TV Speakers/Soundbar suggestion

[HoughMade]

I have this one and it works great.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/vizio-5-1-2-channel-m-series-premium-sound-bar-with-wireless-subwoofer-dolby-atmos-and-dtsx-dark-charcoal/6446231.p?skuId=6446231

We use the eARC HDMI and control it all with 1 remote.

 

[Snapdragon]

If your TV and soundbar both have HDMI ARC then all you need is an HDMI cable that supports ARC. Check your TV owners manual or look at the back and see if one of the HDMI outputs is marked ARC. The soundbar will use an optical cable if the TV does not have ARC.

I like the ROKU soundbars because the ROKU functions built in and the ROKU remote runs everything.

We do not have conventional cable, just streaming subscriptions.

I hit the on button on the ROKU remote, both the TV and soundbar turn on. Pick the streaming service I want and it's good to go.

what HDMI cables can do: ARC and CEC explained

Learn about the benefits of using HDMI cables with home entertainment systems as well as the important HDMI features ARC and CEC.

blog.teufelaudio.com

Roku makes two models. I prefer the larger one. You can add a wireless woofer and extra speakers for additional money.

Roku Streambar Review

The Roku Streambar is a small soundbar that makes for a big improvement over your TV's built-in speakers, and it doubles as a 4K media streamer.

www.pcmag.com

Roku Streambar Pro Review

The Roku Streambar Pro is a capable stereo speaker that adds all of the capabilities of a 4K Roku media streamer to the mix, including a voice remote with a headphone jack.

www.pcmag.com

Edit: If you have a smart TV then external speakers connected to the line out on the TV will do the job, such as a good set of computer speakers or old stereo speakers.

I have a smart TV, but as smart TV's go, it's pretty dumb. No bluetooth, very awkward interface. This, boys and girls, is why you don't buy electronics at Walmart.

Its sounding like the Roku soundbar is the way to go. Then it will be integrated with the Roku that we are already used to.

Thanks everyone, for the input.

 

[marvin02]

Then it will be integrated with the Roku that we are already used to.

The Roku sound bars include the Roku functionality, so the device you have now won't be used. The remote for the sound bar is the same as the Roku device remotes, just a bit chunkier. The soundbars also work with the Roku app.

 

[Cameramonkey]

I have a smart TV, but as smart TV's go, it's pretty dumb. No bluetooth, very awkward interface. This, boys and girls, is why you don't buy electronics at Walmart.

Its sounding like the Roku soundbar is the way to go. Then it will be integrated with the Roku that we are already used to.

Thanks everyone, for the input.

Especially their cheap house brand, onn. Effectively no warranty without the protection plan they offer. I bought a sound bar and declined the protection plan. 8 months later it died. No worries, I'll do an RMA direct. Nope. Company didnt even have a website. So the only way to replace it is to go back to the store. But no protection plan, no replacement.

Oh well, at least it was cheap. Lesson learned.

 

[Snapdragon]

The Roku sound bars include the Roku functionality, so the device you have now won't be used. The remote for the sound bar is the same as the Roku device remotes, just a bit chunkier. The soundbars also work with the Roku app.

Right. That's what I meant by integrated. So we will still have a Roku remote and a Samsung remote. Sounds like what I need.

 

[marvin02]

Right. That's what I meant by integrated. So we will still have a Roku remote and a Samsung remote. Sounds like what I need.

You won't use the TV remote much after you set up the sound bar, just to change settings on the TV or watch non-streaming content. If you can get it over the internet Roku pretty much has it covered.

 

[Snapdragon]

You won't use the TV remote much after you set up the sound bar, just to change settings on the TV or watch non-streaming content. If you can get it over the internet Roku pretty much has it covered.

We watch Price is Right and Jeopardy on antenna TV, but everything else is streamed. Mostly Philo, Prime, and Hulu.

 

[Snapdragon]

OK, I pulled the trigger on this one. Hopefully it will do what we need. If not, I will revisit the idea of old school speakers.

 

[marvin02]

OK, I pulled the trigger on this one. Hopefully it will do what we need. If not, I will revisit the idea of old school speakers.

View attachment 198894

Hey - how's the sound bar working?

 

[Snapdragon]

Hey - how's the sound bar working?

It did not clarify the sound much at all, and it was useless for antenna TV. It might be a lost cause. Her hearing is pretty bad. My last ditch effort is a set of bookshelf speakers. I ordered a set but am waiting on the optical cable.

 

[GregD]

Hi Snap
I haven't seen you in a long time.

 

[Snapdragon]

Hi Snap
I haven't seen you in a long time.

Hi Greg. Been pretty much staying in the NW thread.

 

[marvin02]

It did not clarify the sound much at all, and it was useless for antenna TV. It might be a lost cause. Her hearing is pretty bad. My last ditch effort is a set of bookshelf speakers. I ordered a set but am waiting on the optical cable.

If your mom is comfortable with headphones you can get a Bluetooth adapter to connect to your tv. Then I believe you could pair that with headphones for her and a Bluetooth speaker for you.

Good luck.

 

[Cameramonkey]

If your mom is comfortable with headphones you can get a Bluetooth adapter to connect to your tv. Then I believe you could pair that with headphones for her and a Bluetooth speaker for you.

Good luck.

Be careful with that. All but the best BT adapters SUUUUUUCK for video.

I needed to wirelessly monitor an output for church and tried that. 3 different transmitters, all introduced unacceptable delay in the audio. If it was hooked to a stereo, I would have no clue. It sounded great. I just didnt expect the audio to be about a half second behind the actual audio output. Sooooo distracting.

I sent them all back.

 

[wtburnette]

It did not clarify the sound much at all, and it was useless for antenna TV. It might be a lost cause. Her hearing is pretty bad. My last ditch effort is a set of bookshelf speakers. I ordered a set but am waiting on the optical cable.

Hope they work for you. I've been using a relatively inexpensive set of bookshelf speakers for a couple of years now and they work pretty well for me. They also double as bluetooth speakers, which is kind of nice. To get bluetooth capability, I ordered a Shield TV with Android TV. I loved it when I first got it, but it's become a bit more of a PITA since. I will say the bluetooth feature is fantastic and I watch TV while listening through my BT headphones more often than not.

 

[sadclownwp]

You would get much better performance out of Klipsch 2.1 ProMedia's. They can be found for like 120 bucks.

 

[Snapdragon]

These are the ones I ended up going with. 4.5 stars on Amazon and 5 stars on Walmart. I went with Walmart because they were $10 cheaper and there are still free returns. Didn't really need the bluetooth capability for this TV, but it will be nice to have for later or for other devices. I'm still waiting on the optical cable to come on Monday. If this doesn't work, I'm done, at least for a while. Maybe I can talk her into the device that streams directly to her hearing aids.

 

[wtburnette]

Those are what I have. They worked awesome for a couple of years with my TV, then the optical connection started being flakey. I can still use them connected to my Shield TV via BT, but the volume doesn't seem to go as high now. I need to go back and test the optical again since I've used BT headphones so long I forgot about troubleshooting.

 

[Snapdragon]

Those are what I have. They worked awesome for a couple of years with my TV, then the optical connection started being flakey. I can still use them connected to my Shield TV via BT, but the volume doesn't seem to go as high now. I need to go back and test the optical again since I've used BT headphones so long I forgot about troubleshooting.

Could it be the cable?

 

[wtburnette]

Could it be the cable?

Could be the cable, could be the TV. Like I said, I haven't done any troubleshooting since I use BT headphones all the time now. I'll have to test when I get a chance and I'll let you know. It may be something you would never have an issue with, I just thought I'd mention it. I thought about a set of Promedia's like sadclownwp mentioned, but my TV doesn't have a DB-25 connector. The Edifiers seemed like just the thing and honestly sound fine to me.