Retired Community Manager

14.12 Update

Changes to volume mapping and impact on Sub output

Thank you for your feedback regarding the recent 14.12 software update with Enhanced Clarity for Arc.

In this update, we made a change to Arc’s audio profile to improve dialogue clarity and the overall sound experience. This change is based on feedback from our listeners in the field and brings Arc in line with our other Home Theater products, resulting in a more accurate representation of the sound as intended by the content creator.

The updated tuning adjusts the spectral balance of Arc+Sub to achieve a more accurate representation of the sound and an improved sound experience. While the Arc+Sub output capability remains the same, the mapping of volume across the 0-100% range has been adjusted with this release which means low and mid volume levels are relatively lower compared to the previous tuning so you may need to adjust the volume slider to achieve your pre-update volume level. The maximum volume and bass output are unchanged. We acknowledge that this change was not made more clear in the release notes and in the future we’ll be sure to make sure we communicate these rare changes more effectively.

Please note, we have identified an issue for some users of Arc, Beam and Ray whose configuration includes a Sub (with or without surrounds), who may find their Sub output is lower than desired after performing a new Trueplay tuning.

Users with Beam or Ray bonded with Sub can increase the Sub level for a more powerful low-end response, however this won’t have the same impact for Arc users. Customers using Arc bonded with a Sub (and/or surrounds) who find their Sub output is lower than desired following performing a new Trueplay tuning, should temporarily disable Trueplay on Arc until this is addressed by an upcoming software update.

Trueplay tunings for Home Theater configurations without a bonded Sub are unaffected, including standalone soundbars and those bonded with surrounds only.

If you would like any assistance adjusting the sound of your Home Theater setup, the community is here to help. You can also contact Sonos support.

Moderation edit:

With the 14.18 software update, the above mentioned issues have been addressed, and the Enhanced Clarity for Arc adjustments are retained. There was a clear preference within our community for the previous volume settings, and these have been restored. This will be apparent immediately after updating to 14.18. The Trueplay issue has been fixed. Customers who experienced a lower Sub level after performing Trueplay after updating to 14.12 will need to update their systems and then perform a new Trueplay tuning in order to address these improvements in their system. Customers will hear a more powerful low end response, meaning any Sub level adjustments made after 14.12 should no longer be required.

This topic has been closed for further comments. You can use the search bar to find a similar topic, or create a new one by clicking Create Topic at the top of the page.

Show previous replies

W

WILDECHO

Lyricist II

Hi Guys,

I did the Trueplay update over the weekend and now I have a Sub 3 turned into a white brick.

My bass has completely gone nothing like it was before.

My setup is Arc + Sub3 + 2 x 1’s.

Volume is now higher as well, just to hear the TV.

What have you done Sonos ?

Translate

Ken_Griffiths

Hi Guys,

I did the Trueplay update over the weekend and now I have a Sub 3 turned into a white brick.

My bass has completely gone nothing like it was before.

My setup is Arc + Sub3 + 2 x 1’s.

Volume is now higher as well, just to hear the TV.

What have you done Sonos ?

Maybe see the opening post in this thread of what you need to do to perhaps help resolve your issue.

Translate

A

ApolloLucas

Trending Lyricist I

@Sonos you must acknowledge that there is a problem with the sound profile on setups WITHOUT a Sub after the 14.12 update too.

My setup is Arc + 2x OneSL surrounds. I don’t have a Sub. The sound profile changed dramatically for me after the 14.12 update. In a nutshell: bass is unbalanced and generally lacking. The overall sound is muddy and the system sounds cheap. Surround speakers are much louder to the point of overpowering everything else at default settings (zero). I don’t find speech and vocals to be any clearer. TruePlay doesn’t make any significant difference either way (enabled or disabled, multiple re-runs) although after some of the TruePlay re-runs the bass disappeared completely. And finally, yes, the Arc is somewhat quieter overall, but the overall volume level is easily rectifiable.

Please look into these issues urgently. The 14.12 update affects negatively users without a Sub too.

Translate

Ken_Griffiths

@Sonos you must acknowledge that there is a problem with the sound profile on setups WITHOUT a Sub after the 14.12 update too.

My setup is Arc + 2x OneSL surrounds. I don’t have a Sub. The sound profile changed dramatically for me after the 14.12 update. In a nutshell: bass is unbalanced and generally lacking. The overall sound is muddy and the system sounds cheap. Surround speakers are much louder to the point of overpowering everything else at default settings (zero). I don’t find speech and vocals to be any clearer. TruePlay doesn’t make any significant difference either way (enabled or disabled, multiple re-runs) although after some of the TruePlay re-runs the bass disappeared completely. And finally, yes, the Arc is somewhat quieter overall, but the overall volume level is easily rectifiable.

Please look into these issues urgently. The 14.12 update affects negatively users without a Sub too.

The Peter Pee ‘earlier’ videos, one of which I have linked below, shows his own independent findings of the Sonos Arc without a Sub (w/Trueplay not-enabled), both before and after the 14.12 update.

His frequency output comparison charts show the areas of change based on his own testing and he offers some suggestions for you to perhaps consider…

https://youtu.be/C7sLAhDXH7A

Translate

A

ApolloLucas

Trending Lyricist I

@Sonos you must acknowledge that there is a problem with the sound profile on setups WITHOUT a Sub after the 14.12 update too.

My setup is Arc + 2x OneSL surrounds. I don’t have a Sub. The sound profile changed dramatically for me after the 14.12 update. In a nutshell: bass is unbalanced and generally lacking. The overall sound is muddy and the system sounds cheap. Surround speakers are much louder to the point of overpowering everything else at default settings (zero). I don’t find speech and vocals to be any clearer. TruePlay doesn’t make any significant difference either way (enabled or disabled, multiple re-runs) although after some of the TruePlay re-runs the bass disappeared completely. And finally, yes, the Arc is somewhat quieter overall, but the overall volume level is easily rectifiable.

Please look into these issues urgently. The 14.12 update affects negatively users without a Sub too.

The Peter Pee ‘earlier’ videos, one of which I have linked below, shows his own independent findings of the Sonos Arc without a Sub (w/Trueplay not-enabled), both before and after the 14.12 update.

His frequency output comparison charts show the areas of change based on his own testing and he offers some suggestions for you to perhaps consider…

https://youtu.be/C7sLAhDXH7A

Thank you for the suggestion Ken. I’m aware of Peter Pee’s videos and I’ve watched them all.

I used to enable TruePlay tuning before 14.12 because I found that it improved bass tremendously and significantly improved the overall balance of the sound profile of my Arc and OneSL surrounds. The update seems to have had a big impact on the sound profile with TruePlay enabled (and as per Peter’s video also with TruePlay disabled). Peter never tested the Arc with TruePlay enabled so we can’t be sure what exactly is going on with TruePlay on setups without a Sub. Plus, Peter never did any tests on a setup with surround speakers. Those seem to be very unbalanced after the update too and TruePlay doesn’t seem to make any difference.

I’ve tried to apply Peter’s suggested adjustments but that really only makes a minor difference. My setup sounds nothing like it did before the 14.12 update.

Translate

P

Pottsy320

Enthusiast I

Before, my setup sounded rich and detailed. Now it sounds, tinny, boxy and muddled.

The thing the apologists must appreciate is that previously in life, you set up your amp and speakers to sound just how you wanted them. No one could mess them up. Now, at the flick of a switch, the manufacturer has trashed my system and I can't get the good sound back.

It makes owners who care very angry.

Furthermore, the manufacturer has only acknowledged one of the numerous faults, so there's a chance they may not fix all the faults, thus permanently destroying the product.

Which means the only alternative is to start from scratch and buy again which is an expense I cannot afford and don't want to undertake. Or we live with the appalling sound.

Why they cannot put their pathetic corporate pride to one side and give us back the old firmware is a complete mystery. No one was complaining and no one wanted this destruction of their own hardware.

Translate

F

FPSJ

Enthusiast II

Before, my setup sounded rich and detailed. Now it sounds, tinny, boxy and muddled.

The thing the apologists must appreciate is that previously in life, you set up your amp and speakers to sound just how you wanted them. No one could mess them up. Now, at the flick of a switch, the manufacturer has trashed my system and I can't get the good sound back.

It makes owners who care very angry.

Furthermore, the manufacturer has only acknowledged one of the numerous faults, so there's a chance they may not fix all the faults, thus permanently destroying the product.

Which means the only alternative is to start from scratch and buy again which is an expense I cannot afford and don't want to undertake. Or we live with the appalling sound.

Why they cannot put their pathetic corporate pride to one side and give us back the old firmware is a complete mystery. No one was complaining and no one wanted this destruction of their own hardware.

Spot on!

Translate

106rallye

Though I appreciate your feelings about the lost quality of sound, your remark “No one was complaining” is not true; people where complaining about not being able to hear voices clearly on the Arc.

Translate

P

Pottsy320

Enthusiast I

A centre channel volume control is somewhat different to a DSP-fest set to "cardboard box" mode.

There's no issue with adding switchable software options, there's a major issue with implementing a mandatory "sound profile" that imitates the sound from my TV speakers.

Translate

K

Kumar

Why they cannot put their pathetic corporate pride to one side and give us back the old firmware is a complete mystery. No one was complaining and no one wanted this destruction of their own hardware.

I get your point of view; and for the record, I am one that Sonos fans love to jump on as a Sonos hater. All you have to do if you want to see some of that is scroll back on just this thread.

But to be fair to Sonos, there are posters here that have expressed happiness with the change. And typically, those that are not happy are more likely to post here, outnumbering the other lot that are not pissed off.

That is probably what is coming in the way of a simple roll back.

Translate

Show more replies

Changes to volume mapping and impact on Sub output

Sign up

Login to the community