Bought a Sonos ARC and Sub system. My Samsung 2019 TV is connected to the ARC and Sub. Sounds pretty good. It was connected to an older sound system so the sound output was already set to use the Optical output while the TV speakers were off. Switch over was easy using the HDMI cable to its ARC output. But now wondering if I am getting the best throughput. Looking at the Samsung setting for Digital Output Audio - it is set to PCM. It lists Dolby Digital and Dolby Digital Plus as options but these are grayed out. Can’t understand why; their documentation (eManual) is very limited. Maybe it is stuck there because I was using the Optical output??? Any ideas???
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Userlevel 7
+16
Hi
You should be able to get Dolby Digital, but not Dolby Digital plus, unless Samsung blocks that option when an optical cable is connected. If you were previously using optical, it would explain why the settings weren’t selectable.
From what settings you’d want, many forum users suggest the HDMI input setting is set to Bitstream and the HDMI output is set to passthrough, so I’d also advise on that if you have the option. If passthrough isn’t available, then Auto is recommended.
If you’re not able to change these settings even when using HDMI, I’d suggest reaching out to Samsung support as they’ll be able to help you change this.
I hope this helps!
Userlevel 7
Try playing an actual Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 source while you change the Digital Output Audio setting on the TV.
Yes, the settings in the Sound/Expert Settings area do vary with the show being streamed (Smart TV). I put on a Netflix show and the “PCM” changed to “Dolby Digital” and “Dolby Digital Plus” was no longer gray. So I switched it to that 3rd choice. Can’t really say that I heard any real difference but maybe that depends on what is happening on the show I am running. Thanks for the advice.
Userlevel 7
Yes, the settings in the Sound/Expert Settings area do vary with the show being streamed (Smart TV). I put on a Netflix show and the “PCM” changed to “Dolby Digital” and “Dolby Digital Plus” was no longer gray. So I switched it to that 3rd choice. Can’t really say that I heard any real difference but maybe that depends on what is happening on the show I am running. Thanks for the advice.
While the audio is playing, confirm the audio format on the Now Playing screen in the Sonos app. When streaming multichannel audio from Netflix, you want to either see “Dolby Digital Plus 5.1” or “Dolby Atmos” displayed.
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