Samsung Qn90b + Sonos arc + Apple tv4k sound issues

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Irish_Pucks Author

Level 1

4 points

Samsung Qn90b + Sonos arc + Apple tv4k sound issues

Hi, I have scoured forums all over the net but for the life of me can’t find an exact match for my issue.

tv: Samsung Qn90b 75”

Apple TV 4k Ethernet gen 3

sonos arc

ethernet into apple tv

hdmi out from Apple TV into tv HDMI-1

hdmi out from tv HDMI-3 into sonos arc via eArc port

Issue: if I don’t select “temporary audio output” and then select my Sonos system then I don’t get any sound when using apps like YouTube tv and Netflix on my Apple TV 4K.

samsung tv eArc is on and set to pass through. Sonos checkbox is enabled too. Had a **** of a time getting that set, kept telling me it wasn’t supported but finally it let me. Not sure why, hope it stays there.

if I set the Apple TV sound to tv speakers, it is supposed to leverage the tv pass through setting and go right to my sonos, but it doesn’t. I dont get any sound whatsoever, regardless of what show or app.

so I have to select the temporary audio and I pick my Sonos system and then it’s ok. How long does the “temporary” last? I have shut off my tv and Apple TV, turned back on and the “temporary setting was still set. Guess I’m lucky?

when selecting temporary, is that making the Apple TV talk to the sonos arc through Bluetooth and skipping the HDMI cable into my tv and then out from the tv to the arc?

why can’t I get sound by setting the default audio output to “tv speakers”? That’s what I’m confused about and am worried my workaround setup is giving me lower quality audio and it could break anytime. Is this a Samsung, sonos or apple issue?

Posted on Feb 19, 2023 09:52 PM

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Answer 1

Irish_Pucks Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 20, 2023 07:03 AM in response to Irish_Pucks

Left my system on last night, apple tv went into sleep mode as I expected. I wanted to see what would happen to the settings.

Apple TV settings stayed the same, audio was still "temporarily" pointing to my sonos, i'm assuming via bluetooth. Went and checked my audio settings on my samsung TV, they had changed - they were set now to "TV speaker" for audio instead of the Sonos / Arc.

That said, when I launched youtube TV, the sound was still coming out of the sonos, and sounded good. I thought that the TV had to be set to Sonos/Arc with pass thru for the sound to come out.

I'm guessing this all means that its irrelevant what the TV audio settings are if the apple TV is connecting to the sonos via the "temporary" route.

As a test, I changed the apple TV audio settings to not use the temporary connection to the sonos, but go with the standard/default connection via "TV Receiver". Immediately there was no sound when I turned on youtube TV. I checked the TV settings and they were eArc with pass through, Atmos selected, etc - everything looked right -- but no sound coming out of the tv. I would try to turn up the sound with the TV remote and it recognized the sonos, but the sound never went up. I then changed the sound settings from eArc/Sonos back to "TV Speaker" and then when I used the TV remote and changed the sound it did turn up the TV audio and I could hear it - but of course thats not what I wanted.

Another test I could do would be to set the Apple TV to connect temporarily to the sonos, and then unplug the hdmi cable to the back of the sonos. If sound still played then this would guarantee that the apple TV was sending audio to the sonos via bluetooth and not thru the TV.

Still stumped why I don't get sound when I have apple TV audio set to "TV Receiver" and the TV audio set to eArc with pass thru.

Secondarily wondering why my TV overnight changed audio settings on its own from eArc pass through back to TV speaker.

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Answer 2

K3mike

Level 1

10 points

Feb 20, 2023 09:30 AM in response to Irish_Pucks

Hello Irish,

I went through this same mess prior to getting the Sonos Arc. I had two Sonos 5 units set up as a stereo pair before the Arc. They acted exactly how you described.

The issue was gone when I installed the Arc and it performs correctly now. I’m not sure what I did to correct it through… I’m not even sure which device the problem was being caused by… Samsung Frame TV, Sonos, or Apple TV.

I did learn that it’s important to wait and plug the HDMI cable into the Samsung device until all components are powered on, otherwise my system wouldn’t recognize the Arc as an audio output option.

My reply may not help fix your problem, but at least it lets you know you’re not alone!

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Samsung Qn90b + Sonos arc + Apple tv4k sound issues

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