Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar

Got my Ambeo back from Sennheiser having had to send it into them because the Ambeo light wouldn’t illuminate. Got it back within 5 days and then as soon as I turn Ambeo 3D sound off and then back on again, the light fails again!
This will be my second Ambeo soundbar (the first failed completely) so can’t say I’m too impressed with a £2300 product being so flakey.
Anybody else has this fault?
Turn my ambeo light off as it is too distracting for my liking :)
 
Got my Ambeo back from Sennheiser having had to send it into them because the Ambeo light wouldn’t illuminate. Got it back within 5 days and then as soon as I turn Ambeo 3D sound off and then back on again, the light fails again!
This will be my second Ambeo soundbar (the first failed completely) so can’t say I’m too impressed with a £2300 product being so flakey.
Anybody else has this fault?
If it worked at Sennheiser but not when you received it .....

This is probably a waste of time, but if you are controlling from the app, then it might be worth trying deleting the app doing an ipad or whatever reset to clear any legacy and reinstalling it.
 
Last edited:
i have a shield and a apple tv (shield only for proper true hd).
I actually doesnt like my shield interface and its rather faulty.
I like my apple tv with infuse.
Since apple doesnt support true hd im choosing lpcm option for audio (best sound).
Im wondering if the ambeo can make some sort of ambeo like sound with a 7.1 lpcm signal from an Apple TV?
I know it isn't real atmos, but is it processed in the ambeo soundbar as a atmos track?
 
i have a shield and a apple tv (shield only for proper true hd).
I actually doesnt like my shield interface and its rather faulty.
I like my apple tv with infuse.
Since apple doesnt support true hd im choosing lpcm option for audio (best sound).
Im wondering if the ambeo can make some sort of ambeo like sound with a 7.1 lpcm signal from an Apple TV?
I know it isn't real atmos, but is it processed in the ambeo soundbar as a atmos track?
Tough one, depends on your incoming bit rate, the better the audio the more it will sound like an atmos track. The up mixing ambeo will be 5.1 lpcm but the processing can make you believe there are some high channels out there at best. I did some low bit rate 5.1 aac (lpcm) testing are depending on the track there were some real good ones and others were a real disappointment.
 
If it worked at Sennheiser but not when you received it .....

This is probably a waste of time, but if you are controlling from the app, then it might be worth trying deleting the app doing an ipad or whatever reset to clear any legacy and reinstalling it.
Tried this but the Ambeoi light has started flickering and went out again! Possibly a loose connection I guess.. anyway it’s gone back to Sennheiser. I’m doing well so far , two soundbars in just over 6 weeks. Hopefully I’ll get one that lasts longer than that when Sennheiser send me a replacement
 
Tried this but the Ambeoi light has started flickering and went out again! Possibly a loose connection I guess.. anyway it’s gone back to Sennheiser. I’m doing well so far , two soundbars in just over 6 weeks. Hopefully I’ll get one that lasts longer than that when Sennheiser send me a replacement

The Ambeo light is clearly a concern for you.
 
Is it just me missing something or is the Ambeo not compatible with the sky remote control? I’m trying to link it to control the sound via sky but it doesn’t seem to be on the list of devices you can set against - seems odd for such a premium soundbar.
 
How is everyone finding the dialogue performance, I sometimes struggle to hear what is being said but it could be me.

I have re calibrated and have subwoofer attached and tweaked the Ambeo settings for clarity.

I also find the light quite distracting and recently bought blackout lightdims for the standby light.
 
Last edited:
How is everyone find the dialogue performance, I sometimes struggle to hear what is being said but it could be me.

I have re calibrated and have subwoofer attached and tweaked the Ambeo settings for clarity.

I also find the light quite distracting and recently bought blackout lightdims for the standby light.
Hi,
If all speakers in the ambeo are fit to the job you should have no issues hearing clear dialogue. I had a few questions from over the pound regarding that dialogue clearness. Like not other you know much is depending on the source material . Honestly if i play a few tv shows with heavy dialogue in pcm codec there are some parts that sound more muffled then others. Comparing same shows on a samsung Q70r soundbar in adaptive mode it sounds better in that same dialogue. ( but space is a lot smaller)
In atmos and dts-x soundtracks lies the strength with the ambeo.
Music sounds good but i like the Yamaha musiccast more. Same with the samsung ,low bit rate dialogue sounds better on that device.
In the app you can turn the ambeo light off and yes it's annoying . So it isn't all sugar and cream and there are definitely some weaker points with this soundbar. At that price there should be none or almost none. ;)
 
I sometimes struggle with dialog but have rightly or worngly concluded that I'm expecting what is an exp[ensive soundbar and sub setup to correct poor sound sources. Sometimes I think we aren't accepting that not all expensively produced material has excellent sound.
 
For something that’s £2300, yes. If it was £230, then it wouldn’t bother me at all!
Indeed so! I received my new Ambeo soundbar yesterday, updated the firmware, but it crashed when attempting to calibrate. Senn engineer asked me to push the reset button (recessed at the rear) which I did, after which the soundbar emitted a continuous 1k Hz sound for a while and then crashed again. Senn were quick to replace the unit and the new one arrives tomorrow. Can't say I'm optimistic given the sheer numbers on this forum reporting faults with this expensive piece of gear, and I've no wish to be a beta tester either. I feared the worst before mine arrived after reading the comments here, and my experience, though anecdotal, tends to confirm my overall lack of confidence in the longer term.
 
It makes considerable difference in my view.

All that "out" switch does is ask you whether you'd like the sub to be fully controlled by your "AV" system (Ambeo) or would you like it to be entirely independant and not change at all once you have set it. With an Ambeo it seems obvious to me that it would be much better if the Ambeo embraces and completely controls the sub with allowing you to tweak and adjust if you must from within the app with both a master volume control and the sub adjustment within each pre-set eg movie, music, etc environment.

Don't overlook even more importantly that this also means the full control passing through made by the different Dolby sound modes. If you don't use "out" your sub never changes for Dolby and merely ignores what Dolby is trying to do - eg explosions and all that immersive sub-base stuff you want Dolby sound modes to control. Also each Ambeo preset - you're not controlling the sub within the Ambeo if not using "out". Dolby wants to control the sub on a moment by moment basis and your setting prevents that and leaves the setting flat rather than variably controlled by the Dolby sound mode. And not to overlook the "night" setting which isn't controlling the sub when not using "out".

Also, if you leave it with your current setting then each time you tweak or change settings on the sub you'd technicvally need to recalibrate it because with the out setting the Ambeo sets the volume perfectly as it wants it for the complete calibration - unless you feel that one setting untouched is genuinely good enough for all modes including ignoring Dolby for you and your setup.

I'm not clear how you could get a much better sound-bar setup than having the sub fully integrated into the Ambeo experience by using "out". This is entirely my "non-expert" view of this!

Jeff

:)
Thanks. May I ask what "out switch" you are referring to with regard to using a subwoofer with the Ambeo? I'm utterly confused by different descriptions of "LFE" RCA jack sub inputs versus "low-level" RCA inputs. As I understand it, LFE is a discrete channel in movie surround media, which only sends sub-bass info when told to do so by the DVD/BluRay mastering engineer. When playing music, presumably the sub-bass info is absent when using the LFE input. Also, do you know what crossover frequency the Ambeo's "sub pre-out" jack is set to?
 
Last edited:
Indeed so! I received my new Ambeo soundbar yesterday, updated the firmware, but it crashed when attempting to calibrate. Senn engineer asked me to push the reset button (recessed at the rear) which I did, after which the soundbar emitted a continuous 1k Hz sound for a while and then crashed again. Senn were quick to replace the unit and the new one arrives tomorrow. Can't say I'm optimistic given the sheer numbers on this forum reporting faults with this expensive piece of gear, and I've no wish to be a beta tester either. I feared the worst before mine arrived after reading the comments here, and my experience, though anecdotal, tends to confirm my overall lack of confidence in the longer term.
Well, I’m on my third now. First one totally died after a week (it powered on but no audio), second one the Ambeo light kept flickering and then stopped lighting completely so I never knew if Ambeo was on unless I checked the app or pressed the remote button and looked at the display). Luckily Richer Sounds have been great getting replacements. Sennheiser had mine back twice and confirmed it was faulty but then told me they had none in stock and didn’t know when they would get a replacement. Richer Sounds stepped in and sent one of theirs. So far , so good and the one I have now works perfectly, although occasionally I get no centre audio when watching Apple TV so have to turn the soundbar off and on again but this is very rare.
 
Well, I’m on my third now. First one totally died after a week (it powered on but no audio), second one the Ambeo light kept flickering and then stopped lighting completely so I never knew if Ambeo was on unless I checked the app or pressed the remote button and looked at the display). Luckily Richer Sounds have been great getting replacements. Sennheiser had mine back twice and confirmed it was faulty but then told me they had none in stock and didn’t know when they would get a replacement. Richer Sounds stepped in and sent one of theirs. So far , so good and the one I have now works perfectly, although occasionally I get no centre audio when watching Apple TV so have to turn the soundbar off and on again but this is very rare.
Hope third time is the right time for you. Fingers crossed and enjoy it !
 
Well, I’m on my third now. First one totally died after a week (it powered on but no audio), second one the Ambeo light kept flickering and then stopped lighting completely so I never knew if Ambeo was on unless I checked the app or pressed the remote button and looked at the display). Luckily Richer Sounds have been great getting replacements. Sennheiser had mine back twice and confirmed it was faulty but then told me they had none in stock and didn’t know when they would get a replacement. Richer Sounds stepped in and sent one of theirs. So far , so good and the one I have now works perfectly, although occasionally I get no centre audio when watching Apple TV so have to turn the soundbar off and on again but this is very rare.
Mercifully, the replacement works, though not without quirky misfires in operation. Seems to be hanging on by its fingernails sometimes. When I first gave it a listen, after calibration, I was distinctly underwhelmed to be candid. But after a few hours and a third calibration it seemed gradually to find its voice. This bedding in time is, I know, a feature of all Hi Fi components - including loudspeakers.

In conclusion, I couldn't be happier with its sound now - totally glorious, with unnerving soundstaging, absence of colouration, and speed - a very "dry" presentation, which I love. In my view, it definitely needs a sub woofer for that extra 10 Hz of sub-bass authority, but I see many are happy without.
 
well just had mine one day can any one share there settings for music plus I'm not getting any height affects at all my room is 13 foot long from where i sit is 11 foot my side walls are 3 foot 6in on either side of the bar don't know if the setting on movie that's using 4k apple box Atmos movie on Netflix thanks for any help only I'm new to this and want to like the Ambeo
 
Dumb question I know, but have you done the room setup calibration? Mine sounded "off" at first, and I (very unwisely) had furniture behind the calibration microphone. Apparently, the "Music" preset tails off sub-bass response prematurely, which I do not like, so I choose "Neutral", which is flatter. Also, I much prefer "Ambeo" on when listening to music - even as a hobbyist audiophile. It opens up the soundstage very convincingly.
 
My sofa is against the back wall so yes it is behind the calibration microphone only option i can think is place it higher than back rest we have a new one next week the setting i was thinking of were the equalizer settings both on movie and for music thanks for the help john
 
My sofa is against the back wall so yes it is behind the calibration microphone only option i can think is place it higher than back rest we have a new one next week the setting i was thinking of were the equalizer settings both on movie and for music thanks for the help john
I've toyed with the EQ settings and frankly it's a question of personal taste. As to the calibration microphone, the recommended height is ear level, although I found that raising it up above the back side of our sofa worked far, far better. I also partnered a REL HT 1205 subwoofer with it (which although REL positions it as purely home theatre, is sonically agile, tuneful, and authoritative with music) and that provides the sub-bass foundation I'm always looking for. And I can tell you, after many years of using various hifi setups of not inconsiderable cost that the Sennheiser is spectacular - far more so than I could've possibly hoped for. Hope you get yours on song soon!
 
Last edited:
I've toyed with the EQ settings and frankly it's a question of personal taste. As to the calibration microphone, the recommended height is ear level, although I found that raising it up above the back side of our sofa worked far, far better. I also partnered a REL HT 1205 subwoofer with it (which although REL positions it as purely home theatre, is sonically agile, tuneful, and authoritative with music) and that provides the sub-bass foundation I'm always looking for. And I can tell you, after many years of using various hifi setups of not inconsiderable cost that the Sennheiser is spectacular - far more so than I could've possibly hoped for. Hope you get yours on song soon!
Great tip , havent tried it yet :facepalm: thanks
 
Just had all the living room changed could any one tell me how to Recalibrate and start a fresh it thanks for any help
 
Just had all the living room changed could any one tell me how to Recalibrate and start a fresh it thanks for any help
Plug in calibrate mic into ambeo press ambeo for 5 sec and follow instructions on display. Maybe set the mic 0.5 meters above your listening position it gives a much better result. Good luck
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom