Hdmi arc v optical audio difference ?

Edgie70

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Hi , I'm toying with getting a new sound bar and I'm wondering if connecting it to my TV via hdmi arc or optical will I notice any difference , I'm only using sky HD ( not Q ) which their movies are in Dolby digital , TV is a Samsung UE43NU7400 , thanks
 
They are the same, both pass digital audio in the form of PCM 2.0 (stereo), Dolby 5.1 and DTS 5.1 but not always all 3 are supported.

Your TV will also have to change its audio settings to be able to pass Dolby.

HDMI-ARC tends to offer more control with the TV remote over the soundbar.
 
HDMI will pass HD Audio, optical and coaxial won't.

But in theory optical/coaxial is superior connection as it's digital audio only and not video so less (or in case of optical) no high frequency noise.
 
installed a samsung 2020 tv last year with a samsung optical only budget soundbar and was pleasantly surprised to find it controlled sound with the tv remote as well as the bars remote- always used to think it was only lg sound sync allowed that
 
HDMI will carry Atmos to your soundbar but optical wont if you have Netflix premium, Amazon Prime or Blue ray. And for future upgrade with Sky Q .
 
This is a handy, quick guide to the different options...

TV external sound options.JPG
 
This is a handy, quick guide to the different options...

View attachment 1655821
Thanks for posting that pic , I'm looking at buying a new TV and the choice between the the two I've been looking at one is arc and the other is earc so that has kinda made my mind up especially the lip sync correction
 
Thanks for posting that pic , I'm looking at buying a new TV and the choice between the the two I've been looking at one is arc and the other is earc so that has kinda made my mind up especially the lip sync correction
I must admit that I don't really understand the optional / mandatory differentiation in relation to lip sync and ARC / eARC.

I currently have a Panasonic OLED and an (older) Yamaha AVR connected via ARC and the AVR allows a delay to be set for lip sync adjustments. I would imagine that choosing an external soundbar or AVR that supports that type of delay adjustment is more important than choosing a TV with eARC ?
 
I must admit that I don't really understand the optional / mandatory differentiation in relation to lip sync and ARC / eARC.

I currently have a Panasonic OLED and an (older) Yamaha AVR connected via ARC and the AVR allows a delay to be set for lip sync adjustments. I would imagine that choosing an external soundbar or AVR that supports that type of delay adjustment is more important than choosing a TV with eARC ?
I've already got a beam 2 and the Samsung TV I've got has never really been 100% correct with its lip sync , kinda always put up with it
 
I must admit that I don't really understand the optional / mandatory differentiation in relation to lip sync and ARC / eARC.

I currently have a Panasonic OLED and an (older) Yamaha AVR connected via ARC and the AVR allows a delay to be set for lip sync adjustments. I would imagine that choosing an external soundbar or AVR that supports that type of delay adjustment is more important than choosing a TV with eARC ?
I have a Sonos beam 2 and that has a lip sync setting on the app which I've never touched but I think a TV having the eArc with lip sync correction has got to be the way to go ....
 
I have a Sonos beam 2 and that has a lip sync setting on the app which I've never touched but I think a TV having the eArc with lip sync correction has got to be the way to go ....
Nope - adding a delay on the soundbar via the app is the way to go ! I'm surprised you haven't tried it if you've been having lip sync issues - it might fix your problem and will only take a few minutes of experimentation.

Does having an eARC connection automatically mean you get no lip sync issues ? Haven't heard that before, but I'm sceptical.... 🤔 :D
 
Nope - adding a delay on the soundbar via the app is the way to go ! I'm surprised you haven't tried it if you've been having lip sync issues - it might fix your problem and will only take a few minutes of experimentation.

Does having an eARC connection automatically mean you get no lip sync issues ? Haven't heard that before, but I'm sceptical.... 🤔 :D
Just with it saying lip sync correction in the pic
 
Just with it saying lip sync correction in the pic
Ah yes - it may not necessarily mean that it's automatic and definitely works though ? I don't have an eARC set-up, so hopefully someone more knowledgeable can advise.

In the meantime, try adding a small delay on your soundbar and see if that improves things.
 

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