Is there an alternative way to do EARC if your TV isn't equipped with EARC?
The television is a relatively poor way to stream content. It's not bad if you want to just turn on the TV and use the weak internal speakers, or maybe hook up a speaker bar to it. The apps for Netflix and Disney+ may be convenient, and perhaps the TV works okay with this, but there are better ways to stream content. The key takeaway is that you don't HAVE to use what is built into your TV and if going to a surround sound system, there is a more typical way of doing things.
First, you want to make a list of the stuff you want to watch. Typically this may be: Streaming content (Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, etc.), Gaming (PS5/XBox), Cable TV (cable box), Blu-ray Disc (BD).
Now, you collect your sources, for streaming a AppleTV 4K, Roku Ultra, Fire TV Cube, or nVidia Shield are all good options. I'm a fan of the Roku Ultra. Get your game console, cable box, and a Blu-ray Disc player of some sort.
Connect your sources directly to the AV receiver...
ROKU --> HDMI --> AV RECEIVER
PS5 --> HDMI --> AV RECEIVER
CABLE BOX --> HDMI --> AV RECEIVER
BD --> HDMI --> AV RECEIVER
Now your AV receiver should have speaker and subwoofer cabling connected to all speakers as placed in your room according to the owner's manual and online guides. Typically a 5.1 setup is a good starting point, but if you are spending more and the room supports it, you may go to 7.2.4 or beyond for a full Atmos setup.
Finally, you will need video connected between the AV receiver and the display (TV or projector)...
AV RECEIVER OUT --> HDMI --> TV
If you are just hung up on using the TV as a source for something, then you will typically find that the TV may have a HDMI (ARC) connection, or it may have a optical audio output on the TV. Both the optical audio output and the HDMI (ARC) connection can provide 5.1 audio into the AV receiver. Optical is a VERY common connection on TVs because it works reliably and provides very solid audio, especially for things like speaker bars. But for a proper surround sound system and AV receiver, I would follow the steps above and use separate sources for your setup. The only actual additional purchase you would be making would be that streaming device (Roku).
