Soundbar+ Volume very low
Beantwortet
I just got my new Soundbar+, installed it, did the latest firmware installation, and set it all up. Now when playing movie or music, the volume is considerably lower than my previous Soundbar 2i. Even when I max out the volume, I would estimate it is giving a volume of about 1/4th of the Soundbar 2i volume level.
Any idea what the issue is?
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Offizieller Kommentar
My Apologies - I noted originally there were no changes here... after speaking with our QA Team, I stand corrected. There were in fact some changes to the volume control. The SOUNDBAR+ is much more in line with the volume curve of the rest of the PULSE family of products and uses a slightly modified volume curve to compensate for feeling in both the top and bottom part of the slider.
At the end of the day, the maximum volume of the SOUNDBAR+ will be equal to the maximum volume of its predecessor - but the algorithms in the slider response will be different.
At first, in the app, you will have to increase the volume to hear the same response but we hope this gives you more fine-tuning in the upper end of the volume slider. It is the same algorithm we introduced in the PULSE 2i and PULSE MINI 2i.
Sorry for the earlier confusion but what you are seeing is the result of that change which we hope will be a better experience in the long run for all.
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Interesting thread, I’m having the exact same problem. Volume straight from the TV is better than the Soundbar
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We all understand that sometimes things go wrong be it individual items or a whole batch and on the whole people are quite understanding of that.
What is really disappointing is that currently Bluesound don’t seem to be taking ownership and indeed trying to fob us off or ignore our issues completely.
For a premium products I honestly can’t believe it’s taking so long to get a resolution or even acknowledgment of the issues,
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Henk, we should not have to do any of these. We purchased this soundbar so that it works. I didn't purchase this system to create a new engineering problem fixing for me.
The only problem is for bluesound to release a fix.
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Couldn’t agree more, Dolby atmos due in June 2021????? Sure you don’t mean 2024!! I’ve had nothing but problems since I got it and while the dealer has sorted everything they can I’m still having issues with drop outs, lip sync, volume etc! Have to say the advice and support from Bluesound has been nothing short of embarrassing…….lip sync issues? Reset! Volume issues? Reset!!! Have I really spent over £2k on a sound system to reset it every week??? Shocking Bluesound! Shocking!
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I will also join this thread.
After connecting my new Soundbar+ I was astonished with the sound quality. I had TV connected using Optical cable. However after connecting TV using the HDMI something wrong started to happen. I'm sure that the volume was significantly higher, and I also noticed that dialogues became less clear, and overall reaction to controls (i.e. changing to Wide/Music, setting dB level for Bass/Treble etc.) is very limited. I have to set to 50% volume to be able to hear any dialogs clearly (previously, 30% was fair enough).
There is definitely something wrong.
I'm going to perform factory reset and retry the connections to start over the setup - hoping that this will help. Anyway, looks like using the bluos controller app causes some issues.
I have also noticed that option for Enhanced Dialog is unavailable - although mentioned in https://support1.bluesound.com/hc/en-us/articles/226934787-Adjusting-PULSE-SOUNDBAR-Lip-Sync-Audio-Settings . Has this feature been disabled?
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Przemysław, it is the same problem. When I stream, the volume is fine. When I switch to HDMI or Optical input source, the volume drops drastically.
Also in Home Theatre setup process, the "distance" of each unit, makes absolutely no difference in the volume of sound, even if you set the distance of the 2 flex 2is to 20 feet away.
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I agree with all the above points, hdmi sound would barely keep my kids awake never mind wake the neighbours. Streaming sound is better but sadly nowhere near to the Sonos arc I traded in for the “upgrade” and distance settings make no difference whatsoever which is hugely disappointing as I was relying on this.
When I ordered this system I was excited for the sound quality it claims to deliver and in reality I am underwhelmed.
How does the 30 day guarantee work? I think I’ll go back to Sonos.
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Seems to be a wider issue - this is from a Bluesound Facebook group where I’ve asked for others experiences of the Soundbar +
“Phil Waddington not as good as I expected.
The sound in my house is not the same as in the full sound absorbed environment where i hear the system playing at the audio store.
I had to maken a lot of adjustments in my living room (thick soundproof curtains, carpets, wall decoration) to get the full sound experience. Still I miss lower level in the sound and so I am going to add a SVS PB3000 subwoofer.When that not helps then I buy a complete new set. And that’s not gona be BlueSound.
Also I experience often that the wifi connection with the rear speakers is poor. Also i have to update them on a regular basis. So I have to plug in a cat.6 utp cable from the router to the speakers to up date them. 🤨🤷🏽♂️
Now my soudbar is for the second time back to the factory because it’s broken again. 😏”This was followed by……
“Phil Waddington yeah I feel ripped off”
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Thanks for reply Tony. I know it's not directly related to the topic, but I suggest to check the 2 support sites, because the sites are not seamless - on each of the sites I can see different content in "My activities". Quite confusing, and I made some unnecessary noise because of this...
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This problem has existed here for 2 months. You haven't managed to fix it yet. It's really amazing. You really don't seem to care.
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You already need 3 months for the solution. Are you already working on the matter? Then see why the soundbar in the home theater group has more bass than the coupled subwoofer. So far I can only advise against your club. After my demonstration of your great hardware Soundbar +, Sub + and flex2i as a home theater group, my dealer stopped selling. Until it is really embarrassing what you deliver here.
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I stopped expecting anything from the support now. You don't seem to really care. It's like some low quality product: promising, looking good on paper, but not providing what is supposed to. Did Dolby really certify this thing? Or maybe we got some beta versions of the soundbar?
Following the comments from Bluesound, I was thinking this may be a problem of my TV, but I recently had an opportunity to test a Bose soundbar, and it is sonically outstanding to Soundbar+. In Dolby content it gives really good bass (more powerful), much more detailed sound and clear dialogs - way better from Bluesound, at a lower price of the soundbar. So now I'm 100% certain that the problem is with the Soundbar+ itself. So, is it going to be corrected, or maybe we have some faulty units?
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Hello Bluesound support!
It's been half year since the issue was reported, and I think all people watching this thread are awaiting any answer. You have confirmed that there is and issue, and committed to solve it "in future updates". Could you please at least give some information when the "future update" will happen approximately? Half year should be enough time to react.
I can understand that you are probably working on releasing new devices etc., but your attitude with regards to the problem solving puts you in bad light in front of the customers.
Best
Przemysław
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Thank you all for your continued patience in this matter. Please look for some exciting news on this front in the coming week or so via Social Media Channels.
Please Follow Us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/bluesound.hifi, Like us on Twitter @BluesoundHiFi.
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Yes, I am happy with the firmware update. It's a totally different sound now. Still not sure why the new soundbar was released before being ready, but it's working great now,
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Hi Tony, I played with the Volume limits, setting it to -30 to 0, and also unpugged and replugged the ARC cable, and it is making no difference. also the 2 pulse Flex 2i that I have setup as home surround, do not make much noise either.
Something is seriously wrong I think with this soundbar. Could it be the HDMI cable is bad? I submitted a support request from the app.
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Hi Tony,
Here is more information:
- I think something is wrong with the Home Theatre setting. When I use Home Theatre fixed group to group the Soundbar+, Sub+ and 2 Flex 2is, the volume is very low (at 100% it sounds like the previous Soundbar 2i at 20%, and also hardly anything comes out of the Flex 2is).
- when I setup a multi-player fixed group to group the above plus the 2 Pulse 2is then it starts having normal sound.
- Just FYI, when listening to music streaming volume is fine and loud.
- also I remember now, when I initially setup this Soundbar+, the BluOS app did not detect the unit and I had to plug in a wired ethernet cable to get it on the network and manually set the wifi password. all other units connected fine to the blue os app auto detection. So now I am thinking, maybe something is wrong with the Soundbar+ unit that I got? Why is the Home Theatre fixed group killing the sound? And by the way, for hearing full TV surround sound/dolby effect, what is the difference (when working correctly), between Home Theatre fixed group vs Multi-player fixed group? Is the home theatre fixed group supposed to better produce Dolby and that will not happen in a multi-player fixed group, or are the effect the same?
Anyhow, let me know what we can do to solve this. thank you.
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My Apologies - I noted originally there were no changes here... after speaking with our QA Team, I stand corrected. There were in fact some changes to the volume control. The SOUNDBAR+ is much more in line with the volume curve of the rest of the PULSE family of products and uses a slightly modified volume curve to compensate for feeling in both the top and bottom part of the slider.
At the end of the day, the maximum volume of the SOUNDBAR+ will be equal to the maximum volume of its predecessor - but the algorithms in the slider response will be different.
At first, in the app, you will have to increase the volume to hear the same response but we hope this gives you more fine-tuning in the upper end of the volume slider. It is the same algorithm we introduced in the PULSE 2i and PULSE MINI 2i.
Sorry for the earlier confusion but what you are seeing is the result of that change which we hope will be a better experience in the long run for all.
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Hi Tony, thank you for the message.
So this happens only in Home Theatre Fixed group setting, correct?
For watching movies, what is the difference of doing a Fixed Group vs Multiplayer group? Does one provide Dolby sound and the other does not? I noticed we get the Surround Sound option only when doing a Home theatre group. Does this mean Multi-player fixed group is not surround for movies?
For Multiplayer fixed group the volume is good- but not sure why I do not see the surround option and I am not sure if the TV is coming out Dolby or not.
I can get by watching Multiplayer, just not sure what I am missing with this option when watching TV.
For Home theatre fixed group, I have the volume max at 100%, and it is very low volume (the TV speakers sound better). We can do a zoom live and I can show you.
Regards,
Vahe
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Break and recreate your group - if problems persist, Help, Send Support Request in the App so we may take a closer look.
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Hi Phil, thank you for confirming. I have a technician working on this problem and will be doing the testing and getting back to me. I'll update the thread when we have a resolution.
I am sure it's a software bug, since in Multiplayer fixed group streaming music it sounds great.
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Playbar + also doesn't fix the too soft bass issue when paired. The sub is much more powerful over cables. Really disappointing for so much money.
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Hello Przemyslaw,
I already tried the factory reset, and also the Optical cable. absolutely no difference.
The volume is still very low in Home Theatre setup, and pretty much non-existent in the 2 side Flex 2is.
waiting for a massive fix for this, hopefully soon.
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Hello Vahe,
That's really disappointing. I hope the bluesound team is working on the solution and providing it very soon.
Meanwhile I did another test just proving the issue, and perhaps giving some hints:
- set volume to approx 1/10 (10 on my TV).
- start music using Tidal on my TV. Music was quiet.
- start the same music on my mobile's Tidal and stream to soundbar - music is about twice as loud
- playing around with the option "volume limits" in BluOS app changes general volume to higher, but the difference between output remains.
So it seems like the volume through HDMI/Optical In is cut by half.
Regards
Przemysław
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Przemysław
please see the official comment at the top of this post - what happens when the volume is at maximum - warn the neighbours before doing this - just in case...Then as above, please select Help Send Support Request so we may see the player log file
Thanks
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Przemysław, when I am streaming music, the volume is fine.
The problem is when in Home Theatre fixed group of the following configuration: Soundbar+ with Sub+ and 2 Flex 2is.
The volume of the soundbar, even with TV at max 100 volume, is VERY LOW (pretty much same as my TV speaker volume), and the 2 FLEX 2is, are non-existent in any kind of effect.
When I switch to Multi Unit Fixed group to stream music, the volume is ok. So Right now, surround sound TV enjoyment is not possible with this unit.
Tony no worries- until this is fixed, no neighbor will hear any volume- I can hardly hear it myself.
Question is: how did this Home Theatre bug pass through the testing? If it's working fine in your lap environment, could it be some units are just faulty and need to be replaced? If this is the case, I have already been waiting for more than 30 days- so please make sure the XX day return policy does not apply in our case that have these faulty units.
Otherwise, I'd appreciate a timeline on when a fix will be issued.
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Thank you Tony for the reply.
I have sent support request as advised. Reading this again I can see my issue is slightly different - it's not about general maximum volume - this is ok for playing music. It's about the difference between HDMI input and streaming volume, even when using the same source (Tidal) . Switching between sources can be really shocking experience - and this should be somehow under control.
If I have possibility, I will check max volume on both sources to compare.
Regards
Przemysław
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Some further observations:
1. For leveling the volume, I used the slider for "Volume limits (dB)" - this helped when I have set up to 45dB instead of initial 65.
2. In the meanwhile I've been also getting more familiar with the soundbar, and I'm quite disappointed with the treble levels. Even when pushed up to max (+6dB) for treble, it still does not deliver sufficiently, especially at low volumes. In comparison to another soundbar that I have access to, the sound is "dark", bluring some details of the audio track. For music it's not that disturbing, although I would be happy to hear the higher notes in more details. Unfortunately for movies this results in lack of dialogues clarity and distant, barely audible background effects in higher notes. I was expecting much better result with the soundbar in this area. Is there anything I can do about this? Or perhaps this is a hardware limitation or a defect?
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Just to let you know, I've created a new follow up ticket to the issue, with examples of recorded audio with different output from TV (PCM or Dolby). I noticed that for PCM output from TV it's quite ok, but with Dolby, looks like there is some issue with center channel audio (too low volume in comparison to the rest) - seems this can be an issue.
I would be grateful for looking into this in details.
Kind regards
Przemysław
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