Sonos eARC support

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I've a TV that support's eARC, and have already invested in Sonos around the house for music. I'm looking at Sonos AMP as the basis for building an AV solution for my TV. eARC has a number of benefits, however lip sync support might be the most significant. The question is, is Sonos going to update the AMP to support this, like some of the other manufacturers such Samsung and Sony are already doing? Thanks!

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AjTrek1Answer

Hi carbolight

Supporting eARC in the Sonos Amp IMO is a moot point. eARC is intended to deliver uncompressed audio to allow users to enjoy multi-channel audio such as Dolby Atmos or DTX:S on devices that can process the signal (i.e. sound bars etc)

The Sonos Amp is designed for Stereo reproduction using 3rd party speakers and/or the connection of a stereo component via RCA input. Although it can be used in a Sonos HT setup it does not offer true DD5.1 as it lacks support for a center channel.

The center channel audio produced is a "phantom" created by the left and right speakers. Only the Playbar, Playbase and Beam offer left/center/right channels. Also, no Sonos HT (front) speaker supports Dolby Atmos or DTS:X.

That's kind'a like asking which came first the chicken or the egg in reference to Sonos HT speakers and the Sonos Amp.

I hope this answers your question. Besides even if it were possible (or made sense) to incorporate eARC support in the Sonos Amp....Sonos isn't going to divulge future plans for it's components.

To quote LA Confidential...It's always Top Secret and Very Hush, Hush???

Cheers!

Together Everyone Achieves More = T.E.A.M.

AjTrek1Answer

Hi carbolight

Supporting eARC in the Sonos Amp IMO is a moot point. eARC is intended to deliver uncompressed audio to allow users to enjoy multi-channel audio such as Dolby Atmos or DTX:S on devices that can process the signal (i.e. sound bars etc)

The Sonos Amp is designed for Stereo reproduction using 3rd party speakers and/or the connection of a stereo component via RCA input. Although it can be used in a Sonos HT setup it does not offer true DD5.1 as it lacks support for a center channel.

The center channel audio produced is a "phantom" created by the left and right speakers. Only the Playbar, Playbase and Beam offer left/center/right channels. Also, no Sonos HT (front) speaker supports Dolby Atmos or DTS:X.

That's kind'a like asking which came first the chicken or the egg in reference to Sonos HT speakers and the Sonos Amp.

I hope this answers your question. Besides even if it were possible (or made sense) to incorporate eARC support in the Sonos Amp....Sonos isn't going to divulge future plans for it's components.

To quote LA Confidential...It's always Top Secret and Very Hush, Hush???

Cheers!

Together Everyone Achieves More = T.E.A.M.

controlav

Lead Maestro

eARC requires substantially more hardware than ARC, so there's no way today's Sonos hardware can magically start supporting eARC. As AjTrek says there are a lot of other technical issues, in addition to the hardware issue.

Author of the leading independent Sonos apps for Android, MacOS, iOS, Windows and Xbox.

melvimbe

Sonos rarely gives out information about future product enhancements. I would say that Sonos does want their products to remain relevant on the market for a long time, so it's likely that the amp (and Beam) does have the hardware to support such an enhancement. I would say it's a good bet, but certainly not guaranteed.

If it were me, with eARC being of great importance to me, I'd take one of took paths. One is to go with Samsung/Sony eARC options now and use a Sonos Connect to link that system with Sonos. Two would be to go with the Amp with a back up plan of using the Amp elsewhere in the house, or selling it, at a later date if does not support eARC when you've run out of patience for it to come.

Danny

Ryan S

Retired Sonos Staff

Some good answers all around! I don't have any specific details on adding eARC that I can share, but I'll let the team know you're looking for it.

There shouldn't be any lip sync issues with the Beam or Amp over ARC, as the data transmit rate is already quick enough to be unnoticeable. If you do notice any lip sync issues, likely there's some extra processing happening at the TV level, before the audio is sent to Sonos. Sometimes it happens as a result of the TV's processor having issues sending the audio while processing HD video. Currently, eARC is only on a handful of TVs, and they're all flagship TVs, which should be sporting the best internal specs and therefore better able to handle processing HD video and audio concurrently.

Mark good posts by pressing the like button, and select the best answer on questions you've asked to help others find solutions.

C

carbolightAuthor

Contributor I

Thank you for the replies. What a great community Sonos has!

I guess I can work on the basis that eARC may never happen on the Amp, if it does get an update then great, knowing that Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and Hi-Res Audio aren't going to work without this, and I'll be using DD5.1 from my TV. I liked the idea of lipsync being part of eARC, but I think I can live without this.

My previous system was 4.1, but didn't support ARC, so when I purchased my new eARC TV I wanted to make sure I have some level of future proofing, even if I knew I didn't want a 7.1.2 speaker step up etc., hence the question on eARC.

I've already invested in Sonos one and Sonos fives, for music around the house, so I really want to build a HT solution to integrate with this. I'm thinking B&W 607 for front speakers and 2 more Sonos ones for rear surround (100% want wireless rear speakers this time around), with my existing Sub-woofer if I get the Amp.

Does anything think there are any other "compromises" with this solution?

Thanks again for the really useful replies.

melvimbe

Just so you're aware, Sonos HT doesn't support DTS or high res audio now, and there's no inclination that they ever will. I wouldn't expect that if the Amp does get eARC, that these codecs will be supported. Atmos is possible, but it may be that you would need some other Sonos product not currently in the lineup to do it.

Danny

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