Level 1

16 points

Apple TV 4K, Sonos Arc and Dolby Atmos

I have the new Sonos Arc Soundbar with Dolby Atmos support and a Apple 4K tv. An Apple article says to connect the ATV 4K directly to a Soundbar via the HDMI Cable. Each device has 1 HDMI port so if you do that there is no way to get the signal back to the TV? Currently my ATV is on HDMI Port 3 and the Sonos Arc Soundbar is in HDMI Port 4 the ARC Channel. Also in the ATV settings under audio format I don’t get the option to select immersive audio which is where the Atmos setting should be listed. And the TV is a 3 year old Samsung so there should be no issues here with the TV. Ideas?

Thanks.

Posted on Jun 11, 2020 7:25 PM

Top-ranking reply

JoarNord

Level 1

37 points

Posted on Jun 14, 2020 4:43 PM

Hi!

I did some digging around.

In the article "Play audio in Dolby Atmos or surround sound on your Apple TV" there is this smal text:

"*Some sound bars and AV receivers support Dolby Atmos, but don’t support video formats like HDR10 and Dolby Vision. In this case, you can plug your Apple TV 4K into either the sound bar or AV receiver to play sound in Dolby Atmos. Or you can plug your Apple TV 4K into your television to watch video in HDR and Dolby Vision. To do both, you need a television or an AV receiver or sound bar that supports both Dolby Atmos and high-quality video formats. Apple TV 4K uses a high bandwidth form of Dolby Atmos that doesn’t work over ARC connections."

So basically you need to plug in your Apple TV 4K in to your soundbar / AV receiver or use a connection that supports a higher bandwidth.

Now comes the bad part.

Because the Sonos Arc only have one HDMI port and, as you said, the only connection you can have is from Apple TV 4K to the TV and then from the TV to the Sonos Arc means your TV need to have eARC to be able to support the higher bandwidth and send it though to the Sonos Arc.

I understand that this isn't something you like to hear and I feel the same as I'm in the same situation with my Philips TV but I guess we can always leave a feedback for Apple.

The TLDR-version:

To use the Sonos Arc with your Apple TV 4K your TV need to have a eARC connection support.

View in context

Similar questions

100 replies

aknedude

Level 1

4 points

Jun 27, 2020 11:34 AM in response to Ackmando

You connect the Atv to one of the NONE ARC ports. And connect the sonos arc to the archdmi port.

That's it.

Aug 17, 2020 12:52 PM in response to beau181

Cool, there's actually some useful examples of setups and required cables and hardware (HDMI splitter, etc.) in the "Getting Started" section of the link I sent.

Sep 5, 2020 12:15 PM in response to Ackmando

The apple app on lg does work with atmos but going through the tv form aTv it doesn’t. However using the lg app for Apple doesn’t allow any of the extras with your bought movies

Ackmando

Level 1

4 points

Sep 5, 2020 12:35 PM in response to batsabode

Batsa - I think we discussed this before - You are able to get atmos through the apple TV4K box. That is the setup I currently use and I get Dolby Atmos.

Nee Kun

Level 1

118 points

Sep 13, 2020 4:57 PM in response to Nee Kun

Many are facing the same choppy audio issues too:

https://lgcommunity.us.com/discussion/14247/cx-atmos-audio-bug-with-apple-tv-4k

Raavig

Level 1

4 points

Sep 28, 2020 1:14 PM in response to terryturner

Check out this device from https://hdfury.com/product/4k-arcana-18gbps/ which actually solves the problem by making it possible to connect more units to the Sonos Arc

terryturner Author

Level 1

16 points

Jun 11, 2020 9:01 PM in response to QuickPost

Pretty straight forward set up really.

Apple TV 4K HDMI to Samsung TV HDMI 3

Sonos Arc Soundbar (only has 1 HDMI Port) HDMI to Samsung TV HDMI 4 (ARC)

ATV 4K Audio settings

Audio Output = 4K Apple TV (HDMI)

Audio Format = I have 3 choices and have tried the all. Change format = Off, Change format on and Dolby Digital 5.1 selected, and Change format on and stereo selected.

Audio Mode 16 bit. I also tried Auto.

The funny thing is if all is working and connected correctly I should be shown an option “immersive audio” and Dolby Atmos is listed under Han b7t I never get that option.

There is an article here somewhere that says the Apple TV 4K should be directly connected via an HDMI cable to the sound bar. The problem is each device only has one HDMI port so there’s no way to get the signal back to the TV.

Jun 12, 2020 5:50 PM in response to terryturner

Same issue, here! ATV to HDMI 2 on Sony 65XBR900F, which is only a year old but no EARC support, Sonos ARC to HDMI3 (ARC) . Only Stereo and Dolby Digital 5.1 in audio output. Tried everything and no luck so far. Looking forward to helpful tips to resolve that.

Jun 19, 2020 9:49 AM in response to JoarNord

Using ATYV 4K and just opened a new HDMI with Ethernet capable and it still does not work, EARC to Sonos Arc and the ATV plunged into HDMI 4 input which is one the two HDMI 2.1 ports (HDMI1= HDMI 2.0, HDMI 2 and 4 = HDMI 2.1, HDMI 3 = EARC (HDMI 2.0). It plays menu sounds and regular movies but when I play an atmos movie it will not work, there is zero sound. If I play an apple movie using the LG's Apple TV app then the same movie will play a sound but not be in the atmos format. So far Theo only thing I can get to play atmos is the Netflix app on the tv .

Warsawnz

Level 1

5 points

Jun 21, 2020 3:14 AM in response to batsabode

I’m having the exact same issue with my brand new setup LG 65 NANO85. No sound output at all on Atmos titles from Apple TV services (Netflix, Apple TV+ etc). TV HDMI setting is set to Bitstream, only other option is PCM.

Any one know why I’m getting no sound at all from Atmos titles? This is so disappointing as I’ve purchased this whole brand new tv and setup just to get Atmos.

Ackmando

Level 1

4 points

Jun 27, 2020 1:53 PM in response to bilalc

Bilac,

Thanks for the update.

Funny you mention the HDMI cables - I actually ordered an ultra HD HDMI cord that gets delivered on Monday. I'm using older HDMIs and thought they might not be UHD. After researching the topic, it seems there wasn't a standard speed that you need to pass-through atmos, so I purchased a cord with 21Gbps. Any idea what your speed is? Perhaps that will fix it, but I'm not that optimistic.

I'm using a 2016 Sony (UN65JU7100) TV. The TV has DTS digital output and Dolby Digital Plus output so I thought I'd be able to get the "lossy" atmos versus Dolby TrueHD (which I'm fine with).

Any suggestions would be great. Pretty frustrating not getting atmos after the purchase.

Again - I'm plugging the Sonos arc into the HDMI ARC input and my apple 4kTV into the HDMI 1 input. Maybe my settings are incorrect? IDK.

Thank you.

aknedude

Level 1

4 points

Jun 28, 2020 1:40 AM in response to bilalc

But it's exactly what's the case here. LG tvs can't handle the signal from Atv. If sonos Would Update the ARC with LPCM it would be fixed. This is an LG only problem. And that's why I'm returning mine. There are a lot of talk about this everywhere on different forums.

Jun 28, 2020 1:25 PM in response to danielfromnorrtälje

I would rather sign something to get either Apple TV or Sonos or lg for that matter to make it work with a software update rather than pay out more money for a system that should have worked seamlessly In the first place

Jun 30, 2020 5:50 AM in response to aknedude

Yup just tested it and I have atmos. Yah finally. I just wish I could do it from aTv rather than the app on lg but hey beggars can’t be choosers right now I’m sure it will all be updated by either Apple or Sonos eventually. Thank you Lg for being ahead of the pack

Jul 8, 2020 11:31 AM in response to Philippe Gosset

it will not work. Check optical audio out specifications (TOSLINK Out):

Supported Audio formats & Specifications:

HDMI In: DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby TrueHD, LPCM 7.1, DTS, Dolby-AC3 and 2.0CH 32KHz, 44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz, 96KHz, 176.4KHz, 192KHz
HDMI Out: DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby TrueHD, LPCM 7.1, DTS, Dolby-AC3 and 2.0CH 32KHz, 44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz, 96KHz, 176.4KHz, 192KHz
TOSLINK Out : PCM and compressed audio formats up to 192 kHz (DTS, Dolby-AC3 and 2.0CH)
Headphone Out : 2.0 CH stereo audio

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Apple TV 4K, Sonos Arc and Dolby Atmos