or playbar. Not sure what is going on here. Maybe you have to re-tune your setup? There’s another possible issue with the Arc and trueplaying on some newer iphones
Unsure why some report it still has issues. Had noticed the issue before with the test tones, and in some certain scenes. Toystory 3 2:58 showed the issue. I have a playbar to compare to and definitely crackled/farted a bit during this scene. After the update issue is gone. Turn up to 100 percent with 40Hz tone, played bassy music (hiphop) and played the toystory scene all sound good.
Remember guys this is a soundbar. the bass wont compete with a subwoofer or bigger system. Maybe you are expecting different bass from what the arc is supposed to produce. Right now Arc sounds great. I turned off my surrounds and sub for these tests.
I dont think a thing as “step in the right direction” is even a thing. This wasn’t tuning was likely a bug with the DSP that was fixed to avoid this issue from happening.
However, just as a comment I’ve seen people on here and reddit claiming their SONOS one sound bad and distort horribly. Even shared clips. I cant hear much on the clips from my phone, or headphones. I wonder if these people are new to sonos and expecting home theater experience with the arc and sonos ones?
Okay I own a beam, Sonos ones etc. I do know how a distorted bass sounds like vs good one. I am not expecting the bass to compete with subwoofer. Also I am not expecting a different bass, don't know what that means. The bass coming from this Arc for CERTAIN songs/ movie scenes is definitely making crackling noise aka distortions even at volumes 34. Never had this issue with beam at same volume level or higher. Remember BEAM also is just a sound bar.
If you don't hear any such distortions maybe you are lucky but that doesn't mean all is well with Arc and we actually hearing it wrong.
Well all I can state is that my experience with it post update, is it’s slightly better.
The Greatest Showman scene plays better for me when I turn the loudness on, bass +1 or 0 but the key is turning OFF trueplay. It still isn’t perfect and I think the playbar handled it much better and my beam + rears plays it much much better overall than the Arc + rears right now.
If I turn trueplay back on, it is much much worse for the Arc though. It’s a significant difference in the amount of bass hitting too low and sounding like it’s bottoming out.
When it comes to music, I think it’s better than before. I don’t notice it much at all unless it’s a very heavy bass song and only certain bass frequencies in songs.
Perhaps Sonos is focusing on the music fix first, they did after all ask to test songs and not movie clips that are readily available, so maybe the next phase of the tweaks will focus on downloading clips to plug into your TV via USB or something. Not sure but it would make logical sense to do that but wish they would communicate this to people.
Again this is just my experience, I know everyone’s ears are different but coming from the playbar + rears to arc + rears… right now I would recommend the playbar but I’m hoping that changes very soon while Sonos continues to tweak the Arc.
There’s no such thing as movie/music audio difference though. If there’s an issue playing low frequency sounds it will show up across all content. Including test tones (hence why those tests show the issue AND the fix). Also, I am now wondering if the source content some are playing isnt good. I’ve heard the bass on the beam before, and the bass on the playbar I don’t understand how someone can claim the Beam has more clarity and bass than the arc or playbar. Not sure what is going on here. Maybe you have to re-tune your setup? There’s another possible issue with the Arc and trueplaying on some newer iphones
Trueplayed by an iPhone XR definitely makes the overall performance way worse.
Well all I can state is that my experience with it post update, is it’s slightly better.
The Greatest Showman scene plays better for me when I turn the loudness on, bass +1 or 0 but the key is turning OFF trueplay. It still isn’t perfect and I think the playbar handled it much better and my beam + rears plays it much much better overall than the Arc + rears right now.
If I turn trueplay back on, it is much much worse for the Arc though. It’s a significant difference in the amount of bass hitting too low and sounding like it’s bottoming out.
When it comes to music, I think it’s better than before. I don’t notice it much at all unless it’s a very heavy bass song and only certain bass frequencies in songs.
Perhaps Sonos is focusing on the music fix first, they did after all ask to test songs and not movie clips that are readily available, so maybe the next phase of the tweaks will focus on downloading clips to plug into your TV via USB or something. Not sure but it would make logical sense to do that but wish they would communicate this to people.
Again this is just my experience, I know everyone’s ears are different but coming from the playbar + rears to arc + rears… right now I would recommend the playbar but I’m hoping that changes very soon while Sonos continues to tweak the Arc.
There’s no such thing as movie/music audio difference though. If there’s an issue playing low frequency sounds it will show up across all content. Including test tones (hence why those tests show the issue AND the fix). Also, I am now wondering if the source content some are playing isnt good. I’ve heard the bass on the beam before, and the bass on the playbar I don’t understand how someone can claim the Beam has more clarity and bass than the arc or playbar. Not sure what is going on here. Maybe you have to re-tune your setup? There’s another possible issue with the Arc and trueplaying on some newer iphones
Yeah, I have no clue. I’m honestly grasping at straws because I felt like I was doing a good thing upgrading from the Playbar to the Arc and my expectations would be a Playbar on steroids with a wider sound stage.
I’ve retuned my setup multiple times and use an iPhone 6, so it’s not an issue with the mic that some report on the newer iPhones. We keep this one just for the sole purpose to Trueplay tune.
I’ve also removed/added a sub to the Arc + Surrounds and Beam + Surrounds. Obviously the sub really helps the Arc drastically but it really doesn't 100% fix it, it masks it pretty good though. Needless to say, I've removed and re-added speakers 5-6 times so I've gone through a complete setup many times.
All my content is bluray remux files, so the audio is good. I am more of a movie watcher on my Sonos systems than a music listener. I don’t turn the music up crazy loud but I do notice a night and day difference from my Playbar to the Arc when it comes to playing content.
I just hope they continue to ask for feedback and tweak things so that everyone is getting the same experience and that all the raving reviews we all read are what we all experience.
What do you guys mean it's still there? If you run a 40hz test tone at max volume and get no distortion how can the issue still be present exactly?
Forget 40hz test tone. I don't know what that is. Just try it out with real content like the song I referenced. I want my arc to sound good distortion free at respectable volume like 40-50 with movies and songs not with 40hz test tones.
Forget it 😂 it's literally a bass test tone to test a speaker, mine sounded absolutely awful before the update and had major bass wobbles now it has a steady tone and sounds great
Do you listen to single frequency tones in your free time or songs? I am curious.
I listen to songs you weirdo. It's a test tone I used to test if the bass wobbled because I seen it in a video. It did pre update it now doesn't end of discussion
Test more then, you genius. Passing 40 Hz test is not a proof of concept. Play the movies in which you actually noticed the issue. I did, and issue is not 100 % gone (I would put my money on it). I can still hear the crackling.
Maybe play different test tones until you find which is the frequency that generates this issue. It might be tedious but what you are hearing on the movie is a low frequency sound, so try to find that.
Well all I can state is that my experience with it post update, is it’s slightly better.
The Greatest Showman scene plays better for me when I turn the loudness on, bass +1 or 0 but the key is turning OFF trueplay. It still isn’t perfect and I think the playbar handled it much better and my beam + rears plays it much much better overall than the Arc + rears right now.
If I turn trueplay back on, it is much much worse for the Arc though. It’s a significant difference in the amount of bass hitting too low and sounding like it’s bottoming out.
When it comes to music, I think it’s better than before. I don’t notice it much at all unless it’s a very heavy bass song and only certain bass frequencies in songs.
Perhaps Sonos is focusing on the music fix first, they did after all ask to test songs and not movie clips that are readily available, so maybe the next phase of the tweaks will focus on downloading clips to plug into your TV via USB or something. Not sure but it would make logical sense to do that but wish they would communicate this to people.
Again this is just my experience, I know everyone’s ears are different but coming from the playbar + rears to arc + rears… right now I would recommend the playbar but I’m hoping that changes very soon while Sonos continues to tweak the Arc.
There’s no such thing as movie/music audio difference though. If there’s an issue playing low frequency sounds it will show up across all content. Including test tones (hence why those tests show the issue AND the fix). Also, I am now wondering if the source content some are playing isnt good. I’ve heard the bass on the beam before, and the bass on the playbar I don’t understand how someone can claim the Beam has more clarity and bass than the arc or playbar. Not sure what is going on here. Maybe you have to re-tune your setup? There’s another possible issue with the Arc and trueplaying on some newer iphones
Yeah, I have no clue. I’m honestly grasping at straws because I felt like I was doing a good thing upgrading from the Playbar to the Arc and my expectations would be a Playbar on steroids with a wider sound stage.
I’ve retuned my setup multiple times and use an iPhone 6, so it’s not an issue with the mic that some report on the newer iPhones. We keep this one just for the sole purpose to Trueplay tune.
I’ve also removed/added a sub to the Arc + Surrounds and Beam + Surrounds. Obviously the sub really helps the Arc drastically but it really doesn't 100% fix it, it masks it pretty good though.
All my content is bluray remux files, so the audio is good. I am more of a movie watcher on my Sonos systems than a music listener. I don’t turn the music up crazy loud but I do notice a night and day difference from my Playbar to the Arc when it comes to playing content.
I just hope they continue to ask for feedback and tweak things so that everyone is getting the same experience and that all the raving reviews we all read are what we all experience.
But you gotta try to find out what the issue is. Look up test tones play different frequencies, etc. Find specific content Record what you are hearing. But at this point I am wondering if you play this content on the playbar and go looking for it specifically I bet you’ll hear the crackling haha. Well, im speculating
Yeah, I’m not hearing it on the playbar or beam. I know what I’m hearing is not how it’s supposed to sound. The only way it sounds OK is if I turn the bass down drastically (which in reality, doesn’t sound great) or if I pair another $700 product with it.
I’ve also played many different clips that I tested on launch day that I immediately noticed it on. All of them present the same issue but some of the clips are better.
I guess I will wait to see what feedback they want on the next phase of the beta.
and maybe this is stupid to say, but I’ll be honest… when I got the playbar, I was pretty blown away and happy. I can’t say the same with the Arc. I didn’t want to spend $800 to listen to certain frequencies. I wanted to spend $800 to unbox, plug it in, play movies and hear better than playbar sound, and that’s not what I’m getting right now.
Unsure why some report it still has issues. Had noticed the issue before with the test tones, and in some certain scenes. Toystory 3 2:58 showed the issue. I have a playbar to compare to and definitely crackled/farted a bit during this scene. After the update issue is gone. Turn up to 100 percent with 40Hz tone, played bassy music (hiphop) and played the toystory scene all sound good.
Remember guys this is a soundbar. the bass wont compete with a subwoofer or bigger system. Maybe you are expecting different bass from what the arc is supposed to produce. Right now Arc sounds great. I turned off my surrounds and sub for these tests.
I dont think a thing as “step in the right direction” is even a thing. This wasn’t tuning was likely a bug with the DSP that was fixed to avoid this issue from happening.
However, just as a comment I’ve seen people on here and reddit claiming their SONOS one sound bad and distort horribly. Even shared clips. I cant hear much on the clips from my phone, or headphones. I wonder if these people are new to sonos and expecting home theater experience with the arc and sonos ones?
Okay I own a beam, Sonos ones etc. I do know how a distorted bass sounds like vs good one. I am not expecting the bass to compete with subwoofer. Also I am not expecting a different bass, don't know what that means. The bass coming from this Arc for CERTAIN songs/ movie scenes is definitely making crackling noise aka distortions even at volumes 34. Never had this issue with beam at same volume level or higher. Remember BEAM also is just a sound bar.
If you don't hear any such distortions maybe you are lucky but that doesn't mean all is well with Arc and we actually hearing it wrong.
As I said, what content? what time stamp? where are the recordings? If you are saying there’s an issue and want to be taken seriously do the work and tag Ryan and say hey look into this. There is also a remote possibility you got a defective arc. Those definitely exist. Many have had issues with the new sub making ticking noises and got replacements…
I also say I did notice the issue before both with test tones and some movie scenes I would hear the pulsating/farting sound. I do not hear that anymore. So maybe you are onto a different issue, if so you gotta do some better than “Certain scenes! NOT FIXED! there’s crackling “
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