Forum Discussion

JayAitchsee's avatar
JayAitchsee
Reel Rookie
15 days ago

Audio setup to use the Soundbar and Optical Out for hearing aids separately and simultaneously.

I have a RokuTV OS. I want to add a soundbar for my family's enjoyment, but I also want to use Optical Out to feed a Bluetooth transmitter for my hearing aids. 

I thought the Roku Wireless Soundbar would be a good choice, but its use disables the Optical Out. (I didn't find that in print or within the menus on the TV set, but obviously it does, which was disappointing to learn after I bought it.)

I currently have a TCL Roku TV, but I plan to upgrade to the Roku Pro series TV.

So, what are the setup recommendations and soundbar features that will allow my family to use the best Roku TV Pro series OS sound features available while still leaving the Optical Out available to feed my Hearing Aid Bluetooth transmitter?

Audio Setup
Audio Support

2 Replies

  • RokuElizer-A's avatar
    RokuElizer-A
    Community Moderator
    14 days ago

    Welcome JayAitchsee

    Thanks for reaching out!

    We appreciate your inquiry regarding the audio setup feature on Roku TV using a hearing aid while keeping the optical out available.

    Please note that all Roku TVs can only select one of the audio options (Settings, Audio, Audio Output) and support only one audio type (eArc, TV speakers, or Optical) at a time.

    Feel free to reach out for other questions or inquiries.

    Roku Community Team

    • JayAitchsee's avatar
      JayAitchsee
      Reel Rookie
      13 days ago

      Thanks for the reply, RokuElizer-A​

      I was hoping that Optical Out might remain available—even if not directly controllable—when another audio output like eARC is selected for a soundbar. This would allow simultaneous use of a Bluetooth hearing aid transmitter (which has its own volume control) alongside a soundbar, ensuring everyone in the family can enjoy quality audio.

      Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case, and several others seem to have asked the same question. It's a shame, as many hearing-impaired individuals would benefit from such a setup. Perhaps this could be forwarded to engineers for consideration in future models.

      As a workaround, I selected Optical Out and Stereo and daisy-chained it to my hearing aid transmitter and then to a soundbar. While this solution requires additional remotes—one for the soundbar and one for the hearing aids—it works reasonably well. However, it may not suit users seeking a more complex sound system like 5.1 surround.

      For anyone interested, my hearing aid transmitter has an optical out port, simplifying this setup. If your transmitter lacks optical out, an affordable optical splitter should work as well.

      I would love to hear if others have found better solutions!

      Jay