Sonos Arc value or lack of

  • 30 January 2023
  • 65 replies
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P
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I did all of this yesterday. None of it got me atmos.

I do thank you for your attempt to help me and the community!

Maybe just double-check there are no further firmware updates for your TV on the Vizio site too, just in case. 

And if you cannot get this to work, then just to reiterate, you will need one of the HDMI-ARC audio extractors mentioned.   (I use the Arcana.  It is pricey, but a fraction of what it would have cost to replace a top-of-the-range LG OLED.  It also cured the lip sync issues for which the LG TV was responsible.

Edit - but you need to be sure you have followed @furacaopr’s suggestions precisely before you give up on that.

I will look into the boxes to add into the chain. 

Airgetlam

Just as a note, both of my two Vizios (and I don’t remember the designations of them offhand) do Dolby Digital Plus…..but only from the internal apps. They can not pass through an external HMDI Dolby Digital Plus signal. I’d confirmed that with Vizio several (3? Maybe?) years ago. My trust in Vizio to deal effectively with outside sources of audio are slim (and none). They’re great, inexpensive monitors, but I don’t choose to use their internal apps, as I’d prefer not to have Vizio tracking my viewing habits.

Yes, I also carry a tin foil hat. 

Bruce
J

I searched for Atmos content and I found Jack Ryan on Amazon prime that had a little marker that said it was Atmos. so I tried playing that and adjusting the settings. still no Atmos from the Sonos Arc Soundbar.

No.  Still no Atmos TO the Sonos Arc Soundbar.

And I don’t think there is a little marker that says it is Atmos.

J

@ProUSAConstitution .  sorry to shout bur THIS IS NOT A SONOS ISSUE.  You just don’t seem to get this.  You seem to be playing sources that are not offering Atmos through a TV that can’t process or output Atmos even if you input it, then expressing surprise that the Arc isn’t playing Atmos.

I have tried to help.  If you want Atmos, subscribe to Disney+ or Netflix Premium and either get a new TV or bypass your Vizio TV for audio using one of the extractors already mentioned.

That is the solution.  I now wish you well and hope you get a solution that works for you.

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John B

You must not have read my last post, or something else is going on with your thoughts and post of seeming frustration, I do not know.

The way we and a lot of people use forums: is to communicate and learn from each others trial and error, experiences and knowledge.  But for this to be efficient and right/factual, we need the whole picture and facts/truth. So that's why in my last post I stated that I physically found a movie or TV show that according to Amazon prime is listed as Atmos specifically. I tried that and the sound bar did not produce Atmos. It was only dolby 5.1 and I did try multiple different settings on the TV. It changed on the S2 app as being PCM or 5.1 NOT Atmos.

So I am using the process of elimination and passing that information on to the other forum members knowledge. I understand that a main problem is that the tv is the failed link in the chain. But I wanted to be positive with the test and results and not just assume.

I did this so we all have the whole picture and facts of what is going on.

Are you saying Amazon is lying when it says Atmos, it is not? Or are you saying I am a thick headed Moron due to continuing to post information here?

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Also I called Sonos and they said adding a sub or surrounds does NOT improve or effect the Soundbar in any way.

Some of us hoped that the crossovers would send the proper information off to the other speakers thereby making the Soundbar work less and cleaner, etc.

My impression was the person was just reading a script and may or may not have understood my language or the tech/science.

I have read opposing information in forums addressing this question, people trying to improve the Soundbar and not just add fill to the room.

F
Userlevel 5
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That rings me a bell. If the Apple TV is connected to a regular HDMI (non-ARC) port on the TV, would it be able to send Atmos over DD+?

Because this TV has just one ARC port, which is being used by the Sonos Arc.

P
Userlevel 6
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That rings me a bell. If the Apple TV is connected to a regular HDMI (non-ARC) port on the TV, would it be able to send Atmos over DD+?

Because this TV has just one ARC port, which is being used by the Sonos Arc.

Yes, that’s how it works. ARC returns the audio channel coming in from the other HDMI ports, and the built-in TV apps. 

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@ProUSAConstitution,

Also note the Apps built into the TV are not the ones to use for your testing - nor the Apple TV (when set to its default LPCM multichannel codec) as that codec requires HDMI-eARC - you need to set the audio format to ‘off’ and select (DD+) Atmos audio.

Maybe try an episode of Jack Ryan (series 3) on Amazon Prime as a test and see what displays on the ’Now Playing Screen’ for the Arc in the Sonos App.

Apple TV will automatically send Atmos over DD+ in its default setting (as long as the Atmos option is turned on in settings). It is smart enough to change from LPCM to DD+ when on an ARC-only HDMI port.

I can even toggle my HDMI port between ARC and eARC and Apple TV will seamlessly alternate Atmos formats.

If you have Apple Music, I would recommend turning on one of the playlists “Made for Spatial Audio” as all the tracks will be Atmos and you’ll have lots of pleasant testing material running.

Surprised when I do this the S2 app just says Apple Music, not what format is playing. No 5.1/pcm/atmos.

P
Userlevel 6
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Surprised when I do this the S2 app just says Apple Music, not what format is playing. No 5.1/pcm/atmos.

In the app, go into Gear Icon → System → About My System. It will tell you what format is being played by any speaker playing.

Couple things to double check:

  1. In the Apple TV Settings under Video and Audio → Audio Format, make sure that the Change Format is “off” (not Dolby Digital!) and that the Dolby Atmos toggle right below it is set to “on”. Example.
  2. You have to be playing Apple Music from the Apple TV. The Sonos App unfortunately uses a low-end version of Apple Music. No Atmos or even lossless. Whenever you post about playing something for testing, please include the device on which you are playing it.
O
Userlevel 4
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With the Apple TV it will definitely not work. The Apple TV uses Dolby MAT for Atmos and therefore requires an eARC port on the TV for Atmos playback. OP is best off to test with the TV apps but given the age of the TV I doubt it supports Atmos. 

F
Userlevel 5
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With the Apple TV it will definitely not work. The Apple TV uses Dolby MAT for Atmos and therefore requires an eARC port on the TV for Atmos playback. OP is best off to test with the TV apps but given the age of the TV I doubt it supports Atmos. 

Or try it with another streamer: Roku, Fire TV, etc

P
Userlevel 6
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With the Apple TV it will definitely not work. The Apple TV uses Dolby MAT for Atmos and therefore requires an eARC port on the TV for Atmos playback. OP is best off to test with the TV apps but given the age of the TV I doubt it supports Atmos. 

This is incorrect. I have an Apple TV. If I turn off eARC on my TV, Sonos app displays Dolby Atmos (DD+).
 


If anything, eARC Dolby MAT has a long-running compatibility problem with Sonos Arc. If you use eARC with Apple TV, consider turning off Atmos as Sonos advised me and I have done. You can read all about that here.

 

O
Userlevel 4
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Interesting, it doesn’t work for me, maybe that’s a feature on the newest Apple TV? I also don’t have any pop sound issues described in the thread, but I’m using the 5th gen Apple TV. 

P
Userlevel 6
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I use a 2021 Apple TV 4K, AKA 2nd gen 4K. 

P
Userlevel 6
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My TV is a Sony 900H. It is possible that it’s the TV converting to DD+. It’s not obvious to me how I could check for that. 

J

@ProUSAConstitution . I did read your post that said you had found an episode of Jack Ryan with a little marker to indicate it was in Dolby Atmos. Did you read the posts from @Ken_Griffiths  and from me indicating that what you took to be an indication of Atmos was possibly not that? Does your "little marker" include the words "Dolby Atmos" in full? If so then you have an Atmos source.

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Would you buy the Soundbar again knowing what you know now?

What would you buy instead?

Is Atmos far better sounding, more channel separation, surround, something?

not psyched about spending another $330 to get the Soundbar to work!

Ken_Griffiths

I would buy the Arc again too. It has always worked fine with my old LG C9 TV and Nvidia Shield - so I’m happy. It sounds great in our Living Room. I added surrounds and Sub (in that order) but I maybe should have perhaps got the Sub first as that (for me, at least) made a huge difference when watching action movies, or listening to music.

The other thing is it fits in really well with the TV and of course there’s the multi-room wireless functionality with our other Sonos devices around the Home. There’s just no way I would have been happy with any other brand of soundbar. It’s integration with our other speakers is the one thing I would really miss.  

O
Userlevel 4
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I use a 2021 Apple TV 4K, AKA 2nd gen 4K. 

Ok I got the older version, so the 1st gen 4k, but as other mentioned this might also be a limitation from my TV. Or not really a limitation since I have no issues with a pop sounds luckily.

I would also buy the Arc again, but not really because of Atmos. In the end it’s a soundbar which tries to achieve some kind of Atmos sounds with tricks, it will never reach the quality of a real Atmos setup. So don’t expect too much of it, in most rooms it’ll probably not even work properly. 

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I probably spent 7-8 hours trying everything I could think of: multiple cables, probably 10 or more hard an soft reboots, updated tv, Apple and Arc firmware, all the settings that could be changed on the tv and Soundbar, S2 app, etc.

I left the Soundbar unplugged during the night, to try and let everything drain and start fresh.

1)Tv is Vizio p65-e1 seems like I bought it just about 3 years ago. I may be wrong on age of tv and it's age of tech.

2)apple tv 4K not the latest 2022 model. I tried with and without the Apple tv

finally the last guy at Sonos did something on his end and it started working. No ATMOS still.

My thoughts are with the seemingly not great Vizio and not the latest tech of said tv, it disallows Atmos, and the Vizio TV is the failure point for Atmos.

would Atmos really be a noticeable improvement and enjoyment in sound?

Or would a quality pair of clean studio monitors always be far better?

would adding the mini sub greatly improve the Soundbar performance? Due to information/sound being offloaded to the Soundbar making it cleaner and more dynamic?

I know a sub will add bass/lows to the total room sound but does it noticeably increase the soundbar speaker clarity, dynamics, etc. 

plus the mini sub is another $430 usd. I hate too much bass.

I listen to all music pre auto tune and gridding of stuff called music these days.

I enjoy most rock, bluegrass, country western, bag pipes, pipe organ, melodic jazz, a cappella, punk, new age, piano, guitar… not 99% of rap or screechy violins/guitars for long, etc.

Thinking adding 2 X Sonos five speakers or ones would not help the soundbar but would increase room fill.

Can a pair of speakers be added to the front? Would it make sense?

Or is the Sonos software and hardware the big limiting factor vs a pair of say Yamaha HS8?

Thank you.

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As John stated, in order to get atmos audio, the Arc needs to receive an atmos audio signal from your TV.  It’s definitely different than 5.1 audio, but whether you think it’s significantly better is a matter of opinion and what sort of content you typically watch.  Also depends on your room layout, ceiling height and such.

I have never heard the yamaha’s you mention, so can’t compare them.    Generally speaking, any pair of speakers will sound better than a soundbar for music, assuming they are quality speakers properly spaced and stereo source. 

This is the 3rd topic you started and you haven’t bothered to follow up on any of them after people took the time to respond to you.    I’m wondering if you’re not really interested in answers.

I followed up on anything I got notice of, and that needed a reply. Did I miss replies and someone asking me something?

I have spent A LOT of time on fixing the Sonos Arc and living my life, not staring at the Sonos forum. So I may have missed something. Care to enlighten me?

Ken_Griffiths

Oh and I agree with @John B that adding two ‘Ones/One-SL’s’ as surrounds would enhance the setup greatly for both TV and music audio.

Ken_Griffiths

@furacaopr, 

Dolby Digital Plus? I don’t see that codec mentioned in its spec. See my earlier post and attachment showing the codec pass-through from rtings.com. I still suspect an audio extractor will be required to get Atmos audio to the Arc, but more than happy to be proven wrong in this instance.

AjTrek1
Userlevel 7

Just to add my two cents….

  1. The TV must have an eARC labeled input as opposed to just an ARC labeled input. If not you must use an audio extractor between the TV and the Arc Soundbar such as the HDFury mentioned by @Ken_Griffiths.
  2. Not disagreeing with anyone regarding adding surrounds and/or sub to enhance the overall audio experience for theater sound. However, @ProUSAConstitution please know that doing so is not going to give you Dolby Amos sound. You’ll still have to follow @Ken_Griffiths advice to add an audio extractor.
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