How to connect a Bose soundbar to your TV

When connected to a TV, a Bose soundbar can help improve your viewing experience’s audio quality: Music gets crisper, movies become more immersive, and dialogue becomes clearer.

Comparatively, the speakers built into most HD televisions are terrible, which is why most people invest in a sound bar, particularly ones made from Bose.

Also, many Bose soundbars come with smart features like a built-in voice assistant so they also act as your smart home hub.

So if you’re looking for ways to connect your newly purchased soundbar to your TV, this guide will show you three different methods to connect your Bose Soundbar to your TV. Let’s dive right into it.

Method 1: Using HDMI ARC

The easiest way to connect your Bose soundbar to your TV is using the HDMI ARC port. In this case, it delivers the best audio quality and also allows you to control the soundbar using your TV’s remote.

Here are the most popular models with HDMI ARC connection type:

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First and foremost check whether your TV has an HDMI input that supports Audio Return Channel (ARC). You can check this in the user manuals or by looking for the port with the ARC label on the back of your TV.

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If yes, you have to follow the below steps:

1. Make sure both the TV and the Bose Soundbar are switched off.
2. Now, connect one end of the HDMI cable to the HDMI port on your TV that supports ARC.
3. Then take the other end of the HDMI cable and plug it into the HDMI (ARC) port on your soundbar.

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4. Next, turn on both devices.
5. Now, use your TV remote to navigate to the Settings> Audio Output.
6. Set it to ‘External Speakers‘ or ‘HDMI‘.
7. Once you’ve done this, your TV and the Bose Soundbar will automatically connect. You can test the connection by playing some audio or video content.

In case, your TV doesn’t have an HDMI ARC port, you can connect your Bose Soundbar to the TV using an optical audio cable.

Method 2: Via Bluetooth

Only a few Bose Soundbar offers Bluetooth connection. If yours is one of them then you can connect it to the TV using Bluetooth. This will save you the hassle of connecting any cables.

READ MORE: How to connect a Bose soundbar to your TV

However, you have to make sure that your TV also has Bluetooth so that the connection can be established.

Here are the steps you need to follow:

1. Put your Bose soundbar into pairing mode by pressing the Bluetooth button on the remote or thesSoundbar for 3-5 seconds.

2. Your soundbar will start flashing blue.

3. Now, go into the settings menu on your TV and find the Bluetooth settings page.
4. On this page, you should see a list of available devices.
5. Find your Bose soundbar on this list and select it.
6. You may be prompted to enter a PIN code. If so, enter 0000.

Method 2: Using Optical Cable

We will recommend you to use an optical cable only when there is no HDMI port on your TV. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Start by unplugging your TV’s power cord from the wall outlet.

2. Next, locate the optical input on your TV. It will likely be on the back of your TV, and it will look like a small, round port.

3. Once you’ve found the optical input, take your optical cable and plug one end into the optical input on your TV.
4. Now, take the other end of the optical cable and plug it into the “Optical” input on your Bose soundbar.

5. Then, plug your soundbar and TV’s power cord back into the wall outlet, and turn on your TV and soundbar.
6. Finally, use your TV’s remote to change the “Audio Output” setting to “Optical” and also change the audio source to digital on your Bose soundbar.
7. You should now be able to hear the audio from your TV coming through your Bose soundbar.

Wrapping Up

These are three ways that you can connect your Bose soundbar to your TV. The first and easiest way is to use the HDMI connection type. The second way is to use Bluetooth, and the third way is to use an optical cable.

Depending on whether your Bose soundbar is the latest model that allows you all three methods of connectivity, follow the instructions above to enjoy the audio from your TV through your Bose soundbar.

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