Arc 5.1 + HomeKit

  • 30 September 2021
  • 6 replies
  • 922 views

  • Contributor I
  • 7 replies

Hi all! I’m having trouble getting my new Arc setup registered into the HomeKit ecosystem. I have three other One SL’s throughout my home, all of which had no problem being discovered & added within HomeKit. I just setup the Arc, Sub & SL’s within the Sonos app, all was pretty seemless and grouping them as ‘one’ was much easier than I expected. Now that I have that completed within the Sonos app, it’s ready to be added to HomeKit just as my other One’s were, but it won’t discover when searching. Any ideas/fix? Part two to that question, will I only have to discover/add the Arc to HomeKit since the sub/SL’s are all binded together as ‘one’ within the Sonos app? 
 

Off topic. Is TruePlay really the secret sauce to bringing this setup to life? Coming from a similar Vizio soundbar/surround setup, I don’t want to say I’m necessarily disappointed but I’d say I was a bit underwhelmed. The bar sounded a bit narrow, which is opposite of pretty much all reviews professional or not, it’s been hyped as having a surprisingly wide soundstage for a soundbar. Dialog seems a bit buried, then again I had my ‘center’ option cranked all the way up on my old setup to get dialog somewhat clear. The sub seems to lack the ‘punch’ my old one did as well, currently have the sub set to 3. For an analogy, the old sub hit you with a bare fist - this one seems to hit with a 12oz boxing glove, just a bit softer or wallowy. Is there a benefit by adding a second sub, maybe? Surrounds I have set to 0/Ambient, doesn’t seem to really add much - although I haven’t watched a mastered movie on the setup yet, just a few Netflix original shows. Any advice would be appreciated.


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6 replies

Userlevel 7

Try unplugging the Arc from power for a couple of minutes and reboot your router and phone and try adding it to HomeKit again.

The Home app should discover the Arc/Sub/One SLs setup as one “accessory”.

Trueplay does make a difference. If you don’t like the way the Arc sounds after performing Trueplay tuning, try tuning it again or using another iOS device to tune.

What audio are you currently getting from the Arc? Dolby Atmos? Dolby Digital Plus? Stereo PCM? There is a pretty big difference when listening to stereo vs. 5.1 audio from the Arc.

Try unplugging the Arc from power for a couple of minutes and reboot your router and phone and try adding it to HomeKit again.

The Home app should discover the Arc/Sub/One SLs setup as one “accessory”.

Trueplay does make a difference. If you don’t like the way the Arc sounds after performing Trueplay tuning, try tuning it again or using another iOS device to tune.

What audio are you currently getting from the Arc? Dolby Atmos? Dolby Digital Plus? Stereo PCM? There is a pretty big difference when listening to stereo vs. 5.1 audio from the Arc.


Thank you for reply. I’ll attempt to reboot everything and report back. Glad to know it’ll be considered one accessory.

 

I did read something about the latest iPhone’s not having great results when tuning. My wife & I both have 12 Pro Max’s. I might have an old iPad Mini stashed away somewhere, but the likeliness the app is compatible with it being so old may be unlikely.

 

Thus far it’s been all DD+, which is always 5.1 correct? Atmos activated no problem when I fired up a tester flick on Netflix after setup, didn’t sit and listen though - just checked to see if my connections & setup was correct to allow for eArc Atmos. Sony Bravia TV’s are bit weird when adjusting sound settings on the TV itself. Speaking of which, should I have my audio output on the TV set to Dolby Digital Plus or passthrough? Those are my only two options, aside from PCM which I believe we don’t use on these things.

Userlevel 7

The iPad Mini should work just fine. It just needs to have iPadOS 13 or higher installed to run the S2 app. I have an old iPhone 5S from 2013 that I still use to perform Trueplay tuning. Also, be sure to remove your iPhone or iPad case before you do Trueplay tuning.

Yes, DD+ is usually 5.1. A good Dolby Atmos film to test on Netflix is Roma.

What specific model Sony TV do you have? The “passthrough” setting is usually the best option.

Do you typically adjust anything else after a tune? There’s a post on Reddit that essentially says after a tune the EQ section should be left alone. But the Sub/Surround could be adjusted to taste. Ambient/Full for the surrounds, etc. Any recommendations for the Surrounds specifically? 
 

I have the Sony X95J. HDMI 3 is the eArc/ARC port, which has the option to set to Standard/Enhanced (as do all HDMI inputs. I believe the Enhanced option for them is strictly related to allowing for HDR purposes, upping the gbps rate needed for HDR. For streamed eArc/Atmos, I imagine HDMI 3 can be left on Standard?

Userlevel 7

I would keep the HDMI Signal Format setting to Enhanced Format or Enhanced Format (Dolby Vision).

The other settings should look like this:

Speakers: Audio System

Audio System Prioritization: On

A/V Sync: On

eARC: Auto

Digital Audio Out: Auto 1

Dolby Digital Plus Output: Dolby Digital Plus

Pass Through Mode: Auto

Just look for the Dolby Atmos logo or “Dolby Digital Plus 5.1” displayed on the Now Playing screen in the Sonos app when watching most streaming content on Netflix. If you see these being displayed, your TV settings are correct.

 

I would go ahead and set the EQ settings where you want them before you perform Trueplay tuning. 

Which settings are best for the surrounds is based on personal preference, room size, and the distance between your seating area and the surround speakers. I personally keep the surround TV Level settings at -2 and Music Level at +2. I keep the Music Playback setting set to Full.

Height Audio level is set to +6 or +7 on the Arc. This is with 8 ft flat ceilings and the Arc placed about 6 ft from the ceiling.

Thanks, again, for your advice and help.

I previously had the HDMI format set to Standard, pass through mode was off - everything else you had listed was the same and I was getting the DD+ 5.1/Atmos labels. I’ll change those settings anyways, though. Any idea what the difference is between Auto 1 & 2? Crossing my fingers, but I have yet to run into lip sync issues - something I was constantly fighting with my previous setup.

In your opinion, would 2 subs be a bit overkill? Would likely place one on the left side of the couch (where it is currently), and the other on the right side of the couch. Room is 17’ long, 14’ wide, 9’ high.

I still cannot get the Arc into HomeKit. I reset my phone, reset the Arc, reset the router. No luck. What’s odd, however, is that it IS displaying under the AirPlay tab/icon when I bring up my available AirPlay devices - and will indeed connect & play when I select it. But I cannot actually add it within HomeKit itself, it won’t discover.