Sonos Arc Soundbar F72 Error Code Guide (Quick Fixes)

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What This Error Means

On a Sonos Arc setup, F72 usually means your TV or receiver is throwing an HDMI/eARC communication fault related to the Arc, not that the Arc itself has a specific ‘F72’ code.

In plain terms: the TV and Arc are failing the audio handshake over HDMI, so the Arc never gets a clean audio stream.

Official Fix

  • Kill the power fully: unplug the TV, the Sonos Arc, and any HDMI boxes (consoles, streamers) from the wall for 60 seconds. Then plug back in: TV first, wait until it’s fully booted, then Arc, then other HDMI devices.
  • Use the correct HDMI port: move the Arc to the TV’s HDMI port labeled ‘ARC’ or ‘eARC’. No adapters, no switches, no receivers in between.
  • Use the Sonos-supplied HDMI cable or a certified High Speed/HDMI 2.0/2.1 cable. Swap the cable if there’s any doubt.
  • On the TV, turn HDMI-CEC back on (LG: Simplink, Samsung: Anynet+, Sony: Bravia Sync, etc.) and enable ARC/eARC audio out.
  • Set TV audio to output to ‘HDMI ARC/eARC’ with Digital Audio set to ‘Auto’ or ‘Pass Through’. If that fails, temporarily force it to ‘PCM’ and test.
  • Open the Sonos app > Settings > System > [Arc] > TV Setup, and walk through the TV setup wizard so the Arc re-learns the TV.
  • Update firmware: run updates on both the TV and the Sonos app/Arc. Many F-series handshake errors are just outdated HDMI/eARC firmware.
  • If the error persists with Arc disconnected but disappears when another soundbar is used, contact Sonos Support with a diagnostic from the app – likely internal hardware and not user-serviceable.

The Technician’s Trick

What a field tech actually does when the standard reset routine doesn’t stick.

  • Do a real CEC purge, not just a reboot: unplug every single HDMI cable from the TV. With the TV unplugged, hold the TV’s power button (on the frame, not the remote) for 15–20 seconds to drain it. Then reconnect only the Arc to the ARC/eARC port and power the TV back up. Add other HDMI devices one by one.
  • Force the TV to ‘forget’ old audio settings: turn HDMI-CEC off, reboot the TV, then turn CEC back on and rerun the Sonos Arc TV setup in the app. TVs get stuck remembering the old soundbar or receiver.
  • Bypass eARC to test hardware: use the official Sonos HDMI-to-optical adapter (or a solid HDMI audio extractor) from the TV’s optical out to the Arc. If audio works perfectly over optical but F72/eARC errors keep coming back, your TV’s eARC/HDMI board is the likely problem, not the Arc.
  • Test the Arc on a completely different TV. If it plays fine there, stop chasing the Arc – you’re dealing with a TV-side fault.

Is It Worth Fixing? (The Financial Verdict)

  • ✅ Fix: The Arc is under 5–6 years old, works fine on another TV or over optical, and the problem clearly follows one TV or HDMI chain.
  • ⚠️ Debatable: The Arc is out of warranty, only behaves after lots of power-cycling or cable juggling, and you’d need a shop or in-home tech to confirm whether the TV’s HDMI board or the Arc is failing.
  • ❌ Replace: The Arc won’t pass audio cleanly on any TV, even after resets and cable swaps, or it randomly shuts down – that usually means a bad main board or power supply, which isn’t cost-effective on a sealed soundbar.

Parts You Might Need

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See also

Got F-series errors popping up on other gear too? These might save you some time: