This trick bought my Xbox and Blu-rays to play good with my HomePods

Top-of-the-line makes use of of Apple’s HomePod is not as a traditional

smart speaker
, like an Amazon Echo, which you are often meant to set on tables, cabinets, and counters for music and

smart home
management. As a substitute, a rising variety of folks — judging from anecdotes — are selecting to make use of HomePods as wi-fi audio system for his or her

Apple TV 4K
. It isn’t all the time essentially the most cost-effective residence theater choice, however it’s good to eradicate muddle, and even a pair of HomePod minis can sound surprisingly good. A pair of full-size HomePods taking part in Dolby Atmos materials is a factor to behold.

Some folks do not realize, although, which you can funnel audio from extra sources than simply your Apple TV. The truth is, absolutely anything linked to your TV ought to work, together with cable bins, recreation consoles, and Blu-ray gamers. The catch is that you simply want a particular {hardware} and software program setup for every thing to work correctly — and as soon as you have bought it going, it’s possible you’ll end up caught within the Apple ecosystem until you are prepared to shell out much more money for a substitute. I am going to clarify every thing it’s worthwhile to know.

What {hardware} do it’s worthwhile to get began?

Excellent news and dangerous information on this one

Apple

Earlier than the rest, you will want a TV with an ARC or eARC port. ARC stands for Audio Return Channel, and the brief clarification is that it permits audio system and different audio gear to ship their content material by way of

HDMI
, quite than devoted audio cables.

eARC
is an up to date normal based mostly on HDMI 2.1, the profit being a lot increased bandwidth — at its finest providing uncompressed, 192kHz, 24-bit sound. So, whereas each ARC and eARC assist widespread codecs like Dolby Atmos, you will not get essentially the most out of your TV with out eARC. Test the labels in your TV’s HDMI ports to see what you are outfitted for.

Unavoidably, you will additionally want a second- (2021) or third-generation (2022) Apple TV 4K. The primary-gen mannequin merely is not suitable with Apple’s pass-through tech, and there is no technique to attach HomePods on to a TV. As a substitute, they must be arrange within the

Apple Home
app, then chosen as audio output on the Apple TV.

Remember to use the appropriate HDMI cable, too. You will want an HDMI 1.4 cable or higher for ARC, and HDMI 2.1 or later for eARC. There needs to be some model marking on the cable you are utilizing. If not, you have solely bought two choices: testing a cable to see what it is able to, or shopping for a substitute you recognize is suitable.

You should use both one or two HomePods, however when you plan to make use of a pair, they must be the identical mannequin and technology — you possibly can’t hyperlink a full-size HomePod and a HomePod mini, for instance, or a first-gen and a second-gen. I might strongly advocate shopping for a pair — it is the one approach to allow stereo and

Dolby Atmos
playback. After all, you will additionally must test if a selected app, video, or music is encoded for Atmos.

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How you can get recreation consoles and Blu-rays to play by way of your HomePods

All of the steps it’s worthwhile to know

Apple

So that you’re conscious, I am not going to run by way of the total setup processes for Apple TVs, HomePods, or the Apple Residence app. That may prolong issues needlessly, since Apple gives fundamental setup data within the Apple TV and HomePod bins. I’ll point out when every setup must occur, although, because you may be unboxing every thing for the primary time.

Observe the steps under. When you’ve already bought one or two HomePods linked to your Apple TV, skip forward to step 10.

1. Replace your iPhone or iPad to the newest software program by way of Settings > Normal > Software program Replace.
2. Join your Apple TV 4K (second- or third-generation) to your TV’s ARC or eARC HDMI port utilizing an acceptable cable. Keep in mind, you want at the least HDMI 1.4 for ARC, and HDMI 2.1 for eARC.
3. If it’s worthwhile to, end organising your Apple TV, together with assigning it to a room in Apple Residence. If you have not already arrange Apple Residence, use the app in your iPhone or iPad first.
4. Replace your Apple TV to the newest model of tvOS by going to Settings > System > Software program Updates and clicking Replace Software program.
5. Flip off your Apple TV utilizing the Siri Distant.
6. Set up the HomePod(s) you are going to use, placing one on both sides of your TV when you’ve bought a stereo pair. Within the Residence app, make sure to assign your speaker(s) to the identical room as your Apple TV.
7. Nonetheless in Residence, go to … > Residence Settings > Software program Replace to ensure your HomePod software program is present. Be affected person.
8. When your HomePods are prepared, flip the Apple TV again on.
9. Try to be mechanically prompted to make use of your HomePod(s) for TV audio. If not, use Settings > Video and Audio > Audio Output choices as a substitute.
10. Be certain all of the secondary peripherals you need to use HomePod output (consoles, Blu-ray gamers, and so on.) are linked to your TV.
11. Again in your Apple TV’s Settings > Video and Audio > Audio Output menu, choose Play Tv Audio beneath Audio Return Channel.

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Extra notes

Troubleshooting, and the downsides of utilizing HomePods

When you’re nonetheless having hassle, test that ARC, eARC, and/or HDMI-CEC are enabled in your TV’s native settings menu (not the one in your Apple TV). You might also must double-check the model in your HDMI cable, and whether or not it is plugged into the right port. Most TVs have a number of HDMI ports, however just one outfitted for ARC or eARC.

The key draw back of utilizing HomePods as a do-it-all audio supply is, in fact, that your Apple TV has to stay completely linked. When you pull it out of the loop, a HomePod will lose its reference to the TV. That is a serious discouragement to leaving the Apple ecosystem, so that you would possibly need to select a traditional soundbar as a substitute when you’re not an Apple die-hard.

As a result of the connection between a HomePod and an Apple TV shouldn’t be solely wi-fi, however linked to Apple Residence, there’s additionally the potential for issues from wi-fi interference or dangerous settings within the Residence app. To repeat, your Apple TV and HomePod(s) must be assigned to the identical room in the identical residence — if not, they will not be capable to see one another.

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