Sonos Arc Ultra center channel too loud

I do have the same issue. Using eArc and my Mac, I was able to test every channel through audio configuration and the center one is really too loud when we compare to right and left ones. An update, or a setting to adjust it would be really cool. 
Right now it is sound worse than my previous Gen1 beam, that’s a shame for a 999 sound bar :’( 

Totally agree, the centre channel is a few decibels louder than the left and right which obviously helps with dialogue but ruins any stereo effects. I really hope Sonos fixes this or at least give us a centre channel slider to allow user adjustment like the surround level one. This is not a user error as Sonos tech will try to convince you, this is definitely a simple software issue which can be solved very simply with some in house adjustments. In order to convey a convincing surround effect it is essential that all levels are matched for each channel.

What are your results when you select different levels of speech enhancement?

I leave speech enhancement off as it makes it even worse completely drowning out stereo effects and causes some awful sibilance.

I'd get the problem to appear and submit a diagnostic, then call Sonos to get them to look into it.

I completely agree that the center channel is too loud on the Arc Ultra. Using the Dolby Atmos test tones video, the center channel is 4-5 dB louder than the front left and front right channels.

I listen to music mixed in 5.1 on Blu-ray and it is really noticeable. Any vocal or instrument that plays out of the center channel is far too loud and makes the audio mix sound unbalanced. It would be helpful to have a separate center channel level setting in the Sonos app.

One of the reasons among several others why I ended up returning my Ultra in favor for an Arc. In my opinion the Arc Ultra was quite a significant downgrade compared to my other Arc-based system.

What do you see when selecting various levels of speech enhancement on the Ultra?

I have noticed I can hear dialog on my Ultra, set to medium that I couldn’t understand on my Arc. Haven’t played much music on it to have an opinion there.

I have this same issue. Just bought a Arc Ultra, and Sub 4….and the center speaker is WAAY over powering...and I hear no left or right. It’s just very light ambient sounds.  I keep compariing to my Beam + 2 Play 1s...and I’m really disappointed. Do I need to buy Era 100s to get better left and right?

As I asked the previous poster… Have you tried the various levels for the center?

I did. I truly can’t tell the difference. And even question if it’s on. Is there a movie or show where it really shines? 

Odd, I notice a big improvement over my Arc using the medium setting, the low is better than the Arc but not much. Only used high on a couple movies where the dialog was pathetic and needed a lot of help.

Aren't you noticing a big difference in the settings?

I noticed the same with my new Arc Ultra. At first, I was very pleased with the clarity during dialogues, but now I have noticed with many films (Atmos or D5.1) that in scenes where the music or effects should be in the foreground, they come across very quietly. I used a Dolby test video to listen to the individual speakers, and yes, the left and right front channels are much quieter than the center or even rear speakers (tested with and without speech enhancement). Is this intentional on Sonos' part? I wonder why I bought a $999 soundbar when my built-in TV speakers convey more “action”. It would really help if you could adjust the volume of the center and front speakers in the app.

I watched Ready Player One on 4K UHD last night. At lower volumes the center channel dialog is quite a bit louder than the rest of the audio. For more balanced audio from the front soundstage, the volume needs to be increased but not too much as the dialog will begin to be uncomfortably loud. So there is a very small volume range where the audio sounds balanced in my room.

The center channel being 4-5 dB louder than the front left and front right channels is a problem. The ability to lower it 1-2 dB would be just about perfect in my setup. This is why a separate Center Channel Audio level setting would be incredibly helpful. If this setting was added, it would be extremely popular and a big win for Sonos and their users. 

I was going to buy an arc ultra but now I think I'll put that idea on hold until Sonos fixes it. We need to get this information out to the media etc.

Sonos - What's the point giving us 3 levels of dialogue volume increase and at the same time monstrously overboosting the central channel??

I also have noticed this with my Arc Ultra, and its louder by a significant amount without using dialogue enhancement and sounds like the left and right channel are very weak. They do sound fine when playing a stereo source, so I hope this is just a software issue and can be fixed and not a hardware issue some of us have.

Quick update:  I have talked with Sonos support and they are aware of the issue.  No ETA on fix though.

Add me to the list, I’m experience same problem

Example: Captain America: Winter Soldier, downtown fight scene

All of the sounds are coming from the front. There’s little left/to right or surround ambiance from the Arc Ultra. I was expecting sense of movement but it's all just coming straight at me, sounds like the fight’s happening in a closet. Other scenes in this movie we can hear the surrounds kick in and get plenty of separation, really wide soundstage.

100” screen on a 25’ wall

Apple Stream 4K/ATMOS on Formovie Premium Projecter out via HDMI to:

Arc Ultra

Sub 4

2x ERA 300s

Some content sounds fantastic with great separation but I suspect its when the ERA300s get blended in to support the stereo mix...when its just the Arc Ultra, not getting much L/R separation.

Yeah. I feel if I put the volume at 35-40, it gets better, but it’s pretty loud just to watch something casually so I can hear a left and right. 
I’m sad that I enjoy my beam + play 1s better in another room. 

Turns out that even though all my units updated during setup, they didn’t get the latest. There was an unapplied software update waiting, even with automatic updates on.

After running the updates, I now have 3 levels of Dialog enhancement available (low, med, high) where I only had 1 before (which I had turned on)

Now, with dialog enhancement off, the CA: Civil War fight scene is better. The surround ambience is subtle in this scene but its there now.

Currently, I have the ERA300s to sides (25’ apart with seating in the middle of room) and slightly behind the seating area. Wondering if I should pull those forward even with the listening position?

It’s comforting to at least see some acknowledgement from the manufacturer when there is an issue many are reporting, even if there is no current resolve. 

Hopefully when this is fixed the centre channel will also be a little less harsh and bright on my ears.

Left/Right channels playing at lower volume even with latest firmware.

Ok, still wasn’t satisfied so on prompting in another forum, fired up the decibel meter on my iPhone, found some Dolby Test files and reran Trueplay advanced.

While channels are playing to correct speaker, it was immediately obvious that Left/Right Channel was lower volume than center channel and all surround channels. Using peak capture on the meter, I estimate 6-8db lower. I can’t find white noise test files to stream, that was using repeating audio samples. But Center and Surround tests all were more or less same volume. L/R were noticeably lower volume, even without the meter.

Exactly.

terrible balance

Same thing it is too overpowering. I had to reset the Ultra to factory settings with NO Trueplay…it got better. Ultra standalone user.