Sonos Arc loud pop then audio loss



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I understand the point you’re making.  I disagree that the end users should be responsible for recording extraneous data in the hopes that it might somehow be helpful in tracking down the root cause of the issue.  If support needs data points like time of day and relative humidity, I would expect that their diagnostic tools would collect that data.

Again, bear in mind the amount of time that Sonos has had to figure out which “end of the dog to bark at.”  They’ve had nearly three years to throw oddball ideas at the wall and see what sticks.  We have no idea what they have and haven’t tried as so far they’ve been pretty tight-lipped about it.

 

New to this community, thanks for the add.

Sonos Arc with sub and Era 100s for surround, Era 300s in dining room and bedroom.

Purchased less that 2 weeks ago.

Got the dreaded popping sound when streaming Apple Music throughout the house.

Have not had it happen watching TV (streaming through Apple TV4K & Sony TV) yet.

 

Does disabling Spatial Music on the Arc and Era 300s remove the popping?

I’ve had an arc for just over a year and it started doing the loud bang today. Using a PC with atmos through LG TV connected to arc

They don’t have to say it is someone else’s fault, but just like when buying computer parts, there is a compatibility list as to what motherboard works with what processors.  AppleTV/Xbox etc are NOT some random Chinese “media box”, they are top tier mainstream products from the highest grossing companies in the world.  If the Arc doesn’t work with them, customers should be notified.  The fact that other companies that are “cheaper” had no issues pushing out a firmware fix to work around the issue tells me that Sonos is simply not trying to deal with the issue.

As a customer that spent thousands on this equipment, it is a slap in the face to be told that your main reason for buying an expensive new product needs to be disabled because they can’t fix it.

Perhaps the partner(s) too, have acknowledged that they plan to investigate/fix the issue with an update from their side, but just haven’t got around to doing that yet?

We can only guess at such issues. I’m pretty sure these big companies do not ever like to wash their dirty-linen in public, plus they likely have their own chosen list of priorities.

Meanwhile Sonos has tried to assist you by suggesting a workaround, for now, at least. Any work/update to be done by a partner is clearly outside of their control.

It’s difficult, as we do not know the full facts here, but as I’ve mentioned before in posts on the forum, this issue appears to happen mostly with Xbox and Apple TV 4K and there are reports online of it happening with other branded soundbars aswell.

I don’t have either of those peripheral products attached to my TV/Arc and have never (ever) experienced the popping or crackling sounds mentioned in this thread.

Maybe the Arc is just playing what it is being sent and that ‘approaches’ perhaps should be being made to those that manufacture the source device instead. If that manufacturer is not being notified of the problem by their own customers, then they are not going to be in any hurry to fix the issue.

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This just happened to me and my brand new era 300 surrounds. Did trueplay tuning and soon as it was done was getting extremely sharp loud electric pops from all 3 speakers and would not stop until I unplugged one. 
 

please advise on next steps. 


Jkopt, I have had the same issue with a pair of new Era 300’s. Not sure if you are also aware of this thread: 

“Sonos Era 300 Static Pop Sound”

I don’t know the depth of the issue. If licensed software is involved there could be contract details that prevents SONOS from imbedding proper logging code.

I don’t want to be an apologist. Everyone in the chain: hardware, software, SONOS, and users wants to pass the issue up the chain, while the chain wants to push the issue down in order to minimize their support costs. It’s the nature of companies at this point. Maybe all big business managers take the same courses and this is how they are taught to run a “smart” business. It takes weeks and weeks to justify, build, and schedule a team to take on a project. Meanwhile, users need to wait.

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And that’s twice in two days for me, two different films on Disney+ on Apple TV 4K. 

After the first yesterday (and a power cycle) everything worked fine for about 3 hours of film watching (in Atmos).
 

Today I got the pop and loss of sound exactly 10 minutes into viewing.

Diagnostic is 968159060 for whatever that is worth.

This (and the seeming lack of response) is so poor for equipment of this spec and value.

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Hi All, Happy New Year.

 

Quick update, so changing out the cable between Xbox Series X and Sony A80J had no effect, still pops. It was worth a try!

 

I have now also contacted support to report the issue and I was told that the senior engineers are aware and working on an update currently in Beta so hopefully something comes out soon to address.

 

Hopefully everyone else on this thread has logged it with support :) Thankfully its really easy.

 

Chris

 

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Anyone with eArc extractor and still having this issue?

i have had this issue but when i used the eArc extractor, the issue is gone

Using apple tv 4k 3rd gen + xbox x+ ps5 beta software, all tested with atmos, the issue is no more, no more pop

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@DC92 Hi, Be great to know any of the feedback you get via email in the end if that’s possible please, would certainly help with any next steps.👍

Hey, Not heard from Sonos just yet, saw my local currys had one in stock (where I bought it from) So I took it in for a replacement and the new one sounds miles better :) 

I’ll see what SONOS return with anyway and pop it in here when they eventually reply. I’ll ask them what they would’ve done had I not replaced it already too just so other people with this issue know how to proceed.

 

Cheers

That’s brilliant cheers mate. Good that currys swapped it usually they make things a bit hard sometimes and the fact you noticed a difference is really interesting! Thanks again for the update.

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I can now confirm that his problem is TV Independent.  I just had this problem on my new LG C1 whereas before I was experiencing it on the Sony X900h

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Did some replication testing this morning with the same playlist (Dance in Spatial Audio) on Apple TV/Apple Music. 
 

First attempt, pop in two minutes on the first song. 
Second attempt, 45 minutes of playing with no pop. 
 

So this remains as difficult to replicate as ever. 

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Update 15.4 is available

Which extractor? Are you sending HDMI-eARC to ARC or are you sending audio over TOSLINK (optical).

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I’m living with the CEC-off solution at the moment. The least annoying compromise for me.

I still expect Sonos to acknowledge the issue in an FAQ or disclaimer though. New customers should be warned about the potential problem so that they can make an informed decision. 

 

I really wonder why this problem occurs with so many different patterns. For me, for example, it doesn't do any good to turn off CEC. I turned it off on the Xbox and the TV and the bang still comes with Dolby Atmos. The only thing that works for me is switching to Dolby Digital 5.1

Have you tried factory reset and not to trueplay?

FYI: now many weeks later since prior posts and this (reset to factory but don’t run Trueplay when setting back up) completely solved the problem with Arc + twin 300s. 

Nutshell version: executed initial setup to the “run Trueplay” step but couldn’t Trueplay for a few hours due to uncontrollable noise in the environment. Enjoyed the speakers for those few hours: they sounded as great as we all expect of Sonos speakers. When the noise ceased, ran Trueplay and the Pop-fest immediately followed (only variable changed was running Trueplay)… not just from ATMOS sources but even Sonos HD Radio and when touching the buttons on top of the Arc. Any source whether simple stereo to ATMOS was popping in a way that made us worry about the speaker. We initially believed it was blown speaker(s).

Reset to factory but bailed on the setup process again at the “set up Trueplay” step. No pops since. No other variables changed (same source, same cables, same kinds of content). CEC is on and ATMOS playback, Dolby playback, Stereo & Mono playback, sounds from the interface (button pushes on Arc) yield NO pops at all. 

Gut says that if we ran Trueplay again, the pops would return… which would be a verifying step if we repeated it and got the same (popping) results. But they play and sound great now and we don’t want to re-stir this pot. 

While only a single instance and thus not ideal from which to draw broad conclusions, those frustrated with no other remedy may want to give this one a try. Given the variety of hardware sources, cables, audio types, etc in play, it seems common ground variables like internal software would be much more likely to be the cause than select implementations of ATMOS, CEC, Dolby MAT, cables, AppleTV, Xbox, et all. Since Trueplay is something most people automatically run soon after pulling these out of their boxes, if it is the cause or plays a role, obviously most/all(?) of the speakers with the problem likely ran Trueplay. 

If it’s everybody else that must change their tech to work with Sonos, it seems this will NEVER get resolved. But if it’s internal software, that could be a bug(s) for Sonos to find & fix. Those willing: test & report. If there is something here, it will give Sonos an area on which to focus and maybe a fix for up to everyone. 

its not trueplay, I have a sonos beam v2 set up with an android device and i get the pop sound randomly.

So I presume you ran Trueplay, right… because that’s encouraged in the setup right out of the box? If popping, factory reset, set back up and do NOT run Trueplay. Still popping with all else the same? 

The other variation of my wild guess is in select combinations. In my friends case, that’s Arc + Twin 300s. Before the Trueplay run for several hours, no pops. After Trueplay, immediate pop-a-rama from any audio sources including just using the buttons on top of arc. Reset to factory and set back up EXCEPT not running Trueplay: perfectly good Sonos sound for a few weeks now. All other variables (source, cables, settings, etc) are unchanged. 

If not Trueplay in this case, it’s some kind of magic or luck… because everything else involved is exactly the same. The ONLY unique variable is running and not running Trueplay.

I also have Arc plus a Move sharing a room. I’ve run Trueplay on them many times. No pops ever. So one combination of Arc + Twin 300s with Trueplay ran = Popfest. Another combination of Arc + Move with Trueplay ran = No Pops. Perhaps it’s in combinations or solos and perhaps in how Trueplay sets up with combined or solo setups?

Just trying to help here. I can’t hardly believe it can be all these other pieces of equipment and it makes no sense to “turn off CEC” and/or “turn off ATMOS” for speakers sold as CEC and ATMOS speakers. What is the COMMON variable in all cases? The speakers themselves. So most likely the problem is with the speakers or speaker software. Since many- like ME- can report an Arc setup with NO pops, it’s probably NOT the hardware (unless bad batch)… which leads me to suspecting the software… especially after the experience described above. 

The key to ruling this guess out is the factory reset, set back up again but bail at the Trueplay setup step. Does a popping speaker stop popping? It certainly did for my friend and hasn’t for weeks now.

The key piece of information in this person’s reply is that they set it up with an Android device.  Trueplay is not supported on Android phones, so they could not run Trueplay on their system (unless they borrowed an iPhone or an iPad, which then, why bother replying).

It might depend on what the cause of the popping is. I’d recommend, especially since you seem to be experiencing it frequently, to submit a system diagnostic within 10 minutes of experiencing this problem, and call Sonos Support to discuss it.

There may be information included in the diagnostic that will help Sonos pinpoint the issue and help you find a solution.

When you speak directly to the phone folks, they have tools at their disposal that will allow them to give you advice specific to your network and Sonos system.

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PS5, have the same issue.  Have Arc, 2 Subs, 2 Fives, 2 Ones, 2 OneSL and a move, all within the 45 day window, probably get my 4k+ back, this is so bad and makes using the system not enjoyable.  

That’s a shame another new victim, it didn’t happen for me with my PS5 until after my Xbox Series X was plugged in, now it happens with any source including PS5  which I had for over a year and a half before my Xbox Series X, playing Dolby Atmos content with no problems.

Thankfully you still have your window. You should warn your retailer when you take it back. My 6k+ is gone. I can’t even sell my systems second hand with good conscience to anyone. I wouldn’t even give it away. It’s like giving someone a broken toaster.

 

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This is happening to me on a Beam Gen 2, connected to an Apple TV 4K and a Sony XBR TV. It has occurred quite often while playing Apple Music on the Apple TV. Done all the resets and cable connections and no luck…still happening. Have switched the Apple TV to stereo and have not encountered the problem but I bought the Beam for Atmos sound and now feel ripped off. 

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Hi. Glad I’ve just seen this. Xbox Series X and Sonos ARC, very loud pop as if a speaker had blown. Diagnosis report 444345874

Same issue for me, did you hear if there’s any damage?

Hi. Think I’ve just seen your post on Reddit. Haven’t had a response yet so need to follow up but have a feeling something just seems off, was so odd as nothing was running to make it pop so loud.

Yeah I posted on Reddit too, I’m 90% sure there’s an issue. I’ve been through all the troubleshooting with Sonos and they’ve escalated it to an engineer who’ll get back to me in 24 hours. 

The sound is just less “full” and it feels lacking whereas before it was amazing. I’ll let you know what the outcome is. I know speakers sometimes make a popping noise when they disconnect etc but it was wayyy louder than I had my TV or anything I’d normally hear. I’m assuming something is damaged.

Cheers for the update in that, will call them tomorrow myself to see outcome from the report, as you say, seems less full, it was definitely the Xbox that caused the issue just can’t see how or why.

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Thanks @Corry P 

Sorry, it wasn’t my intention to imply that you were recommending it. I’m aware that Sonos can’t guarantee to work with any HDMI device or TV as you don’t have control over third party devices and their implementation flaws.

I just find it odd that troubleshooting for TVs is done but for Arcana it’s denied as I’m pretty sure that HDFury devices are much better engineered, standards compliant and updated then many or most TVs. But okay...

You are right, I can only test Atmos with Arcana. I know that HDFury support is great and I’m always running the latest firmware version (v0.80 when it happened, and v0.82 since yesterday which fixes a different issue that occured with the update to Sonos 13.1). I will also check with them on the issue.

 

What seems to be happening is that the TV is momentarily sending data in a different format (or failing to properly maintain the format feed). The Arc will play this for a fraction of a second before realising there’s something wrong with the stream and stop. It’s this fraction of a second of data that doesn’t describe a “real” sound that’s creating the pop noise. If the Arc didn’t stop playing, it would presumably sound something like a data CD playing in an Audio CD player. With no meaningful control over the volume level of this sound, it’s all at the maximum actual level that the current volume level can achieve.

This sounds possible to me, however I believe that both the source stream and the Arc could be at fault here about the integrity of the stream, given how many people have the same issue?

 

Regardless of which device’s fault it is there is one thing I think Sonos should do something about: The popping sound is so loud that I fear it could damage my hearing or the Arc speaker itself. It’s actually like a shot fired right next to you or a little explosion in you living room.

However I have configured my Arc to a 50 % volume limit and usually only use 25 % of the Sonos volume bar, so I’m roughly at 12.5 % volume of what the Arc could do (in addition to this my PC is set to about 50 - 70 % volume itself which would further lowe that to 6 to 9 %, but let’s drop that assuming it produces a broken stream with higher volume...).

I find it hard to believe that this is the max. volume of the 12.5 % the Arc is set to. I think if those peaks are possible through a presumably broken stream at least the Arc should limit the volume of such a pop to something more healthy.

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Attempting to pattern match for some common ground…

From what I can tell from this thread; it’s pretty much exclusively Atmos, if not entirely.
It seems to be common from Xbox and Apple TV — both encode into Dolby MAT, which I think might be a root cause here.

What’s the ground on the televisions people are using?  I’ve seen people report issues with Sony and LG — I’m a Sony owner myself.  Curious if the TV is garbling the signal in the middle of the chain.  I’ve not had any issues since I bought everything this time last year, so I’m curious, why now… software issue, somewhere?

I cannot find anything recent that relates to this particular issue with other soundbars. The latest one (2 years ago) relates to a JBL soundbar. I cannot see any mention anywhere of other premium soundbars having this kind of issue. 

 

A lot of those reports talk about popping/crackling noise whereas the Sonos is a loud bang - probably the term popping is not the right description in this case.

Well it was from an old thread - I did find these in a quick search;

https://www.cinemaequip.com/why-is-my-samsung-soundbar-making-crackling-noise/

https://www.theaudiocritic.com/why-does-my-soundbar-make-popping-noises-n25

If I find others, when I have more time, I will post them. 

It’s not an issue I’ve personally encountered with my Arc or Beam, but then again I don’t use MC LPCM as I don’t have an Xbox or Apple TV 4K etc. (however I do use Dolby Vision FWIW🤔?)

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I had the same issue last night, twice whilst mid stream on Netflix. I reported through support and was provided with a reference. I have got a new TV with Atmos/EARC capability.

I have been advised to turn off Atmos which defeats the point of paying a significant amount of money for this functionality and not being able to use it.

I was surprised reading the comments on here as to how long this had been going on for.

 

What are the specifics of your setup? Which TV model are you using, and was it the native app within the TV or an external device, if so, which?

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@Sonos

Hello? Are you there? 
 

I am still awaiting a fix for the issue at hand here. Your customer support team needs to give us answers. This problem isn’t just going away. Either you need to send out fixed hardware to those affected free of charge or you fix the software. I don’t care which one but one has to be done to fix it. 

I only get the popping sound when the Arc is used with Dolby Atmos (Xbox series x and with windows 10 computer) both connected to an LG CX. If i choice stereo, 5.1 or 7.1 no pops with the computer. The problem is with the Arc or the cable that came with the Arc. 

Sonos, its time to address this issue. 

Might it be a problem with the Xbox series x or even the codec, as I see these things are mentioned online, even with other brands of soundbar,

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