ARC TV + Atmos passthrough sounds compressed as hell, any real workaround?

[cat]

I'm stuck with an ARC-only TV and can't figure out if there's any real workaround or if this is just an ARC limitation I have to live with.

Setup:

TV: OnePlus Y series (HDMI ARC only, no eARC)

Audio: Sony Bravia System 6 (supports Dolby formats)

Source: Local playback via TV flash drive / USB stick


Issue:
When I play Dolby Digital Plus / Dolby Atmos (6ch) content and enable audio passthrough, the Sony Bravia Connect app shows Dolby Atmos 5.1, but the audio sounds heavily compressed and terrible, even though Dolby technically works.

If I turn passthrough OFF, sound quality is much better, but I lose real 5.1. Surrounds still play, but that seems like the soundbar just upmixing stereo or PCM.

So basically:

Passthrough ON = real Atmos/5.1, but awful compressed sound

Passthrough OFF = good sound quality, but fake/upmixed surround

From what I understand, the ARC-only TV is likely decoding, re-encoding, and sending compressed Dolby over ARC.

Questions:

1. Is there any way to get proper Atmos or 5.1 from TV flash drive over ARC without heavy compression?

2. Is the only real solution here to stop using the TV as the source entirely?

 

[ajuvignesh]

Did you try a different playback software?

 

[cat]

Did you try a different playback software?

obviously duh

 

[ajuvignesh]

obviously duh

I guess you have to purchase a new tv then.

 

[cat]

I guess you have to purchase a new tv then.

is that my only option?

 

[sandeepmohan]

Didn't know One Plus made TV's. This is news to me.
I think you're limited by the output capabilities of the TV. Not a whole lot you can do here.
Also, the minimum Dolby Atmos configuration is 5.1.2 so I'm not sure how Atmos is even possible under your setup. Maybe simulated.
You can try Optical but its still going to be limited by what the TV can output as a signal
Dolby Atmos, from what I know, can be output via ARC over a Dolby Digital Plus Signal. Not otherwise

As another FM said, if you must have this work, a more capable and better TV maybe needed.

 

[dvraghavan]

One other option could be to look for a streamer with 2 HDMI outs - one for TV and one to the soundbar - some bluray players have this; alternately one HDMI to TV and one optical to the soundbar (optical won't pass Atmos - so you are limited to 5.1). If you have set-top box, you can check if it has an optical out and play the files from there.