Sonos Beam and Bose QC headphones in Samsung TV

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154 replies

J
Hi, I just created a profile to allow me to keep track of this issue. Please count me as another customer that finds this hugely annoying. I just purchased a beam last month, and definitely would not have if i knew that it was designed this way. Having to constantly unplug and replug the HDMI is no doubt going to cause problems down the road.
W
I have the exact issue with LG OLED65C7P with SONOS Beam via HDMI-ARC and Bose QC Bluetooth Headphones.

I paired the headphones to TV, but when I switch the audio output on the TV to "LG Soundsync / Bluetooth", the Bluetooth Headphones work momentarily (3 seconds), then automatically switches back to the Beam on HDMI-ARC. The Bose Headphones still show connected but Beam steals the audio back.

There is a workaround, by going to Settings, Sound, Sound Out, and turning off "Simplink (HDMI-CEC), but this is a pain to do every time I want to use the headphones. You have to re-enable this setting to use Beam again.

Any ideas?
MikeV
Userlevel 7
Badge +21
Not that this should be hard for Sonos to reproduce, but it might help to have some diagnostic reports from your systems. If you could submit a diagnostic report after switching your TV's audio output and having Sonos take it back, then post the confirmation number here, I'll point a Sonos employee this way so they can dig into what's going on here.

Here's my diagnostic: 364484165

Samsung UN55KS800D TV
Sonos Beam via HDMI
Bose SoundLink Bluetooth headphones connected to TV

I make no guarantees that there will be a fix... this could just be how HDMI-CEC functions with regards to external audio devices... but I would think that if you switch away, it should honor that until you switch back.
The S in IOT stands for Security.
S

Hi All, just joined this community to share my frustration on this. 

It’s simple: 1. allow us to connect our headphones to the beam, or 2. let us use the tv’s bluetooth functionality.

As others have raised already, other CEC connected soundbars are not having these issues with ie Samsung or LG tv’s, so surely there must be a way to fix this with an update. I am sure the Sonos team would agree that pulling out hdmi cables or having to go into advanced tv settings to shut off CEC is not a solution, but rather a workaround to a problem.

Also, I’ve read through all messages here and it surprises me that there hasn’t been an official response from Sonos on this in 2 years?

Thanks all for raising your concerns on this thread-let’s make sure the Sonos engineers read this...

 

S
Userlevel 4
Badge +2
I wouldn't think this is a Sonos issue to resolve honestly. The Beam is completely unaware of the headphone/Bluetooth connection going on between the TV and the headphones. It's up to the TV to understand and determine where it should be sending audio.

I don't think that is true Danny. Using another soundbar over HDMI ARC, when switching to the TV speaker or headphones on Bluetooth, it respects the change of speaker, where as the Sonos Beam reconnects itself as the speaker when a different speaker is selected. This is a Sonos issue and they have said that they have made this the behaviour by design. Which obviously sucks
C
Userlevel 5
Badge +12
Sonos sent me a DM on this. They said the Beam was designed to work this way and the solution is to turn off HDMI-ARC on the tv when using headphones or unplug the cable from the Beam. Clearly not ideal - I think this should be able to be ‘fixed’ with a software update.

Come on Sonos, you can't advice to "remove the cable from the Beam"... Come on
P
This is an absolutely ridiculous problem to have. Sonos need to investigate and fix.
Creative workarounds by adding parts to my TV or disabling CEC control are simply not acceptable solutions for a premium brand product. Especially when you can buy any number of cheaper alternatives which function properly.

Why is the Sonos beam adopting a completely different behaviour than any other soundbar on the market? Plenty of which have voice assistants and other features such as being able to turn on/off the TV through the soundbar controls.

I'd be interested to know if this is even the same same behaviour on their own product lines of alternative TV speaker systems which also function through ARC? Any complaints from play base/bar?
ratty
Have you actually heard an official statement from Sonos' product team or is that conjecture?
There was official response here and here.
S
Userlevel 4
Badge +2
I’ve gone back to hdmi and unplugging the cable everytime I used the headphones...
P
I've got the same problem with my setup (Sonos Beam, Samsung Q8C 65, Bose QuietComfort 35/Sony MDR-1000X), and it's *really* annoying. Would love to see a fix for this soon.
S
Userlevel 4
Badge +2
Hi everyone, this is still something that's being looked at, but there isn't any news to share on if there will be a resolution at this time. Because it's caused by the way that the Beam establishes CEC control for TVs, it's a side effect of the core functionality of a feature. Currently, the best solution if you use your headphones a lot is to either disable CEC in the TV settings, unplug the Beam while using Bluetooth audio output, or use the Optical Adapter to connect the Beam to your TV instead.

Hi Ryan, is Sonos still reviewing this issue or will we be stuck with unplugging the Beam each team we use Bluetooth headphones?
B
Adding my +1. I’ve also resorted to unplugging the Beam when using Bluetooth headphones. It would be fantastic to be able to reliably use Bluetooth headphones seamlessly. I’ve got a Samsung Q6FN with the Beam connected via the ARC hdmi input. I absolutely love everything about my Sonos setup with this issue being the one exception. Thank you for being receptive to hearing our collective woes and I appreciate the time and energy put into resolving this issue.
C
Adding my +1 too. This issue is infuriating because some Sonos Beam are unable to reconnect to wifi after unplugging/plugging: https://en.community.sonos.com/troubleshooting-228999/sonos-beam-unable-to-communicate-with-it-6813438
D
Adding my +1. Would love a fix for this. It is really inconvenient to plug-unplug the ARC every time I want to use my Bluetooth headset with Munjal samsung tv.
D
Hi Sonos Community,

I found a unique work-around for the time being. This is what I did. I had this Taotronics Bluetooth Transmitter (link below) lying around that I use to connect multiple Bluetooth headsets to my TV. My Sonos Beam is connected to the ARC. The transmitter can connect through the Optical Audio Out.

My TV (Samsung 65" 8-Series) transmits audio from the Optical out in addition to the ARC. So for now. I mute my Sonos and connect by Bluetooth to the Taotronics transmitter instead of the TV and enjoy Bluetooth audio from my TV (that comes from the transmitter now).

This is a workaround that works!

However SONOS still needs to fix the main problem.

Here is a link to the transmitter I am using - https://www.amazon.com/TaoTronics-Bluetooth-Transmitter-Receiver-Wireless/dp/B01KO1JNCA/ref=asc_df_B01KO1JNCA/
C
Hi, just putting my two pennies worth in. Have the Beam and 2 play1’s connected to Sony tv via ARC. I also have this problem when I connect my Sony Bluetooth headphones for ‘quiet viewing’. No matter what I try, the Beam turns itself back on within a few seconds of sound being played. This results in sound playing through headphones and Beam! I’ve noted the responses in this thread but I certainly don’t want to be disconnecting HDMI all the time nor playing with settings within the Tv. There has to be an easier solution by way of an addition in the Sonos app to allow a ‘forced’ stop on the beam or a ‘headphone’ mode which mutes the beam?? Hope it gets resolved soon!? On another note - Beam and Play 1’s for surround sound performs exceptionally well!
lewisc
Userlevel 4
Badge +9
I don't have any of the issues or even a Beam 😃 But I got a though. Not sure if it would be a good / bad idea or even possible.

My Idea:
what about if future products such as the Beam / Playbar, (any speaker that allows a TV to be connected) had a bluetooth transmitter in it to allow wireless headphones to be connected. The speaker could see that bluetooth headphones are connected, directing all audio from TV to headphones, muting the speaker (Beam/Playbar) + connected group but not affecting other ungrouped speakers in other rooms playing from other sources. ???
Authorised Sonos Installer
U
Userlevel 1

Just purchased a new Samsung TV today and a Sonos beam+sub and now have this issue when connecting my Bose Bluetooth headset. The HDMI-CEC workaround is not good/nice, so I really hope that Sonos can fix this issue somehow.

A
Userlevel 1
Badge
Hi, same problem for me! Had to turn off HDMI CEC on my Samsung TV to be able to use Bluetooth headphones.
I hope Sonos will make a fix to be able to switch on headphones without going through a bunch of TV menus.
Thanks!
S
Userlevel 4
Badge +2
Come on Sonos! We need an update on this problem
R
Badge
Hi Sonos,
I write my very first message to voice my frustration and extrem disapointment.
I bought a beam with my new Samsung Q9FN TV because I have been garantied a smooth experience.
I spent all my evening upset trying to find a solution with my BT headphones, facing this issue.
Finding this thread this morning and reading that a solution is to 'unplug' the beam infuriates me. (Other workarounds do not make me happy either)

Please Sonos, be honest, and tell me if a software fix is possible? Or if this cannot be fixed by design? (regardless of when such a fix would happen)

Me, keeping using, praising and recommending Sonos products or not depends on that.

Thank you
F
Userlevel 1
Badge +1
Same Problem and hoping this is will be fixed soon!
J
+1... Disappointing Sonos, I just purchased expensive Bluetooth headphones for the purpose of watching TV at night to not disturb my young daughter, only to find this bug on my overpriced TV soundbar (beam) please sort it out!
M
+1 same issue. hope that after spending 450 euro for a soundbar a fix is available, not just unplug HDMI.
A
Userlevel 1
Badge +1
For all the angst being expressed, I do wish people would read the earlier posts in this thread.

As per this post, the simplest solution as it stands is to use an external Bluetooth transmitter, wired to the TV's optical output. Completely independent of the Beam, and moreover capable of delivering better quality/latency than the TV's internal Bluetooth.

The response from the user below your post states that this did not work for him. Also, I do not regard the purchase of an external blutooth transmitter to be a reasonable solution to what seems to be a fundamental design flaw in the Beam.
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