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Bozley0621

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 25, 2009
383
118
Can a Sonos Arc be turned on and have volume controlled using the ATV remote?

I’m looking at the Sonos Arc to replace our Bose Soundbar in the living room. We want Alexa integration and Airplay capability. We have a Sony tv that we got in January 2013 (I don’t think it has HDMI-arc) and an Apple TV HD (4th gen). All content is played through the ATV.

The ATV remote turns on the tv and controls the volume on the soundbar. However, we have to turn on the soundbar with a different remote. If we get a new soundbar, it’s a dealbreaker if it can’t be turned on, like the tv can, using the ATV remote.

I’m open to other soundbar suggestions and am willing to upgrade to an ATV 4K, if necessary. I don’t want to upgrade the tv at this time, since we’re moving across the country within the year. The movers destroyed a tv in the last move, so we’ll wait until we’re settled to get a new one.
 

diamond.g

macrumors G4
Mar 20, 2007
11,069
2,421
OBX
The Apple TV should be able to control the Arc volume using IR. Without eARC/ARC you will likely have to use Optical out from your TV though.
 

waw74

macrumors 601
May 27, 2008
4,668
941
Yes, although sonos never turns off.
They might power off their amps when not in use (I'm not sure), but there is no power switch

your TV must support HDMI-CEC, in order to pass the volume commands

If your TV doesn't have ARC, you will have to control the Arc via IR, as you'll have to use the optical audio out on your TV.

You might have ARC, it's been around since 2009, Look at your HDMI ports, one should be labeled with ARC, possibly #2
and if your TV is big enough to have an Arc next to it, it probably has ARC.


A quick test to tell if the TV supports CEC, is to use the remote app on the phone to power everything on, If the TV comes on, then you've got CEC.
You can also try this by "hiding" the remote under a blanket, so the IR can't make it out, and see if the TV is controlled.
 

Bozley0621

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 25, 2009
383
118
You might have ARC, it's been around since 2009, Look at your HDMI ports, one should be labeled with ARC, possibly #2
and if your TV is big enough to have an Arc next to it, it probably has ARC.

Just checked, the tv does have HDMI-ARC. Thanks!!
 

waw74

macrumors 601
May 27, 2008
4,668
941
Glad to hear it

just a warning, it will be ARC, and not E-ARC (enhanced), so you won't get ATMOS until you update your TV.
You'll get 5.1 just fine though.

If you really want ATMOS, and can't wait.
HD fury makes a product called arcana. (it's around $200). It goes between the TV and aTV, and has an E-ARC port.

if you plug it into the ARC port on your TV, then the TV will send audio out to the Arcana, and the Arcana will forward it to the sound bar. This will allow your TV's app and other things plugged into your TV like a cable box to talk to the sound bar.
But, you'll still only get atmos from the aTV, and not the TV apps or cable box.

and one thing to keep in mind, HDMI audio and ARC audio travel differently on the cable, so you can't just use a regular HDMI splitter and plug one side into the sound bar. It must connect to an ARC port.
 
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JeepGC

macrumors regular
Mar 11, 2011
214
80
New Orleans, LA
Yes, it will. Be warned though, Atmos won't work unless your TV has E-ARC or you purchase an Arcana (as other posters have highlighted). Regardless, the Arc works well with the ATV.
 
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