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Surround Slider only Affects Era 300 Side Drivers — Not Rears

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Hello, I’m wondering if this is the expected behavior for changing the surround level slider while listening to Apple Music in Atmos through the Sonos app on an Arc Ultra + Era 300 surround setup. When adjusting the slider, only the volume of the Era 300 outer-facing side drivers get louder/quieter; the inner-facing rear drivers do not have any audible volume change. In essence I can’t actually adjust the volume of the surrounds completely, as half of the surround drivers are at a fixed volume. I also want to clarify that I’m not referring to the height drivers — those are affected by the height slider as expected.

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Sotiris C.

Sonos Staff

Hey @bogdalene, welcome back!

When adjusting the slider, only the volume of the Era 300 outer-facing side drivers get louder/quieter; the inner-facing rear drivers do not have any audible volume change.

Just to be clear, are you talking about the Music Level slider setting under Sonos Arc Ultra → Surround Audio ?

Our internal documentation does not include specific details in regards to the drivers of the Sonos Era 300 and how they behave in adjustments of the above mentioned slider.

Personally, I believe this is the intended behavior, the inner drivers are much quieter than others because they are facing the listener and the ideal sitting position and are closer to it.

Let me know and I’ll try to get an answer with specifics for you.

I hope this helps.

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bogdaleneAuthor

Avid Contributor I

Hey @Sotiris C. Thanks for the help! Yes it is the music level slider in surround settings! Another thing to note would be that in the TV mode version of the slider both sides of the Era 300s are equally affected (I tested this by playing Atmos music through my Apple TV). If this is the intended behavior, I’m curious if there’s a reason why it’s different between TV and Music. Thanks again!

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bogdaleneAuthor

Avid Contributor I

Hey @Sotiris C. ! Just checking if you had any updates on this. Thank you!

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bogdaleneAuthor

Avid Contributor I

Hi @Sotiris C. ! Just bumping this again as I’m still experiencing this. I did create a support ticket about it and I was told that this is the expected behavior of the Era 300s, however I’m confused as a previous thread from this forum seems to explain the same issue, with the resolution being that it was fixed in an update at that time. I’ve unfortunately not been able to get any other Sonos users to confirm if they experience this behavior as well, or if it’s just some systems. Regardless, I struggle with how loud my rear channels are and the fact that I cannot adjust their volume. Thanks again!

Corry P

Sonos Staff

Hi @bogdalene

Apologies - Sotiris is on rather a long holiday. I found the conversation he had with a colleague, and he had not yet received an answer.

I shall see what I can find out for you.

Please be aware, however, that the thread you linked to does not relate - it was in relation to TV audio specifically and the TV Level surround slider - it does not apply to music playback at all and was a different symptom besides.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein

Corry P

Sonos Staff

Hi @bogdalene

It seems it is expected behaviour.

The inner speaker (tweeter + woofer) on the Era 300 surround system stays active when connected to any Sonos soundbars that support Dolby Atmos (like Arc Ultra, Arc, and Beam Gen 2). This inner speaker mainly handles surround audio, but some of these sounds are also sent to the upward-facing tweeter with the rear height channel.
The inner speaker is quieter than the upward-facing speaker because sound travels directly to the main listening area from the inner speaker, while sound from the upward speaker takes a longer, indirect route. The choice to share rear surround audio between the inner speaker and up-firing speaker was made to improve the immersive and environmental quality of the rear surround sound stage.

So, the only answer I can get is that the inner drivers are supposed to be much quieter than the other drivers on the speaker.

This does not explain why the slider seems to have no apparent effect for you, so I have asked for some further clarification. I will update this thread when I hear something.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein

Mr. T

It would be helpful if Sonos were consistent in their replies on the community.

It was raised at the time but the pinned reply still remains on the following thread:

There is no audible output from inner woofers when Era 300 is bonded as rear surrounds.
This is by design. The rear speakers are designed to disperse sound throughout the room, rather than directing it to the listener exclusively.

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bogdaleneAuthor

Avid Contributor I

Thanks so much @Corry P ! I hope Sotiris is having a good holiday:)

I appreciate you picking this up — and thank you for asking for clarification and updating the thread!

Corry P

Sonos Staff

Hi @Mr. T

Please note that the phrase, “there is no audible output from inner woofers when Era 300 is bonded as rear surrounds” is a question in our Q&A document (though it is not phrased as a question, more a concern), and the corresponding answer is as I quoted in my earlier reply.

So, the whole thing reads as:

Q: There is no audible output from inner woofers when Era 300 is bonded as rear surrounds.

A: The inner speaker (tweeter + woofer) on the Era 300 surround system stays active when connected to any Sonos soundbars that support Dolby Atmos (like Arc Ultra, Arc, and Beam Gen 2). This inner speaker mainly handles surround audio, but some of these sounds are also sent to the upward-facing tweeter with the rear height channel.
The inner speaker is quieter than the upward-facing speaker because sound travels directly to the main listening area from the inner speaker, while sound from the upward speaker takes a longer, indirect route. The choice to share rear surround audio between the inner speaker and up-firing speaker was made to improve the immersive and environmental quality of the rear surround sound stage.

So, please do not take that one statement to be a statement of fact - it is supposed to be a quote of a frequently-asked-question. I agree that that could have been made clearer in the linked-to post.

However, I had already asked for clarification as I personally understood it to be the forward-facing drivers that are supposed to be silent, while the inner drivers are supposed to be considerably quieter than the others. It also does not directly answer @bogdalene’s initial question regarding the slider, which is why we were seeking clarification in the first place. Hopefully, answers will be forthcoming.

I hope this helps.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein

Mr. T

@Corry P - I didn’t take the one statement to be a statement of fact, I took the corresponding response “This is by design.” as an incorrect statement of fact, as I know minimal audio is output by the inner drivers, which is not the same as “no audible output”.

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