Can't hear TV sound from the soundbar, home theater system, or home audio system

IMPORTANT: This article applies only to specific products and/or operating systems. Check Applicable Products and Categories for details.

This information provides various steps to troubleshoot your sound issue. Check if the sound issue is resolved after completing each step.

The steps and menus may vary. Check your manuals for model-specific information.

1. Perform a power reset or restart of the TV.
   • Perform a power reset:
     • Turn off the TV, unplug the power cord for two minutes, then turn on the TV
       Note: Skip this step if your power cord is not accessible.

   • Perform a restart using your remote control or TV menu:
     • Restart the TV using the supplied remote control. Menu options vary:
       • Press and hold the POWER button until Power off appears on the screen
       • Press and hold the POWER button until a menu appears → select Restart
     • Restart using the TV menu. Menu options vary:
       • Using the Quick Settings button (For models released in 2019 or later):
         1. On the remote control, press the (Quick Settings) button.
         2. Select Settings.
         3. Select System → Restart → Restart.
       • Using the HOME button:
         1. On the remote control, press the HOME button.
         2. Select Settings.
         3. The next steps vary depending on your TV menu:
            • Select About → Restart → Restart
            • Select Device Preferences → About → Restart → Restart
2. Turn off your audio system and the TV, disconnect the cables between your TV and the audio system, and reconnect them. Next, make sure the cables are secure at both ends, turn on your TV, followed by your audio system.
   Note: Depending on the model, names and operations may vary, or some settings may be unavailable. For details, refer to the manual of the TV or audio device.
   If both the TV and audio device have HDMI ports labeled as ARC or eARC

   

   • A - HDMI IN (ARC or eARC/ARC)
   • B - HDMI cable (high-speed HDMI cable)
   • C - HDMI OUT (ARC or eARC/ARC)

   1. Using the HDMI cable, connect the HDMI IN (ARC or eARC) port on the audio device and the HDMI OUT (ARC or eARC) port on the TV.
   2. Set the BRAVIA Sync control to On.
      Note: If your TV is other than a BRAVIA TV, check the supplied manuals to search the settings related to the HDMI CEC function and set it to On.
   3. Check the following settings on the audio device
      • Set the Control for HDMI to On
      • In the HDMI settings, set the Audio Return Channel (ARC) or TV Audio Input mode to On or Auto
   
   If the HDMI port has no ARC or eARC label on either the TV or the Audio device (Using an Optical digital audio cable)

   

   • A: HDMI IN
   • B: HDMI cable
   • C: HDMI OUT
   • D: Optical Digital OUT
   • E: Optical digital audio cable
   • F: Optical Digital IN

   1. Using the HDMI cable, connect the HDMI IN (ARC or eARC) port on the TV and the HDMI OUT (ARC or eARC) port on the TV.
   2. Using the optical digital audio cable, connect the Optical Digital OUT port on the TV and the Optical Digital IN port on the audio device.
   3. Check the following settings on the TV
      • Set the BRAVIA Sync control to On.
        Note: If your TV is other than a BRAVIA TV, check the supplied manuals to search the settings related to the HDMI CEC function and set it to On.
      • Change the TV audio output setting to PCM and check whether the sound is output.
        Note: If the audio device connected to the TV does not support compressed audio, sound may not be output depending on the type of broadcast or video. Check your TV manual for more details.
   4. Check the following settings on the audio device.
      • Set the Control for HDMI setting to ON on the audio device.
      • In the HDMI settings on the audio device, set the Audio Return Channel (ARC) or TV Audio Input mode to Off.
   
   If using only an Optical digital audio cable

   

   • A: Optical Digital OUT
   • B: Optical digital audio cable
   • C: Optical Digital IN

   1. Using the optical digital audio cable, connect the Optical Digital OUT port on the TV and the Optical Digital IN port on the audio device.
   2. In the HDMI settings on the audio device, set the Audio Return Channel (ARC) or TV Audio Input mode to Off.
   3. Change the TV audio output setting to PCM and check whether the sound is output.
      Note: If the audio device connected to the TV does not support compressed audio, sound may not be output depending on the type of broadcast or video. Check your TV manual for more details.
   
   If using only an Analog audio cable

   

   • A: Analog Audio OUT
   • B: Analog audio cable
   • C: Analog Audio IN

   1. Using an analog audio cable, connect the Analog Audio OUT port on the TV and the Analog Audio IN port on the audio device.
   2. In the HDMI settings on the audio device, set the Audio Return Channel (ARC) or TV Audio Input mode to Off.
3. Verify that the audio output setting of your TV is set to the audio device. If your TV is BRAVIA TV, set the Speakers to Audio System. The steps below are an example of Sony's Android TV™ or Google TV™.
   Note: : Connecting the TV and audio system with a cable will not produce sound from the audio system.
   1. Open the Settings screen.
      • If the remote has a Quick Settings button: Press the Quick Settings button → Settings.
      • If the remote control does not have a Quick Settings button: Press the HOME button → Settings.
   2. The following steps will depend on your TV menu options
      • Select Display & Sound → Audio output → Speakers → Audio system
      • Select Sound → Speakers → Audio system
4. If the input mode of the audio system is set to other than TV, or the Home menu is displayed, the sound is not output. Press the INPUT or TV button on the remote of the audio device, then set the input mode to TV.
5. Turn on the TV, then turn on your audio device.
   Note: Depending on the order in which they are turned on, the system may be muted and MUTING displayed on the front panel display of the audio system.
6. If your TV is a BRAVIA TV, update the TV software to the latest version.
7. Update your audio device software to the latest version.
8. Reset the audio device and the TV.
   Note: For how to perform a reset, refer to your device's manual.