How to set-up Samsung home theater and sound bar subwoofer speaker?

Last Update date : 2024-02-29

Your soundbar amps up your TV by providing awesome sound quality. It's also extremely versatile and easy to set up; there are several ways you can connect the soundbar to your TV, so you can customize your movie-watching experience. Although they all have their benefits, certain setups provide better sound quality than others. If you aren't sure which one works best for you, we have some tips for you.

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Connect your soundbar and a device using HDMI

  1. Make sure the TV, soundbar, and device are turned off. Then, connect one end of an HDMI cable to any HDMI port on your TV (make a note of which one). Next, connect the other end to the HDMI OUT port on your soundbar.
  2. Connect a second HDMI cable from the HDMI OUT port on your cable box or video game system to the HDMI IN port on your soundbar.
  3. Turn your device on. Then, turn the soundbar on and press Source or Function to change the soundbar to HDMI.
  4. Turn the TV on and press Source or Function to change the TV to the HDMI port that you connected the soundbar to in Step.
  5. You will see a picture from the device on your TV and hear audio from the soundbar. It should be working now, but let's take it a step further and make this setup the best it can be.

 

  • Turn on Anynet + on your soundbar (this is done by pressing right on the soundbar remote navigation button). This will cause the soundbar to turn on automatically when you turn on your cable box or video game system.
  • Turn on Anynet + (HDMI-CEC) on your TV. If you have a Samsung TV, it should be on by default, but to check, navigate to Settings > General > External Device Manager > Anynet + (HDMI-CEC). This will make the TV turn itself on when the device and soundbar are turned on. Check out the user manual for your TV if these menus don't match or if you don't have a Samsung TV.
  • The last two steps to make this work involve enabling HDMI-CEC settings on your device (cable box, Blu-ray player, or video game system) and setting up universal control on your TV. To set up the HDMI-CEC settings on your device, you will need to check out the user manual for your device.

Notes:

  • Some soundbars have a button labeled Anynet+ on the remote. If neither of these methods works, check out the user manual for your
  • If your external device is 4K-compatible, you need to make sure the soundbar supports pass-through. Samsung 2017 650 series or above all support 4K pass-through, so you should be good to go.

Connect your soundbar with HDMI ARC

HDMI ARC (Audio Return Channel) is the neatest TV feature you've probably never heard of. ARC lets certain TVs and soundbars transfer audio back and forth using one HDMI cable. In other words, you can use the HDMI port as both an input and an audio output. The only downside is that your soundbar is going to take up a port on your TV that would normally connect an external device.

To set up HDMI ARC, power on your TV and soundbar.

Next, connect one end of an HDMI cable to the HDMI IN (ARC) port on your TV. Connect the other end to the HDMI OUT (TV-ARC) port on your soundbar. Next, change the source on your soundbar to the D.IN. Setting. After a few seconds, "TV ARC" will appear on the soundbar's display, and the TV will transfer audio through the soundbar.

HDMI

If you've decided to go with an optical cable, connecting it only takes a few seconds.

With the TV and soundbar turned on, connect one end of a digital optical cable to the OPTICAL OUT port on the TV. Then, connect the other end to the DIGITAL AUDIO IN (OPTICAL) port on the soundbar. Press Source on the remote or soundbar, and then set the soundbar to the D.IN. Setting. Finally, on the TV, you need to set the speaker output to external speakers.

Digital Audio

Navigate to Settings, then press up on the navigation arrows to highlight quick settings. Navigate to the right to highlight TV Speaker and press select to change it to Optical (external speakers). The TV's sound will now play from the soundbar.

 

Note: If these steps don't work on your TV, or you do not have a Samsung TV, check out the user manual.

It doesn't have the same sound quality as HDMI, but everyone loves the convenience of Bluetooth since you don't have to worry about any cables. The main challenge with Bluetooth is that connections can disconnect or become unstable if there's some kind of disruption, like a power outage. Bluetooth is still a nice and easy option to have, though.

 

If you want to connect your soundbar via Bluetooth, first switch the soundbar to pairing mode by pressing the Pair button on the soundbar's remote control.

 

If you don't have the soundbar remote, don't worry. Just press the source button until the display says "BT." After a few seconds, the display will change to "BT Ready." When this happens, press and hold the source button until the display says "BT Pairing."

Once the soundbar is in pairing mode, use your TV remote to navigate to Sources, and then select Connection Guide. Select the device type you would like to pair, and follow the on-screen instructions to connect it via Bluetooth.

You can also navigate to Settings and select Sound. Next, select Sound Output, and then select Bluetooth Speaker List or Bluetooth Audio Device, depending on your TV model. Finally, select your soundbar. Now sound from the TV will be played through your soundbar.

Note: If there is still no audio heard,  the home theater or sound bar may have an issue. Please visit the Samsung service centers or call our contact center for more assistance.

*The features mentioned can be available on specific models. Please refer to your user manual for more information.

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