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Sharp LEDTV with Panasonic Sound Bar

post #1 of 3
12/15/12 at 6:16pm
Thread Starter 
I am wondering if anyone else is running into this issue. I have a Sharp LEDTV (LC-46LE540U) and a Panasonic sound system (SC-HTB20). Both are ARC enabled. I have the system connected as follows:

Wall to Cisco DTA (provided by TWC) - coax cable
DTA to Sound system - HDMI
Sound System to TV (HDMI 4) - HDMI

LG Blu-ray to TV (HDMI 2) - HDMI

The sound works fine with one exception while watching TV - to get the sound to work I have to push the BD/DVD button on the Panasonic controller. Doesn't seem right but it works.

When I change the source to the Blu-ray the sound stays on the TV channel. I have fiddled with the system settings on the TV for hours with no success.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. As an engineer I find the way these systems are designed to be repulsive and the antithesis of elegance. How does even half the population even cope with this?
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post #2 of 3
12/16/12 at 9:28am
Quote:
Originally Posted by GeekRex View Post

I am wondering if anyone else is running into this issue. I have a Sharp LEDTV (LC-46LE540U) and a Panasonic sound system (SC-HTB20). Both are ARC enabled. I have the system connected as follows:
Wall to Cisco DTA (provided by TWC) - coax cable
DTA to Sound system - HDMI
Sound System to TV (HDMI 4) - HDMI
LG Blu-ray to TV (HDMI 2) - HDMI
The sound works fine with one exception while watching TV - to get the sound to work I have to push the BD/DVD button on the Panasonic controller. Doesn't seem right but it works.
BD/DVD is simply a label for the HDMI input on the soundbar. So you push that button to see and listen to whatever source device you have connected there. Obviously, that part of your setup is working fine.
Quote:
When I change the source to the Blu-ray the sound stays on the TV channel. I have fiddled with the system settings on the TV for hours with no success.
I'm assuming that you are changing your input source using the soundbar remote as well as the input source on your TV? If so, then it seems there is an issue with the ARC setup. Here are some things to check/try:
Make sure you have a high-speed HDMI cable going between the TV and the soundbar.
Make sure you have ARC turned on in the Aquos Link settings of the TV. There should also be someplace in the TV settings to direct audio out to "external".
Note that your TV manual does suggest that sometimes ARC doesn't work and you will need to use the digital audio out connection. If you truly can't get ARC to work, then you'll need to use a digital coax cable to go into a converter and a Toslink cable out of converter to soundbar optical input.
Quote:
Any suggestions would be appreciated. As an engineer I find the way these systems are designed to be repulsive and the antithesis of elegance. How does even half the population even cope with this?
It's really not that hard when everything works. But when it doesn't it can be very frustrating. mad.gif

Copied from the other thread you started:
Quote:
Can someone explain why on earth HDMI enabled sound systems are run through the satellite box? That connection then only allows me to listen to the "TV" feed and not all that the SmartTV can do. This simply mystifies me since I've spent a couple hundred on a sound system that will only play part of what the TV can play. Why don't they build the sound system to play whatever the TV is displaying?
Once you either get ARC working, or use the digital audio out option, the audio for the smart apps will play through the soundbar.
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post #3 of 3
12/16/12 at 7:06pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the ideas. The situation now is as follows. I have ARC turned on via the Aquos configuration system. The sound system is still connected to the TV via HDMI4 which according to the book and tech support is the ARC connection. The TV signal is still passed through the sound system. The sound is very good once you get things turned on and configured--which is the problem. It takes multiple remotes just to turn on the TV and listen to it.

The problem to me seems to be with the Panasonic unit. When the TV turns on it seems to sense that and eventually turns on with the TV LED on. By pressing the BD/DVD button on the Panasonic remote allows me to listen to the TV.

I have also connected the BD to the sound system via optical cable. The Panasonic unit only plays the BD in the Aux channel. It seems like the TV setting is useless. Is this a problem with the Panasonic sound system or just the way it works?

Thanks for your previous feedback.
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