Aim to place it within a foot of the height of your ears when you’re sitting in your normal TV viewing position. Soundbars tend to sound better when they’re wall mounted because of this. 4. Distance to soundbar Most recent soundbars can connect wirelessly using Bluetooth. This allows you to play music through your phone or laptop, for instance. This is usually done through your device’s settings menu under 'Bluetooth'. Many new soundbars aren’t compatible with this cable type – and we’ve seen some newer TVs without it, too. If you're still limited to analogue connections, it might be time for an upgrade. See our best TVs to find a model that's right for you. Digital input The setup process varies between models, but it usually involves connecting to your soundbar using an app. After this initial setup, you should be good to go.

Soundbars aren't just for use with TVs, though – you can also use one to listen to music from your phone, tablet or laptop. We'll show you how. If you don’t have that information to hand, use trial and error to find an output format that works. Whether your "source" is a Blu-ray player, cable box, streaming device, or game console, there are multiple ways to connect a soundbar to your TV. If you are connecting your source to the TV, then sending audio to the soundbar over HDMI, this requires gear compatible with HDMI ARC, or Audio Return Channel.

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If your soundbar is showing its age, find out more about the features available on the latest models – go to the best soundbars. Soundbar voice controls If you're only getting parts of the sound, it’s also possible that your TV, set-top box, or disc player is outputting audio that your soundbar can’t use properly. Similar to the problem earlier in this guide where no sound is coming out at all, your soundbar might be receiving a full 5.1 surround sound mix but may only support 2.1 or 2.0. This means you might be missing out on a huge amount of the sound that’s supposed to be in the movie you’re watching. Ensure that your TV and other boxes aren’t outputting in surround sound, again by finding the audio settings menus and ensuring they’re set to either 2.0 or 2.1. My picture and sound are out of sync The product must be correctly installed and operated in accordance with the instructions contained in the manual.

This helps the sound reflect more evenly towards your TV viewing position for a more balanced and immersive experience. 3. Soundbar height It’s rare to see these once-familiar red and white cables as a primary input for soundbars these days. Analogue cables are simple to set up by plugging the coloured plugs into the matching port. The downside, of course, is that you are limited to the number of ports on your soundbar—many may only have one HDMI input—and it does not work for your TV's built-in apps or antenna tuner, which will require HDMI ARC or optical. Still, if you are having problems with one game console or Blu-ray player, try plugging it into the soundbar instead of the TV. Like any other speaker system, soundbars benefit from a bit of extra time and care when you first set them up. Use our easy-to-follow guide to find out how you can get the best-quality audio from yours. Here, we'll help you to set up your soundbar, but you'll also want to make sure your TV is looking its best. Use our free tool to see your TV's ideal picture setting – go to how to get the best TV picture.On the hunt for a soundbar that can take pride of place in your living room? Discover the best soundbars that combine style with substance. The best way to connect a soundbar If you have any issues with your soundbar, see our expert guide to common soundbar problems . How to set up your soundbar Try to keep the cable clear of other connectors (especially power) in the tangle of wires behind your TV. Simply moving the 3.5mm cable can sometimes solve this issue. If possible, place your soundbar directly in front of your TV and watch head on for the best results. For some, it’s a nice-to-have additional feature. For others it’s a mixed blessing, with some settings and functions only available when you use the app. That might be fine now, but it means you could lose those functions (which can be as important as being able to balance the audio to suit your room) when the app is no longer supported by the manufacturer.

This will allow you to use your TV remote to adjust the volume coming from the soundbar. 4. Adjust the soundThe answer could be simply that your soundbar isn't actually producing any audio, meaning you'll still be listening to your TV's speakers. The audio for movies and TV are usually encoded in one of a few formats. Most streaming content is encoded in Dolby Digital or Dolby Digital Plus, while Blu-rays can use Dolby formats or DTS. Some devices can decode the audio themselves and send it as raw PCM as well. These cables can carry high-quality stereo signals, but aren’t best suited for surround sound. HDMI Whatever the problem, fixing your soundbar will almost certainly be cheaper – and more environmentally friendly – than replacing it. For stereo sound, you should not have trouble finding the right setting, but this can get really complex if you are trying to use surround sound, so you will need to experiment with the settings. Depending on what kind of audio you are sending, HDMI ARC may be your only option, since it has more bandwidth for high-fidelity audio formats.

Don’t be tempted to hide your soundbar in your TV cabinet – your new speaker will sound boxed in and you won’t get the most from it. However, sometimes things go wrong and you end up with no audio coming out of your television. If you aren't hearing anything from your soundbar, there are a few troubleshooting steps you can take to get your talkies up and running again.Some soundbars come with a companion app for your phone, so try using it to change the input, as it may be more reliable than the remote. If your TV is plugged in with an optical cable (also known as TOSLINK), look for an Optical or Digital In option. If you are using the app, try the remote instead, just to be sure. Soundbars often have smart features, which allow you to control some settings with your smartphone or tablet. This is especially likely in mid-range and premium soundbars. Different brands and models have different levels of functionality. If this doesn’t solve the problem, make sure your TV volume is turned all the way up so you can adjust the soundbar’s volume directly. This might help since interference is introduced when the source (TV) volume is low and the output (soundbar) volume is high.