How to set up your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar
Your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar adds full, rich sound to your Roku TV™ system with no messy audio cables to connect or complicated setup. You only need to attach the power cable and pair your soundbar to your Roku TV system. Once connected, you will experience big-picture sound from streaming channels, over-the-air TV from an antenna, and external devices connect to your TV like a Blu-ray™ player, or cable or satellite set-top box.
You can also use your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar to play audio from Bluetooth® devices like a smartphone, tablet, or computer. Simply pair your Bluetooth device and play music, podcasts, or any other audio from apps installed on your Bluetooth device to your wireless soundbar – all without needing to have your TV screen on.
What devices can I connect my Roku TV Wireless Soundbar to?
A Roku TV Wireless Soundbar is designed to work exclusively with your Roku TV system and cannot be connected to any other type of TV, or a Roku streaming player.
There is a difference between a Roku TV system and a Roku player or Roku Streaming Stick®. A Roku TV system is a standalone smart TV with built-in TV display, Roku OS and the ability to stream content over the internet, watch live TV with an antenna, and access connected devices like a cable set-top box or Blu-ray player. Roku players on the other hand, are like cable set-top boxes and must be connected to a TV using an HDMI® cable to start streaming content over the internet. A Roku Streaming Stick must also be connected to a TV, but it plugs directly into the HDMI port on a TV.
Learn how to determine if you have a Roku TV system.
What you need for setup
In addition to your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar, you will need the following:
- Power for your soundbar: If there is no wall outlet nearby, you may want to use a power extension cable (not included).
- Connection to the internet: To check that your TV is connected to the internet, go to Settings > Network > About and check that Status says "Connected". If you need help making the connection, learn how to connect your TV to the internet.
- Roku remote: To get your TV into pairing mode and initiate the setup process, you will need your existing Roku remote.
- Roku OS version 10.0 or higher: Continue reading this article to learn how you can check the software version and initiate a manual update if necessary.
Be aware that after your wireless soundbar is set up, the speakers inside your TV will be disabled. For additional setup information, review the instructions included from the manufacturer or visit their website.
If you need additional setup help, you can read the Roku TV Wireless Soundbar Quick Start Guide.
Where to install your wireless soundbar
When you install your wireless soundbar, it should be centered with the television screen to best anchor the sound to the picture. Whether you choose to simply place it on a piece of furniture in front of your TV or mount it to the wall or directly to the TV (or TV bracket), avoid installing it where sound may reflect off a nearby flat surface like a TV stand, shelf, or table. Sound reflections like these combine with non-reflecting sound traveling directly from your wireless soundbar to negatively affect the sound-quality. The result is an effect known as comb filtering that makes what you hear less crisp and sharp, especially with higher frequencies like dialogue. This "muddy" sound can be avoided by installing your wireless soundbar using the guidelines below:
- Match the front edges: When placing your wireless soundbar on a piece of furniture, the front edge of your soundbar should be flush with the front edge of any TV stand, shelf, or table. If it is set back too far from the front edge of the flat surface, sound will reflect.
- Avoid enclosing your wireless soundbar: Avoid placing your soundbar inside a closed space like a cabinet or TV stand. If you have no better alternative, make sure the front edge of your soundbar is flush with the front edge of the shelf (inside the cabinet or TV stand).
- No obstructions: The area in front of your soundbar should be free of objects such as picture frames, ornaments, plants, etc. High frequencies like dialogue are affected more by these obstructions than low frequencies.
- Mount it: Your soundbar comes with a mounting template and mounting hardware for wall mounting. If you do not have an ideal location on a piece of furniture, refer to the Quick Start Guide for instructions on using the included mounting hardware or consider mounting your soundbar with a universal mount.
How to check the software version of your Roku TV system
Before you begin the set-up process, check the software version of your Roku TV system using the following steps.
- Press Home
on your Roku remote - Scroll and select Settings
- Select System
- Select System update and look for Software version
- If your TV is not running Roku OS 10.0 or higher, select Check now. It will download and install any software updates and restart automatically when finished.
You are now ready to start setting up your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar.
How to pair your wireless soundbar
To begin the pairing process, plug a power cable into your soundbar and a nearby wall outlet, and listen for the spoken instructions. The soundbar will ask you to perform the following steps to put your Roku TV system into pairing mode.
- Make sure your TV is powered on
- Press and hold Home on your Roku remote for 5 seconds
- Select Wireless Soundbar
Your TV is now in pairing mode and will automatically detect and pair with your wireless soundbar.
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- Tip: You can also put your Roku TV into pairing mode by selecting Settings > Remotes & devices > Set up a new device.
Fast TV Start
After your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar is paired, the setup process will enable Fast TV Start, a power setting on your TV that lets you:
- Listen to music on your soundbar even when your TV is in standby (and the screen is off)
- With a Roku voice remote, you can use voice commands to wake your TV from standby
- Listen to audio streamed from a Bluetooth device such as a smartphone, tablet, or computer when the TV screen is off
Select Continue to proceed with the setup process.
- Note:
- If you already have Fast TV Start enabled on your TV, the setup process will skip this step.
- Fast TV Start uses significantly more power than normal standby and overrides default power settings. You can disable Fast TV Start at any time from the Settings menu.
How to use your new soundbar
Now that you are done with the setup process, take a few minutes and go through the list below to get familiar with your new soundbar.
- Launch your favorite streaming service and watch a movie or TV show to hear full, rich sound with greater immersion and stereo separation.
- If you have a Roku voice remote paired to your TV, learn how easy it is to use voice commands to listen to music, radio, podcasts and more on Spotify, Pandora, iHeartRadio, and TuneIn.
- Connect your smartphone, tablet, or computer and begin listening to audio via Bluetooth.
- Launch the Bluetooth channel, or start audio playback playing with a voice command on Spotify, Pandora, iHeartRadio, or TuneIn and listen when the TV screen is off.
- Fine-tune your listening experience by adjusting sound settings.
Troubleshooting
Why is my wireless soundbar not found when my TV is connected to a wired network?
Your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar connects directly to your Roku TV system over a secure wireless connection. However, your TV uses your wireless network to initially discover and pair your wireless soundbar. Some TV models may disable their wireless network connection if a wired Ethernet cable is connected. If your TV is connected to a wired network and cannot find your wireless soundbar, try temporarily disconnecting the Ethernet cable and connecting to your wireless network. If you need help, learn how you can connect your TV to your wireless network.
Once your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar is connected to your TV, you can disconnect from your wireless network and reconnect the Ethernet cable. Your wireless soundbar will continue to work over the secure wireless connection established with your TV.
Pairing issues
If you encounter challenges during setup, learn more about what to do to resolve issues when pairing your Roku TV Wireless Soundbar.