I was playing on my Xbox when the arc suddenly made an extremely loud pop sound and then lost audio completely. The app wouldn’t let me adjust the volume and Alexa wake up didn’t emit its usual tone. I had to remove the power from the arc and reapply which resumed the audio. I’m concerned that one of the speakers in the arc may have been damaged when this happened. Has anyone had this issue?
We have had no issues with the arc since purchasing it earlier this year.
This is one involving LG soundbar making ‘horrendous’ popping noise…
It seems to me to have been going on for a while - so I (still) wonder if it’s a codec problem?
Hi Ken, I cannot see anything recent on other soundbars whereas you can find lots of reports on the Arc. When this first happened on mine it was a really loud bang so not crackling/popping.
It’s not a topic that I’ve greatly researched personally, so forgive me, but I know the ‘popping’ sound on soundbars has been around for a while, and it was (is?) affecting other manufacturers products too - I assume everyone switched to Sonos at the time the issue was first encountered ..ha ha 😂 (just joking of course).
I haven’t gone looking/found recent reports, but will post here if I come across any, but I was merely mentioning that this ‘popping’ sound has been around a while - whether that be loud, or otherwise, on manufacturers soundbars and in that other thread I linked to earlier, it shows Sonos Staff are aware and mentioned other brands were affected with the same/similar issue and so were investigating.
It was the case that someone earlier in the thread here, was inferring Staff had not commented and didn’t mention that other brands were having the same issue. That’s why I made mention of that other thread and Staff comment.
Also I jumped in here to say that it may not be a Dolby Vision issue, as I use that video format often with my TV, but when most (maybe not all) people seem to encounter the ‘popping’ sound, they are/have mostly been using the MC LPCM codec playing Atmos audio from either an Xbox, Apple TV 4K or similar device, so if that is ‘perhaps’ widely connected to the ‘popping’ sound and a possible culprit here, it makes more sense to me to switch off MC LPCM transcoding and switch (if possible) to using DD+ (Atmos) instead or Dolby True HD (Atmos), as I’ve not ‘yet’ seen a report of those codecs causing the ‘popping’ sound. I use those codecs almost every day with an Arc, or Beam (gen2) and not seen an issue so far and I’ve had both products since they were first released.
That's not to say that this matter should not be fixed of course, by whoever is responsible, (it may or may not be on Sonos to fix this), but at least see if not using MC LPCM becomes one way to avoid the issue until the matter is ‘perhaps’ resolved.
Unfortunately, this forum is not the official communication arm of Sonos. Occasionally, we get tidbits from the Forum moderators, but not very frequently. I understand your frustration, but am trying to temper your expectations of getting any sort of ‘official’ response here.
Thank you.
I’m mostly just using any avenue I can at this point. I’m not sure why they haven’t fixed it yet. It’s not like it’s isolated and can’t be replicated easily.
It does seem like they rushed the ARC to market, this along with all the drop out issues with 14.6 doesn't bode well for new customers.
Pop is an understatement. We tested again last week and BANG is a much more appropriate word for what happens.
Just had this happen to my new Sonos Arc. Series of loud electronic popping sounds, followed by the Arc shutting down. Extremely alarming because I sounded like one or more speakers had failed and blown up.
For context, was playing YouTube videos from my PC to my LC C2 TV via HDMI 2.1. On the TV I have eARC with passthrough turned on, and on the PC I had Dolby Access/Atmos set up in the sound settings.
Contacted Sonos support, shared my logs, and got the usual “known issue” response. Clearly this is going to be an ongoing issue, given that it has been happening to people for years now. Definitely don’t want to turn Dolby features off, since I’ve paid a lot of money for said features.
I spoke too soon . It happened today when I’m playing resident evil 4 with 4k 120hz VRR . Darn it !!!
sonos !! Put your act together we need this fix now !!!
otherwise I’m returning my Era 300!😡
Soooo, today I called again sonos support asking for an update on the topic. Basically the same old crap from them: it´s a thing that just happened a few days ago, our engineers are working tirelessly to solve this, don´t call us again, we´ve got your number…so I asked to talk to a tier 2 fella and after 49 min finally a second Jason from tier 2 answered...same old, same old but now he added that it was the TV manufacturers fault and not them. Sooooo I´m tired of this s*** and I´m starting with the legal stuff. If anyone here in Mexico wants to hop in, be my guest, just reply me with your email and we´ll get in touch. I know it´s gonna be long and tedious, but since the company decided to b*** f*** me and all of us for that matter, I´ll wait and be patient. I´ll try to keep you guys posted. The first thing to do down here is get the case to a specific government consumer authority that has no teeth, but acts as a precedent to the judge when the case gets to the civil courts. Wish me luck.
+23
Details, please?
$700 or so for a privacy issue with the microphones in Sonos devices. Despite being done by a large class-action legal company, it a confidential settlement, though a few posted it on reddit ths last week.
I submitted a diagnostic report last night and spoke to support, they acknowledged the issue exists for many and they have a team gathering info to work on a resolution, I provided details of the different TVs and devices I’ve experienced the issue on
We’ve been doing this for literally year now. They don’t seem to care
Also note that Samsung doesn’t support DV, so this is another case of pop without DV running.
I’m only suggesting to unplug power. As part of my stepwise testing I did have the Xbox HDMI unplugged at first when powering everything back on. I doubt that made a difference since everything is fine even with the Xbox fully connected (CEC off) again.
Shocker…
As someone with an Arc + Sub + 2x Era 300 I refuse to disable Atmos as that’s the whole reasoning for my setup.
Sonos support has been useless here. I am not giving up on my Xbox or Apple TV. This issue needs a fix today. Screw their “performance and stability updates” that fix things I’ve never noticed. I need it to fix the biggest issues plaguing them.
I should have bought Bose
Edit: I called Sonos and they’re adamant that their engineers are looking into it and she took my information. I don’t expect much but she did call me back 20 minutes later to ask me what model TV I have (Sony A80J) and if I’m using eARC which I am. They also took my address because they may want to send me a replacement which I’m okay with even though I doubt that’s the issue.
Atmos works in many configurations. But there really should be a disclaimer that it may not work with Apple TV or Xbox, whatever the underlying reason.
I like to think
I would say that the Arc definitely supports the advertised Atmos audio in the form of Dolby TrueHD (uncompressed) and Dolby Digital Plus (compressed), as I have used/use both those codecs and not seen an issue with those formats. There’s no pop/bang noise at all. So any mention by others here that the Sonos soundbars do not support Atmos, as advertised, is a non-starter in my book, as clearly Atmos audio works just fine on Sonos Soundbars for the majority.
I’ve also not personally had any issue with LPCM 5.1 audio (in general) when it comes to surround sound audio, or other surround sound audio, like DTS 5.1 - So it seems to be that issue only occurs with LPCM (Atmos) uncompressed audio only. I think many perhaps might now agree with that comment.
The AI search I mentioned earlier, seems to infer it’s the ‘sending’ device that’s sending the Atmos metadata, required for Atmos channel distribution, which is arriving at the (destination) soundbar out of sync when using the LPCM codec and that, in-turn, is then causing the ‘pop’, or ‘bang’, noise.
If the AI response is correct (and I have no supporting evidence to say it is at this point in time) then I’m not sure how other Soundbar manufacturers may have fixed the issue (thats if they have?), as it appears to me to be outside ANY soundbars capability to make that Atmos metadata arrive alongside the sent audio, in perfect sync.
Anyhow those are my thoughts and I’m just throwing it about here for discussion, as when I read the AI answer to my question, it just seemed that it was a somewhat plausible explanation. If it is true, I’ve no idea how to fix the issue, that’s something that the software/hardware Engineers will have to try to resolve. I’m not (yet) convinced though that it’s an issue that (just) Sonos should be solving, particularly as Atmos audio is working fine with all the Sonos Soundbars when using the mentioned Dolby codecs
In relation to the AI response mentioned earlier, I think what this Sonos Support Page (link below) mentions is also quite interesting too…
https://support.sonos.com/en-us/article/supported-home-theater-audio-formats
As the footnote highlights the Atmos format used by Apple TV and other devices within the Dolby MAT container and make reference to the ‘Atmos object data’.
I completely disagree with this statement. Simply because other manufacturers also have a defective product does not alleviate the responsibility Sonos has to its customer base and it’s reputed reputation as a premium quality sound system company.
While it is true, being a smaller company they do not have the resources that major manufacturers do when it comes to technical support or call centres. Being a smaller company, one would expect that when a large contingent of your customer base has the same defect with your product, the company would have a more hands on approach to a solution. One can argue this point all day.
My theory is derived from working for large Japanese corporation. Where deadlines for software and hardware forced releases of defective product. Deadlines caused by contracts with major retailers for shelf space.
Sonos does not have this issue. They have the time and freedom to address defects and errors. I’ve searched for this issue in other products. So far none have the same mitigating factors that this error has.
As I’ve already stated, if this was an easy software fix, it would have been implemented. Granted at the time the Sonos Arc was introduced, eARC TVs were few and far between ,due to the limited number of models and the excessive cost of premium TVs released to the consumer market, obviously the Sonos engineers designed the Sonos while testing their units on the current eArc TVs at the time, and possibly never tested them with an Xbox Series X during development. Considering how old the Sonos Arc is, there has been more then enough opportunity to address the error.
When a company released a product that is advertised to be one of the best Dolby Atmos sound bars on the market, and then said product has a defect that prohibits the Dolby Atmos product to play Dolby Atmos. Do I really have to spell this out?
And if you’re saying that Sonos Reps have told you that “Oh this is a known issue and other companies have the same issue, here’s some links to other posts talking about how other companies have the same problem” I call nonsense. That does not sound like a PR statement or a statement any representative of a company would make. Unless they either have no idea what they’re talking about, or were trained to tell the customer nonsense to… ‘nuff said.
Well (hopefully) you can see exactly what the Staff said, as I posted the link to the comment in the earlier post above.
I truly didn’t say anything about it alleviating the responsibility of any manufacturer, including Sonos, so not sure where you are coming from with that remark?
I was merely highlighting, other branded hardware had the same/similar issue and that the instances of the ‘popping’ that I’ve personally seen reported, seemed to be linked with playing MC LPCM ‘Atmos’ audio from devices such as XBox, Apple TV 4K etc. …and was suggesting to perhaps set that codec aside and use DD+ (Atmos) or Dolby TrueHD (Atmos) instead, at least until the matter is ‘perhaps’ resolved.
I really can’t say if it’s Sonos, or some other manufacturer, who needs to resolve the issue. The fact it affected other brands of soundbar just has me thinking that the ball may not be entirely in Sonos’ court to actually fix it.
That’s certainly an interesting tidbit about it being the TV manufacturers fault and not Sonos. If I had to read between the lines it’s either a problem with the eARC ports technical standards, the passthrough mechanism or the CEC which we have discussed at length on this forum
Certainly is tough to understand how all the TV manufacturers get this wrong the same way if there isn’t a deep rooted problem with one of the specs the TV uses
I’m on a Sony 4k (X900 I believe) with HDMI 2.1. When I watch the same Dolby Atmos content through the native apps on the Sony OS I have no issues. That ATV+ And the ARC do not seem to get along.
This is the link where I saw the Sonos Staff comment about the issue too…
Reading that reply only solidifies my decision not to buy Sonos products going forward. Anyone remember Cambridge Soundworks?
I’m done with all the issues since day one. Anyone want to buy an arc, sub gen 2 and 2-1’s? Seriously with what I paid for the system this is unacceptable. It’s been going on for a year and a half. With no solution in sight
There haven’t been any updates as of yet. I also haven’t heard a thing despite following up with them by email regarding an open ticket I have with Sonos.
There probably needs to be a warning: ‘Crunchy, Raw, Unboned Real Dead Frog’….but only if it’s an issue in Sonos’ software, and it isn’t just playing a pop being handed it by the CEC /ARC signal by the TV set.
Hi
Thank you! I have found your related case number and passed it directly to an engineer. You should hear from them soon.
Hi
FYI, I have not yet been contacted by Sonos. I continue to be interested in providing replication data in devmode.
Thank you for your efforts. You have far more patience and faith then I do.
I completely disagree with this statement. Simply because other manufacturers also have a defective product does not alleviate the responsibility Sonos has to its customer base and it’s reputed reputation as a premium quality sound system company.
While it is true, being a smaller company they do not have the resources that major manufacturers do when it comes to technical support or call centres. Being a smaller company, one would expect that when a large contingent of your customer base has the same defect with your product, the company would have a more hands on approach to a solution. One can argue this point all day.
My theory is derived from working for large Japanese corporation. Where deadlines for software and hardware forced releases of defective product. Deadlines caused by contracts with major retailers for shelf space.
Sonos does not have this issue. They have the time and freedom to address defects and errors. I’ve searched for this issue in other products. So far none have the same mitigating factors that this error has.
As I’ve already stated, if this was an easy software fix, it would have been implemented. Granted at the time the Sonos Arc was introduced, eARC TVs were few and far between ,due to the limited number of models and the excessive cost of premium TVs released to the consumer market, obviously the Sonos engineers designed the Sonos while testing their units on the current eArc TVs at the time, and possibly never tested them with an Xbox Series X during development. Considering how old the Sonos Arc is, there has been more then enough opportunity to address the error.
When a company released a product that is advertised to be one of the best Dolby Atmos sound bars on the market, and then said product has a defect that prohibits the Dolby Atmos product to play Dolby Atmos. Do I really have to spell this out?
And if you’re saying that Sonos Reps have told you that “Oh this is a known issue and other companies have the same issue, here’s some links to other posts talking about how other companies have the same problem” I call nonsense. That does not sound like a PR statement or a statement any representative of a company would make. Unless they either have no idea what they’re talking about, or were trained to tell the customer nonsense to… ‘nuff said.
Well (hopefully) you can see exactly what the Staff said, as I posted the link to the comment in the earlier post above.
I truly didn’t say anything about it alleviating the responsibility of any manufacturer, including Sonos, so not sure where you are coming from with that remark?
I was merely highlighting, other branded hardware had the same/similar issue and that the instances of the ‘popping’ that I’ve personally seen reported, seemed to be linked with playing MC LPCM ‘Atmos’ audio from devices such as XBox, Apple TV 4K etc. …and was suggesting to perhaps set that codec aside and use DD+ (Atmos) or Dolby TrueHD (Atmos) instead, at least until the matter is ‘perhaps’ resolved.
I really can’t say if it’s Sonos, or some other manufacturer, who needs to resolve the issue. The fact it affected other brands of soundbar just has me thinking that the ball may not be entirely in Sonos’ court to actually fix it.
I understand your point. And I agree with and appreciate your statement regarding the MP LPCM ‘Atmos’ audio. However to the average consumer, this means nothing. You may not be able to say Sonos or other manufacturers may or may not be responsible to actually fix it. But I will. This is all semantics at this point.
To the average person who spends an exorbitant amount of money to purchase a premium product this is unacceptable. And the response from Sonos Staff is unacceptable.
I’ve dealt with this kind of issue in work and in other products. At this point. The only we can do is choose what we buy. If there is a fix or the next generation does not have this issue. It will take a lot of research and convincing for me to try Sonos again much less ever recommending Sonos to anyone.
Doesn’t really matter whose fault it is. Customers deserve to know before they buy.
For all I care they could write it up as “Xbox and Apple TV send flawed Atmos signals that may produce an incompatibility with Arc. And they should feel bad.”
It seems unfair that Sonos knows of many users being affected, often not until after the return period, and there’s no official acknowledgement.
I’ve not seen any official position in it, either recognizing, or deflecting it.
I’m personally of the opinion that the “pop” is being generated up stream, as is the stopping of further signal , and the Sonos is merely playing what it is receiving from the TV.
But then again, I’ve not had this experience, so my opinion is not very valuable.
In all honesty, I’ve not seen a lot of data being passed to Sonos after such an event, so I wonder if they’re having difficulty reproducing the issue, so that they can ‘fix’ it at all. If they can.
I just have a hard time believing this, because if it WAS truly the AppleTV generating the POP, then ALL vendors that have ATMOS setups would also play the loud pop, however if that were the case it would be all over news media outlets everywhere. The fact that this seems isolated to Sonos products tells me its on Sonos to fix, which it doesn’t seem they are likely to do at this point.
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