Question

Sonos Beam and lack of Dolby

  • 2 November 2020
  • 8 replies
  • 657 views
A
Badge +1

Hi,

I recently bought a Sonos Beam and two Sonos One SLs to use as rear speakers. Set up was easy and I like the sound. However, I quickly realized that my TV (Philips, not sure of the model) doesn’t support Dolby digital. I can only choose between multichannel, Dolby Digital Plus, stereo (uncompressed) and multichannel (bypass). I tried updating the TV software but it didn’t resolve this. 

My knowledge about codecs and audio components is basically zero, but I understand that Dolby digital is needed in order to get the best out of the Beam. Therefore I wonder if there is a way around this, and if not, what the best setting is with my current components. How much of a difference does DTS make?

The TV is fairly new and I’m not considering buying a new one anytime soon. As I understand it, Arc will support DD+ but this would mean quite an expensive upgrade and I’m not sure it’s justified, maybe someone can comment on that as well. 

Thanks!

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8 replies

Rowena B.
Userlevel 5
Badge +16

Hi @abrovinsch, thank you for reaching out to the Sonos community. I appreciate your detailed post describing the issue as well as the steps that you did. Let me help you with this.

To adjust the audio format within the TV’s Sound or Audio menu. Typically, these settings are located under Digital Audio Format or Audio Output. DTS audio format which is not supported by Sonos. This setting needs to be changed to one of the following audio formats supported by Sonos:

Dolby Digital 5.1
PCM
Stereo

Sonos Arc 

Dolby TrueHD (Dolby Atmos)
Dolby Digital Plus (Dolby Atmos)

Let me suggest the following steps to see if this would work for you and if it will improve the audio.

1. Unplug the HDMI cable from the Sonos Beam and the TV. 
2. Unplug the power cable from your TV, the Sonos Beam, and any connected audio source (such as a cable box or video game console). Wait 30 seconds before you plug them back in.
2. Reconnect the HDMI cable to your TV and the Sonos Beam. Inspect the HDMI cable to ensure it’s not bent or kinked and check to see that it’s fully inserted into both devices.
3. Update the TV’s software (if available)
4. Adjust the audio format
5. Adjust the group audio delay

Observe your Sonos system performance. If you will encounter the same, please submit a diagnostic report from your Sonos system for us to check. Just include the confirmation number in your response so that we can look up the information.

Let us know how you get on with the advice above. We'll wait for your reply.

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controlav
Userlevel 7
Badge +23

If you post the model # we can go find the manual and hopefully help you fix this. It is unlikely that a modern TV does not support dolby digital. (It is a legal requirement in the USA).

Author of the leading independent Sonos app for Windows, the only Sonos app for Xbox, and a Sonos app for iOS
A
Badge +1

Thanks for your replies. The model number for the TV is 49PUS6412/12. As far as I understand, audio output should be set to multichannel (bypass). However, according to the About page in the Sonos app, it’s still receiving “Stereo 2.0”. Though I can’t find anything about Dolby digital in the manual, only Dolby digital plus and DTS. 

N
Userlevel 7
Badge +18

What source are you watching? Not all tv is broadcast in DD - here in the UK there are only a handful of DD-capable  channels, and even then many programs on those channels are stereo/DD 2.0 rather than DD 5.1. 

A
Badge +1

Mostly using Chromecast or different streaming services built in the TV (Netflix etc). 

H
Userlevel 3
Badge +4

Try using a optical cable. 

controlav
Userlevel 7
Badge +23

I found an English manual: https://www.download.p4c.philips.com/files/4/49pus6412_12/49pus6412_12_dfu_eng.pdf

Digital out format should be set to Multichannel (page 49).

Author of the leading independent Sonos app for Windows, the only Sonos app for Xbox, and a Sonos app for iOS
A
Badge +1

Hi again,

I tried setting it to multichannel but it still says “Stereo 2.0” in the Sonos app/about page. I suppose I’ll just have to accept that I won’t get Dolby digital with my current setup. And as I mentioned, I’m not really sure how much of a difference it makes anyway. Thanks for all your help! 

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