I recently purchased a SONOS PLAYBASE for my Sharp Aquos 60″ LED TV (LC-60LE600U). The sound quality of the PLAYBASE is a significant improvement over the internal TV speakers, the PLAYBASE certainly lives up to the hype and its 4.7/5.0 rating at Best Buy.
I followed the installation instructions and connected the supplied optical audio cable from the digital audio out (optical) of my TV to the audio input of the PLAYBASE.
I then reviewed the Sharp LC-60LE600U Operations Manual and made the following two configuration changes in the TV On-Screen Display Menu:
- Dolby Digital: from the Audio Setup section on Page 21, “The optical output terminal outputs audio signal in Dolby Digital form. It reproduces sound from surround program of digital.“
- Variable: from the Output Selection section on Page 25, “Sound via the OUTPUT terminal is adjusted with VOL on the remote control unit or on the TV. Sound via speaker is muted.”
Note: The Connecting an Audio Amplifier Section of Page 12 states, “*4 The DIGITAL AUDIO OUTPUT terminal does not output some signals, depending on devices and software.” At the bottom of the page it also states, “The HDMI terminals only support digital signal.” I didn’t understand the impact this would have until I contacted Sharp Product Support.
My Apple TV was connected from the HDMI out to the HDMI1 input on the back of my Sharp Aquos TV. When I switched the On-Screen Display Menu input to HDMI1 where my Apple TV connected, I could see the Home Screen of my Apple TV but there wasn’t any sound.
I attempted the following steps below to troubleshoot my problem:
- Switch the HDMI cable from the Apple TV to a different HDMI input on the Sharp Aquos TV. I tried HDMI1, HDMI2, and HDMI3, I also Powered-off/Powered-on the TV before each connection to a new HDMI Port. <unsuccessful>
- Switch the HDMI cable, including this Monster Cable HDMI Cable. Thinking it could be a faulty cable, I tried two other HDMI cables. <unsuccessful>
- Upgrade the Firmware of the Sharp Aquos TV. I successfully upgraded the TV to the latest firmware from Sharp and was still unable to get any sound after repeating Step 1. <unsuccessful>
Unfortunately, I still wasn’t able to get any sound out from the Apple TV out of the PlayBase. I finally decided to contact Sharp Product Support 1-800-BE-SHARP. After speaking with Customer Service I learned that sound from HDMI input devices cannot be output through the Digital Audio Output.
Buying a new TV to solve the problem was out of the question, and the thought of switching the optical cable from my Sharp Aquos TV to the Apple TV every time I want to watch a movie would have been cumbersome. I enjoyed the sound of the PLAYBASE enough to do a deeper dive and find a solution.
Since I own a 3rd Generation Apple TV (A1469), which includes an Optical Audio Output, I initially purchased TOSLINK Digital Optical Fiber Optic Splitter to attempt to solve this problem. I figured at $7.99 this was an inexpensive test. I connected my TV Digital Audio Output and Apple TV Optical Output to the Splitter, then connected the Splitter to the audio input of the SONOS PLAYBASE. Unfortunately, when the TV is on it is sending an optical signal which interferes with the optical signal from the Apple TV. Since you need the TV turned on to watch the Apple TV you would always end up with interference. As a result, this solution does not work.
FIX
After unsuccessfully being able to use a Fiber Optic Splitter, I purchased a Tendak SPDIF Optical Audio Switcher for $22.99.
If you have a 4th Generation Apple TV, Amazon Firestick, or Google Play device you will need to add HDMI Audio Extractor since these devices do not have an Optical Audio Output. One option would be the VICTONY 4K x 2K HDMI to HDMI and Optical TOSLINK SPDIF + 3.5mm Stereo Audio Extractor Converter for $28.99 in addition to the Optical Splitter Manual Switch above. If you have more than HDMI device; such as DVD Player, Firestick, or Google Play, you would need the iArk A0301 3×1 V1.4 HDMI Switch with TOSLINK Optical SPDIF & RCA L/R Audio Out, 3 Port HDMI Audio Extractor Splitter which is $38.99.
Although it may be inconvenient to purchase these additional components, it is significantly less than the purchase of a new TV. It is a compromise that I was willing to make to use the SONOS PLAYBASE instead of a bulky 5.1-channel Home Theatre System. It took a lot of research to identify A solution, I wish SONOS would sell their own version of the required splitters or include additional optical inputs on the PLAYBASE to support customers using TVs that lack that ability to output sound from HDMI input devices through the Digital Optical Out (optical) port.
Good Luck!