Home theatre nerds assemble

Hi all – some what niche requirement….

My father in law is quite deaf but likes watch his Sony TV with his wife. They would like to be able to have him listen to the sound on some bluetooth headphones and her to listen through the sound bar. The TV doesn’t let you output to two outputs at the same time. They currently have an sony a3000 sound bar connected via ARC / eARC.

I could set the TV to output PCM via its optical port. If I did this I could then use a SPDIF splitter to output one output to the soundbar (which has an optical in) and one to a bluetooth transmitter than has an optical in. However I think this will only be 2 channel and probably make the (quite expensive) soundbar sound rubbish.

Ideally I’d like to find a gizmo that splits the audio component out from the ARC HDMI signal but also passes the signal through unmolested to the sound bar. Not sure if this is possible (guessing the ARC does some kind of handshake with the device?). If the gizmo spits out normal HDMI i guess that would probably be ok as long as it still had the sound component?

Is this that gizmo? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Splitter-Soundbar-Bi-direction-Breakout-HDCP2-2/dp/B0BBZGPT6F/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=hdmi+arc+pass+through+splitter&qid=1677527687&sprefix=arc+hdmi+pass%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-4

This will make a deaf 89 year old very happy if someone can come up with a solution.

Would a 3.5mm aux cable splitter work? If the soundbar and Tv take a 3.5mm and then run it to the headphones? Might be a cheap fix.

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Not what youre looking for but there was a lady on R2 today singing the praises of subtitles.

She has bad hearing but subtitles allows her to watch with the rest of her family without deafening them!

Looking at the specs of the soundbar it looks like it transmits and receives bluetooth. Could it connect to the headphones at same time as outputing via its speakers maybe?

Can’t output bluetooth at the same time :-( Also no 3.5mm output anywhere.

I could set the TV to output PCM via its optical port. If I did this I could then use a SPDIF splitter to output one output to the soundbar (which has an optical in) and one to a bluetooth transmitter than has an optical in. However I think this will only be 2 channel and probably make the (quite expensive) soundbar sound rubbish.

I don’t know about the rest of your question, but S/PDIF is perfectly capable of carrying Dolby Digital / DTS. HDMI audio extractors exist also, though how reliable their claim of HDCP support is remains to be seen.

TBH, it sounds like the solution he needs is hearing aids.

My Samsung has a cheap DAC connected via SPDIF/optical then two RCA’s to the stereo, which doesn’t support optical or Bluetooth as it’s old.

I can choose to send out stereo PCM via the optical output or surround sound. The challenge with the SPDIF splitter is that the soundbar will require surround assuming it offers pseudo surround, whilst the headphones will require stereo PCM.

Edit: removed my pointless bit after reading your post properly about ARC.

What model Sony TV? Have you had a look at the sound output settings?

Some Sony Android tvs can be configured to output over hdmi arc and to another device using pcm via toslink simultaneously.

TBH, it sounds like the solution he needs is hearing aids.

My mum and dad both have hearing aids, and still have the telly/soundbar volume at “747 engines on take-off” levels.

TBH, it sounds like the solution he needs is hearing aids.

He’s already got hearing aids (fancy pants ones). They don’t stop the telly having to be at a million decibels.

Some Sony Android tvs can be configured to output over hdmi arc and to another device using pcm via toslink simultaneously.

Interesting, I couldn’t see an option to do that. It’s one of the new QLED ones, has google built in. In a classic boomer move they went to John Lewis and got upsold to a 65inch QLED!

I can choose to send out stereo PCM via the optical output or surround sound. The challenge with the SPDIF splitter is that the soundbar will require surround assuming it offers pseudo surround, whilst the headphones will require stereo PCM.

Ah ok, I’d assumed PCM was just 2 channel. I wonder if a thing exists to downmix surround sound PCM down to 2 channel. That would then work.

I’d assumed PCM was just 2 channel.

PCM is uncompressed digital audio, it’s kinda like the aural equivalent of a bitmap. It can technically be up to 7.1 but 2.0 stereo is by far the most common. Your optical digital has the bandwidth to carry 2.0 uncompressed PCM or 5.1 encoded DD / DTS.

I wonder if a thing exists to downmix surround sound PCM down to 2 channel. That would then work.

You can downmix 5.1 to 2.0 readily enough. I might be missing something but I’m not seeing why you need PCM at all, unless you don’t have anything that can do that downmixing.

However I think this will only be 2 channel and probably make the (quite expensive) soundbar sound rubbish.

I appreciate this doesn’t really answer your question but, is either of your inlaws actually likely to notice? (you might and the neighbours probably will)

It would probably sound better to both of them in crap quality but desirable volume than it presently does in great quality but wrong volume and, a lot like to many folks a bike is a bike, there’s a very good chance they neither know nor care about the difference.

I may of course be completely wrong but my personal experience of these sorts of things is I’ve spent a lot of time (and often cash) avoiding a something I thought was a problem but the people I was fixing it for didn’t care that the cheap fix only worked at “50%” because they didn’t even use that much of it.

You can downmix 5.1 to 2.0 readily enough. I might be missing something but I’m not seeing why you need PCM at all, unless you don’t have anything that can do that downmixing.

The only options to output from the telly are optical (which is pcm isn’t it?) and hdmi arc.

I may of course be completely wrong but my personal experience of these sorts of things is I’ve spent a lot of time (and often cash) avoiding a something I thought was a problem but the people I was fixing it for didn’t care that the cheap fix only worked at “50%” because they didn’t even use that much of it.

Yeah fair challenge. I am trying to find a clever solution as they just spent a few hundred quid on the sound bar, so i kinda figure it’d be best to use some of its capabilities. I guess the fallback is as you say, output 2 channel from the optical port into the soundbar and split it to a bluetooth transmitter.

Yeah fair challenge.

For what it’s worth remember a spending an age trying to get an hdd recorder to play with a sky box, stero and TV which wouldn’t seem to work together for love nor money

Eventually got it all up and running, only to be told the thing was only there to lift the TV to the requisite height.

optical (which is pcm isn’t it?)

It’s whatever the TV is configured to send down it. A better question might be “does the soundbar support DD / DTS via optical?” to which I’d expect the answer to be “yes” on an expensive model.

Brain raises a good point though. The wife wants the TV at ear-splitting volume and the husband can’t hear it even then whilst wearing hearing aids. I doubt they’re going to be overly concerned about the nuances of virtual cinema surround. You just need it to work.

Wife wants the TV at a normal level, but yes. Point taken! Maybe i’m over thinking this.

The soundbar supports:

OPTICAL INPUT
Dolby Digital, Dolby Dual mono, DTS, LPCM 2ch, LPCM 48kHz/24bit

Yep, there you go. So you can drive the soundbar in 5.1 via optical.

Whether that gains you anything is another matter. You’ll still need some sort of breakout or splitter as what interconnect you use.

Are there any audio outputs on the soundbar? Probably unlikely but…

And I don’t mean to labour a point but, does he need a hearing test and better hearing aids?

Random thought: I’ve no idea if it’s possible or whether it’d solve anything but, is it possible to interface with the hearing aids directly? Don’t cinemas have some sort of system, I want to say “inductive loop”?

i was about to comment to say my sony fairly fancy receiver has 2 output zones (i use one zone to drive some proper hifi speakers and the main zone to drive a 5.1 setup) which allows me to send any input to either or both outputs. one of the outputs can be headphones if i wish. however ive just checked, and it wont work if i’m using dolby digital. stereo sources are fine tho. replacing a soundbar with a full AV system probably isnt what youre looking for tho

I suspect even if you can find a way to run a pseudo dolby digital on the soundbar and stereo on headphones, you’ll find that the inevitable AV sync issues will be annoying.

one thing that might be worth looking at – bose headphones have “music share” where i can apparently share my audio with another person who also has bose headphones. never tried it, but i wonder if either bose do a compatible soundbar? or if sony have a similar application thats compatible with what you have

final possibility – as you mentioned they’ve got a massive telly – is it a long way from where they sit? would moving the soundbar to a coffee table closer to your dads seating position allow it to be used at a more moderate volume??

And I don’t mean to labour a point but, does he need a hearing test and better hearing aids?

Random thought: I’ve no idea if it’s possible or whether it’d solve anything but, is it possible to interface with the hearing aids directly? Don’t cinemas have some sort of system, I want to say “inductive loop”?

Yeah it’s a fair call out, but he’s recently had them tested and bought the best hearing aids that were offered.

Inductive loops are a thing, that’s my back up to the back up. You can get gizmos that plug into the tell but they totally take over the output, so there woudn’t be any sound output from the telly (other than through the transmitter) – they’re also all stuck in the dark ages and assume a 3.5mm output or a scart lead! In terms of what you can get, is microphones you can point at things and it broadcasts on the inductive loop, which isn’t ideal as it’ll magnify any other sound in the room. It would at a pinch work. That being said it’s not cheap – the mic and inductive loop is over 300 quid.

Do away with the soundbar and get a second pair of headphones. 😁

Some headphones designed for TV use have a pass through feature so you plug into the base station then from there to the soundbar.

Have a look at the Avantree HT5009 for example.

Have you checked the sound bar for outputs. I think mine has at least HDMI. Might also be worth trying the sound bar in 2 channel. I did it a few times on ours and it wasn’t that different

Another random thought. Can you get Wi-Fi headphones. I think my sound bar can be connected by Wi-Fi so maybe the headphones can as well?

Nothing much to add except to say that Bluetooth hearing aids are a thing, he may be able to stream direct to the aids if they are suitably posh

As a hearing aid wearer…all I can add is
It doesn’t matter how loud the sound, us deaf people still miss something…subtitles are the only way that really works…

Some headphones designed for TV use have a pass through feature so you plug into the base station then from there to the soundbar.

Have a look at the Avantree HT5009 for example.

That’s interesting and would work if the pass through supports surround sound on optical. I will ask them a question on their site.

Nothing much to add except to say that Bluetooth hearing aids are a thing, he may be able to stream direct to the aids if they are suitably posh

Yep he’s got suitably posh ones. The problem is the telly will mute other outputs if connected via blue tooth. There is no 3.5mm output on the telly only optical and Arc.

https://avantree.com/uk/orbit-tc580-bluetooth-transmitter-for-tv

Kamakazie – think you’ve solved the problem!!!

Hello – when using optical pass through does Dolby 5.1 get maintained so that surround sound is still heard through the external speakers and 2 channel through the AirPods?
Answers (1)
Avantree Official01/02/2023
YES, that’s exactly how it works. Your Dolby 5.1 goes to your sound system unchanged and Bluetooth will have stereo 2.0.

I mean that sounds like exactly what I need!