Choosing the best Panasonic Soundbar helps build your perfect home sound system with Dolby Atmos-supported sound. Performing firmware updates on Panasonic Soundbar elevates the audio and ensures a theater-like experience without any problems. If there’s an update available to your Panasonic Soundbar firmware, you should install those updates to prevent any audio delays or any other issues.
It takes less than a few minutes to complete the updating process. You can update the Panasonic Soundbar either by directly connecting it to the internet or by another method that involves updating the Panasonic Soundbar firmware via a USB drive.
Dive into this article that covers all the possible ways to update the Panasonic Soundbar. Besides that, learn the fixes for the Panasonic Soundbar not updating problem.
Why Should You Update Panasonic Soundbar
Here are the reasons why you update your Panasonic Soundbar firmware.
- Increases stability to your soundbar.
- Get additional features of the Soundbar.
- If your Panasonic Soundbar stops working normally.
- The Panasonic Soundbar refuses to connect to the TV.
- Improve the Panasonic Soundbar compatibility with more devices.
- Eliminate minor bugs and issues within the Soundbar.
How to Check Firmware Version on Panasonic Soundbar
You should check the firmware version of Panasonic Soundbar before you start with the updating procedure. Check whether the current version is older than the update file. If it is not older, continue using the current firmware. To check the version,
1. Turn on your Panasonic Soundbar and TV and connect your Panasonic Soundbar to the TV.
2. Fetch the Panasonic Soundbar remote and press the SETUP button multiple times.
3. Move to F/W VERSION and push the OK button.
Note: For Panasonic Soundbar models SC-H200 and SC-HC204, instead of the F/W VERSION, select the SW VER option.
4. Hit the forward and upward arrow buttons to choose FIRMWARE and press the OK button.
5. The TV screen will display the version of the installed Panasonic Soundbar firmware.
6. If a new Update is available, then the screen will display the “NEW FIRMWARE FOUND/PRESS[OK].“
You can press the OK button again to stop the screen from showing the firmware version.
How to Update Panasonic Soundbar Firmware with Remote
Before you get into updating the firmware without a remote, ensure your Panasonic Soundbar is connected to your TV and the sound system properly.
For Panasonic Soundbars similar to the models SC-HTB900, SC-ALL70T, and SC-ALL30T, follow the steps given in this section to update the firmware using the remote control.
1. Get the Panasonic Soundbar remote and press the SETUP button repeatedly to choose F/W UPDATE.
2. Hit the OK button and press the upward and downward arrows multiple times to choose the select UPDATE YES.
3. Tap the OK button to initiate the update. The screen will show the WAIT message during the updating process.
4. As soon as the update is over, the screen will display SUCCESS, indicating the completion of the process.
5. Finally, for model SC-HTB900, press the Power button on the Soundbar to turn it off, and once it has completely turned off, turn it back on by pressing the same Power button.
- For SC-ALL70T and SC-ALL30T, following the SUCCESS message, PLEASE DISCONNECT AC MANS LEAD will start scrolling on the screen.
- At that moment, disconnect the soundbar from the power outlet and reconnect it after 3 minutes.
- Turn on the soundbar to complete the firmware update.
How to Update Panasonic Soundbar Firmware Without Remote
If you are using a Panasonic SC-ALL8, SC-ALL3, or AH-ALL 1C, you can do a firmware update on the Panasonic Soundbar without a remote. You can do that using the physical buttons on the device. Once you begin the updating process, do not disconnect your soundbar from power.
1. Turn on the Panasonic Soundbar and press and hold the -WPS button.
2. The Operation indicator will start blinking, and just as that happens, press the AUX or the MODE buttons.
3. Once the Mode indicator starts blinking, let go of the buttons.
4. If the blinking stops within a minute, then there is no update available, and your device is already running on its latest available software.
5. If the blinking continues, then it means your soundbar is updating, and it will take around 4 minutes for this to happen.
6. Once the Mode indicator stops flashing, unplug the soundbar from its power outlet.
7. Wait for another 3 minutes, connect the soundbar back to the power socket, and turn it on.
How to Update Panasonic Soundbar via USB Drive
If you can’t update your Panasonic Soundbar using the methods mentioned above, you can try updating it through a USB drive. For the process, you will need a FAT16 or FAT32 formatted USB drive with more than 280MB of storage space. Besides that, check with the Panasonic Soundbar whether your Windows PC runs on the specified OS. Once you make sure of the prerequisites, proceed with the following method.
Download Firmware Update on USB
This method is the same for Panasonic Soundbars SC-HTB700, SC-HC200, SC-HC204, or SC-HTB600.
1. Go to the Download page of Panasonic’s official website on your PC.
2. Search and locate your Panasonic Soundbar model and tap on the URL to get the firmware download page.
3. Read through the agreement carefully and grant your approval.
4. On the next page, tap the Download button, and the file will start downloading in the ZIP format.
5. Once the download is over, extract the files on the PC using specified software. Alternatively, you can also extract the file by double-clicking on it.
6. Insert the USB drive into the PC’s USB port and transfer all the files to the USB drive’s root folder.
Note: If your soundbar model is SC-HTB700, then the extracted HTB700.bin file should be exactly 5,715,872 bytes. For HTB600, the file size should be 2,764,981 bytes. If there is any variation in the file size, then you have to download the file once again.
7. Saving it to the root directory is mandatory for the update on the soundbar to happen.
8. Once the firmware has been transferred and copied properly, eject the USB drive from the PC.
Update the Firmware Update Using a USB Drive
After downloading the firmware and securing it in a USB drive, you can move on to update your Panasonic Soundbar firmware.
1. Power off the main unit and connect the USB device to the soundbar.
2. Now, turn on your Panasonic Soundbar by pressing the Power button.
3. The device will automatically detect the update available in the USB and start the firmware update process.
- For HTB600, you have to press the SETUP button continuously until the screen shows FW UPDATE.
- Press OK and wait till the DONE message is displayed on the screen.
5. Once the update is done, SUCCESS will be displayed on the screen.
6. Remove the USB drive from the port and restart your Panasonic Soundbar.
Note: To restart, press the Power button to turn it off and press the button once again to turn it back on.
The updating process will take around 10 minutes. Meanwhile, if you want to view anything on TV, set the input settings on the TV to the sound input from the TV speakers.
How to Update Panasonic Soundbar Model SC-HTB510
The software update for the Panasonic Soundbar model SC-HTB510 is quite different from the other soundbar models. Updates usually happen automatically, but there are also options to update it if necessary manually.
Automatic Software Update
There are two different ways in which the automatic update happens with this Panasonic Soundbar.
- When connected to the Google Home app, the device will update automatically as and when the app is updated.
- On the other hand, the device will automatically update after midnight when an update is available. For that to happen, it should be connected to power but not in use.
Note: Even if the soundbar is turned on and is running, the device will weigh between the update and the current situation. Based on its analysis, it can even prioritize the update.
When the update is in progress, the LED indicator lights will start blinking one after the other and keep repeating the cycle until the update is over.
Manual Software Update
1. Turn on the main unit and press the NET or INPUT button several times until you locate the NETWORK option.
2. Now, press the SOUND, SUBWOOFER+, SUBWOOFER-, and SOUND buttons.
Note: Consecutively, press the buttons in the same order as mentioned within a time interval of less than 3 seconds between each press.
3. If an update is available, the firmware will automatically start downloading.
4. The LED lights will indicate the download progress time. Starting from STANDARD, each LED will turn on one after the other.
5. As the last light turns on, the download process gets over, and the update process will begin.
6. While updating, the LEDs will consecutively start turning on and off, one after the other.
Note: In case there is any interruption during the update, all the LEDs will start blinking for about 3 seconds.
Even though there are some similarities in the downloading process, there will be slight variations according to the model of the Panasonic Soundbar.
FAQ
Yes. If you do not have your Panasonic Soundbar remote or if the remote is damaged, you can very well update the soundbar using the physical buttons or via a USB flash drive.
