Contributor I

Crackling with Sonos Beam gen 2 (Multi PCM 5.1)

33 replies
4446 views

Hello,

I experience massive problems with my beam gen 2 when watching Multichannel PCM 5.1 content.
While Multichannel PCM 5.1 content is playing I get crackling and popping sounds out of the beam sporadically but constant.
The issue occurs with Multi PCM 5.1 format only.
No issues at all With Dolby Atmos / Dolby TrueHD / DTS / Stereo / Dolby Digital.

I tested Multichannel PCM 5.1 Content with:
Apple TV 4k -> Cracklings and pops
PS5 -> Cracklings and pops

What i’ve tried:
Changed HDMI Cables -> no effect
Tried different settings in the sonos app -> no effect
Restarted everything -> no effect
changed sonosnet channels -> no effect

My Setup:
Philips OLED807 Series
Beam gen 2 with two surround speakers
Settings: Multichannel bypass on TV with eARC turned on
Sonos connected over ethernet

Here I have a diagnostics code: 412271189

There are other people on the forums who experience the same issues, so i think its more of a software problem rather then a hardware issue. Some say that this problem occurred after a sonos update, but i cannot verify this.
The problem is easily reproducible.

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Pinned Reply By Corry P

Hi @ntx et al

We now recommend you reach out to the TV manufacturer (LG) as this behaviour is also occurring with different soundbar manufacturers (so it’s not a Sonos-specific issue).

Alternatively, please utilize different audio formats from McLPCM 5.1 (e.g., McLPCM 7.1, DD+, etc).

I hope this helps.

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N

ntxAuthor

Contributor I

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.

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?

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.

M

MiseryGuts

Lyricist III

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.

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

M

Marcellus H.

Trending Lyricist I

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..

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?

People are entitled to their own opinions, but not to their own facts.

C

Coldness

Lyricist III

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?

M

MiseryGuts

Lyricist III

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.

C

Coldness

Lyricist III

Good to know that we are on the same page.

Philips just asked me to to reinitialize the TV as factory and try again.

M

MiseryGuts

Lyricist III

I have tried that so many times. It makes no difference sadly

M

Marcellus H.

Trending Lyricist I

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?

Yeah same crackle here. That proves it's the Phillips eARC implementation.

With PS5 and McPCM 7.1/5.1 you just need to boot PS5 and listen to the background theme, don't even need to scroll the menu or start something else. Crackle will keep popping up.

People are entitled to their own opinions, but not to their own facts.

C

Coldness

Lyricist III

FYI: https://www.avforums.com/threads/philips-oled806-sound-is-buggy-combined-with-sonos-arc.2374409/page-16#post-30933151

We are not the only ones and apparentl,y issue appears with Samsung also. However on Samsung they have “cuts” and Sonos has cracles…

Amazing…

Corry PPinned

Sonos Staff

Hi @ntx et al

We now recommend you reach out to the TV manufacturer (LG) as this behaviour is also occurring with different soundbar manufacturers (so it’s not a Sonos-specific issue).

Alternatively, please utilize different audio formats from McLPCM 5.1 (e.g., McLPCM 7.1, DD+, etc).

I hope this helps.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein

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