PS5 & Sony HTS40R Soundbar - no 5.1

[Richzx6r]

Hi all,

I bought the HTS40R 5.1 soundbar yesterday, and after LOSING MY MIND trying to get 5.1 to work, I thought I'd turn to the forums. 

I DO get 5.1 from TV apps such as Youtube, but anything I try to run from my PS5, or my Firestick is in basic stereo, with no sounds from the rear speakers. I have fiddled with all settings on the Sub, the TV (Samsung 4k) and the PS5, including Night Mode, output through Received / TV etc. I can think of no option I've not checked.

I am connected with HDMI Arc from the tv-Soundbar, the PS5 is connected via HDMI 2.1 (which came with the PS5), and the Firestick sits in the other spare (standard) HDMI socket. I also have an optical cable connected from the sub - tv. I have tried different combinations of optical / HDMI, and the ONLY way I get ANY 5.1 (Samsung TV apps) is with BOTH optical & HDMI Arc plugged in - if I remove either, 5.1 disappears (and is NEVER present on PS5 or firestick).

Hope this is enough (and not too much) info! Any help would be great, and I don't want the hassle of returning the unit and shopping around again. 

Cheers!

Rich

[rooobb]

Setting the soundbar is quite basic, but there are things I do not understand in your setup.

YouTube app mainly does not support 5.1 except very few video, so it seems like you set up the soundbar to always use the surround speaker (speaker menu, multi speaker on) that is not the best setup.

You should use only the arc hdmi connection being sure that the TV is outputting in Dolby digital not in pcm (that is stereo only) and that the soundbar is correctly recognized as an external audio system (you should have also hdmi cec feature turned on. Check your TV manual to verify the correct setup and hdmi port to connect an audio system

Another issue could be the source: the soundbar only support dolby digital (not DD+ or any higher quality codec) : so if your TV is not able to downscale the audio stream to DD you may have issue on the soundbar (but you won't hear anything not only stereo)

[royabrown2]

@Richzx6r 

I largely agree with @rooobb, disconnect the optical, and turn Multi Speaker off, as that is fake surround.

However, with Multi Speaker on, to test, if nothing is coming out of the rears, on any input source, then you have a problem with the setup, as you should at least be getting fake surround. So make sure the amp for the rears is properly paired, and the rear volume is set so you can hear them. You may have to go close up to them to listen, though, as the sound is deliberately low.

If you still can’t hear any surround from them, though, what do you hear? A very faint hiss, or absolutely nothing?

But if you can get fake surround working OK, turn Multi Speaker off, and let’s try for real surround.

I see this soundbar has no HDMI In connections, so the only audio that will reach it is over ARC from the TV, into which the other devices are plugged. So even if the Samsung TV - can you give the exact model number please? - has eARC, the audio will be busted down to Dolby Digital at best.

You then have to consider what the TV/soundbar combination is capable of, as any better audio codec than Dolby Digital+ is likely to get busted down to PCM (Pulse Code Modulation, stereo only) either because the TV can’t handle the codec, or because even though it can, the soundbar can’t.

Have a look at the audio options on the Samsung, make sure this isn’t set to PCM.

Bitstream, or Dolby Digital with or without +, should be OK though, as the TV and the soundbar can negotiate plain Dolby Digital from that.

Hopefully, the soundbar can tell you if it is getting Dolby Digital or PCM, as you change sources on the TV? Maybe some will now be OK DD, but others still PCM?

So you may find, for example, that your PS5 is giving PCM, because it is trying to send Atmos or DTX, and the rest of the chain is having none of it; but if you bust the PS5 down to DD or maybe DD+, you will get surround from it. Paradoxical, but true.

But I wouldn’t, in 2023, be buying a 2021 soundbar without either eARC or one, maybe two, HDMI inputs. Especially if the TV can do eARC. So much as you don’t want to hear it, I would be sending this soundbar back and getting something more capable.

However, if you can get the surround working, and you are happy with the compromises, and especially if the Samsung TV is only ARC and you are not planning on replacing it anytime soon, that is an awful lot of soundbar for £279, and you may struggle to find anything better anywhere near that price, especially anything capable of 5.1

[rooobb]

I am on the same page with @royabrown2 : I have it and indeed is a budget soundbar and likely less impressive than the stated 600w power but still it can do real 5.1 effect for a low price