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chrisredmayne
Avid Contributor I
March 9, 2017
Question

Can we get a more definitive answer on what TVs will passthrough 5.1 audio ??

The only thread I can see with a Sonos answered comment lists 4 year old American TVs I can't even find in stock. Surely you are constantly testing new TVs ?

I really want a new TV but can't pick as I'm worried it won't work right, is there nothing in the TV specs to look for ? If it says ARC HDMI does that mean it will work ?
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    jgatie
    jgatie
    March 9, 2017
    Sonos steadfastly does not endorse other companies products. Matter of fact, they go out of their way to not make recommendations (hence the mostly user input in the TV compatibility thread). Your best bet is to shop for a new TV, find one(s) with the features/price you like, and check the specs. If the specs are vague, I would contact the manufacturer's support center.
    Ryan S
    Ryan S
    Retired Sonos Staff
    March 9, 2017
    Good answers from everyone. That megathread is the closest to a suggested list that we make, and we try to keep it updated with the recommendations from the community that come up too.

    The rtings.com list is also a great resource.
    Mark good posts by pressing the like button, and select the best answer on questions you've asked to help others find solutions.
    RBass
    Lyricist I
    March 9, 2017
    What do we look for in the TV specs? Something like this?

    Dolby Audio and DTS pass through via HDMI
    or
    Dolby Audio decode via HDMI and optical
    jgatie
    jgatie
    March 9, 2017
    You want "pass through" if you are going to have external sources like a cable box or streamer.
    chrisredmayneAuthor
    Avid Contributor I
    March 9, 2017
    You want "pass through" if you are going to have external sources like a cable box or streamer.

    Ive never seen this listed in any TV specification yet 😞 Either I'm looking too low or they never mention it
    chrisredmayneAuthor
    Avid Contributor I
    March 9, 2017
    Good answers from everyone. That megathread is the closest to a suggested list that we make, and we try to keep it updated with the recommendations from the community that come up too.

    The rtings.com list is also a great resource.

    http://uk.rtings.com/tv/tests/inputs/5-1-surround-audio-passthrough

    All of these are American TV models , no help whatsoever really!
    Jabba1980
    Collaborator II
    March 9, 2017
    It is a help. Take, for example, the US Samsung model UN55KS8000. In the review it tells you what the UK equivalent model number is, which, in this case, is the UE55KS7000.
    chrisredmayneAuthor
    Avid Contributor I
    March 9, 2017
    It is a help. Take, for example, the US Samsung model UN55KS8000. In the review it tells you what the UK equivalent model number is, which, in this case, is the UE55KS7000.

    So on one review it has a UK equivalent! I have checked all the LG reviews and none of them have this on ! Cant believe the amount of effort this is taking to find out if a TV has passthrough or not!!! Very frustrating, I mean there is a deal on a LG 49UH650V tv now, the shop is just a high street shop, they wont know if it has passthrough, I could email LG but Id guess the tv wouldn't be on sale by the time they get back to me! So the only option is to buy it and hope it works and if not hope they would refund me!
    chrisredmayneAuthor
    Avid Contributor I
    March 9, 2017
    It is a help. Take, for example, the US Samsung model UN55KS8000. In the review it tells you what the UK equivalent model number is, which, in this case, is the UE55KS7000.

    So on one review it has a UK equivalent! I have checked all the LG reviews and none of them have this on ! Cant believe the amount of effort this is taking to find out if a TV has passthrough or not!!! Very frustrating, I mean there is a deal on a LG 49UH650V tv now, the shop is just a high street shop, they wont know if it has passthrough, I could email LG but Id guess the tv wouldn't be on sale by the time they get back to me! So the only option is to buy it and hope it works and if not hope they would refund me!

    Looking at the specs on that TV also it says DTS Decoder - Yes (DTS-HD), is it going to have the same issues as the person above ?? I wish I could just buy... " a tv" and not have to think about all of this ha
    Jabba1980
    Collaborator II
    March 9, 2017
    I agree, it is frustrating. The LG, is it this one?

    http://uk.rtings.com/tv/reviews/lg/uh6500

    This suggests it should pass through DD 5.1 via optical. As I understand, the issue above was that his Tv will also pass through DTS via optical, which is no good for the PLAYBAR. In this case, it comes down to the source (e.g Blu-ray player, Xbox One, PS4 etc) and whether that can convert DTS to DD 5.1.
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