Hi - thanks but it's not only Roku TVs that have an optical port; we have a Pioneer plasma. When I change the source on the TV to thr regular TV input for local channels, we hear audio through the soundbar. So based on that the issue seems to be Roku settings, not the TV.
What I meant is that TVs have optical ports, Roku or otherwise, so you won't find any "optical" settings in a Roku device that connects to a TV. Once again, if the Audio settings in the Roku device don't affect it, your only other option is to adjust the TV's settings. Lots and lots of people have a soundbar connected to their TV via optical and get audio from their Roku devices.
Thank you for the clarification. I saw in an online video from 2024 that there are Roku models with an Optical option in Audio settings. The weird thing on our setup is that I hear audio through the soundbar when I switch the source on the TV from Hdmi Roku to TV/ antenna. Unfortunately the audio settings on our tv are very limited. But if the soundbar works with the TV antenna source won't it work with Roku HDMI source?
The only thing i can think of is that the TV can't convert the audio format into something that's compatible with an optical connection. For example, DTS audio that Blu-ray discs may contain can't be transmitted over an optical connection, so the TV would have to convert it. There are other audio formats that optical connections can't handle, but I'm no audiophile and can't give you any kind of specifics. I would think that the beeps, boops, and other sound effects you get when you navigate and select things on your Roku should always be heard, so if you're not getting them I may be off base. Do you have any other device you can connect to the TV through one of its HDMI ports?
Thanks all for your advice. Pioneer support confirmed that the old plasma TV can not support a soundbar.
Per support: "Pioneer Plasma TV’s only output Digital Audio from the Optical jack when using the TV tuner.
Your TV cannot convert input HDMI Audio for use at the Optical.
In addition they also never had the ARC feature as well.
This isn’t something software can add because the TV doesn’t have the supporting electronic
circuitry to allow for this.
In other words the Plasma TV’s were not designed for Soundbar use."
