07-12-2016 01:35 PM
When using the K650 sound bar and two R1 Wireless speakers in surround sound mode over wifi with the latest firmware, The quailty of the sound K650 drops, sounds very muddy. As soon as you use the sound bar on it own, the sound bar improves. this is happening for a quite a few users.
can you help.
28-02-2017 09:03 PM
Even though I chose an R1 speaker as the main sound output, the volume is much too low. It's really desperate. There are no competent technicians at Samsung? It is not complicated to set sound levels. Really disappointed to have purchased this material. :smileysad:
28-02-2017 09:18 PM
If I hadnt temporarily moved out the country and away from my samsung setup I would have taken it all back.
Good idea to set up this 'community' however, it has so far been utterly useless apart from the odd bit of correspondance from a samsung employee once every blue moon. And having said that, the small and infrequent bits of advice we've had from moderators have all proven to be meaningless as the products are still not doing what they are advertsied to do.
How the hell they can sell a product which simply does not work is beoynd me. Absolute joke.
01-03-2017 10:02 PM - last edited 01-03-2017 10:05 PM
By this point in the thread, I feel mixed about recommending an alternative, however when I was a newbie, people wanting to take things back within deadlines was a thing.
Does it do what you paid for it?
Are you happy with this being the same forever?
Are you happy with the firmware being fixed, but then diverging again, and you lacking the community voice to fix it?
Difficult questions, but if you have the money to invest in a Samsung optical 5.1 soundbar solution, then its roughly the same price for an all in one optical solution, where your speakers all sound great, and you don't run the risk of diverging firmware.
02-03-2017 09:26 AM - last edited 02-03-2017 09:42 AM
I'm glad I found this thread as I thought I was going mad. I have the KS8000 65" two R1 lights and the HWK650. I had considered buying separates with amp and speakers all hard wired but in the end was convinced by the Samsung rep to keep it all in the family since I had already decided on the KS7000, I was offered the KS8000 for not much more as the KS7000 was out of stock. Initially I was able to have the TV and surround speakers within the week but had to wait almost 2 months for the soundbar. I had been using the speakers paired together using the multiroom app via my iPad, the sound quality was excellent and apart from them losing Wi-Fi connection, ungrouping, the app having difficulty finding the speakers and having regroup and rename them almost every time I persevered with the set up. Why? Well the sound quality was simply excellent and exceeded my expectations. Then the soundbar arrived and everything was all put in place, I bought a cracking set of stands from Vebos designed to work with the R1s. Try as I might I could not get it to work with the TV, I'm fairly tech savvy but I was getting know where. I could make it all work directly from the TV. So I tried via the multiroom app on the iPad through Deezer or Tunein, the speakers would all group and volumes could be adjusted independently. Whenever I then tried to link it through the TV though the speakers would not work again. I downloaded all the latest firmware updates still no joy. I gave up after 3 days and called Samsung. I have now spent a total of 6 hours on the phone to customer services going through their step by step tick list on three separate attempts! We made some progress, the first operator got the soundbar working but whenever we tried to adjust the volume levels at the rear it all ungrouped. After 2 hours he gave up, I was left with the soundbar working on Bluetooth and no rears. He said he would call back later, he did and after another hour of remote assistance he still made no progress. He decided it was my internet connection which was unstable, even though I have had no problems. My service provider checked it out. Stability and Wi-Fi was good all OK no problems. I called back again this time I got a lady who said Samsung knew about the problem after I told her my internet service provider had confirmed no issues with broadband or wifi, she said it was a software issue and the engineers were working on it. However there was no firm date for a new firmware update. My option she said was to wait for the upgrade or take the R1 speakers back for a refund! I told her I had bought stands, and if The R1s had to go back so would the TV and the soundbar as it was all bought as a complete AV system. I couldn't accept this, I still had faith in the system. I phoned back yesterday and spent another 3 hours on the phone, after lots and lots of fiddling about we managed to get the soundbar and rear speakers to work via the TV. However I had to press my ears right up to the rears and could just make it the sound in no more. The multiroom app levels were set up on the iPad with the rears set up to Max, but whenever we connected via the TV the rear volume disappeared! I was told this was normal and she had fixed it as the surround rears only worked as an effect! I played the Martian and Revenant through the Samsung 8500 4K Blu-ray again virtually no sound coming out the rears even with the TV multiroom set up for soundbar to minimum volume and rears to Max. I had to turn the volume up to 50 to make out the rears with my ear pressed firmly against them. Walk away 30cm and I could not hear them! By this time I could not hear her talk to me as the soundbar was blowing me out the room. She said it was fixed and that is the level, I said no way there must be a way of increasing the rears. She said try pushing the plus sign on the rears, all that did was increase the volume on the group and the soundbar took over. The sub also grumbles constantlyblike an HGV passing by. I then asked for a Samsung engineer to come out and to fix it as I don't want my money back I wanted it fixed. I was given the local number for my Samsung authorised service and repair center. He offered a quick suggestion of grouping them all through the multiroom app and setting the rear volumes higher and then reconnecting, I tried it again but as soon as you connect it all through the TV it brings the rear levels down again, it is as if it is fixed and will only allow a very low sound level effect which can only be heard if you hold both rears firmly against the side of your head against your ears (as I have done). So I am now going to try and get an engineer to come out, if that does not work it looks as though £3000 worth of Samsung gear will need to be returned as I just cannot waste any more time on this. It is such a pity as the speakers all sound great on their own or when worked via the multiroom app. It's just that it will not work as a sound system through the TV.
02-03-2017 09:36 AM
Great summary to the problem we're all having. How recently did you buy the setup because it amazes me that theyre still able to sell a product that simply does not work?
It comes down to whether we have any faith left in samsung and are prepared to keep waiting for a firmware update or we just bin the lot.
I think i'll write to 'Which?' and see what they think. Im sure this kind of thing gets them very excited and a published article by them might encourage Samsung to actually do something about their faulty product.
02-03-2017 09:51 AM
Thanks JCFARROW glad to someone out there feels my pain. I bought the system 18/12/16 soundbar arrived about mid February.
My house is full of Samsung I chose them over Bose Sony Sonos and separates simply because I loved the sound originality of design and features. When it works it is awesome and better than my Bose I would say, but the software is just not holding the rest of it together. I'm not giving up yet, I do believe in the system.....at the moment however it is a matter of faith. Just how long can I believe in Samsung before I am also forced to give up and return the items.
02-03-2017 10:03 AM
DreamTallStart, are you connecting the soundbar to TV via optical? I'm doing that and whilst having to use the soundbar remote to adjust volume isn't ideal, the volume levels on the rear speakers are fine and the ability to configure them separately in the Multi-Room app is available.
If Samsung can achieve this with TV to Soundbar via HDMI (allowing the use of TV remote for volume), then I think I'll be completely happy!
02-03-2017 01:05 PM
Hi DazzaP,
I've seen it all now, my last post has been "modified" by the moderator to remove lots of my comments! It would seem Samsung will not allow you to be too honest on here. What should I have expected, its on a Samsung platform after all.
02-03-2017 01:11 PM
02-03-2017 01:15 PM
Hi,
I'm not sure you'll get 5.1 without a wired connection to the soundbar though. I think you have to use either an HDMI or optical to get that, which I think is mentioned in the Samsung blurb.
I agree though, it's far from perfect to release a product that doesn't work as expected and will certainly alienate some fans of the Samsung brand. I believe that the firmware will be fixed eventually...
So what about it Samsung mods? We're told the engineers are on the problem, do you have any indication of a date for delivery of a fix? This thread will run and run until the issues are ironed out.... ;o)