Sonos Beam low volume


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Got my Beam today (16th) and am pleased with it so far, but I'm having to boost the TV volume much higher that it was with the TV speakers. Without the Beam the TV was at about the right volume at a setting of 30 whereas via the Beam it needs to be in the 70's to 80's (and thats nearly maxed out) to get the same perceived volume

It's a Sony Bravia TV with the Beam connected via the HDMI ARC and a pair of Play:1s as surrounds.

Anybody got any suggestions as to either TV or Sonos settings. I've played TV Level slider from the app. but it doesn't seem to make much impact?

I'll continue playing about in the meantime

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58 replies

Hi Matt, experiencing the exact same issue as yourself (with a Samsung TV) and there doesn't appear to be any fix or even the admission that this is a problem from what I have seen. Regarding HDMI ARC Vs Optical I was getting the exact same sound out of both from my TV. It would be interesting to see if you have same behaviour.
Suggy.. is your problem with low volume resolved? I had the issue when I setup the beam. I played around with the sound settings a bit. it seems setting the headphone/audio out in Sony android tv to Variable then increasing the volume to 30 and then reverting audio output to Fixed may have resolved my issue. I am seeing improvements now on the volume. I am getting desired volume at low setting in the remote now
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I wonder if this issue is to do with dd5.1 sources? [...] At lower volumes parts of the mix such as quiet voices or music are just way too low. But using might mode or speech enhancement doesn’t entirely fix it as both introduce significant downsides. Tiny voices or in the case of night mode removal of all noticeable bass.

I find that with 5.1 sources the sound bar just isn’t balanced especially at low volumes. Anyone else experienced this?


Exactly this. Switching the output (from either Netflix or from the TV HDMI settings) to a stereo signal immediately delivers a more balanced mix with clear voices.

With 5.1 I get an overly dramatic mix with massive emphasis on special effects and music, but barely audible voices. To make out what people are saying the volume needs to be cranked up so high I'm afraid my neighbors will start complaining soon.

I'm thinking about getting a pair of Play 1's for surround but not before this 5.1 issue is fixed.


do you guys have the balance volume issue for every video?
i have the same behaviour since Version 9 but not for all Videos
seems to be ralated with
https://en.community.sonos.com/home-theater-228993/sonos-beam-dd5-1-problem-6810138
Just thought I would add perhaps a slightly different perspective here. I have an LG TV model 28MT48S and my TV volume-out via HDMI-ARC seems perfect with the Beam in a 5.0 surround setup with two Play:1’s . The normal LG TV volume controls are single digit increments, between 1 and 100 and a setting of 30 to 35 is more than loud enough for my dining room which seats eight to ten people, whilst it’s max volume is also loud, but without any distortion being evident. It is certainly more than loud enough for my small room (and ears) and would definitely dusturb the neighbours next door, or even the folk in the house after that, at its max setting.

I’m not seeing much volume difference between PCM and Dolby Digital output either and switching over to playing music seems to be on par with the TV sound.

So this appears to me to possibly be a TV audio-out issue, by some brands and or models of TV perhaps?

Obviously I’m no TV audio expert, but presumably there is no industry set standard here for volume output and that each manufacturer are gearing things for their own in-built TV speakers and their own brand of soundbars, leaving other manufacturers, like Sonos, having to average their sound accordingly across all the various different brands and models.

I’m just wondering if pin-pointing that average audio output, to suit the majority, is something Sonos would choose to do with the new Beam, once they have been able to collect the data and feedback from its 'real-world' users, as it would be nigh on impossible to test the Beam with every make and model of TV out there, prior to its public launch date.
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well, there a lot different issues with volume for the Beam, maybe related to Version 9 like in my case.
to watch movies is almost a nightmare with DD...
i did troubleshooting and everythings leads to Sonos and Version 9, i wish it would not the case but thats it.

my experince with the beam regarding HDMI ARC is not good, so i am using optical ,might be als an root cause in some cases.

but the TV just passes the audio signal to Sonos and they are processing it and if the sounds is good for tv speakers, something is wrong with the Sonos processing ot whatever.

maybe the support for some TVs has changed in Version 9 or whatever, but Sonos Support is not really able to get the issue and says, its normal for action movies....yes, but not this extreme and fact, before Version 9 i had no Volume issues.

i guess we have to live with it and hepfully with newer version solved.
Hi,
I also have some volume issues, but I'm almost sure the differences/problems are in my TV box (orange 4K box):

Before changing my setup with the beam I used a yamaha rxv3900 and already the volume needed to be quite UP using this tv box (between -35 and -30db), my previous (SFR) box with the same setup needed between -60db and -55db.

So I suppose it's the same the the beam.

The difference now is DD vs stero: some tv channels are in stereo and the Orange TV Box send a very low volume thru hdmi (and in this case the volume is controllable with my orange remote, and it's low event at 100%), and some other channel (or netflix app in the orange box) are in DD5.1, and DD5.1 is sent directly to the beam, in this case the volume is at lot more louder and is not changed by the orange tv remote.

So for me it's not a sonos/beam problem, but more a orange problem: they did not any uniformization in volume between channels and the stero volume is by default very low (and I did not found any option to change this setting).
[the orange tv box audio is set to HDMI/Home Theater 5.1 mode]
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Same problem here. Ran my LG OLED B6V with playbar flawless but with the beam the volume at Netflix and Other streamingservices are way to high when switching sources from tv. So when the kids switch source, se all go nuts.

Not impressed with the playbar at all Sonos. Got my 100 days returnpolicy to lean at..thinking of using it.
Same issue. Just sent a diagnostic. Was the issue solved for anyone? Low, embarassing volume on TV while plays great on any streaming music service...
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Check the volume on your satellitebox, mine was in the lower part, thats what caused the diffrence in volume here.. (shame on me)
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That remote is never used, its in the closet. So i wonder what happend..
I am having the same issue with TV / Netflix / Plex being much lower than when playing music through streaming.

It's very annoying and scaring the sh## out of everyone when switching sources.

Can you please look more in to this Sonos?
If not, I might return this product..

I have a Philips TV.
Same issue here. I have a Samsung TV and using my Beam with HDMI ARC. Volume on Spotify and radio is great, but when I turn on my TV, the volume of the Beam is very low and I have to turn it up to like 80%. When I turn off my TV and turn the radio back on, I scares the sh*t out of me! Please fix this Sonos!
Same issue here. I have a Samsung TV and using my Beam with HDMI ARC. Volume on Spotify and radio is great, but when I turn on my TV, the volume of the Beam is very low and I have to turn it up to like 80%. When I turn off my TV and turn the radio back on, I scares the sh*t out of me! Please fix this Sonos!
Are you sure it isn’t your TV that is doing this? I’m not having the same issue with my LG TV... surely the Beam can only output the signal that the TV sends to it. If it was the Beam at fault, then surely everyone, me included, would all have the same problem, my volumes are the same when using PCM stereo and the volume is just 'slightly' louder when using 5.1 DD surround sound, but that’s because my Surround Speakers LS & RS are added into the mix, but my Beam volume level is there or thereabouts the same, whether I’m watching TV or Netflix or playing Spotify/Amazon Music on the Beam.

In terms of Music, I can increase the volume of the surrounds by switching their settings from 'Ambient' to 'FULL', that obviously will increase the volume from those, but it only applies to a Sonos/Alexa music source.

Perhaps speak to Samsung Support about your issue and see what they say. There maybe some way to increase the TV audio output volume via your HDMI-ARC port, to bring it into line with the Spotify audio volume.
Same issue here. I have a Samsung TV and using my Beam with HDMI ARC. Volume on Spotify and radio is great, but when I turn on my TV, the volume of the Beam is very low and I have to turn it up to like 80%. When I turn off my TV and turn the radio back on, I scares the sh*t out of me! Please fix this Sonos!
Are you sure it isn’t your TV that is doing this? I’m not having the same issue with my LG TV... surely the Beam can only output the signal that the TV sends to it. If it was the Beam at fault, then surely everyone, me included, would all have the same problem, my volumes are the same when using PCM stereo and the volume is just 'slightly' louder when using 5.1 DD surround sound, but that’s because my Surround Speakers LS & RS are added into the mix, but my Beam volume level is there or thereabouts the same, whether I’m watching TV or Netflix or playing Spotify/Amazon Music on the Beam.

In terms of Music, I can increase the volume of the surrounds by switching their settings from 'Ambient' to 'FULL', that obviously will increase the volume from those, but it only applies to a Sonos/Alexa music source.

Perhaps speak to Samsung Support about your issue and see what they say. There maybe some way to increase the TV audio output volume via your HDMI-ARC port, to bring it into line with the Spotify audio volume.


Thanks for the reply. I've checked my TV audio settings. The output is set out "External speakers", which makes all the other settings greyed out, except PCM / Dolby. When I switch from PCM to Dolby, the volume is higher, but still not in line. All other audio settings are greyed out.

I will contact Samsung support to see if they can help me.
Hi everyone,

I've been following this thread since I got my Beam. I've spent many hours researching why I was getting low volume output from my Samsung (2014) TV, and I've now reached a conclusion.

I was always able to get decent volume output from the TV when the source was the INTERNAL tuner, or Smart TV apps accessed directly from the Samsung Smart Hub. This was lovely, rich DD 5.1 sound - the Beam working exactly as I expected. However, for any external HDMI source (PS4, BT YouView STB, Chromecast, etc.) I was getting only bog-standard stereo sound, which sounds rubbish and really quiet by comparison.

The Beam was connected to my TV via HDMI-ARC. All external devices connected to other HDMI ports. I must have tried every combination of settings, but could never get DD 5.1 passed through to the Beam from those external HDMI sources. This was confirmed by checking in the 'About My Sonos System' section of the iOS app.

So here is the problem: older TVs (especially Samsungs) will not pass-through DD 5.1 via HDMI-ARC or Optical/TOSLINK from any external HDMI source. My TV can output DD 5.1 from its own internal sources, but will not re-direct DD 5.1 from an external source to the Beam. I've read that this is something to do with the EDID 'handshake' between the TV and the external HDMI source. That might not be 100% technically accurate (before anyone jumps in to correct me), but I believe that is the gist of things.

So, if you have an older TV and are struggling with this issue, I suggest you do some research into your TV model to see whether it is capable of passing through DD 5.1 from external HDMI sources via HDMI-ARC. If not, your Sonos Beam will not be able to output DD 5.1 from these sources. It seems there is no fix.

However, there is a workaround that I have found. It's not ideal, but it's preferable (for me) to spending £££ on a new television.

My set-up is now as follows:
- STB and PS4 connected to TV via HDMI (for video only).
- STB, PS4 and TV all independently wired with Optical TOSLINK to carry audio output.
- All Optical TOSLINK cables feeding into an Optical Switcher (I purchased this one from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/CSL-Toslink-transmission-receiver-speakers/dp/B015O5DHOG/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8).
- One more Optical TOSLINK cable from the output slot of the Optical Switcher into the Optical-to-HDMI adapter that came packaged with the Sonos Beam. This connects in to the Beam.

So I am essentially feeding all audio sources via Optical TOSLINK directly into the Beam, omitting HDMI-ARC and bypassing the TV as a middleman for audio from the external HDMI sources.

It works like a charm - DD 5.1 now plays from all sources now (assuming that you have adjusted the settings on your device to output DD 5.1 audio via Optical and/or that the content itself is coded for DD 5.1).

The only downside is that you lose the functionality that you get with HDMI-ARC (Alexa voice controls for the TV, etc.) AND you have to remember to switch the source on the Optical Switcher, but otherwise it's working as I hoped.

Hope that this clears up a lot of things for folks struggling with this issue. Happy to answer any questions about my setup.

Thanks
I just spoke to Sonos support regarding this problem.
I was told it is by design?! So when i explained that i have to turn the tv near to 100% then when i switch music, it comes out twice the volume. He still said it was by design.
It's my first sonos speaker but if this is the case it will be going back Monday and I'll stick with my Samsung's.

Has anyone else had a similar response from support, it doesn't seem right?
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Hi it seems I have the same volume problem between TV and music source with the Beam.
For TV I have to increase volume to 50%.
When I switch to music listening, 50% of full volume is crazy.
I have the same problem.

Sonos Beam
Sony Bravia KD43XE8005
Virgin Tivo V6
Apple TV

All have erratic and radically differing volume levels - even within one source. i.e. if I watch a channel on Tivo on volume level 10, then watch another channel or a recording on Tivo, it can be that I need to turn up to volume level to 70-80.

Surely this is wrong, and fundamental - why has Sonos not designed their premium product to just plug and play? Do I really have to trouble shoot and become an audio expert on behalf of Sonos?

I have managed to slightly balance the sound by setting the Sony TV digital audio out to PCM and also the Tivo V6 dolby digital to PCM, but there is still unacceptable volume variance between channels; and also the volume still needs to be set high.

What's the fix Sonos? and why should there even be a fix?

I've been on messenger with Sonos, but they just keep asking for diagnostics, which I'll continue with for a while.

I've contacted my supplier who has said they will accept a return and will refund. Just seems a shame this product does not work.
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Just a thought for those with Sonys as I have a x900e. If your issue is with PCM content, under the Menu > Sound Adjustments > Common > Digital Audio Out Volume should be set to Max. Also, the Sound and Picture settings on my set are HDMI input specific so don’t go thinking that if you changed it while it’s set to the DVD player that it will remain that way when you change to the cable box HDMI input. Also, turn off ClearAudio+ as you don’t want processing altering the sound and Sound Mode as Standard. Under input related, the Dolby dynamic range is set to Standard and Dolby Digital Plus Output is Dolby Digital.

And somebody already touched on adjusting the set top box’s volume under it’s settings. (Not just hitting the volume + on the remote.). On a FIOS box - Under settings, you set the Volume Control to Fixed and then ensure that the Volume is cranked to Max - might have to crank the volume to max before setting it to fixed. Audio format should be surround.

And do not use the new Volume Limiter feature in the Sonos app! It does not simply just prevent the volume from going past the percentage you set it to. It will adjust the loudness of all volume levels by that percent.
Lads, got a lovely new Beam. Connected to Sky + & Sony Bravia 55" Happy days. Let's rock the joint I said.
Perfect for tunes. Netflix was unreal! Sky box sounded like it was under water! Feck that I said! Seriously!!!!!
Tricked about for a bit with TV audio settings, Beam audio settings, all sorts of settings.
Then logged on here and read near an hour of this guff! Jesus what have I done buying this yolk.
Went and had a cuppa tea! I think better waiting for the kettle it seems.
Came back, Sky remote - services - settings - sound - Digital Audio Output (HDMI) - Changed to Dolby D
BOOM! I love Tea.
Sounds savage, sent me scrambling for the volume down button. Feck, should have seen that coming. ;-)
Then I noticed there was a wee lag. And sure enough two options down from the output on the same page is the delay function. Set it to 40ms as it's a fair run to the Sky box from the TV and BOOM again.
So stop abusing all the nice guys in Sonos Land and give it a whirl.
That's me signing off. Hope it helps some lads out and let's you enjoy the Beam as intended.
RESOLVED ON SONY ANDROID TV.
I had the same problem...I resolved it by going to Settings - Audio - Sound - Advance Settings - Reset.
Resetting the audio settings has worked for me
First post here but I may have solved this issue, at least with my non android Sony Bravia TV. I have just got my beam and found that I could fill my room with sound at 50% volume when listening to music but had to have it set to 50% to just hear the TV. I have tried every setting in the sound menu and nothing made a difference. I then checked all the other settings and found my dynamic range under digital set up audio settings was set to compressed by the factory. I changed this to standard and a significant increase in volume was immediately apparent without me touching any volume controls.
TLDR try this: settings--> digital set up--> audio set up--> dynamic range--> make sure it is set to standard rather than compressed. Hope this helps someone with a non android Sony Bravia TV.
Resolved this on Samsung ES8000. Was having the same issue. Resolved this by going into Menu > Sound > Additional Settings > SPDIF Output > Audio Format. This was set to PCM, changed it to Dolby Digital and hey presto the sound came booming out! 😃
I was having a similar issue, seems obvious but have you checked if there’s a volume limit set for the room?

Settings > Room Settings > (name of room where the beam is) > volume limit.

Mine was at 70% and I had to have my Bravia at nearly full volume when using my Xbox. Now I’ve removed its fine at about half way.
My Samsung TV starts with the internal speakers, and after around 10 seconds it switches to the Beam. However, the Beam starts at 0 volume and I always have to turn it up manually. Is it possible to set a default start volume?
TV is a Samsung UE48H6715, from around 2015. Its connected with HDMI-ARC.