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Laffeetaffee
Visitor

How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

I'm surprised I haven't seen this question everywhere. I have a TCL Roku TV and I have a Yamaha receiver. I would assume I could just connect the TV to the receiver using an HDMI cable from the ARC port of the TV into the TV port of the receiver. But I get no sound out of my Yamaha speakers. I made sure that ARC is enabled through the settings, and turned the TV speakers off in the audio settings, but I still get no sound. The audio detected is defaulted to "stereo" which means it probably can't detect any outside audio source.

Am I missing a step here? Is it not possible to simply connect the TV to a receiver using HDMI? Do I have to buy an optical line instead? Seems kinda strange, I didn't expect to have to jump through hoops.

Just to add, I also tried using the coaxial cable adapter that the TV came with. It is just a standard audio jack that plugs into an audio port on the TV, and branches out into three coaxial cables. Those didn't work either.
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74 REPLIES 74
scottypie1234
Reel Rookie

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

It should work. I have mine connected using an Onkyo receiver. On occasion, the ARC signal doesn't make a proper connection to the receiver and I have to reboot the Roku TV to initiate handshake. But 98% of the time, it works as it should. Double-check the Yamaha user's manual to see if you're not missing a setting or something. Try a different HDMI cable. 
apodtele
Visitor

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

I would appreciate if Roku developers on this forum at least acknowledge the problem. I have been volunteering at least half a year on this forum helping people to resolve the issue with ARC connection from Roku TV to Yamaha receivers. All I hear from Roku is crickets. Perhaps, they can update the Roku TV User Guide. That is an idea. Or, even better, try to troubleshoot or fix Digital Dolby Plus over HDMI/ARC. That would be just wonderful. Maybe, it requires some communication with Yamaha. Somebody here, Roku or Yamaha, got Dolby Digital Plus wrong.

So, here I go again. I assume that you connected proper HDMI/ARC socket on TV and  HDMI OUT on the receiver. You also enabled ARC as per user guides and Roku TV recognizes the receiver. You just do not here a sound.

The problem with "Roku TV -- HDMI/ARC -- Yamaha" is that Dolby Digital Plus, either auto-detected or user-selected, does not work. So, a simple fix, which still permits surround sound, is to slightly downgrade the protocol. Go to Home / Settings / Audio / S/PDIF and ARC, and select "Dolby D, DTS" instead of "Auto detect" or anything with plus. Please let me know if it works for you.
atc98092
Community Streaming Expert

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

The problem with "Roku TV -- HDMI/ARC -- Yamaha" is that Dolby Digital Plus, either auto-detected or user-selected, does not work. So, a simple fix, which still permits surround sound, is to slightly downgrade the protocol. Go to Home / Settings / Audio / S/PDIF and ARC, and select "Dolby D, DTS" instead of "Auto detect" or anything with plus. Please let me know if it works for you.

The question is, does his AVR support DD+? Both of my Yamaha AVRs do, but he didn't provide a model. While my two Roku TVs are not connected to an AVR, my Ultra and 4 both connect directly to a Yamaha AVR, and both of them support DD+. The one connected to the Ultra is fairly new and supports HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2, but the other is much older and is only HDMI 1.4. So we need to know what Yamaha the OP uses. 
Dan

Roku Community Streaming Expert

Help others find this answer and click "Accept as Solution."
If you appreciate my answer, maybe give me a Kudo.

I am not a Roku employee, just another user.
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apodtele
Visitor

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

My Yamaha RX-V575 supports Dolby D+ on paper too. In practice, when connected to TCL Roku TV 49S405, audio signal drops each time video steam switches to a commercial, for example. I had to switch the receiver input to something else and back to AV4 to reestablish audio. I do not have sound on power-on either. Again, fiddling with the receiver inputs helps. Now, when I stay away from Dolby D+ and stick to plain Dolby D, DTS, my life is good.

What is you receiver and TV model?
Laffeetaffee
Visitor

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

"apodtele" wrote:
I would appreciate if Roku developers on this forum at least acknowledge the problem. I have been volunteering at least half a year on this forum helping people to resolve the issue with ARC connection from Roku TV to Yamaha receivers. All I hear from Roku is crickets. Perhaps, they can update the Roku TV User Guide. That is an idea. Or, even better, try to troubleshoot or fix Digital Dolby Plus over HDMI/ARC. That would be just wonderful. Maybe, it requires some communication with Yamaha. Somebody here, Roku or Yamaha, got Dolby Digital Plus wrong.

So, here I go again. I assume that you connected proper HDMI/ARC socket on TV and  HDMI OUT on the receiver. You also enabled ARC as per user guides and Roku TV recognizes the receiver. You just do not here a sound.

The problem with "Roku TV -- HDMI/ARC -- Yamaha" is that Dolby Digital Plus, either auto-detected or user-selected, does not work. So, a simple fix, which still permits surround sound, is to slightly downgrade the protocol. Go to Home / Settings / Audio / S/PDIF and ARC, and select "Dolby D, DTS" instead of "Auto detect" or anything with plus. Please let me know if it works for you.

Yup, I tried this, plus every other combination of settings. Still nothing. I finally sucked it up and bought an optical audio cable ($30 for a 4 foot cable from Best Buy). Lo and behold, it works. So I guess maybe the answer to this topic is that HDMI does not work with Roku TV. If you have a receiver, just go with an optical audio cable.
apodtele
Visitor

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

For the sake of completeness, do share the model numbers of your TV and the receiver. Does your receiver even support HDMI/ARC? We should be able to check it online.
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msj
Channel Surfer

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

@apodtele Thanks so much for posting and for your thoroughness and diligence!

I just set up a Yamaha RX-V375 and a TCL 43S403 via ARC. I needed to use the audio input trick (switch to AV3 and then back to AV4 using the Yamaha remote to complete the ARC handshake) and that was a giant pain for my other family members.

Once I downgraded the protocol to "Dolby D, DTS" (no plus) it is now working as expected.

I would have been out of luck without @apodtele’s postings.

"apodtele" wrote:
I would appreciate if Roku developers on this forum at least acknowledge the problem. I have been volunteering at least half a year on this forum helping people to resolve the issue with ARC connection from Roku TV to Yamaha receivers. All I hear from Roku is crickets. Perhaps, they can update the Roku TV User Guide. That is an idea. Or, even better, try to troubleshoot or fix Digital Dolby Plus over HDMI/ARC. That would be just wonderful. Maybe, it requires some communication with Yamaha. Somebody here, Roku or Yamaha, got Dolby Digital Plus wrong.

So, here I go again. I assume that you connected proper HDMI/ARC socket on TV and  HDMI OUT on the receiver. You also enabled ARC as per user guides and Roku TV recognizes the receiver. You just do not here a sound.

The problem with "Roku TV -- HDMI/ARC -- Yamaha" is that Dolby Digital Plus, either auto-detected or user-selected, does not work. So, a simple fix, which still permits surround sound, is to slightly downgrade the protocol. Go to Home / Settings / Audio / S/PDIF and ARC, and select "Dolby D, DTS" instead of "Auto detect" or anything with plus. Please let me know if it works for you.
scottypie1234
Reel Rookie

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

I promise you this is not correct. Works fine with mine.
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Buzz424
Visitor

Re: How to connect a Roku TV to a receiver using HDMI cable

I was frustrated by the same issues when trying to connect my Series 6 (65R615) TCL Roku TV to a Yamaha RX-V483 AV Receiver. None of the written directions helped. HOWEVER... after several frustrating attempts at stringing bundles of assorted cables between the units, I discovered a solution that allows for full functionality with only one ARC HDMI cable running to the TV from the receiver. There is an unheralded setting on the TV that is accessed like this: HOME/SETTINGS/SYSTEM/CONTROL OTHER DEVICES (CEC)/SEARCH FOR CEC DEVICES .
Check the boxes for both ARC and System Audio Control to activate.
Once they are activated, everything works as it should through the receiver.
Why this even has to be done is as big a mystery as why it is not mentioned in any of the instructions supplied. But it works!