Crackling with Sonos Beam gen 2 (Multi PCM 5.1)

Use the HDMI cable that came with the Beam.

What happens if you change the Digital Out Format setting on the TV to “Multichannel” instead of “Multichannel (bypass)”?

What happens if you disable eARC?

First of all thanks for the reply.

• I’m using the HDMI cable that came with the beam

• If I change the Digital Out Format on the TV to “multichannel” then I get the format “Dolby Multichannel PCM” instead of “Multichannel PCM”. But in this Mode there is no Dolby TrueHD and on PS5 there is only Dolby Multichannel PCM 2.0 available over linear PCM where i lose surround sound. The TV is doing all decoding in this case which results in loss of audio quality.

• If i disable eARC then obviously the Multichannel PCM 5.1 format is not available. But also no Dolby Atmos and no Dolby TrueHD, so this is not an option for me.

Hi @ntx 

Welcome to the Sonos Community!

Your diagnostics do not indicate any issue with the Beam, but I do see the problem events in the logs - it looks like a problem with the in-coming feed. I recommend you unplug your TV from power for at least 2 minutes. Standby will not suffice.

If that doesn’t help, please try rebooting the Beam too - unplugging for a few seconds will do. I doubt this will help, but if you haven’t already tried, it’s worth a shot.

I hope this helps.

Hello @ntx ,

I'm experiencing the same issues with the same tv.

However I have an arc, sub, and 2xplay1.

Did you find a way to fix it?

Thank you in advance.

Hello all,

My Sonos Beam Gen 2 is linked through eARC to my Philips OLED807 Series, and I'm also having problems with popping and crackling while using Multi PCM 5.1. My go-to test on my Apple TV is the MEGHAN trailer. Everything from Atmos to Dolby Digital is fine. Everything works if I disable eARC, however Apple TV does not have Atmos if eARC is disabled, and I don't want to do that. Everything ought to communicate. I've been working on this for days. In the hopes of resolving this, I have spent a fortune on approved HDMI cables. Same brand of TV just different model. I’m starting to think Philips eARC implementation could be the issue here. 

Hi all,

its an Philips issue with the used Mediatek Chipset. 806 and 807 series (basically the same chipset) are affected as i know.

The Multichannel (bypass) in combination with eARC setting is broken. You can use eARC only with the Multichannel setting (without bypass). Dolby Atmos (streaming), DTS and apple tv is working fine like this. The downside though is that you cant get lossless audio (Dolby trueHD and Multi-PCM) with this setting, because the TV converts every signal to DD first and then passes the decoded PCM signal to your Sonos System. But this is the only usable way at the moment if you dont want to return your TV. Or turning eARC off.

I opened a case at Philips already and provided debug logs. Philips is informed and promised a fix in the next few Firmware Updates. Unfortunately i dont have any info on the timeline when the update will be available..

Well that’s good & bad news but news nonetheless. I saw the following on their website earlier but I am already on firmware 248 and the popping and cracking is still there. But, it does show they know they have an issue with audio.

“Dear customer,
Due to unforeseen circumstances your TV, in the model series mentioned below, received an incorrect software update. This can result in a different sound experience than you are used to. A new software update, to solve the situation, will be send to your TV soon and within 48 hours at the latest. If you don’t receive the update automatically please have a look at this support text:
https://tv-sound-monitors.philips.com/s/article/How-to-fix-the-audio-issues-after-the-software-update-101-001-003-232-1675855626217”

I’m going to speak to my retailer and see where I stand on returning the set if they cannot fix this. I do not want to return the set as I really quite fond of it but if it’s not functioning as it should then I may have to. 

Thanks for the update

I don’t suppose you have any correspondence from Philips you could send me confirming this for my retailer?

Hello NTX,

Thank you for the feedback and raising this issue to Philips.

What is strange is that I got this TV since October and the issue just started around end of December, beginning of January I would say.

Let’s hope they solve this quickly and nicely at least.

As i know the 248 Firmware fixes only sound issues with the internal Speakers not sound systems over eARC. So we can only wait.

all is based in my own research. I dont have any confirmations from philips. Only the promise that it will be fixed in one of the next firmware updates.

Could you post your firmware update history? I also heard that this issue came up with one of the last updates. Maybe you had an older firmware version before updating in december in which the problem was not present.

 

Well, i can confirm that i had this issue with 223 too. So Maybe it was an sonos update?

Also a possibility. I just hope it gets sorted either way

@ntx please see enclosed tv updates history.

On first release I had no issues at all on sound.

I just did an update with latest firmware, I still have cracks on pcm5.1 but they sound weaker.

@ntx please see enclosed tv updates history.

 

On first release I had no issues at all on sound.

I just did an update with latest firmware, I still have cracks on pcm5.1 but they sound weaker.

 

Thanks, i have the same update history.

so you can confirm that on .222 firmware were no sound issues? Maybe there is a way to downgrade?

Yes, I don't remember having issue at that time!

If there is a way to downgrade this would be perfect indeed.

@ntx , downgrading looks not to be recommended as the version gap would be too big according to this website.

https://toengel.net/philipsblog/2011/02/03/philips-firmware-downgrade-anleitung/

I will not do this. I ll just swap audio settings according to what I'm listening in the meantime.

Normally you always want to use the passthrough (Bypass) option from the TV so that you get the unchanged (Bitstream) signal from the original source, no matter if you turn eARC on or off. So I left my TV sound output on Philips on multichannel (bypass) with eARC on/automatic. 

The best output format for PS5 is PCM. This is delay-free. If you select DTS or Dolby in the audio output settings of the PS5, the PS5 delays the sound and changes the dynamics, Dolby being the worst to me.

My PS5 sound output settings:

• Linear PCM “2 ch” / AV amplifier. Basically Stereo. It would be great ofc if you could run McPCM 7.1 or 5.1, but this is not working crackle-free with multichannel (bypass). Hope Philips fixes this.

• Lossless Dolby Atmos (TrueHD) from a Blu-Ray still works on the PS5. First of all, you should know that the audio output settings in the system menu of the PS5 have nothing to do with Blu-ray playback. The PS5's Blu-ray player has its own settings that can only be changed when a Blu-ray is running. From there, you have to select Bitstream as the audio output format.

If you always want to hear surround sound, I guess you can switch the Philips TV output to "Multichannel". This will make the TV convert everything fed to it into a 5.1 surround format (Atmos, Dolby, DTS). No crackle. With this setting enabled I can even adjust and hear height audio from my Arc even if the source signal (e.g. PCM 2.0, 5.1, 7.1) doesn't give any. It sounds alright, but the original sound must be altered in some way during the conversion process...This may still be the most hassle-free option for Apple TV users at the moment to circumvent the cracking and get Atmos?

It’s not link to Apple TV. I use a Shield Pro, same for my PC with an RTX 3080Ti connected with HDMI 2.1 (to the TV) and same with PS5.

PCM5.1 Protocol (and 7.1 to be checked) are impacted with the issue.

This evening, I’ll connect the Sonos directly to the PC and check with certitude if the issue come from Philips or Sonos..

In any case I just opened a ticket with Philips, I’ll you keep you informed of the situation.

All you have mentioned is correct and observed by myself. And yes, the only hassle free option for Apple TV User is the multichannel (without bypass) option, as it plays compressed Atmos and DTS without problems. You just cant get Lossless Audio, which is the main point we are discussing.

I think everyone with this Problem should raise a Ticket at Philips to get the needed attention.

Your findings would be very interesting to me. That will demonstrate beyond a shadow of a doubt that Philips TVs are to fault.

Afaik there is no audio return channel on PC graphics cards, so this test probably wont’ work... You could try another reciever with eARC support (TV, AVR, HDMi-Switch). Maybe I’ll get a Feintech VAX04101 hdmi switch to bypass the TVs eARC, but that’s another device I don’t really need... If it used to work, mabye just wait for an update?

Hello Dears, i did even better, I used an HDFury 4k and I detected no cracks at all.
Thus issue do not come from Sonos but from Philips.
 

Philips asked me about a video, see what I will share on this link: http://gofile.me/6Z9LO/huG0E7BUG
Do you experience the same?

That is exactly what I hear from my Beam 2. I have been toying with the idea of getting a HD Fury but I feel like I shouldn’t have to. Then I would need a splitter for all my devices, more cables, more mess. I really didn’t expect to be having these issues when I bought my Philips. I thought eARC and multichannel bypass would simplify everything. How wrong I was.