Flat-screen TVs are getting thinner and we have to admit they look great, but this makes it difficult to get great sound from the TV. The lack of space forces the manufacturers to install tiny speakers and this severely affects the sound quality. Luckily, connecting a sound system to your TV will greatly improve your video and audio experience.

The following article will guide you on how to connect soundbars or receivers to your TV.

How to Connect your TV to a Soundbar

Wired Connection

Connecting a soundbar to your TV is the most basic audio setup. You simply need to connect the TV and the soundbar with a cable to the appropriate ports and power up the soundbar. And you are ready to go. Generally, the soundbar can be connected to the TV in several different ways, but we highly recommend using an HDMI or optical connection.

It is highly recommended to get a soundbar with a subwoofer to experience a richer low-frequency sound. It is pretty easy to connect the soundbar to the subwoofer and once you plug the subwoofer to the power source you will see a noticeable difference in sound quality compared to the built-in TV speakers.

The soundbar is most often placed under the TV. If you also decide to place the subwoofer there make sure not to block the infrared port or your remote will have trouble working properly.

Another thing worth paying attention to is whether your soundbar has satellite speakers included. These are usually placed behind the listener and can greatly improve the listening experience and create a virtual surround sound.

Wireless Connection

Because of the place where the soundbar is usually placed there is no need to connect it wirelessly to the TV. However, it makes perfect sense to connect the soundbar to the subwoofer and satellite speakers using a wireless connection.

The distance between them can vary and a wireless connection will give you the freedom to place the soundbar and satellite speakers wherever you want.

You can buy the soundbar together with the subwoofer and the satellite speakers and it is pretty easy to pair them. All you need to do is to activate the pairing mode on the soundbar and when you turn on the subwoofer and satellite speakers they will connect automatically. There are many excellent soundbars with wireless subwoofers on the market so there is no need to combine a subwoofer and speakers made by different brands.

How to Connect your TV to a Receiver

Wired Connection

A receiver can make the sound practically move around the room and be perfectly synced with the video. When we speak about receivers there are two main types. The first one will create a complete surround sound for the TV. The second type takes both video and audio signals and practically becomes the center of your system.

The second type is most frequent on the market today and they have several HDMI inputs at the back. This lets you connect several audio and video sources and you can easily change the source of the content and the change will be immediately visible on the TV. At the same time the surround sound will change accordingly.

These receivers also improve the video quality before they send it to the TV. Thanks to that a regular HD can easily be upscaled to 4k video. This is excellent if you have a 4k TV and the video is not 4k.

When it comes to installation and connectivity these receivers are very simple to use. Everything to do is to connect all your sources to the receiver using HDMI cables and then the receiver to the TV also using an HDMI cable. The good thing here is that you can easily switch sources and the content on the TV will change simultaneously.

Wireless Connection

The surround sound system will have numerous benefits if you connect the speakers wirelessly. When we speak about a wireless TV system, we call it like that because the receiver and the speakers are connected using a wireless connection. Of course, you still need to connect the components to the power source but it shouldn’t be a problem because the homes today are packed with power outlets on their walls. Of course, this is something you need to know when you are planning your systems.

If you aren’t sure which wireless system to buy, we highly recommend trying one produced by Sonos. There are plenty of reasons why you should choose this brand. It is completely expandable, you can easily play different tracks in different rooms simultaneously, and you can play many different video and audio sources for your TV sound as well as use some of the most popular streaming services today. The dedicated app is extremely powerful and you can easily control the entire system from your tablet or smartphone. Another good thing is that you can only buy the soundbar if you are on a tight budget, and later you can easily add components and create a complete wireless surround sound system as well as a multi-room audio system.

The easiest way to install the Sonos Playbar is to connect it to your TV with an optical cable and then connect it to your home Wi-Fi. Any additional Sonos speaker can be simply added by connecting it to the wireless network and then connecting the speakers to a surround sound system with the dedicated app. As we have already said it is Ok to start small and then add more speakers until you get what you want.

On the other hand, if you have some wired speakers you will need the help of Sonos:Connect. You can simply connect this device to the receiver and it will automatically connect to the wireless speakers. By doing this you will have a hybrid wired/wireless system in a few minutes. We love this option because it will let you use some of the wired components you already have.