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Dear Community and Sonos Customer Service,

I have noticed the Arc does not transmit sound on the far left end of the product as it does on the right end. This is noticeable when playing from all streaming platforms and Spotify and very clearly when using the Dolby Atmos test sounds (https://download.dolby.com/us/en/test-tones/dolby-test-tones_5_1_2.mp4). Another way to test if this is happening for your Arc is to put your ear close to the end of the right side of the Arc and listen to how this sounds and then do the same on the left. The left side just does not play any significant sound as the right side does.

Unfortunately this issue has a very noticeable effect when playing Dolby Atmos movies and really does change the experience of this great feature. For example sounds going off the screen to the right are reflected in the Arc but not as much when going to the left.

Due to a fault I am now on my second Arc and the issue has been reflected in both.

With my first Arc I used customer service to try and rectify this issue. However despite trying all of their recommendations it could not be fixed. Their suggested ideas include a hard reset, removing the attached Sub, changing the ethernet cable connection setup, turning TruePlay off (it is definitely NOT a TruePlay issue).

This leads me to believe it is a systemic hardware issue. If this is the case then it is very disappointing as with such an expensive and premium product one would expect the reproduction of the sound to be equal on both sides to allow for maximum enjoyment of the features within it.

I have seen another thread on this subject and the only customer service responses I have seen are to call them. However we now know that this has not adequately resolved the issue.

Has anyone else had this issue? If so have you found a resolution?

I would like to see Sonos customer service thoroughly look into this issue, provide a reason for why this is happening along with a suggestion for its resolution.

Warm regards

 

 

 

 

Hi @El Docco, welcome to the Sonos Community!

There isn’t any information regarding this issue you’re experiencing in our systems and I haven’t seen many threads relating to this. Usually if there’s a widespread issue like you’re suggesting this is, we’d have a lot more threads or a larger thread with more traction.

There isn’t any help the community can provide if you’re not getting audio from a certain part of your Arc. My only suggestion would be to reach back out to support for further troubleshooting and assistance, as they have the necessary tools to assist you with this issue.

Hi Jamie,

Many thanks for your response and your advice. I will call customer support again to see what else can be offered to resolve the issue. 
 

Warm regards 

Have you resolved this issue? I jave the exact same experience. In surround audio it kind of feels like there is a void on the left side. Basically it feels like one of the sidefiring/angled drivers isn't doing it's job.

 

No trueplay, as I don't own an apple product.

 

I put the Arc all over my living room on different heights to see if it was my room shape, but the surround audio always has a clear right side bias.

Rather than attempting to use music to test the system use tones. Maybe you can find a few test tracks. You’d want left only, right only, and both left and right. Don’t assume that the source of test tracks or music are correctly encoded. Try tracks from multiple services before making a conclusion. Also, the tracks should be stereo, not attempt to be surround sound. If you want to test surrounds, you need different test tracks.

As you sort through the test tracks, avoid playing high frequency tones at high Volume or extended times.

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