While a regular HDMI connector is only able to transmit audio signals or video images, ARC has an added function that allows you to transmit audio signals from a TV back to the source, like a receiver or soundbar.
HDMI ARC supports modern sound technologies such as Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Atmos, and uncompressed audio up to 7.1 channels. Digital Optical, on the other side, only supports Dolby Digital and up to 5.1 channels of uncompressed audio. So, HDMI ARC, on the other hand, is a clear winner.
Without HDMI ARC, an additional connection is needed for audio return when the TV is your source. Without ARC, audio can only travel in one direction along the HDMI cable. An HDMI ARC port is both an audio input and output.
Like optical, HDMI ARC also doesn't have the bandwidth to support high-quality formats like Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD Master Audio, which are commonly found on Blu-rays. To take advantage of those formats, you'll need a setup with HDMI eARC.
Due to HDMI cable backward compatibility, almost any HDMI cable can be used for HDMI ARC. However, that doesn't mean you should use any old HDMI cable you have lying around. Since HDMI ARC was introduced with HDMI 1.4, your best bet is to use HDMI 1.4 cables or newer.
Using HDMI ARC does not require a new HDMI cable. Any HDMI cable should be able to cope with the requirements – it's only when we move on to eARC that this could (potentially) become an issue.
If you want to connect your soundbar using HDMI, your TV will need to support 'HDMI-ARC' – it stands for 'Audio Return Channel' and means the audio can travel in both directions along the cable.
HDMI Cables:
The sound quality is better than other two cable types. These cables transmit multi-channel audio formats such as DTS:X and Dolby Atmos. The HDMI audio connection cables can also support current and new video formats such as Ultra HD 4K resolution, as well as HDR formats.
Both cables can be had pretty cheap. The biggest difference is that HDMI can pass higher-resolution audio, including the formats found on Blu-ray: Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD Master Audio. These formats can't get transmitted across optical. In terms of simplicity, HDMI also passes video signals.
All high-speed cables should perform about the same no matter which version of the certification standards were in place when a cable was certified. When it comes down to 4K TV, you do not need to pick up special HDMI cables.
To determine if your TV supports HDMI ARC, you can look at the HDMI ports on the back of the TV. If an HDMI connector is labeled with “HDMI ARC” or “ARC,” the TV supports it. Additionally, if your TV was made after 2009, it's likely that it will have HDMI ARC.
1 Connect one end of an HDMI cable to the HDMI OUT port on the back of the soundbar. 2 Connect the other end of the HDMI cable to the ARC HDMI IN port on your TV. 3 Power on any external device connected to your TV, and then power on your TV and soundbar.
HDMI-ARC (Audio Return Channel) can send and receive audio through a single HDMI cable. This means, you can have your Blu-ray players, set-top box, gaming consoles connected to your TV which will then channel all the audio outputs to the HDMI-ARC connected sound bar or home theatre system.
HDMI ARC is designed to reduce the number of cables between your TV and an external Home Theatre System or Soundbar. The audio signal is capable of traveling both ways to and from the speakers, which will improve the sound quality and latency of the signal.
The short answer is yes, but to use both, your equipment must be able to support the two. Take note, there has to be an HDMI port and an Optical audio input on your A/V device. When using optical and HDMI simultaneously, set it up properly so the HDMI will carry video signals, while the other carries the audio.
HDMI. One of the most popular digital audio output you will find on your device is the HDMI or High Definition Multimedia Interface. Due to its capability to output both audio and video in higher definition, HDMI is the most favored choice for various devices that range from gaming consoles, TV, and many more.
As long as the cable can accommodate the bandwidth required to show 4k content, you're good to go. An HDMI cable only transmits signals. It doesn't make the audio and video quality better than your TV or other devices' capabilities.
What's the best sound quality in a TV? DTS:X and Dolby Atmos are the main home cinema audio formats. These rival technologies are both audio compression technologies that create a surround sound effect both in cinemas and in the home.
Some TV's come with a 3.5 mm output jack. This is the same kind of connection that is used in headphones. Simply plug one end into the TV and the other into the soundbar. If your soundbar doesn't have a 3.5 mm input, you can get an AUX to RCA cable (on Amazon).
While most modern soundbars rely on an HDMI cable to connect to HDTVs and 4K TVs, there are still plenty of soundbars on the market with legacy audio inputs that will work with older TVs—and yes, that includes CRT (aka “tube”) TVs that are decades old.
Anything that works with the HDMI 1.4 standard should support ARC, but check the documentation for your specific devices to be sure. Not all TVs support ARC despite coming out after HDMI 1.4 was launched as a standard, but nearly all will.
Newer TVs and soundbars can be connected with a single HDMI cord. And the latest multidimensional audio formats, such as the red-hot object-based Dolby Atmos and DTS:X standards, require a single HDTV cable of a certain bandwidth but are well worth that consideration.
You're in luck — all you need is a single HDMI cable to connect your TV and soundbar enabled with Dolby Atmos (HDMI 2.0 for ARC should do the trick while HDMI 2.1 is necessary for eARC setups). This is the simplest option and will send audio directly from your TV to your soundbar.
You should look at all of the HDMI ports and see if any of them are labeled HDMI ARC or HDMI eARC. If you find one that has either of these, you will be able to configure your soundbar and TV using such.