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New soundbar setup in conjuction with cable box/xbox/and chromecast audio outputs

1780 Views 3 Replies 2 Participants Last post by  krisj280
So I am a bit confused and I have a huge objective I am trying to meet.

So I have a brand new 65" LG smart TV, Comcast cable box(plugged into HDMI 1), an xbox 360 (plugged into HDMI 2), and a Google Chromecast (plugged into HDMI 3[arc]). I plan on buying one of those brand new Smartcast Vizio soundbars to my setup (or whatever other brand that has Smartcast technology), that way while in conjuction with using the google chromecast, I'll be able to use verbal commands over stuff I can stream using my Google Home setup. I digress... So anyway, here is the main question......

Buying this new soundbar will come with an optical cable, and since all three of my HDMI ports on my TV are taken up already, and if I plug this soundbar system into the optical port on the back of the TV, will I be able to get the soundbar to work on all three HDMI switches?

For instance, when I walk into the living room and turn on my TV screen and soundbar on, will I be able to have sound from my cable, xbox, and chromecast coming through the soundbar system? and if so, is it like an automatic function when I switch from HDMI port to another HDMI port or do I need to also cycle through outputs on the soundbar itself? OR, can I just connect the soundbar via optical cable and switch the audio settings on my TV over to something else?

I apologize for not providing any model numbers or anything, just know that its all brand new equipment, there are 3 HDMI ports on the TV that are all currently being used, as well as an unused optical input, and the soundbar will have HDMI and optical ports as well.

Thank you and I hope someone can help...
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An additional note, As I navigate through my TV's audio output settings, it is currently set to "TV speakers and Audio Out (Optical)".....with that being said, as long as I leave the TV on that setting, then I can plug the new sound system's optical cable into the TV and everything should be good right? On all three HDMI devices I'll be using?
If your connecting the soundbar to the tv, what ever source you are viewing on the tv, the audio will come out the soundbar.
problem solved...

here is how my connections are configured from my TV.......

HDMI 1: Xbox
HDMI 2: Cable Box
HDMI 3 (Arc) AND optical: To soundbar....

The soundbar itself also has an HDMI input, and that is where I have my chromecast plugged in (so when I switch my TV to HDMI 3, the video image will route from the chromecast through the soundbar and finally onto my TV screen.

With this setup, All I had to do was make sure that my TV's audio settings were set to output sound through the TV's internal speakers and the optical out together.

The end result is to be able to switch between all HDMI sources on my TV, and have their sound all come through the new sound system.

An additional note, since this is a Smartcast soundbar, I can leave my TV screen off and tell my google home to play music through them.

Thanks for the help.
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