HW-Q990c Soundbar sounds flat and compressed after 1010.5 firmware update.

[Mike7463]

After updating to the latest firmware (1010.5), there seems to be a distinct drop in punch and clarity regarding the sound quality, and sounds somewhat compressed, be it in adaptive mode or anything else. I've tried everything - resetting the soundbar and having channel volumes exactly has they were, have gone through the process of updating the subwoofer and rear speakers, etc, etc. It's not connected to a Samsung TV, so comments about settings regarding a Samsung TV would be redundant. The settings on my TV are as they were before the update. I have messaged Samsung on their Facebook page, but they said that they're unaware of any problems regarding the firmware. Having read of this problem experienced by others on other message boards, there is obviously some change regarding the sound quality. I'm not sure if anyone can help, but I would hope that Samsung looks into it and rectifies it with a future firmware update.

[Obsydian]

Hi Samsung lists v1010 as the latest ?

https://www.samsung.com/uk/support/model/HW-Q990C/XU/#downloads

[Mike7463]

That's exactly the version I upgraded to. When checking the version on the soundbar itself, as well as the Smart Things app, it states that it is 1010.5.  Here's a partial part of the info given in the upgrade's root folder.

upgrade type: USB
model string: SAT-iMX8M23WWC
major version: 1010
minor version: 5

[Obsydian]

Ah ok cool.

Some things to check are:

- Did the upgrade reset another EQ-type changes you had made

- You may have to play around with the EQ to get back to your preference.

I love my hifi and one new pain point with the advent of firmware updates, is each  causes a SQ change, its a real nightmare, for  my streamer I asked for a roll back, but was told no.

[Mike7463]

I keep everything at O as far as bass and treble are concerned, and have set up each channel volume as before, but to no avail. When cycling through the various modes - Adaptive, surround, Game, Standard - there seems to be little difference between them, apart from Standard which, I understand, doesn't use the rear speakers anyway - not that it's a setting I use in any case. I use adaptive mode, which when using it before, brought the sound to life, but now doesn't have the clarity it once had. It's a pity that reverting to an earlier version isn't given as an option.

[Sau123]

Facing same problem after 1010.5 update

[Avrez101]

I have this issue with the 930c variant. Samsung very much seems to be going down the apple route of ruining products with software/firmware updates to make you buy a new product and landfill the old one. I don't understand this business practise as I won't be replacing anything with another Samsung product and it puts me off the brand. 

[Mike7463]

If there is any truth in that, then they would be shooting themselves in the foot, because I wouldn't replace the aforementioned soundbar with a newer Samsung product, given how expensive my present one was. They either need to make the firmware reversible to an earlier version, or update the present one to fix the sound problem. 

[Engineer]

I have had exactly the same problem, and it seems to have been resolved by performing a full reset of the device. The truth is, I’m still running tests since I haven’t quite managed to get the same sound I had before the update. However, it’s possible that this is just my perception, as it’s not exactly the same as before.

Suddenly, I started noticing that the soundbar didn’t sound as good as before, so I checked the firmware version, and sure enough, it was 1010.5. I contacted Samsung Spain, and according to them, there are no known global issues with this firmware version. It’s quite curious because, from what I’ve read, this is a problem affecting quite a few customers.

The reset is done simply by pressing the + and - symbols on the soundbar simultaneously (while it’s turned on). The word "Init" will appear on the display, and after a few seconds, the soundbar will turn off. However, you’ll need to reconnect it to the SmartThings app if you want to use it.

This modern trend of manufacturers releasing firmware updates that change how devices work—almost always for the worse, if not outright removing features they originally had—is not only frustrating but should be outright banned. And it’s getting worse, spreading to more and more products, from cars to 3D printers. In the past, if a brand did this, you could just switch brands. But what will happen when there’s no brand left to switch to because they all do the same thing? I’ll just leave that thought here.

[Mike7463]

I reset it after I noticed the problem after the firmware update, in fact I reset it twice to make doubly sure, but still no luck, with every channel volume and subwoofer and rear speaker levels as they were before. I wouldn't say the sound is atrocious, but it certainly sounds compressed with a lack of clarity. The sound modes also had more of a noticeable difference when switching from one to the other, but it is now less noticeable.