Warning to Sonos Arc Users - New Update changes TV input

  • 1 March 2024
  • 6 replies
  • 255 views
L
Badge +1

After 4 calls to Sonos, the first 3 reps worked hard to diagnosis issue and couldn’t figure out what was causing this issue but the 4th rep advise this is the new functionality after last week’s software update.

 

Here’s the problem. I have a Sonos Arc system connected to my home theater TV. I never use that system for anything other than watching TV as we have other Sonos speakers for listening to music.

 

Starting last week when I turned on my TV, I was getting no sound from the Arc regardless of the app I chose on my Apple TV device and I couldn’t figure out why. Lots of restarting devices and troubleshooting. The only way I was able to get sound back after hours of trying different things was to use a Surround Sound test app that sent individual sounds to each of the surround sound speakers and subwoofers and then the sound would work fine again until I paused the TV or turned off the TV, then I would loose sound again. When I would look in the Sonos App on my phone, it would show the source for the TV was changed to a radio station. I never listen to radio on that device, why was that happening? 

 

Evidently with the new software, TV input is dropped when no sound is coming from the TV and it picks maybe a last radio station played???. 

Now evertytime I want to watch TV, not only do I have to turn my TV on, I have pull out my phone, go to the Sonos app and select the speaker Arc and then change the input to TV. This gets old, especially if you just want to pause something and come back to it later after eating or a bathroom break.

6 replies

N
Userlevel 7
Badge +18

Has the TV Autoplay feature been removed for an Arc? It’s still there and working for me with my Playbase. 

controlav
Userlevel 7
Badge +23

What TV?

Author of the leading independent Sonos app for Windows, the only Sonos app for Xbox, and a Sonos app for iOS
Corry P
Userlevel 7
Badge +18

Hi @larrybradshaw 

Thanks for your post!

You have been given some inaccurate information - apologies!

To be clear, it is normal behaviour for a device to switch back to it’s music queue once TV audio has ceased for 600 seconds, but, if AutoPlay is enabled (and it has not been removed from Arc), the Arc (or whatever other Home Theatre primary is in use) should start playing TV audio once more as soon as the feed coming via HDMI or Optical is resumed.

If, however, TV Autoplay is not enabled, you would need to manually select the TV as a source from within the Sonos app. Your most recent diagnostics show that TV AutoPlay is disabled. Please go to Settings » System » [room name with Arc] » TV AutoPlay On (under Home Theater).

None of this behaviour has been changed recently - the agent you spoke to has already received feedback regarding this inaccuracy.

Note that some devices (my nVidia Shield, for one) have a “keep alive” option whereby when paused, the device will continue to send audio information, but all silence. This prevents the connected Sonos device from switching back to the queue when you pause what’s playing. I don’t know if your Apple TV have this option, but if it does, I recommend you turn it on.

I hope this helps.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein
L
Badge +1

Hi Corry! One of the reps did a screen share and validate that TV Autoplay is turned on. It’s always been turned on, never turned off so I’m not sure why diagnostics would show that and this issue just started last week, no changes on my part. 

Corry P
Userlevel 7
Badge +18

Hi @larrybradshaw 

Well, that is strange. But, TV Autoplay being off would perfectly describe your situation (well, almost perfectly - the Surround Sound test app helping doesn’t fit). I therefore recommend that you try toggling the option on and off again to see if it helps. If you have already tried this - or if it does not help - please try a reboot of the Arc by unplugging it from power for a little while.

The radio station showing in Now Playing may be a bit of a red herring - as long as someone played that station there at some point, and as long as the Arc hasn’t rebooted, the last played non-TV source should show there when the TV feed stops (and the timeout expires). It’s also possible that the issue is that the audio isn’t even arriving to the TV’s input in the first place, or that the TV isn’t passing it along to the Arc. For this reason, I recommend that you also reboot your TV by unplugging it from the power for at least a minute, and I recommend that you also reboot your Apple TV by shutting it down and then turning it on (rather than a restart). If the origin of the issue was with the Apple TV, that would go some way to explain the Surround Sound test app behaviour.

If the behaviour continues after this point, please disconnect the Arc’s HDMI cable to see if the behaviour continues with just the TV’s speakers - if it does, either the TV or the Apple TV is definitely the source of the behaviour. Feel free to do this earlier if it’s easy enough to gain physical access - I’ve left it to the penultimate position as it may be awkward.

As an absolute last resort and if all else fails, I would then recommend removing the surrounds and Sub from the Arc and then performing a factory reset of the Arc. It would then need to be set up again as if new.

Remove surround speakers

Remove a Sonos Sub

Factory reset your Sonos product

Add a new product to an existing Sonos system - during this process, you will be offered the opportunity to add Sub and surrounds once more.

I hope this helps.

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein
BossSound
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I was surprised today when I faced no sound through a AV setup that's run like clockwork.

For the moment, my workaround has been to switch off the eArc sound option via the TV.

Needed proper sound with formula1 and BritAwards today.

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