Soundbar to TV help!!

[tori497]

I am brand-spanking new to the forum, so I apologize in advance if my question is unclear or has been answered already somewhere I couldn't find.

I have a 2008 sharp LC-42SB45U TV and received a Yamaha YAS 103 soundbar and an Amazon Fire TV stick for Xmas.

I would like to have sound from the Fire stick in stereo and not through the TV speakers (which sound awful). I asked for the soundbar, hoping I could go directly from the TV to the soundbar. There is no Toslink output on my TV and trying to connect the optical audio output from the TV to the soundbar coax input, via a digital, coax cable does not yield sound.

It may be worth mentioning that I have an AIWA AV-X220 receiver for my blu ray and cable sound, which is all analog.

If anyone has experience with this combination of components and how to get them working properly, please let me know!!

Thanks in advance!!

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

First, welcome to the Forum!

It may be worth mentioning that I have an AIWA AV-X220 receiver for my blu ray and cable sound, which is all analog

Actually it just confuses us. Typically people with sound bars don’t have AV receivers. The two are totally different concepts and as such totally different and incompatible systems. IOW, people typically plug all their components into one or the other, not both. Can you give us some idea of how you have all this integrated into a cohesive system?

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[tori497]

Thanks for your response!

It all started with the receiver (high school graduation gift). Over the years I've added bits and pieces but the receiver keeps hanging in there so I've been hesitant to replace it.

I use my receiver and tower speakers to watch TV and movies and listen to music. So basically, for everything. My blu ray and (Comcast) cable box are connected to the receiver for sound using RCA cables, and connected to my TV using HDMI's. Each component has its own input on both my TV and receiver and has been working nicely (enough) for quite some time. I am sure there are many far better ways to accomplish the same end goal. The problem has always been being analog vs. digital. I am not able to use Chromecast or Fire TV Stick and listen through my stereo, not the TV speakers.

I had been toying with the idea of getting a piece to take the place of my inferior TV speakers and (naively) thought a soundbar would be a good solution. I mentioned it in passing and guess what showed up under the Xmas tree?? The more research I am doing in trying to solve my problem, the more I am finding a soundbar was not the way to go. Luckily I have a gift receipt and can return it. I am thinking it may be time to just suck it up and take the money and put it towards a receiver with HDMI connectivity, which, from what I understand, would solve the majority of my quibbles with my current set up. I am open to suggestions on an entry-level, but clean sounding receiver to handle two tower speakers and a center speaker. (I live in an apartment so am not really looking to invest in a high end setup right now).

I am still completely confused as to why I could not get the soundbar to work with my TV, but now it's a moot point.

Thanks again and Happy New Year!!

 

[Adam]

Welcome to the forum!

I see that you are thinking about returning the soundbar, but we may be able to get it working for you in the meantime if you want.

Two things in the Sharp manual on page 12 caught my attention:
(*) Depending on the connected equipment, audio will not output from the DIGITAL AUDIO OUTPUT terminal in HDMI connection. In this case, set the audio formats of the connected equipment to PCM, 32/44.1/48 kHz and 16 bits.
(*) Dolby Digital audio output signals cannot be converted to PCM.

So, it's possible that you are using a Dolby Digital stream from the Fire TV Stick into an HDMI port, and the TV cannot send that out through the digital coax output. Have you tried getting audio from any other source on the TV besides an HDMI input? Just curious. If you're already going to return it, no need to waste your holiday trying to get it to work.

As for the receiver, what kind of budget are you looking at? Entry-level means different things to different people.

 

[tori497]

Thanks for the warm welcome!!

Even when trying a different source, I could not get any sound out. The Bluetooth worked great straight out of the box, but the sound didn't blow me away enough to justify hanging on to it as a $200 Bluetooth speaker. I did not try connecting my cable directly to my TV and testing it that way, but I had already decided it was a lost cause.

I am looking to spend no more than $300. I have 2 tower speakers and a center speaker. No sub or surround speakers. The main goal is to upgrade to HDMI. Any suggestions?? Yamaha, Pioneer and Onkyo all seem to have good reviews and similar options...

 

[Adam]

$300 can get you a really nice receiver. There are a lot of options in that price range and below. One suggestion that I'll make is to not limit yourself to receivers that have fewer speaker connections (e.g. 5.1 versus looking at 7.1 or 7.2). You may find a better receiver for less (or not much more) money that has more speaker connections just because of supply and demand - manufacturers are making more of those these days.

One other suggestion is to get a receiver with an auto calibration system. I'm a big fan of Pioneer because their Advanced MCACC auto calibration system can store multiple room configurations, which suits my needs because I have about three distinctly different locations in my room that I use. That alone is why I prefer it over Audyssey, as both systems do a good job in my living room (I can't tell a difference between them). Regular MCACC (in some less expensive models) only stores one configuration, though, so I wouldn't choose it over Audyssey. I've never used Yamaha's YPAO system, or any of the others.

Right at $300, I think last year's Onkyo TX-NR626 is a good value for what you pay. Plenty of power, good remote, and good connectivity. Their less expensive models may also be great, but I own the 626 and have actually used it. I also think Denon makes good gear, but their remotes kind of suck in that price range. I'm not as familiar with this year's crop of receivers, but I think they mostly added in better handling of 4k video sources.