Why is there no sound on my Roku TV Ready™ soundbar?
When your Roku TV Ready soundbar is connected to your Roku TV and everything is working properly, you should hear sound coming from your soundbar. If you do not hear any sound at all or you only hear sound on the speakers built into your TV, you should check the common issues listed in the first section below. If these do not help, you can read on to learn how devices communicate over HDMI®, why a breakdown with this communication can cause an issue, and what you can do to successfully get sound on your soundbar.
What to check first
It is important to first make sure your soundbar is not muted, and volume is at an audible level. When pressing buttons on your remote to adjust volume, a visual indicator should appear on the TV screen that matches the volume level of your soundbar. If you do not see this visual indicator, try installing a fresh set of matching batteries in your remote and check again.
If the behavior continues, check that your soundbar is properly connected to the HDMI ARC port on your Roku TV, and that you have completed the Roku TV Ready setup process. If your soundbar has not been set up, you can expect to only hear sound from the speakers built into your TV when adjusting the volume.
One more thing to check is the input that is selected on your Roku TV Ready soundbar. If Bluetooth or an auxiliary input is selected, you will not hear any TV sound on your soundbar when using your Roku TV. You must switch your soundbar to the HDMI input anytime you want to hear TV sound on your soundbar.
If you still hear no sound after checking all the common issues, you should investigate the HDMI connection.
How devices communicate over HDMI
Your Roku TV can output sound in various audio formats that include stereo (PCM), Dolby Digital™, Dolby Digital Plus™, and DTS®, and your Roku TV Ready soundbar can play various audio formats based on the capabilities of components integrated by the manufacturer. To understand which audio formats are supported by your soundbar, your Roku TV communicates over the HDMI connection using CEC and ARC, and based on the information gathered, it only outputs supported audio formats and avoids sending any formats your soundbar cannot play.
However, if audio capabilities are not communicated correctly or they get misinterpreted for some reason, your Roku TV may output an unsupported audio format leading to no sound from your soundbar. Should this happen, there are a couple things to investigate with the HDMI ARC connection and related settings.
What to try with the physical HDMI connection
Before you look at settings related to the connection, try restoring a possible breakdown in communication using the suggestions below.
- Disconnect and reconnect the HDMI cable. Unplug both ends of the HDMI cable that connects your soundbar and Roku TV. Wait a moment and then firmly reattach both ends of the HDMI cable, making sure to use the HDMI ARC port on your TV.
If the behavior persists:
- Power cycle your soundbar and TV. Unplug the power cord from both your Roku TV Ready soundbar and your Roku TV. After a few moments, plug the cords back in and power on both devices. Test again.
HDMI audio settings to check
As previously explained, the audio formats being output from your Roku TV need to match the capabilities of your soundbar. Your Roku TV is likely configured to automatically detect these audio capabilities, but it can be manually set to output only the formats supported by your soundbar. Use the steps below to access settings and select an audio mode.
- Press Home
on your Roku TV remote - Scroll and select Settings
- Select System
- Select Audio
- Select S/PDIF and ARC and make a selection
- Auto detect - This is the default setting that allows your Roku TV to automatically detect the capabilities of your soundbar over the HDMI connection.
- Auto passthrough - Delivers unmodified Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, or DTS audio when available with the movie or TV show and when your Roku TV detects that your soundbar supports the audio format.
- Note: The Auto passthrough setting allows a soundbar with appropriate capabilities to play content without any delay due to processing in the TV. When Auto passthrough is enabled, audio formats that are not supported by the soundbar may be converted to stereo sound (PCM) to keep any processing delay to a minimum.
- Specific audio formats - Choose one of the specific audio formats if the audio capabilities of your soundbar is not detected correctly, and you know it supports the specific audio format(s).
- Tip: If you are not sure about the capabilities of your soundbar, select PCM-Stereo (or Stereo). This is the most basic audio mode and can be played by all soundbars. If you continue to hear no sound with this selection, contact the manufacturer of your soundbar to inquire about a potential hardware issue.