HT-A7000 Soundbar integration with TV not working after software update to version 1.779

[thewheel2.0]

Hi there,

I'm getting nowhere with my support case 25933996 and would like my issue escalated so the software update which has caused these issues is fixed. I have completed a factory reset, changed cables etc.

Since software update 1.779 for HT-A7000 I'm seeing these symptoms:

• TV remote cant control soundbar volume
• TV quick settings menu can't change settings of the soundbar like Night Mode, Immersive AE and Voice Mode (picture attached of this problem)
• Integration to turn on/off the sound bar when the TV turns on/off

I have the flagship XR-65A90J, so obviously they should integrate perfectly via eARC HDMI port.

There are some other reports online, so its clearly a software issue introduced by the software update:

• https://www.reddit.com/r/Soundbars/comments/163paby/sony_hta7000_not_turning_on_with_remote_have_to/

Can we please get this escalated to the appropriate team. Its driving me nuts, meanwhile I'm about to buy another HT-A7000 to pair with the new A95L when it releases but this is making me hesitate because of how slow it is to get this software issue patched. 

[thewheel2.0]

Hi there,

I figured out my issue thanks to users on avsforum.com:

https://www.avsforum.com/threads/sony-comes-to-play%E2%80%A6-ht-a7000-7-1-2-soundbar.3207961/post-62...

They linked to a support article around Bravia Sync and HDMI-CEC, I have extracted the relevant bits below, with the issue I hit in bold:

• BRAVIA Sync (HDMI-CEC) overview and troubleshooting information
  
• https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/articles/00161073
• The HDMI-CEC standard supports: 
• 1 - TV
• 1 - Audio system (A/V Receiver or Soundbar)
• Up to 3 - Playback devices
• Up to 3 - Recording devices
• Up to 4 - Tuner devices
• Which is then followed by this note:
• If you connect more devices than supported in a device category, errors in operation will occur.
• Some devices connected to the TV may show as more that one device (Soundbar with Smart functions) and may appear as an audio system and a playback device.

So my issue was that I had a HT-A7000, SkyQ box, PS5 and PS4 plugged into my 4 HDMI ports. I added the PS4 into the mix a few months back and things worked well enough, with the occasional input switching to the wrong device. Then the reboot due to the 1.779 update occurred which caused functionality to degrade even further where communication between TV and soundbar totally broke down.

I plugged out my PS4 and TV<->Soundbar communication immediately worked as expected. So I suspect it's not the 1.779 soundbar update itself but the associated reboot.

As a software engineer myself, I think the TV software has to do better here. At minimum it should flash up an error message once it detects that you have too many devices connected. And ideally the limits in the link above would be increased in the flagship television like the A90J.

Can you raise my issue to the technical team to see if they can at least show the user an error message when a user connects too many devices for Bravia Sync and HDMI-CEC?