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Is anyone else experiencing a crackling noise with their Arc Ultra? I upgraded from the Arc to the Arc Ultra, which is connected to a pair of Era 300s and two subs. The crackling sound has been intermittent, mainly occurring when streaming movies.

I have gone through 3 arc ultras in the last month. I even replaced my 3 year old Sony Bravia tv with a brand new Samsung tv and bought two 8k HDMI cables and the popping/cracking happened on all 3 soundbars and the new tv. 

That’s sounds like a lot of effort and money to still have issues.


ANSWER!!!! 

this is poor power delivery. Remember guys you can’t just plug into a wall and expect everything to be OK. For instance if you were to plug it in to say a panorama m8-av-pro, or Even something small like just a regular strip such as the furman SS-6; You will not have issues. Now if it is an issue related to wireless then there’s that but remember some devices like the era 300 and the sub GEN four broadcast their own Sonosnet; But they must be in line of site of the other devices.

 

That’s all


For what it’s worth, the Era 300 does not generate a SonosNet signal. I suspect the same with the Sub gen 4. They both would connect to your WiFi signal, not SonosNet. And the Sub, likely to a 5Ghz signal generated by the device it is bonded to. 

Both SonosNet and WiFi are radio signals, as such there are certain laws of physics that they are bound by. 


For what it’s worth, the Era 300 does not generate a SonosNet signal. I suspect the same with the Sub gen 4. They both would connect to your WiFi signal, not SonosNet. And the Sub, likely to a 5Ghz signal generated by the device it is bonded to. 

Both SonosNet and WiFi are radio signals, as such there are certain laws of physics that they are bound by.

 

I missspoke that they generate they are able to receive Sonos net signal. You are able to get it linked and it is better than Wi-Fi generally and the reason is two fold. The Sonos net is obviously victim Of this here universe however, It is a distinct frequency and network completely that is isolated from all others and does not get obscured or disrupted in the same way that a WiFi signal does. The other distinct and important aspect of the Sonos net is that it allows a connection to form despite the potential of having been previously Prescribed an off channel by the router. Once however a Successful connection is made With the other speakers, The problem speaker will now be shared the correct channel by the router

 


I’d argue that any radio signal can be obscured, obstructed, or subject to forms of wifi interference . The SonosNet system is not a magic bullet. It is extremely useful, when it isn’t affected by outside influences, certainly, but care must be given to making sure there aren’t overlapping channels in use.


Just wanted to add to this issue, as I am also experiencing it and it is very annoying. 

You constantly feel on the edge of: “When is it going to happen next?”
I don’t know, but my 1000 EUR Soundbar should not do this - it’s like a static / crackle / or high pitch pop at random times.

 

Definitely noticed it during a silent movie like A Quiet Place ( any iteration ).

 

Do we have any update from Sonos so far? 


I haven’t gotten any updates. I have noticed that it doesn’t seem to happen when I am streaming Netflix, prime or Paramount+, so I’m beginning to wonder if it’s my DIRECTV receiver (since I have gone through three arc ultrasound bars and a new TV and it is still occurring). I just ordered a new receiver today and it should be here in about five days. I will update this post with The results once I get it.


@Steven S. and ​@MC74 no solution provided yet. I received an email on 12/20 stating my initial case number was forwarded to a level 2 support team and engineering is currently troubleshooting the issue. As far as streaming services, I’ve heard the pop sporadically on Netflix, Paramount+, Peacock, Disney+, and Apple TV. Keep in mind I use an Apple TV to stream, no cable box and it’s connected to a LG C3. I don’t have this issue with the Arc connected to my system. 


@FCP and ​@Steven S. I’m have just noticed some popping while streaming. It’s not nearly as bad as when I am watching Directv, but it is clearly not isolated to cable. I was also told that my case had been elevated to level two support as well. I was told I would be receiving an email from them. That was weeks ago and I have heard nothing. 


Contact them again with your case number (don’t post it here) and ask for a status update.


Just wanted to add that it seems the popping / crackling also happens when listening to music over WiFi it seems like.


If you rewind do you get the same noise at the same place?

Capture a diagnostic as soon as possible after the noise and contact Sonos support (not here) to have it looked at.

How does one "Captures a diagnostic?"


From the Sonos Support site:

https://support.sonos.com/en-us/article/submit-diagnostics


The small pop / static also happens when on the Home screen with Apple TV and no sound is playing.

It’s a split second, but it’s annoying enough to keep you on the edge and think: when is it going to happen next.


Weird…

I have a Chromecast, LG TV and the Arc Ultra

I was on Netflix watching Mission Impossible last night, the first one. It started crakling so bad, I changed the audio output on the Chromecast to use stereo so I could finish the movie.

Changed the setting back to the way they were.

Mission Impossible 2 ? Not a problem.

I’ve had the Arc Ultra for a little mote then a week now, watched lots of movies, played on the Xbox, listened to music almost 24/7 on it, only Mission Impossible made crakling sounds… so far.

 

Both of them are Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 movies (according to the Arc Ultra).

 

Nothing changed in between the viewing sessions, I watched the first one and the second one right after.

 


When can we actually expect a fix? I've had this problem sporadically since the Arc Ultra was released.

As Sonos has already said here, the problem is well known...


If you can repeat the issue on Mission Impossible, it would be very beneficial for everyone for you to submit a diagnostic and follow up with SONOS support. This will give SONOS developers more reliable data to work with.


I started experiencing the same crackling sound, I was able to send the diagnostic while the crackling sound was happening. They are sending an RMA device. 

So, if they are aware of this problem, and they are sending me a new unit, it looks to me like they don’t have a clue of what’s going on, because if the issue is hardware well, maybe the replacement will fix it but, if the issue is software then I don’t know what to expect. 


For what it's worth, I managed to fix this crackling sound issue by deactivating the e-arc management on my TV OS. No more crackling sound since then. It also explains why streaming music has no crackling as not using e-arc port. Cheers


Hi everyone. How are things going with the clicking sounds? I've tried everything possible, but nothing helps to get rid of them. Has there been any new information from Sonos?


Has there been any new information from Sonos?

I’m fairly sure, reading back briefly through this thread, that Sonos hasn’t given any information. I don’t know what you are hoping for in terms of new information. Are you sure they’re even officially aware of an issue?


Has there been any new information from Sonos?

I’m fairly sure, reading back briefly through this thread, that Sonos hasn’t given any information. I don’t know what you are hoping for in terms of new information. Are you sure they’re even officially aware of an issue?

So many threads have already been created on the forums, and so many diagnostic files have been sent. I think they must have identified the issue by now. But if they haven’t, that’s really unfortunate. I recorded videos, sent them, and uploaded them to YouTube.


Here is a video showing the clicking sound issue. Take a look — is it exactly the same sound you're hearing, or is it different?

 


Apologies, I don’t have an issue (and I have an Arc, not an Arc Ultra), it was the way my email was worded I think. 

But does this issue still occur with the Arc Ultra’s microphone turned off?


Apologies, I don’t have an issue (and I have an Arc, not an Arc Ultra), it was the way my email was worded I think. 

But does this issue still occur with the Arc Ultra’s microphone turned off?

The microphone on the Arc Ultra is turned off. But it’s enabled on the Era 100s (2 units, used as rear speakers). Voice control is turned off.