Wondering whether you should connect your soundbar to a receiver? Here is what you should know. Soundbars, in general, come with an in-built amplifier, speakers, and other units that work together to create the best audio output. Such soundbars are active soundbars, and almost all the latest soundbars are produced by leading brands. They do not need a receiver to amplify the sound produced. On the other hand, there are the passive soundbars, which need an external amplifier or receiver for the best audio output.
If you have an active or passive soundbar and wish to connect it to a receiver, then here is all that you need to know about it.
Why Should I Connect a Soundbar to a Receiver?
To get the best out of connecting a soundbar and a receiver, you have to connect the receiver to a soundbar with wireless speakers. Avoid using one that comes with in-built speakers or those connected through wires. This is the ideal setup to connect a passive soundbar to a receiver. At the same time, as mentioned earlier, an active soundbar does not require an amplifier; however, it is not impossible to connect them together.
You can connect an active soundbar to a receiver for various reasons. Here is a list of all possible instances where the connection is made.
- To use the soundbar as the central channel speaker.
- To use the soundbar as the only speaker.
- To use the receiver as an HDMI switcher.
How to Use an Active Soundbar as the Centre Speaker
If your soundbar is of one shape and all your other speakers are of a different shape, connecting the soundbar to the amplifier will affect the audio output. However, if you wish to make the soundbar a center channel speaker, you can do so using a 3.5 mm AUX or an RCA cable. Follow the instructions below to connect the devices together.
1. Locate the pre-out connections on your receiver and plug the RCA cable or the AUX cable into it.
2. Connect the other end of the RCA cable or the AUX cable to the respective port on your soundbar.
When the devices are connected like this, the soundbar becomes the center channel and will work without any trouble. Alternatively, if there is no pre-out connection port available on your receiver, there is another way to connect them together.
1. Get a line-level adapter or converter and connect it to the receiver.
2. Connect the receiver’s speaker leads to the line level adapter’s input.
3. Following that, connect the line-level adapter to the soundbar using an RCA or AUX cable through their respective ports.
How to Use a Soundbar as the Only Speaker Using Receiver
There are several ways to connect the soundbar to the receiver if your intention is to make the soundbar the only speaker. To do that, you can either connect the soundbar to the receiver using an HDMI cable or an optical cable.
Connect Using Optical Cable
Make sure you have an optical cable that is in optimal working condition, or get a new optical cable.
1. Take the optical cable and connect it to the Digital Optical Out port of the receiver.
2. Now, connect the other end of the same cable to the Digital Optical In port of the soundbar.
3. Adjust the receiver’s settings and ensure the digital encoding standards on both the receiver and soundbar are a match.
Connect Using HDMI ARC
Ensure your receiver has an HDMI ARC port before you begin with this process. For this connection, you need two different HDMI cables. Get them online or use the old ones that are in proper working condition.
1. Locate the HDMI ARC ports on both the soundbar and the receiver.
2. Using one of the HDMI cables, connect the soundbar to the receiver through their respective HDMI ports.
3. Now, take the other HDMI cable and connect the TV and the soundbar using that cable.
Once the soundbar and receiver are connected using either one of the methods mentioned, the soundbar will start acting as the only speaker.
How to Make the Receiver an HDMI Switcher
You can pair the soundbar to the receiver to convert the receiver into an HDMI switcher. In this case, all the HDMI connections from the soundbar and the TV will be through the receiver. It will act as a middleman if and only if you make all the necessary adjustments to the receiver’s settings.
When you do that, an ideal receiver will stop acting as an audio device and become an HDMI switcher altogether. But at the same time, not all receivers are capable of being one.
How to Connect a Passive Soundbar to an AV Receiver
Unlike the active soundbars, the passive soundbars are intended to be connected with a receiver or amplifier. The connection is basically done through the speaker outputs of the AV receiver, which gives you the space to fine-tune the audio.
1. Decide on the number of speakers you will be using and place them properly.
2. Now, using a speaker wire with banana plugs, connect the soundbar to the receiver.
3. Connect the left and right channels of the soundbar to the respective speaker connectors of the receiver.
4. After that, change the settings on the receiver to align with the new device added.
That is all it takes to connect a passive soundbar to a receiver. The receiver, in this case, will act as the amplifier that is lacking in the soundbar.
FAQ
You can connect the soundbar to a Yamaha receiver either using an optical or HDMI cable if it is an active soundbar. On the other hand, you can use a speaker wire if it is a passive soundbar.
