HDMI ARC vs Digital Optical: Which is Better and Why?

[@ArnaudGohier]

No useless intro. No screaming over excited youtuber. No 10min of filler to go through a simple point. Just precise, clear and concise information. Absolutely great, thank you a lot.

[@Blackdog4818]

Yes, but he didn't give us his opinion on HCQ or Ivermectin to fight Covid. Very disappointing...LOL.

[@williamscheer1481]

Agreed! Doesn’t waste my time with “connect the red speaker wire to the red terminal and the black speaker wire to the black terminal” like some of these yayhoos do. Clear, concise and lots of info.

[@LonghornsLegend]

Dont forget the thumbnail of a shocked face with their mouth open🤦🏾‍♂️ I appreciate all of it too and try to support these channels to show YT that people appreciate not having any of that in a video

[@hesalescompany649]

Like

[@QuincyPoaches]

100% agree. What you said.

[@dexb5233]

I spent an hour on KZbin trying to find fuckin answers and all it takes is a few minutes from this master tech for me to understand the ins and outs, pros and cons of an audio set up.. Good job!

[@VoLkoFFBR]

This is how KZbin should have been, no click baits and straight to the point. Thanks for your informative video.

[@adamali9236]

Pretty eyes wow

[@marsovac]

It still is if you use the SponsorBlock extension

[@ukqwerty999]

@@aoterou I thought it was Sean Strickland (UFC) reviewing hdmi cables, but he didn't swear 200 times :) He is good at putting the info out there nice and cleanly for us all, i agree.

[@stevesolo16]

Yes-In a Land so Far, Far Away.....

[@ShirakoriMio]

Correction: Go to 0:30

[@Redders420]

This is how information videos should be. Clear information with no filler or trying to make the video about yourself. Thank you sir.

[@LifeHurricane]

I have been so overwhelmed by all this home theatre setup, thank you SO much for making this AND doing it so well. You are great at explaining things.

[@GoldenSun5631]

As someone who just got a new tv and wants to get a soundbar + subwoofer to improve audio clarity - this video REALLY helped clear some technical stuff I was confused about for my setup and what it can or cannot support. Also - great video: simple, to the point, clear, no annoying intro/outro/sponsers all over the place. Grade A+++ quality video.

[@LaLakers17]

I was confused asf between using optical or Hdmi ARC for my tv & soundbar until i listen to this dude..now my sound is on point bcause he knows his craft..im a sub now,thanks bruh!! Salute 2 your channel.

[@ZiPouet]

Ok, after days of scratching my head, finally a crystal clear video about ARC and also how to properly connect your sound bar and your side stuff. Thank you so much!

[@5Percent-Iron]

Fam, even though I knew this, I still sat through the whole video, lol. Clear. Concise. And what I'll be referring friends to when they ask me. Keep up the good work.

[@JonahMatthes]

Thank you very much 🙏

[@autojohn-pu1vf]

@@JonahMatthes Now I know why, no matter what I watch on ROKU, the 5 little 5/1 indicater lights on my receiver don't come on only 2 of them do-->showing stereo... so the HDMI will not support 5 seperate audio tracks. My new bedroom stream bar has optical, it not only works as input from TV, but output to TV... tomorrow I'm going to hook it to my surround system and see if I get 5:1 ...... and then I'm gonna havta spend more money THANX for the INFO

[@joshuawkilgore]

Not sure if anyone has done this, but I have an older Samsung TV that I have connected my soundbar to via both HDMI AND digital optical. Since the TV is older, it does not support HDMI arc, but it does support standard CEC functions. By connecting the soundbar through both methods, I have full control of my streaming device, the TV, and soundbar with one remote through CEC while the audio is routed via the digital optical cable. This does limit the audio to what digital optical can do, but it still allows me to control all of my devices with one remote.

[@ddale20]

Love how you get straight to the point without useless banter! Thanks!

[@karenhaylings2323]

I am older and have been having so much trouble setting up my soundbar to my Fetch and TV. I finally found you and you are my lifesaver. It was so simple and all is working great. Thanks again from Australia

[@BlueSuede2011]

You speak very clearly and eloquently and explain things very well. I did not even know there was such a thing as HDMI ARC. Thank you so much for taking the time to put this video together. I look forward to watching your other educational videos!!

[@leonardocamposvazquez529]

And nowdays there are HDMI eARC that its the next evolution of ARC, this Let you transmit lossless audio, like Dolby True HD or DTS-X

[@JB-ro4du]

After all the videos I’ve watched, this is the only video that saved much so much time to get my new tv connected to my surround sound system. Much appreciated!

[@uniquesoundsolutions]

Thank you for the clarification! I’m an audio video contractor and I install countless sound bars and had a pretty good understanding but you made it absolutely clear the specifics of both optical and HDMI ARC. Thx! A BIG thumbs up!

[@sneikiusas]

How can you be an audio video contract if you dont know even this basic barebones information? :D jesus

[@Spain5933]

Are you joking as an installer 😂😂😂you wouldn't know this

[@raiyu1985]

Dude keep it simple like this. You earned subs of people like. This is a no BS Channel. All straight to the point info. Thanks buddy.

[@Nightwyn]

Thank you for this video. Because of this I now have my sound bar hooked up using the ARC port on my tv, and now it turns on and off with the TV and I can pare down to just one remote in the living room!

[@angenettaivy8918]

Set for over a year in front of my tv. Happened to bring it up today yours popped up straight to the point. No problem hooking it up. I didn't even finish the whole video 🤯😌👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@terrygmusser]

Thank you. You are my hero. I've been replacing aged home theater with newer equipment and have had a lot of confusion. Can't wait to see more of your videos.

[@downthecrop]

Jonah my brother! Fellow Matthes here! Thanks for the coverage

[@gregfaris6959]

Good video! Just a bit of clarification, likely of interest to very few; TOSLINK stands for Toshiba Link, in recognition of the developer of this early optical interface, but it does not describe the interface protocol. That would be SPDIF (Sony Philips Digital Interface), developed at the time of the two industrial giants' collaboration on the development of the Compact Disk, and indeed its data rate and format correspond to those of the CD. You may see the TOSLINK connector labeled "SPDIF", and indeed you may find the SPDIF interface implemented on different connector types (RCA connector). They are identical, but of course you need the corresponding connector at both ends of the connection you are hoping to make, and these days, in consumer devices, the TOSLINK is the most common. By contrast, you will not find TOSLINK connectors on most professional devices, (probably due to tribalism amongst major Japanese manufacturers) and indeed the entire SPDIF standard is obsolescent, but it is worth noting it was never superseded for reasons of higher quality, but lower quality and cost, as well as access to more diverse formats with greater channel counts. Obviously any skepticism you may read into this regarding the success of eArc for high channel counts without compression is purely fortuitous, and not intended by the author.

[@EricYTB]

This is the best ARC video I've seen on KZbin! Great Job!! Can't wait to see your Trainspotting 3 coming out. Subscribed!

[@RarestAce]

This was a great video. You gave a ton of information but made it super simple and easy to understand.

[@JonahMatthes]

Thank you very much!

[@roarsenal6217]

HDMI arc works absolutely perfect with my smart tv , plus as soon as I press my switch on , with tv off, it turns on along with the sound bar absolutely no issue and I love it

[@ctaeeeee]

It weird tho cause I’m using the optical and my tv remote works on both

[@bobautrey65]

@@ctaeeeee Your remote is probably turning both on and off. Not CEC.

[@RichardJRussell]

In something of a throwback to the old VHS/Betamax battle, the reason that optical connections are called either TOSLINK or SPDIF, despite being the same, is because they stand for 'TOShiba LINK' and 'Sony/Phillips Digital InterFace'.

[@TheOsirisOne]

🤯

[@peter.s.3207]

Further clarification, Toslink is the name of the physical connector standard and optical transmission system, which can transmit multiple audio encoding standard. SPDIF, meanwhile, is the name of the communication protocol used to represent uncompressed, 2 channel audio as 1's and 0's. SPDIF cables can be optical (i.e. Toslink) or standard copper connections (i.e. Coaxial and AES).

[@rjhornsby]

I hate that nonsense. CEC is the same way - no consistency between manufacturers in what they call their implementation of CEC. Sometimes whole marketing departments should be made to cage match until they learn to stop that crap. “While other car companies just give you some lame tires, all our vehicles come preinstalled with four high strength power plant energy transfer devices made of rubber and steel! If one breaks, there’s a fifth - FOR FREE! - in the trunk we call ‘the extra’” smh.

[@a..d5518]

@@rjhornsby or “the spare…”👩🏾‍🦰🫢

[@NTDang]

Dude for the past week I searched for a dedicated TV audio channels. Finally found you :")

[@13slot28]

Thank you for not feeding us ANY bullshit. Stright to the point. 💯

[@covertyankee]

Thank you for making this video. I just got a Bose sound bar and this is exactly what I needed to know. Now I just have to figure out my tv settings. Thanks again for keeping it simple and straight to the point.

[@rakibuddin6998]

That's exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks a lot, Jonah. You've explained everything with perfect visualization. Learned tons of things.

[@kosinale]

finally, a video containing all the important details you need without any stupid talks and bullshit around - very appreciated!

[@JamesSmith-wu7rs]

Jonah, watched several of your videos thus far. You do a great job. Love your content and the lack of filler. Keep up the good work. Subscribed.

[@mikes.7073]

I actually just stumbled on this video as it auto loaded after another video on PCM. But I am glad it played. Thanks for explaining the differences. Right to the point with lots of info. Thanks!

[@eugenator59]

Incredibly concise and well structured information. Superb. A refreshing relief from videos with 5 minute introductions playing elevator music or fancy graphics without any information at all. This video removed any anxiety about deciding to use ARC since I probably can't even hear the difference between compressed and uncompressed sound. . . (too many rock concerts 30 years ago!)

[@ENGBriseB]

Thank you for taking us through the differences between the two.

[@hectorfierro534]

Great explanation! also, as a tip: if your soundbar or home theater is 2.1 (stereo bar and subwoofer speaker), it´s better to output only PCM uncompressed audio via optical, because any other output (i.e. Dolby 5.1 or DTS) will decrease significantly the volume of the audio stream (due to dynamic range and processing). Hence you will have to set the soundbar volume to the MAX and even with that set, the volume will be barely loud. Try it for yourself folks 😉

[@jaydlonewolf6375]

If I only have a soundbar 2.1 is better optical cable?

[@hectorfierro534]

@@jaydlonewolf6375 Optical would be optimal, but RCA or 3.5mm will do fine!

[@matthewkrankka7398]

Yeah I have a Vizio 2.1 soundbar that doesn’t even support DTS so I leave my Blu-ray player at PCM for DTS.

[@daniloctebsb]

Sorry, I didn't understand you. I've just bought a 2.1 A555 Samsung soundbar. Do you think that is better to plug a PCM cable instead of an optical cable or a hdmi arc?

[@joannaa.5101]

@@daniloctebsb There is no PCM cable. Only time you select PCM is in the sound portion in the menu when you plug in an optical cable. I wanted to know which was better? Plug HDMI eARC or use the optical cable. Sounds like the HDMI eARC offers a little more sound better. Currently I am using an optical cable due to my soundbar HDMI eARC won't accept the cable that came in the box. I purchased a Samsung 3.0 S50B sound bar. Tv accepts HDMI eARC with any HDMI cable fine but the soundbar won't accept the same cable at the plug in for HDMI eARC. I have an open ticket with Samsung currently. Meanwhile I use the optical cable now and enjoy the sound.

[@davidramey7186]

You’re the man, this was the exact video I was looking for

[@johnkokinis2313]

Excellent presentation. I’m transitioning from av receiver and wired speakers to soundbar surround systems. So much easier to deal with! I think lots of people are in the same boat.

[@AverageDadAdventures]

easier to use but not nearly as good.....

[@CodyDaCoyote]

Seems like a step backwards. Im wiring my system now. Is there a reason you switched?

[@johnkokinis2313]

@@CodyDaCoyote it's a little cleaner for a living room. Less complaints from the wife....but I just finished my mancave and might set up my surround there. Plus in a living room where we watch 90 percent of our tv, it's hard to place the speakers in the right spot without taking over the room.

[@johnkokinis2313]

And they sound better than they used to.

[@Hammerguy88]

Fantastic video. Just bought a Vizio soundbar 5.1 that supports HDMIArc and I had never heard of it. I learned alot just from your video.

[@KhasrouhRecords]

its all about limitations . HDMI Can Support a wide range of Audio Codecs like Dolby Atmos and DTS-X , the Digital Optical Can't support atmos etc, it only supports Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 old codecs ..

[@David35687]

I’ve got a basic 5.1 audio amplifier connected via HDMI and optical to a Blu-ray player. I use the Amp to send a 1080P HDMI video signal to my 1080P TV. My older TV does not have ARC. With some of my Blu-ray discs with sound formats like HD-DTS, I don’t get the center channel while watching. However, when I send the audio input through the optical cable, I get the center channel. I think the optical cable out of the Blu-ray player seems to translate the newer multi channel format into the 5.1 format that my Amp wants to use. I don’t mind having multiple remotes and I’m afraid to upgrade anything on my system that’s going to end up obsoleting my older components. I am gonna go without upward firing speaker channels and a universal remote, no thanks.

[@tynottelling6584]

Absolutely fantastic! Right to the point and well put! No useless gibberish just great info. I’m subscribed now

[@rsolsjo]

Short answer: in most TVs from 2018 onward, ARC/eARC is better.

[@courtenayblair2279]

Arc has better specs, digital optical has better reliability

[@DK-sj2ph]

Ah no

[@voce3337]

You got it wrong!! If you dont have ceiling soeakers and use 5:1, ARC isnt better than SPDF OPTICAL.

[@halo28nrw]

​@@DK-sj2phOh yes, for Atmos really importment

[@CarolineSenter]

Brilliant, a couple of minutes and I am connected despite me being older than the proverbial hills! Thank you!

[@AmmoDude]

I sold all my HDMI receivers a year ago and only use digital optical to connect my TVs. Of course I used older AV receivers which, IMHO sound better than the new stuff anyway. And I do not need the TV (ARC) to control my receiver. Never goin' back. I would rather have pure sound coming through light vs a copper cable, at least I have eliminated distortion from the source coming into my receiver. If a company develops a speaker connection system using toslink from receiver to speaker, I would be interested to try it since so many "audiophiles" complain so much about quality of cables. I had problems with HDMI cables not fitting snugly into the socket that it was hit or miss with the sound working properly. Never a problem with the Toslink cable; it snaps into place securely.

[@DerrickGivensdg]

Thank you for clarifying the difference between the two formats because there is so much misinformation floating around. This is perfect!

[@psmidt]

Great video, you always make these specs easier to understand. Thanks man!

[@Creelick67]

One of the best devices I ever invested in was the Sharc adapter that allows you to use a TV that supports eARC with a receiver that does everything but that. One of the most frustrating things is when you get some awesome, powerful A/V receiver and a new HDMI spec pops up that you want to have.

[@kja9881]

Can I do this with my LG TV earc and surround receiver with digital optical only no hdmi I have an HDMI ARC adapter.

[@Creelick67]

@@kja9881 eARC is an HDMI spec.

[@badbasegaming]

You nailed it I never really understood arc and EARC

[@justdev8965]

If you fail to separate different sentences with a dot character, how can you possibly hope to understand anything?

[@starmc26]

@@justdev8965 furthermore, how can one say someone "nailed it" when they had no prior knowledge on the subject?

[@deepgeny1]

@@justdev8965 exactly... He is stupid

[@citizenranjit]

Many thank Jonah's. I manage to connect my HDMI ARC to my soundbar with your great help & assistance.!

[@y87_99Firebird]

I've kept an older setup all around (2010-ish stuff; if it isn't broke, I don't replace it quickly) and have never paid much mind to pushing the best audio through my Sony surround sound until I moved stuff around and all I heard was hissing from the rear speakers. I had a standard 3.5mm to RCA so was just getting stereo. Went optical and that cleaned up nicely. A port I had all the way back on old PS2 and never used it on anything. Now I'm doing so much research on how to make sure everything in my house works at its best...even at its age

[@JessSoBeautifulTV]

Here because we got a new TV and it has an eARC Port. Thanks for the clear info!

[@alexenkovbolshoi4850]

Great explanation, I liked the scheme shown at the end of the video, very close to my case and it really clarified me how to better connect all of the devices. Good job!

[@ianmartin5389]

Great video, thank you. I'm an installer of TV's & hook these up frequently. I prefer HDMI ARC due to the remote control having a communication with the soundbar, therefore controlling the volume. Most TV's just work automatically, but like you said, you may need to go to the settings to switch on CEC. Great advice... Cheers.

[@williamkelley4728]

I use optical so, my wife can hear the tv while I use headphones. I have hearing aids. I like to use optical over my hearing aids.

[@intensecutn]

I just switched from HDMI arc to a digital toslink digital cable, and my TV remote still controls the soundbar, just like it did with HDMI arc.

[@joselara7827]

Great explanation, finally some facts and simple info.

[@peng-hsuhuang2106]

Thank you for this video. I've been using digital optical forever and it's time to switch to ARC!

[@HepauDK]

What I really like about HDMI ARC, is that I can controll my entire setup (tv, soundbar and Shield TV) with one single remote. When I turn on my Shield TV, both my soundbar and tv starts up as well. Same when I want to turn them off.

[@nazeershaw66]

Have to try it. Thanks 👍

[@EazyDuz18]

I can do that without ARC tho. My Xbox has settings so that I can control the 5.1 connected to it via optical audio and my tv all link up so tv controller controls surround sound audio

[@pgtips4240]

The mist is clearing, thank you! 😊

[@koolk2115]

I'm predicting you will have over 100,000 subscribers by the holiday season. Great information.

[@JonahMatthes]

That would be awesome, but we’ll see haha! Thank you very much for the support 🙏

[@bluebayeux]

Hopefully but he really needs to be more interactive with questions. Otherwise, people (like me) just move on so we can find answers. Great content on a tech YT channel without this don't typically grow or sell through affiliate links successfully.

[@frommatorav1]

A week before Thanksgiving and he's at 54K, so 100K seems out of reach by Christmas. However, this video does have close to a million views, which is awesome.

[@sharkyshidan]

Really helps me solving my 2 hours troubleshooting audio keep switching from my Sony KDL-50W800C to my Sony HT-S350. Thanks a lot.

[@cybersteel8]

This was really dense and informative! Thanks for not wasting any time and explaining it clearly. I think you could have expanded a bit on what CEC is though, I don't actually know and while you mentioned it a bunch in this video, I don't think you said what it is.

[@theloneone381]

1:23 I knew right away that was a Vizio TV because they are the only brand left that still offers the RCA Analog audio output option.

[@YahyaRivero]

Straight Blast Gym in Buford! I'm a member too

[@ralphu.7568]

This just flew right over my head!

[@timtucker2007]

Nice concise summary, thanks. I have just ditched eARC in favour of optical, as my TV randomly would revert back to it's internal speakers when using HDMI. This is a common problem as I understand it, so it would be nice to have this covered in a similar way, but I guess is a way-more complex topic.

[@Maver-iq]

I think you need hdmi 2.0 cable to make it work, I believe it won't revert back to internal speaker then

[@justincram5123]

I’m having this same issue with my Samsung smart TV. Do you have your input devices(roku) plugged directly into the TV or passing through an AVR?

[@intensecutn]

My Samsung soundbar kept reverting back to the TV speakers every time I turned the TV off. Then I realised that I needed to choose 'TV arc' instead of 'd.in' or 'HDMI' (I can't remember which one it was). Once I changed the soundbar input to 'TV arc' it didn't revert back.

[@feelda303]

Yup, same issue with samsung tv and pioneer avr. Hdmi arc just randomly stops working and both tv and avr need to be unplugged from the wall to reconnect again. I think it's the arc protocol issue as it's not very standardized across different manufacturers.

[@a.a.alexander6030]

Great video. Stuff from another planet explained in such a way that both I and my companion, the rock at the bottom of my yard, can understand reasonably well. Thank you.

[@ThomasD1962]

This was a great piece of information! Thanks for that.

[@1Know1tHurts]

Thanks, man! Such a tremendous explanation in under 7 minutes👏

[@smoutmaximilien8446]

I'm impressed to learn that optical home cinema protocol can only carry 6 channels ! In live concert production we use optical cables for up to hundreds of channels (24 bits 192kHz) (I personally never used more than ~40 channels but still, 40 is greater than 6).

[@JonahMatthes]

Likely a different type of cable and protocol. It’s not optical cables themselves, it’s the digital optical standard used for home audio equipment

[@marsovac]

You are not using the consumer TOSLink there. Not that you even could, since these conduct the light through plastic and you would need more than 20 meters of optical cables in a live concert hall.

[@OMGtheykilledKenny42]

​@Marino Šimić yeah S/PDIF is quite a bottleneck by today's hi-fi home theater standards. Great if DD or DTS 5.1 is all you need, but not great for lossless surround sound. eARC is great in my TV cuz it can passthrough 5.1 and 7.1 PCM.

[@CamHuntt]

Wow ive been looking for this video dude.. amazing explanation 🤘🏽

[@rjhornsby]

Interesting. Knew ARC meant “return channel” - ie audio from tv to receiver, but didn’t realize it functioned like toslink. Never made sense how/why HDMI cable carrying video+audio *to* TV would send audio *from* tv back the other way. Thanks for the explanation!

[@Allangulon]

Designed to minimise necessary ports and cabling thus reducing manufacturing costs!

[@DodgyBrothersEngineering]

@@Allangulon I would have thought to increase the bandwidth. if you aren't transmitting video that would potentially give you more bandwidth for audio.

[@Allangulon]

@@DodgyBrothersEngineering Bandwidth restriction is not really the issue. A 2.0 b HDMI cable 24mbs will happily carry UHD HDR and 96kbs of audio. eARC is required for greater bandwidth which is hardware related, 2.1 HDMI 48mbs is required to take full advantage of that format. ARC effectively bundles two cables into one and using an A/V receiver means only a single cable is required which can be easily hidden or pulled through.

[@rogerk.9124]

Very good info, clear explanation, nice graphics. Thank you!

[@marianpompa1016]

Very helpful, and the explanation was easy to understand. Thank you!

[@tekknokat]

I have moved once and upgraded components of my entertainment center several times recently, and I use ARC (or eARC) since 2015, and 2020 respectively and am certain I will never have need for optical or coaxial audio cables ever again. Every type of 2 channel and 5.1 audio is supported, ARC also allows upsampling to more speakers like 7.1 or 9.2 if you wish, and your AV/ receiver supports it. I like that eARC supports DTS-HD Master and Dolby TrueHD, as well as the object based DTS:X and Atmos. The original ARC can support Atmos with DD+ as well, why streaming services use DD+ Atmos so much. They can mix in the object based sounds without the extra bandwidth of lossless audio, but I think a streaming service with lossless audio movies are still the future, as more people hear the possibility with UHD blu-ray, and home bandwidth increases along with unlimited data plans.

[@EsotericArctos]

ARC can be a little unreliable on older TV's due to some functions not being implemented or licensed. I found some earlier LG's would constantly drop out the signal with ARC. Also, a lot of TV's don't have ATMOS, even in 2021, so the ARC channel, although supporting it, still may not send the ATMOS channels to the soundbar. This would have to be checked on the TV Specs, not just the soundbar :). The big advantage of HDMI using ARC, for me, is that it can be dual direction Audio if needed. If the Soundbar has multi HDMI inputs, then HDMI using ARC will save you a cable between the TV and Soundbar. This is a great video for understanding the basics, it gives good information without overloading with all the geeky tech talk. Thanks for a great video

[@tammynorris2038]

Thank you for such a useful and clear video! Have been frustrated figuring out the setup of my new system and it all makes sense now! Thank you!

[@MediaSock]

I found that HDMI-eARC is by far the better option just because you can use the TV remote for all your other devices that are eARC compatible, and you can play 5.1 and anything in between up to 7.1 Dolby Digital, 7.1 DTS and much higher like Atmos, though I have to admit that the crispness of the sound when playing 5.1 either on DD or DTS or even on Prologic and stereo does sound a bit better on optical, you notice it especially when listening to high quality 5.1 music, most won't notice it unless you have a good ear for quality or care about that sort of thing, but the convenience, functionality and the higher amount of sound options you can play with HDMI-eARC is just too good to trade, but I guess that's why most Soundbars, TV's, Amp's and DVD players come with both Optical and HDMI-eARC or ARC, it's there for a reason or they would have gotten rid of it long ago, I personally alternate from one to the other depending on what I'm watching or listening to, when it comes to music I use Optical, unless I were to watch a Blu-Ray music video that has 7.1 or Atmos, on my TV it's easy to just alternate from one to the other with a flick of a switch in the settings, for someone like me choosing HDMI-eARC vs Optical doesn't make sense because I love them both.

[@OrangeCrush57]

"though I have to admit that the crispness of the sound when playing 5.1 either on DD or DTS or even on Prologic and stereo does sound a bit better on optical" You must have something wrong with your system. eARC is a much better choice in all cases if your entire system supports it. eARC supports uncompressed audio. There is no way TOS would sound better on any decent AVR. eARC has 37Mbps to represent your audio channel while TOS only has 384Kbs.

[@MediaSock]

​@@OrangeCrush57 I should have been more specific, don't get me wrong I'm in love with uncompressed sound formats like PCM, LPCM, and compressed formats like True HD, DTS HD, Dolby Atmos and DTS X, they are by far the best quality sound format if mastered well of course, and Stereo, 4.0 , 5.1, 6.1, 7.1 sound great on HDMI eARC but having said that when listening to CD's, DVD's, even some ( but not many) BLU-RAY's, 4.0 to 6.1 on optical just has 'slightly' more crispness to the sound, I specially notice it when listening to PCM, and also DTS when playing high quality music either CD's, DVD's or some Blu-Ray's, with prologic, is too low quality to notice it but with logic II x and z I can hear it but it's most apparent with music when listening to DTS neo6 (Music) and above when listening on PCM and more prevalent on DTS rather than DD, music sounds amazing, I'm only talking about the lower formats, just everything above Prologic and below 7.1, TRU-HD and DTS-HD (not 4k UHD's nor SACD's) (not counting Records, they're on a completely different level and setup all together) believe me I'm so into sound I spare no expense when it comes to my system or my Records, MINI's, CD's, SACD's, HI-RES, DVD's, DVD-A's, BLU-RAY''s and nowadays increasingly UHD's, I'm not the only one, I've come across others that say the same thing, I don't know why my system has that effect, maybe it's the type of specific DAC that my system has or the circuitry or processing or upscaling of some kind or something else, who knows, but it's there and I love it.

[@c.p.2979]

Thank you! I bought a stupid expensive LG TV with NO DIAGRAMS showing hook ups I've never had HDMI Arc before and didn't understand the concept. The diagram made it crystal clear. It's not difficult to understand once you've seen that. Maybe you should put out a video like that for all the people who got TV's for Christmas... Like me. Thanks again! P. S. I liked the video and subscribed to your channel. Also I sat through the commercials so you get paid for that too.

[@jakesmith5278]

Now I'm more confused. Thanks a lot.

[@giggitygooquag]

I think I understand it a bit. If you're using a cheapo soundbar use personal choice, if you have a pricey soundbar you're gonna wanna use arc especially if it's a soundbar with atmos. In even simpler terms optical is old technology like he said, while arc is newer technology so of course it'd be better.

[@stuarto5162]

U and me both

[@timmelton856]

I learned to hire someone 😜😜🥳🥳🤠🤠🎧🎧🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

[@zombiebillcosby]

@@philiptownsend4026 he didn’t mention that ARC doesn’t transmit Atmos unless both the sound bar and the TV support HDMI 2.1 which is uncommon at the moment and both supporting it is even less uncommon. Without eARC (newest iteration of ARC), you not only don’t get Atmos, you also do not getting uncompressed sound. That means no Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio, or DTS:X.

[@zombiebillcosby]

@@philiptownsend4026 because you were commenting on someone’s comment saying they summed it up well when they left out key details. So yes it is relevant not sure what you’re apologizing about lol.

[@simoncopestake3727]

Thank you so much for this, I lost my HDMI sound output yrs ago when I moved the TV, been using the Bluetooth connection, was about to get an optical cable, never new there was a designed ARC port on my TV. Thanks again.

[@benfogarty535]

I tested both connections with the Xbox One X and Optical gave a way louder and clearer signal through my receiver. I was upset that the new console ditched the optical port

[@afriend9428]

*that’s why I kept my 360E to watch movies* 💡

[@wollysocks1]

Can you help? I have a Panasonic tv & beosoundstage soundbar connected with hdmi cable on TV (no ARC) to soundbar. I am getting lagging on sound on channel4 Freeview. On my TV there is no digital audio output option but there is digital output to use on back of TV! Seems if I use optical cable this will work but will it stop lagging? I hope you can help as I am going round in circles & wasting hours trying to figure this out!

[@CrashCarson14]

Also it’s important to note with ARC lip sync is usually matched automatically. Though if it is off there usually isn’t a way to change it. With Toslink there isn’t any adjustment and may need to be manually set. Though with Toslink there are some CEC type of commands that can be sent. My old tv would be able to run my sound bar on or off and the TV remote will send a pulse for the volume. Less issues with sync as the TV always just passes the audio, and with ARC it must handshake first before sending audio.

[@JonahMatthes]

Yeah, I've heard of the CEC type commands that can be sent via Digital Optical, but from what I understand, they aren't super common. You're spot on though!

[@Dadisgreat]

Thankyou - have been struggling with ARC setup for a while now with a few older components - optical audio is a great/simple alternative!

[@djandrevilela]

Hey! Loved the video! I've been looking for a 5.1 (or better) audio system, but not sure which to buy, mainly because I'm not sure if my TV have ARC and doesn't have Digital Optical, only Digital Coaxial Sound... It's a "SILVER 4k 50" TV" (cheap brand), and none of the HDMI ports are labeled as ARC, but I have CEC and ARC settings on the settings menu, and I know the TV turns on if I turn on PS4 or Mi Box S, and the other way around, when I turn on TV, PS4 turns on automatically. Is it safe to assume that they all have ARC? Do you have any recommendations on a system not very expensive for this tv?

[@peekaboo4390]

digital coaxial will carry 5.1 just fine.

[@richv3742]

Digital Optical works just fine and is more reliable. I recently switched back to optical from hdmi arc. It’s much less of a headache. I had more issues with my hdmi ARC setup, as it would constantly revert back to my TV speakers. All my devices were hdmi arc/earc compatible too.

[@robertt9342]

I find that with optical, you sometimes need to turn on/off settings on the TV, depending on your setup.

[@Scott-sm9nm]

Very impressive video ... and helped me keep my receiver in the loop by using the digital optical.

[@paulgillard5094]

Is the two channel sound quality superior in one or the other. Or is it the same ?

[@bschoolio]

So helpful! This is the main question I had for my new build!

[@kmac540]

Great breakdown - as someone who deals with this day in and day out I only have a minor correction / comment. Toslink absolutely supports 7.1 (DD+ / Atmos) just not in lossless compressed format. Anytime you see DD+ it implies Atmos too - you certainly get more headroom and better (if not very noticeable) clarity / channel separation.

[@dannyboy8474]

Use the movie prometheus when they are returning to the ship and the sand storm hits them. The difference on ARC with 7.1+ is insane. It makes me sad that windows doesn't care about audio.

[@mindrover777]

It does. Good to know. Does toslink support Atmos on soundbar too?

[@HowYouMove]

I have been using 2019 Vizio soundbar with sub woofer with the Digital optical cable & it still works like new with the newly released Vizio 55 inch tv & it sounds good 👌🏾

[@ckought69]

They really need to come out with a new optical standard that can put through newer things like Atmos and TrueHD. It shouldn't be that difficult, considering how much optical data transmission rates have increased in the past 35 years. It could even be backward compatible by using different light wavelengths for different standards (red for PCM / DD5.1 & blue for Atmos / TrueHD).

[@scottsmith7756]

Not difficult, you must listen. Doing Bose 900 sound bar ant 700 subwoofer. He PLAINLY stated use HDMI eArc for best sound quality.

[@davecarsley8773]

@@scottsmith7756 Not difficult. You must read. He clearly stated in his comment that he's talking about OPTICAL. That has nothing to do with HDMI or ARC. Don't be such a dick-- especially if you're not capable of actually reading or understanding the thing you're replying to.

[@indarpersaud8786]

I agree with you. However, it will be hard to find a company to upgrade optical devices. Especially, when HDMI already taken the market.

[@FeedScrn]

Good video. You have it presented where the material is easy to digest. -The HDMI ARC cable will also feed OSD from an AV Receiver. Very handy.

[@smwsmwsmw]

One nitpick: when CD players came out, in the early 1980s, there were no receivers with optical inputs. That only came about with the advent of Dolby Digital in the mid 90s. Before then, if you were going to use the optical output, it was either to connect to the input of a digital recorder, or to an external DAC, typically called a digital decoder back then.

[@JP-pf1nj]

I tried my Sony DVD to 3 different TV's using hdmi to RCA connector adapter I tried one adapter from Amazon and one from Walmart and it doesn't work when setting TV's up to HDMI port. Old RCA cable works fine with two of the TV's, but new TV's now have only HDMI ports. Maybe some older dvd players are just not compatible using it's RCA ports. I have a coax( RCA like out) and a Svideo out on the dvd player.... maybe there's another work around. Any ideas ... thanks

[@0bsmith0]

That's not true.

[@intensecutn]

@@JP-pf1nj did you ever get it working? Try an S-video to HDMI adapter. It should work. Maybe you just got a dodgy converter.

[@JP-pf1nj]

@@intensecutn yes...I had the wrong adapter... Thanks again

[@ssingh3298]

Thats what i was looking for last 2 days.. Thanks for such a useful information.

[@althepal530]

Great explanation to the different audio connections to the sound bar. I’m old school 5.1 through a receiver. I need to learn these new connections and codecs. Thanks

[@Rancid_Ninja]

Arc used to have a bunch of issues 5 or more years ago, so people with older receivers I still say to use optical but arc has come around and if you want Atmos you need to use it

[@V3ntilator]

ARC works 100% between a LG TV and Denon Atmos reciever.

[@Rancid_Ninja]

@@V3ntilator atmos requires HDMI, you can only do 5.1 thru optical

[@paulie0706]

I tried using ARC with an older sound bar. Worked OK, but sound would cut out every once and a while so I had to go back to optical. Sound bar finally died and upgraded to surround. Using ARC with the new receiver is awesome! Seems easier and opens up additional capabilities with the receiver as well.

[@veinssublime2164]

Bro i have faced the same problem when i using hdmi option connected from tv to soundbar the sound would cut out here and there what is the solution.

[@paulie0706]

@@veinssublime2164 I think it came down to the model of sound bar and the age of it. I now use ARC to a stereo receiver and the sound never cuts out.

[@rickybobby6386]

Fantastic video. Thanks for making it short, sweet, and to the point. Def getting a subscribe

[@paul8926]

You would be very surprised to know how many people don’t know the difference between HDMI ARC and Digital Optical. I always have to school my family and friends on how to connect their gear properly.

[@arajenichs8670]

I have a Bose v35 and a lg oled tv. I have issue w sound delay. My tv has arc and digital optical output. My Bose does not have arc just digital I asked Bose for help and they blamed the tv. Lg blamed the Bose. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. You can email me directly to [e-mail]. Thank you

[@britishagent]

@@arajenichs8670 You turned on audio bypass on your TV sound settings?

[@justkiddin1980]

@@arajenichs8670 Ai.....LG.....ai ai ai

[@UberAlphaSirus]

@@arajenichs8670 The delay is due to the TV, the bose can't see into the future

[@stevesolo16]

Direct, to the point. I am okay that you made a separate eARC video as this may be to much to take in. "Not for me of course. Sha, yeah right!"