Sonos Beam Gen 2 - Dolby Atmos

[kb33]

Just bought the beam gen 2 and overall I'm pretty impressed with such a big sound from such a small bar. But I'm wondering if anyone as tried Dolby Atmos with Apple music either via airplay or through the Sonus app ?
I'm thinking airplay won't do Atmos as it's limited to 44hz but not sure on the Sonus app as it doesn't seem to tell you the bitrate of the current song. Either way they both sound decent but it would be nice to know.

 

[tom 2000]

Just bought the beam gen 2 and overall I'm pretty impressed with such a big sound from such a small bar. But I'm wondering if anyone as tried Dolby Atmos with Apple music either via airplay or through the Sonus app ?
I'm thinking airplay won't do Atmos as it's limited to 44hz but not sure on the Sonus app as it doesn't seem to tell you the bitrate of the current song. Either way they both sound decent but it would be nice to know.

Atmos on Apple Music can only be done using the Apple TV box.

 

[SillyRabbit]

Just bought the beam gen 2 and overall I'm pretty impressed with such a big sound from such a small bar. But I'm wondering if anyone as tried Dolby Atmos with Apple music either via airplay or through the Sonus app ?
I'm thinking airplay won't do Atmos as it's limited to 44hz but not sure on the Sonus app as it doesn't seem to tell you the bitrate of the current song. Either way they both sound decent but it would be nice to know.

AirPlay cannot do lossless or Dolby Atmos from Apple Music.

AirPlay can do lossless from other sources such as Tidal or Deezer however. No clue why they haven't enabled it for Apple Music. It even says "lossless" but it isn't actually lossless (as confirmed by back-end tests from Airplay 2 speakers).

You also cannot get lossless or Dolby Atmos from the Sonos app for Apple Music. I believe that you can for Amazon Music HD though. I have not tested it myself however.

You can get lossless and Dolby Atmos from the Apple TV 4K via HDMI to the Beam Gen 2. I wouldn't buy an Apple TV 4K just for that though. Probably not worth it.

 

[kb33]

Thanks
I not too bothered about Atmos with music , but just wondered if I could get the bitrate info through the Sonus app , seems you can’t , but something to look out for in a future update.
I bought the beam mainly for adding some oomph with Netflix movies / shows and it’s doing that quite nicely. Plus I have a decent catalogue of blu rays and 4K discs.

 

[SillyRabbit]

Thanks
I not too bothered about Atmos with music , but just wondered if I could get the bitrate info through the Sonus app , seems you can’t , but something to look out for in a future update.
I bought the beam mainly for adding some oomph with Netflix movies / shows and it’s doing that quite nicely. Plus I have a decent catalogue of blu rays and 4K discs.

If you’re wondering about the bitrate for Apple Music, it’s 256kbps AAC for their entire catalogue. When you factor in that many songs are Apple Digital Masters created from lossless or hi-res lossless sources, Apple Music certainly has the best quality “lossy” music you can find. I cannot discern their lossy from lossless.

I agree that I would like to see the audio bitrate displayed in the Sonos app as well. I might send some feedback to their customer support team asking them to implement it. If you, and a few others do the same, they might actually listen.

 

[kb33]

Ok I found this on the Sonus site -

Applies to Qobuz but I’m guessing Apple Music or any other streaming service

“On Sonos you can stream up to 24-bit/48 kHz Hi-Res FLAC from Qobuz on your S2 compatible hardware. Tracks with a sampling rate above 48 kHz will be delivered to your Sonos hardware as 16-bit/44.1 kHz FLAC (CD lossless quality). Older products may only support up to CD lossless quality for all tracks. You must have a current subscription to a Qobuz Studio plan to stream 24-bit Hi-Res on Sonos.”

 

[kb33]

As a side note I noticed there’s an update to the Sonus app and the Beam itself, not sure what improvements there are (if any)

 

[bigtim]

As a side note I noticed there’s an update to the Sonus app and the Beam itself, not sure what improvements there are (if any)

Nothing too earth shattering

Sonos Support

support.sonos.com

 

[Emick81]

Hey Guys,

I ordered a Beam Gen 2 that will be coming today. I know that that Trueplay only works for IOS systems. Does that have to be a phone or can something like a Macbook also do the trick?

 

[ashpole]

Sonos Trueplay requires an Apple device that runs on iOS. It can be an iPad, iPhone or an iPod Touch. Unfortunately you can't use a device running macOS.

 

[Emick81]

Thank you for your quick reply. Good to know. Than I know who to contact.

 

[kb33]

I got bad lip sync last night watching Drive to Survive on Netflix via the TV app , couldn’t adjust in the Sonos app as it was going the other way , thing is , it’s fine at the start then gradually gets worse,
anyone else get this ?
Seemed to have disappeared today , but I’m not that confident I’ve cured it despite playing around with a few settings on the Sony XR55

 

[Joe Fernand]

@kb33 Is spell check converting SONOS to Sonus?

Joe

 

[kb33]

@kb33 Is spell check converting SONOS to Sonus?

Joe

Probably

 

[Conor1971]

Hi guys….hope someone can help! Bought and installed by Sonos Beam Gen 2 and it’s sitting connected to my LG C1.

I have 2 Gen 1 Play 1 speakers that I want to connect as rears and so far it’s not being detected when I use the new Sonos App. Can anyone advise? The Play 1’s were connected together via a Bridge so I’m wondering if that is stopping it being detected for this?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

 

[BigTelHols]

Hi guys….hope someone can help! Bought and installed by Sonos Beam Gen 2 and it’s sitting connected to my LG C1.

I have 2 Gen 1 Play 1 speakers that I want to connect as rears and so far it’s not being detected when I use the new Sonos App. Can anyone advise? The Play 1’s were connected together via a Bridge so I’m wondering if that is stopping it being detected for this?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

I would move the Play 1's next to the Beam, make sure that WiFi is switched on in the Beam's settings, factory reset each Play 1 and re-setup. You should be given an option to add as surrounds during set-up. Once complete place the Play 1's on there final location. Ideally connect the Beam to your network via ethernet cable (But leave WiFi switched on in the Beam settings, this allows Sonos to set-up it's own network, eliminating lag/audio sync issues).

 

[Conor1971]

I would move the Play 1's next to the Beam, make sure that WiFi is switched on in the Beam's settings, factory reset each Play 1 and re-setup. You should be given an option to add as surrounds during set-up. Once complete place the Play 1's on there final location. Ideally connect the Beam to your network via ethernet cable (But leave WiFi switched on in the Beam settings, this allows Sonos to set-up it's own network, eliminating lag/audio sync issues).

Thanks so much Big Tel. That’s it sorted! And really easily done as you had laid out! Thanks again!

 

[BigTelHols]

Thanks so much Big Tel. That’s it sorted! And really easily done as you had laid out! Thanks again!

Your welcome, now just unbox the subwoofer and set it up the same way

Glad your sorted, enjoy.

 

[Conor1971]

Your welcome, now just unbox the subwoofer and set it up the same way

Glad your sorted, enjoy.

Lol! That is absolutely the next buy! Just waiting for a price drop….

Seriously impressed with this so far. Now looking for Play 1 stands. It’s never ending

 

[BigTelHols]

Lol! That is absolutely the next buy! Just waiting for a price drop….

Seriously impressed with this so far. Now looking for Play 1 stands. It’s never ending

I've got 3 different sets of surround stands, I'd recommend the height adjustable ones (Sanus and Flexson are the two brands I've got). I found I preferred the speakers above ear listening height, sound was clearer and more immersive.

 

[Conor1971]

I've got 3 different sets of surround stands, I'd recommend the height adjustable ones (Sanus and Flexson are the two brands I've got). I found I preferred the speakers above ear listening height, sound was clearer and more immersive.

Yeah they are the two I’m currently looking at and like you, wanting the adjustable ones as well. Both are roughly around the same price (£120 for the pair). I like the look of the Flexson ones but both look good. Any preference? And thanks again for the advice!

 

[Emick81]

Hey Guys,

After owning the Beam gen 2 for A week I just got the Sub gen 3 installed. At what level are you running the Sub?

I found the standard setting disappointing to a point that I was quite wondering if the Sub was doing anything at all. I almost got the feeling it was DOA.

When setting it to +16 for sure I got confirmation that it is working.

I also see that you can change its positioning in the app. Anyone have a tip on the correct settings? I have placed it right under the beam with the Sonos letters and the hole facing me.
Or is this just a matter of trying and tweaking this to your personal preferences?

Edit: It seems like it is a little depending on the genre. Housemusic can be +3 and and Action movie with a lot of shooting sounds better in the range of -3.

 

[matthewricha]

I have recently fitted a Sony 48A9 TV to our new kitchen dinner extension in the snug part. I am considering a Beam 2 to give some clearer sound as the tv seems to get lost in the vaulted ceilings space. I may add rears and sub at some point, but as you can see from my signature I have a fairly decent ATMOS setup in the lounge.

I have lots of Sonos speakers already, but my question is can you play music through the Beam 2 in tandem with any other Sonos speaker like Normal? If I add rears or a sub or both, can i play my NAS and Streamed music to all speakers? I.e. will music play at the Beam, Sub and rears even if playing a stereo source?

 

[Beagle64]

Hey Guys,

After owning the Beam gen 2 for A week I just got the Sub gen 3 installed. At what level are you running the Sub?

I found the standard setting disappointing to a point that I was quite wondering if the Sub was doing anything at all. I almost got the feeling it was DOA.

When setting it to +16 for sure I got confirmation that it is working.

I also see that you can change its positioning in the app. Anyone have a tip on the correct settings? I have placed it right under the beam with the Sonos letters and the hole facing me.
Or is this just a matter of trying and tweaking this to your personal preferences?

Edit: It seems like it is a little depending on the genre. Housemusic can be +3 and and Action movie with a lot of shooting sounds better in the range of -3.

I’ve found all subs as fussy over placement as any other speaker. My Sonos sub performs best in a corner 3-4” away from the wall. It integrates with my Playbase very well at -7 with the eq base level at +2. I can make the sub seem like it’s not working at all by putting it in different places in the room even after running tru play. This was no different from when I had a rel sub in a 5.1 av separates system. It really does pay to experiment!

 

[Emick81]

I’ve found all subs as fussy over placement as any other speaker. My Sonos sub performs best in a corner 3-4” away from the wall. It integrates with my Playbase very well at -7 with the eq base level at +2. I can make the sub seem like it’s not working at all by putting it in different places in the room even after running tru play. This was no different from when I had a rel sub in a 5.1 av separates system. It really does pay to experiment!

Thank you.

I actually decided to return the SUB. Since I am in a small room with a door and a Mediacabinet my placing options were very limited. I have experimented with different locations and found the best location.

When using the Sub and cranking up the volume the sound became a little unpleasant. (echo)
On the volume that was pleasant and realistic to use the difference between the Beam Gen 2 without the Sub and the Beam 2 with the Sub was not that big. There was a difference but not a difference that can Justify a 700 Euro investment. This also has to do with the Beam Gen 2 really punching above its weight.

Of course you can improve the acoustics in the room (I already did that partially) but I don't want to be bothering with Expensive Acoustic Panels and basstraps etc on this moment.

So for now I am just enjoying the BEAM 2 which has plenty of power for this small room.