Sonos Arc Advice

freemo999

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Good Morning All

I am hoping you can offer some advise.

Current Setup
Sony 55" 9005C
Denon AR-X2200W with Kef 3000 Series Eggs

Inputs
Sky Q
nVidia Shield
Xbox
Ninty Switch

I have after many years crumbled and we are getting a prettier setup and the Kefs have to go šŸ˜¢
Sonos Arc is on its way today, already bought into the Sonos ecosystem and read enough reviews to fill me with confidence i will get a good sound quality coming out of it.

My question is what is the best way to set this up?
Do I keep everything plugged into the Denon and hook the AVR up to the Sonos that way?
Is that even necessary, when i could go inputs into the TV and Arc link between the Tv and the Sonos

I hope to upgrade the TV later this year and will include an eARC at that point, I am guessing thats when i will say goodbye to the Denon as its not eARC.

Thoughts/advice are welcomed. I am sure i am not the only one who has transitioned from AVR + 5.1 to Soundbar.


TIA
Andy
 
As your TV has HDMI ARC, then you will have to plug everything into your TV and use the HDMI ARC output to the Sonos ARC. As to whether it will output 5.1 will depend upon how old it is. I know my TV is of a certain age and will only output 2 channel from any HDMI inputs while I' able to send 5.1 via the internal streaming apps which is a little frustrating

As for using the Denon, This will not really work the way you are expecting as its not been designed to work that way

You could also try the Sonos HDMI-Optical adaptor if the ARC doesn't work although I suspect it'll work the same way as that's how my TV works due to its age

The other thing I can see is you have already run out of HDMI inputs on the TV meaning you cannot connect everything without looking at some kind of HDMI switching system which could degrade the quality of the system plus make it very difficult to use

Maybe see if you can come to some kind of compromise looking at something like Kef's T-105 Series. as the are wall mountable speakers which are very discrete. It will mean you can use your system in the same way making it easier for everyone to use as it will be identical with only the speakers changing.

Performance wise, the Kef T-105's are slightly better than the older KHT3005SE and certainly look a lot better if you are trying to hide the speakers in the room
 
As above the SONOS replaces the AVR, the Eggs and your Sub!

If you wanted to retain the AVR you would replace the Front three 'Eggs' with a passive 'speaker bar' (looks like a Soundbar but relies on the AVR for power, processing and switching).

eARC has the potential to allow you to use your TV as the 'Hub' of your system but with many TV manufacturers baulking at paying licensing fees for DTS, and who knows what else in future, you need to be careful with your choices.

HDFury have the Arcana, Arcana2-VRR and VRRoom which you can use to deliver full HD audio to the SONOS and full Video to a suitable TV.


Joe
 
As your TV has HDMI ARC, then you will have to plug everything into your TV and use the HDMI ARC output to the Sonos ARC. As to whether it will output 5.1 will depend upon how old it is. I know my TV is of a certain age and will only output 2 channel from any HDMI inputs while I' able to send 5.1 via the internal streaming apps which is a little frustrating

As for using the Denon, This will not really work the way you are expecting as its not been designed to work that way

You could also try the Sonos HDMI-Optical adaptor if the ARC doesn't work although I suspect it'll work the same way as that's how my TV works due to its age

The other thing I can see is you have already run out of HDMI inputs on the TV meaning you cannot connect everything without looking at some kind of HDMI switching system which could degrade the quality of the system plus make it very difficult to use

Maybe see if you can come to some kind of compromise looking at something like Kef's T-105 Series. as the are wall mountable speakers which are very discrete. It will mean you can use your system in the same way making it easier for everyone to use as it will be identical with only the speakers changing.

Performance wise, the Kef T-105's are slightly better than the older KHT3005SE and certainly look a lot better if you are trying to hide the speakers in the room
Thanks for that details explanation!
Unfortunately the multiple speakers on the wall boat has sailed, and plans are afoot for a "less masculine" living room.

I will definately remove the AVR from the solution and look to get the TV changed out asap!
 
As above the SONOS replaces the AVR, the Eggs and your Sub!

If you wanted to retain the AVR you would replace the Front three 'Eggs' with a passive 'speaker bar' (looks like a Soundbar but relies on the AVR for power, processing and switching).

eARC has the potential to allow you to use your TV as the 'Hub' of your system but with many TV manufacturers baulking at paying licensing fees for DTS, and who knows what else in future, you need to be careful with your choices.

HDFury have the Arcana, Arcana2-VRR and VRRoom which you can use to deliver full HD audio to the SONOS and full Video to a suitable TV.


Joe
Hi Joe

So I have gone ahead with the removal of the Denon and the Eggs.
Impressed with the sound i am getting from the Arc up to now.

Not sure I am going to be able to persuade the boss for a new TV just yet!

So the nVidia Shield is our primary viewing source, from what I understand the Arcana will "upgrade" the sounds from the Shield and take it up to Atmos where available on the source?

Can you explain the difference between the Arcana and the Arcana2 and the VRR in laymans terms?

Thanks
Andy
 
Hi Andy

The three HDFury units are all ā€˜pass throughā€™ audio devices, no onboard audio processing. What they allow is the Passthough of full HD and Atmos audio (if your Source supports it) removing any audio limitations an ARC enabled TV imposes on your Source device.

Arcana (18Gbps) - supports HDMI 2.0 feature set, 1 x Input, 1 x Video out + 1 x eARC Audio Out.

Arcana2-VRR (40Gbps) - supports HDMI 2.1 feature set, 1 x Input, 1 x Video out + 1 x eARC Audio Out.

VRRoom (40Gbps) - supports HDMI 2.1 feature set, 4 x Input, 2 x Video out + 1x Audio Out + 1 x eARC Audio Out.

All three support eARC/ARC audio from a connected TV.

All three support LLDV to HDR ā€˜spoofingā€™ to allow ā€˜DVā€™ on an HDR10 capable Display.

Arcana2-VRR and VRRoom - support VRR passthrough.

Arcana2-VRR - the second video Out can be used with a Hue-Sync box when you are using VRR on the Primary Output.

VRRoom - has a wired Network connection plus built in web server to allow Firmware updates and full configuration control from any Web browser.

The full feature set and capabilities of each device is pretty long :)

Joe
 
Thats great, thanks for that.
I am not overly familar with VRR but am i right in thinking that is more for Gaming?

So for my usecase "as it stands" probably means an Arcana will do the required job

Thanks
Andy
 
Yes the Arcana looks like a good match for you and if required you can add a suitable HDMI Switch ahead of the Arcana to allow you to connect additional Source devices.


Joe
 

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