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Question

Sonos Arc Ultra and TV audio

  • October 31, 2025
  • 23 replies
  • 110 views

Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies

I purchased the Arc Ultra a few days ago and connected it to my LG TV, but there's a problem with the TV's speaker. When I decide to use the TV's audio, the Arc Ultra prevents it, and the same happens with other devices connected via Bluetooth. In short, I can only use the soundbar's audio, and this is really absurd because I didn't have this problem with previous soundbars (LG and Bose) connected to the same TV. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

23 replies

Ken_Griffiths
  • 22011 replies
  • October 31, 2025

I purchased the Arc Ultra a few days ago and connected it to my LG TV, but there's a problem with the TV's speaker. When I decide to use the TV's audio, the Arc Ultra prevents it, and the same happens with other devices connected via Bluetooth. In short, I can only use the soundbar's audio, and this is really absurd because I didn't have this problem with previous soundbars (LG and Bose) connected to the same TV. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

You likely have to disable ‘simplink’ within thd LG tv settings to use its other audio outputs, like Bluetooth etc.


Triticale
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  • Collaborator II
  • 57 replies
  • November 1, 2025

As ​@Ken_Griffiths says, you’ve to check the TV settings. Anyway, when I started with the Arc I tried to use it just in some cases, not always, but a good friend told me to try using it constantly, and now I never use the TV speakers, as even the news sound great if the sound comes from the Arc.


jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 1, 2025

Why anyone would pay $1000 for a soundbar and then revert back to using the tinny TV speakers for some material always baffles me.  It obviously baffles the CEC engineers too, because they don’t make it easy to do, defaulting instead to the superior audio.  


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 3, 2025

I've already tried disabling simplink but it doesn't change anything


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 3, 2025
It's not just the TV audio that in my opinion is even better than the soundbar audio but above all because I can no longer connect any wireless device to the TV (headphones, portable speakers, etc.). I already had an LG soundbar worth around $200 and I changed with this Arc thinking of improving the sound, but nothing changes, only the price 5 times more, in fact, listening to music is even more powerful than the old LG that this Arc with two 300 as surround and a Sub 4 that seems not to exist
 
 
 

jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 3, 2025

If you actually think the TV speakers sound better than the Arc (something I find hard to believe, but audio quality is subjective), then there’s no use keeping it.  Return the Arc and don’t waste all that money.  


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 3, 2025

It seems hard to believe even for me but it's true. It was not possible to return it


jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 3, 2025

It seems hard to believe even for me but it's true. It was not possible to return it



3 days ago you stated you just purchased it “a few days ago”.  How is it not possible to return it?  I don’t know anywhere that you cannot return something directly to the place of purchase after less than 2 weeks.  Sonos gives you 45 days, and the US gives 30 days, which is bare minimum IME.


Triticale
Forum|alt.badge.img+3
  • Collaborator II
  • 57 replies
  • November 3, 2025

@MM22Z, I can’t believe that TV speakers sound better than an Arc with Sub and surrounds. That’s impossible! 😅 

About a cheaper bar performing more powerful, could be, but powerful doesn’t mean quality. And if you added 2 Era and a Sub, something is wrong. Have you perform the TruePlay? 

Please, check the settings, call support, do something! But you need to feel what we’re feeling. 


jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 4, 2025

@MM22Z, I can’t believe that TV speakers sound better than an Arc with Sub and surrounds. That’s impossible! 😅 

About a cheaper bar performing more powerful, could be, but powerful doesn’t mean quality. And if you added 2 Era and a Sub, something is wrong. Have you perform the TruePlay? 

Please, check the settings, call support, do something! But you need to feel what we’re feeling. 

 

You wouldn’t believe what I’ve heard about audio in the past that boggles the mind.  It’s quite possible that the OP is like a relative of mine, who once said “I can’t hear the TV, that system is too loud.” 


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

1) But I didn't buy from Sonos but from a physical store in my city, and they don't accept returns after it's been unpacked and used. 2) I don't live in your country, but in the EU 3) This isn't the problem I wrote here about, but to solve the TV audio problem.


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

But unfortunately I don't feel what you feel😂Yes, I tried TruePlay, I tried everything. The Era 100s are real speakers! The rest of the Sonos products are poor in sound


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

and you won't believe what a friend of mine said when he tried the Sonos Arc for the first time in 2021, after a week he sold it and bought a Samsung soundbar, he said it was on another planet


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

My two HomePod 2s actually sound better as a pair, and the difference is from $700 to about $3000

The only ones that really convinced me about Sonos are the Era 100 in pair and the Five which have a really powerful sound


jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 4, 2025

If you truly disabled Simplink and the sound still came from the Arc, then something is very, very strange.  Simplink is the LG name for CEC, and there is no way for the TV to send HDMI-ARC audio to the Arc when CEC is turned off.  So you either didn’t really turn off Simplink, or the Arc is connected in some other way, like via the optical adapter.  

So unless this entire thread is a put on, please describe, in detail, how the Arc is connected to the LG TV, and what you are doing, step by step, to turn off Simplink. 


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

Absolutely not, I would never have posted a joke. As I already described above, I disabled Cec Simplink but nothing changed. The Sonos Arc Ultra is connected to the LG TV via HDMI Arc. I disabled Simplink via the button in the TV settings


jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 4, 2025

Absolutely not, I would never have posted a joke. As I already described above, I disabled Cec Simplink but nothing changed. The Sonos Arc Ultra is connected to the LG TV via HDMI Arc. I disabled Simplink via the button in the TV settings

 

Then I suggest you contact LG, because something is very wrong.  If you really disabled Simplink, the TV can’t even see that there is a soundbar connected, never mind send the audio to the soundbar.  Simply put, HDMI-ARC requires CEC (i.e. Simplink).  When Simplink is disabled, there is no HDMI-ARC.  


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

In fact, it's all very strange because with the two previous soundbars (Bose and lastly LG) it was possible to switch between soundbar audio and TV and even wireless audio devices.


jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 4, 2025

In addition, I would check the LG TV for a firmware update.  Something is going strange with the TV, and it may or may not require an update to get it working correctly.  


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

I can also contact LG support but it would be pointless, because I tried again with the previous soundbar and everything works perfectly. Today I also contacted Sonos support and they told me that some TVs give priority to the soundbar excluding everything else. This seems absurd to me, because as I repeat the other soundbars do not have this problem


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

I'm checking every day, but so far no updates


jgatie
  • 28194 replies
  • November 4, 2025

I can also contact LG support but it would be pointless, because I tried again with the previous soundbar and everything works perfectly. Today I also contacted Sonos support and they told me that some TVs give priority to the soundbar excluding everything else. This seems absurd to me, because as I repeat the other soundbars do not have this problem

 

Then I don’t know what to say.  You seem determined to blame Sonos no matter what, so I suggest you sell it and attempt to recoup your losses.  Either way, I’ll not try to help you any more. 

However, please note that there are thousands of users who have a Sonos HT setup with an LG TV, and they are quite happy with the experience.  The fact you are not pleased is an outlier, not a pattern. 


Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Author
  • Contributor I
  • 12 replies
  • November 4, 2025

I don't want to blame Sonos, until this last purchase I was more than satisfied, otherwise I wouldn't have purchased Arc. Thanks anyway for the support received