No sound from rear speakers

[Stevo2000]

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Bose product name Bose smart sound bar 300 wireless surround speakers 700

Country USA

Firmware Version

App Version

What devices were you using that were affected and what version are they on (e.g. Samsung Galaxy S9 on Android 11, iPhone X on iOS14, etc.)

Detailed description of the issue and steps to reproduce. I added the Bose surround speakers to my new sound bar, no issues there. While a movie was on I was able to get partial sound out of them, while watching news without Dolby no sound. I would like them to be always producing full sound, and am not interested in Dolby surround. I wanted to add additional speakers because I have poor hearing and I have to turn it up so loud to understand what they’re saying from across the room, hoping to avoid that

What environment do you experience the issue in? (e.g. noisy office, quiet kitchen, etc.)

When did you start to experience the issue? Did it work correctly previously? New installation 

Any troubleshooting steps you took

[Tegan_M]

Hi Stevo2000,

Thank you for reaching out!

The rear speakers are designed to only play audio when there is a 5.1 audio output in order to create a surround experience. Regrettably it is not possible to have these speakers permanently switched on to play all audio. 

There are a couple things I can suggest which may make your experience a bit easier. Firstly is the use of Dialogue Mode. This is available on your system to make voices more distinct and understandable. This is useful, for example, when watching a movie or show that has quieter spoken content. You can find instruction on how to enable this HERE. 

Secondly, now that you have added your rear speakers, it is worth re calibrating the ADAPTiQ feature of your product. ADAPTiQ optimizes the sound of your system for the acoustics of your room. The contents of your room (i.e. surfaces, furniture, rugs, etc.) impact how sound is heard in the room. The calibration process measures the properties of your room and adjusts the sound of your system accordingly. Instructions are available HERE.

I hope this helps.

[Stevo2000]

I have followed your suggestions already. It just seems like a very considerable investment on rear speakers, which end up being extremely limited in function. There should be a "JABOS" mode. JABOS=Just A Bunch Of Speakers. I understand that I can add other Bose wireless speakers to my configuration and have them perform in party mode. It doesn't list any specific compatible models. Can you provide me with a couple of portable speaker models which should work?