Don't have eARC? Get Atmos w/ HD Fury "Arcana" - Pre-orders now LIVE!

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melvimbe

Regarding the stretch goal of enabling the Arcana to pull audio from TV smart apps (and HDMI sources connected to TV) and sending it to the Sonos Arc...two points to make.  One is that the other two other ways to accomplish this without that functionality.  One is to use Arcana in combination with one of HD Fury’s HDMI switches/matrix, like vertex2, or to use a different switch/matrix along with the Sharc.  Both of these options are diagrammed out pretty well on HD Fury’s site.  The CEC controls, IMO, is the bigger gain from the stretch goal, although that functionality can be replicate with a different method of control, like Harmony, as well.

The other point, I think it’s a wise choice to avoid using smart apps on your TV if at all possible going forward.  While it adds a lot of convenience, there’s going to reach a point where streaming tech goes beyond what the TV can handle and you’ll be pushed to upgrade your TV for non-display quality reasons.  Really, you could claim that the issue and need for Arcana is already because of non-display quality reasons, limitations and implementations of ARC and eARC.  So, it makes to use smart apps if they are there and meet your needs, but perhaps it doesn’t make sense to spend extra to get them to work right rather than use a separate streaming source like ATV, Roku, or FireTV.

 

If you look at the history of AV products, there always seems to be a battle between component products and all-in-one products.  The component products doing one thing well and easier to replace and upgrade, and all-in-one products being cheaper overall, but pushing an upgrade when one feature is no longer modern enough and limits the whole system.  You could typically break audio into 4 basics components.  Sources, switching/control, audio, and video.   We’ve seen receivers/audio products that act as a source and  switching/control as well as audio.  We see TVs that add sources, switching/control, and/or audio to it’s main video purpose.  Switching/control has rarely been done as it’s own separate device.  I like the idea of finally getting a system where all 4 basics are in separate devices,where each device can be upgraded as needed without forcing an upgrade to the other 3. 

 

 

 

Danny
D

Received my Arcana yesterday. Set it up just now. Works great.

2019 Nvidia Shield Pro → Arcana → Arc & BenQ HT3550 PJ

I can get DD+ Atmos via streaming apps, and TrueHD Atmos in some of my BR rips via Emby. Sounds like I had hoped it would. 

Sjoop1985

I noticed there are new "pre-release" demo vids on the product page... Release is coming soon!

Bit the bullet and ordered an Arc to replace my Playbar. My current setup is with a Projector (no ARC) and an audio extractor with optical out, so pre-ordered Arcana as well.

To my surprise, I got the Arc delivered today, within 3 days of ordering. I'm in the Netherlands, ordered with Sonos for a Trade Up.

So now I'm temporarily running the Arc on optical, anxiously refreshing HDFury's site for a definitive announcement on start of shipping that they promised for beginning of September. Never thought my Arc would get here before Arcana... First world problems.

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans (John Lennon) --- Living room: Arc, Sub, 2x One - Kitchen: One - Bedroom: Play 3 - Office: Beam - Bathroom: Play 1
buzz

About 15 hours after the DHL notification, I got the email from HDFury with the shipping information.

Wow. this is my first DHL international shipment. Last week I struggled to find a FedEx overnight package that was scheduled to be delivered Tuesday, but disappeared somewhere, finally being delivered Friday to the wrong location.

This DHL package was estimated to arrive September 23, but their excellent tracking details indicate that the package left their facility a couple hours from my city by truck maybe a little less by air. Conceptually, I could have the package in the morning -- fully two days early.

J
Userlevel 1
Badge +3

Right,  sorted it.   I needed to update the firmware and then it stopped losing audio.  All in all it is working very well.  No lip-sync issues with any source and the the Atmos is great to have.

 

Josh

W

Much needed, especially if you are using a projector…..

S
Userlevel 1

Sonos should push for this considering they put us in this situation to begin with ;-).

M
Userlevel 1
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Maybe partner with HDFury and sell it as an accessory.  They may sell tons of Arcs :)

H
Userlevel 6
Badge +7

Maybe partner with HDFury and sell it as an accessory.  They may sell tons of Arcs :)

I agree with that! I bought my Arc having no idea whatsoever as to whether or not I’d be able to get Atmos out of my Apple TV. I ended up taking the plunge despite the risk and, lo and behold, no Atmos. If I could have KNOWN up front that I could definitely get Atmos from my ATV or external device(s) with an add-on like this, I would have thrown it into the cart in a heartbeat. 

Arc + Sub 3 + One SLs = Awesome and Loving It!
melvimbe

@barritia The Sonos Arc doesn’t support dts or dts-x codecs.  Sonos product never have.  In order to watch that content, you would need your source device (blu ray player or streamer) to transcode that code to DD, DD+, or TrueHD.   So both the Arc and Arcana are doing what they were designed to do.

Danny
flexyneat

Yup!, ordered mine a few hrs ago. 

melvimbe

Just received my Arcana but wondering are there any special settings needed on the Arcana for an IoGear 4K switch with Oppo UHD 203 , Apple 4K TV and Cable TV? Unfortunately, my Samsung 75 Q9FN has an HDMI arc connection but that does not work and therefore the need for the Arcana. 

I will be feeding the sound to the Sonos Arc from the Arcana connection.

 

 

No, not really.  Arcana will detect the capabilities of your source (HDMI switch)  and sinks (TV and Arc) and adjust accordingly for getting audio done correctly.  There are a few options that you may want to consider though, so I would recommend browsing through the user guide (available on HD Fury website) when you have a chance to see if anything is worth trying out.

Danny
R
Userlevel 1

Really interested in this, not only to get the Atmos capability but to also help with the terrible lip sync from Sky Q that it claims to fix!

Quick question though - do I need to buy a HDMI switch too?  I can’t work it out...my inputs are as follows: Sky Q (UHD/Atmos), PS4, Apple TV.  As you can see, only one of those inputs supports Atmos and also happens to be the only one with lip sync issues.  Can I just plug the Sky Q into the Arcana and the other 2 into the TV like I would have done previously?

Thanks!

melvimbe

Can’t speak to the auto switching as I’m controlling it from a Harmony Hub (which works great here) but overall I’m very pleased. Will update here if I run into any issues But for the moment I can recommend.

FYI to all.

 

For the Harmony Hub, was the switch listed for easy setup or did you have to train Harmony to use it?

 

Also, I saw HD Fury’s comments regarding cables working fine on Discord.  I think the discussion of what cables work and don’t work (same with switches) gets over simplified a bit.  There really is two factors in picking a switch or cable to work in your setup.  The first is, is the product have the right specs for your needs.  18 gbps is great, however, if you don’t have any sources or TV/PJ that requires it, you don’t absolutely need it.  Is it a good idea to get it for future proofing?  Sure, as the cost difference usually isn’t that different, but if you already have cables/switches than nothing wrong with using what you got.

 

The other factor is product reliability.  There are lots of high quality brands out there and some that’s not so good.  Depending on your setup, the extra cost for the higher quality is usually worth it.  Again though, if what you have works for what you need in terms of specs, use what you got.

Danny
melvimbe

And the post below talks about how to get on the discord channel.

 

https://en.community.sonos.com/home-theater-228993/hd-fury-is-working-on-an-earc-solution-for-sonos-arc-full-audio-atmos-from-any-hdmi-sources-6842652?postid=16442048#post16442048

Danny
melvimbe

I am, indeed! My Arcana beta unit arrived on Tuesday and have been testing it since. 

The good news is that it does what it says on the tin - it lets you get Atmos from external sources. 

The only issues so far (that I’ve seen) have been regarding CEC control and, to be honest, I don’t particularly understand the intricacies of what all’s happening. What I CAN say is that HD Fury has been ridiculously responsive to concerns and have already pushed out no fewer than 5 firmware updates to correct issues in the last three days. For example, I was having an issue with the Apple TV remote not controlling the Arc volume, but a firmware update later all is well. 

I’d say we’re in the “fine tuning” stage in that it absolutely works as intended, but CEC is such a mish-mash of poorly implemented functionality across various devices that HD Fury is having to see how Arcana works in the real world with a variety of equipment and adjust accordingly.

 

 

I am not at all surprised regarding CEC commands. Those sort of issues became apparent when the Beam was introduced.  It sounds to me like there won’t be any shipping delays due to testing.  Whatever minor issues that exist can be fixed with firmware updates.

 

Joined their Discord yesterday. Now I see where all the information on here was coming from! They are really transparent and helpful. Had a question answered by HDFury themselves within a few hours.

And yes @melvimbe, I think I saw @Highfalutintodd is a beta tester.

 

It is a vastly different support structure than Sonos, without a doubt.  They have the luxary of being smaller and not really having to worry too much about competition or media exposure since they don’t really have any of that anyway.

Danny
H
Userlevel 6
Badge +7

I’ve found that zip ties and a label maker have become essential materials in my setups lately.  

Cable management has NEVER been my strong suit. Worse, those few times I actually DO take the time and effort to actually make things nice and clean, inevitably I completely end up ripping it all back out a couple of months later because I changed equipment. So, it all just gets hidden away behind the TV and we do. not. speak. about. it. ;-) 

Arc + Sub 3 + One SLs = Awesome and Loving It!
H

Mine is due to be delivered in the next few days…. ordered mine a few weeks ago on pre order...

C

Can someone please explain how the HDFury Arcana will enable an Apple TV 4k to successfully connect to a Sonos Arc and receive Atmos audio?

I understand (i think) how the Arcana splits the source HDMI signal and means that if you have an ARC TV (rather eARC) you will be able to connect….but how does it get around the main issue that Apple TV 4K only outputs Atmos in LPCM, and currently the Sonos Atmos can not receive LPCM Atmos audio?

D
Userlevel 2
Badge +4

I don't use Discord so this thread has become my primary source of information about this product.

If you don't mind I would like to ask a few novice questions for those of you who are better informed.

1- For those of you who already received an early review copy, can you tell me about that process of receiving it? How long did it take to get it in the post? What country are you in and how much tariffs did you pay?

2- it wasn't clear to me if the Arcana needs a separate power supply, or if can it draw power from the signal source (or say the tv's usb port). If it needs external power is there an on/off switch? What happens if you turn it off or unplug it- will signal still travel across?

3- I only need to link in my Xbox One X, no other devices. So if I run the X1X out to Arcana, and then the Arcana out to Sonos ARC and TV, will my TV remote still control the Sonos volume, or will i need to control the volume with the Sonos app? It's not clear to me from the product description whether this feature has been enabled.

Thanks for your help on this.

calebwojcik
Badge

Which site did you order from?

I ordered an Arcana directly from their website yesterday morning and I got a shipping text message from DHL almost exactly 24 hours later. Estimated delivery on Friday (3 days later).

Seems like they are shipping faster than the Dec 18 estimate on their website.

C

Can someone please explain how the HDFury Arcana will enable an Apple TV 4k to successfully connect to a Sonos Arc and receive Atmos audio?

I understand (i think) how the Arcana splits the source HDMI signal and means that if you have an ARC TV (rather eARC) you will be able to connect….but how does it get around the main issue that Apple TV 4K only outputs Atmos in LPCM, and currently the Sonos Atmos can not receive LPCM Atmos audio?

 

I don’t have AT4K, and don’t fully get the issues that it has.  My understanding, perhaps incorrect, is that AT4K sends DD+ for all of it’s apps except for Apple +.  So Arcana would resolve issues of getting the DD+ signal  from AT4K to the Arc, but not LPCM.

 

And to be clear, with Arcana, audio pretty much bypassing the TV or PJ completely, so the display device does not need to have eARC or ARC capabilities at all.   Technically, you don’t even have to connect a display, though you won’t see anything of course.

 

Thanks - so using a HDFury Arcana you still wouldn’t be able to watch Apple Movies with Dolby Atmos audio on an Apple TV 4K.

If correct, I don’t understand the point of using the device (in relation to Apple TV 4K) as for most users the main point of the Apple TV is to rent/buy Apple Movies.

Can anyone add info? Thanks.

 

H
Userlevel 6
Badge +7

Only one know issue at the time, as the CEC/ARC functionality on some Vizio TVs isn’t working.  This DOES NOT mean you can’t use Arcana with your Vizio TV, @Airgetlam.  It means that CEC controls between Arc and TV won’t work, so you won’t be able to use the TV remote to control volume via CEC control (use direct IR) or use voice commands to turn on/off the TV.   The ARC part of this essentially means you won’t be able to use your TV internal smart apps.

As the owner of a Vizio E70-F3, I can confirm this. It isn’t that CEC DOESN’T work though Arcana (I was able to turn on / turn off / control volume via CEC with the Arcana attached), but rather that having CEC enabled seems to cause random video/audio blackouts (for me, at least). Ever since I disabled CEC on the TV and my sources, everything has been rock solid. But I already had a Harmony Hub to control everything so this hasn’t been an issue for me, personally, at all. 

FYI. 

Arc + Sub 3 + One SLs = Awesome and Loving It!
H
Userlevel 6
Badge +7

@Highfalutintodd How are you getting Atmos from Netflix on your 2018 Vizio? Is it the built in app or through another device? I have a 2018 P-Series and I am not getting Atmos from Netflix (only regular DD+) from either the built in app or from my Apple TV 4K. I do get it from the built in Prime Video, Plex and Vudu apps where supported.

The only way I’ve been able to get Atmos on my 2018 Vizio (E70-F3) is via the built-in Netflix and Plex apps. Disney+ and Prime Video don’t seem to output Atmos for me on this set using the built-in apps (though it feels like they should) and the Apple TV+ app isn't available on Vizio yet. I don’t use Vudu so can’t comment on that one (although I should have tried it to rent a movie this past weekend). 

Super weirdly, my TV and the Arc both THINK I’m getting Atmos out of my Apple TV 4K sometimes - even on things that are DEFINITELY NOT Atmos. Very, very odd.  

Arc + Sub 3 + One SLs = Awesome and Loving It!
Airgetlam

Thanks for the heads up Danny...but I’m not a huge fan of the whole *censored* CEC spec, which seems to have too much latitude in it that allows each device manufacturer to make enough modifications to mess it up, so I just use the Harmony software to control each device individually, without relying on CEC to carry the commands.

 

Bruce
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