JustAnAudioLover
Active Member
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2021
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Hi there!
My parents currently have a set of floorstanding speakers that are powered as follows: Sony TV's 3.5mm output -> Jack to RCA cable -> Tangent Ampster BT II -> Speakers.
Problem is, the TV has an issue (which I've found other people complain about on other forums) which makes it send loud noises randomly in the middle of the night through the jack output ; which results in a LOUD noise from the speakers, scaring the shit out of everyone.
They used to have a (crappy) HDMI ARC soundbar before, which allowed them to control volume through the TV's remote ; and they absolutely DON'T want to have to use two separate remotes, one for the TV and one for the amp.
So I'm a bit stuck:
* The 3.5mm output is a no-go because of the loud noises ;
* The optical output does not have volume control through the TV remote ;
* The stereo amp does not have HDMI ARC support
I thought about buying them a WiiM Amp but it's far too expensive for them ; the speakers and amp were gifted and they can't afford a $350 amp. Basically, $100 would already be a stretch, with $150 being the absolute maximum they could afford.
So, what are my options? Based on the need of having volume control through the TV, HDMI ARC is the only solution, bu tthe WiiM Amp (as well as Amp Pro & Ultra) is too expensive ; AV receivers are too expensive (and wouldn't fit in their furniture anyway).
Does anyone know of a good amp (or at least a DAC that I could plug into the Tangent amp) with good HDMI ARC support (auto power on/off + volume control)? I've seen a few like the SMSL A50 Pro but many people complain about problems with it + the lack of auto power on/off feature.
EDIT: note that sound quality isn't a priority. As long as the output quality is decent, it's fine. My folks are mostly listening to TV and watching videos on YouTube, they're not the kind to care about bit-perfect, high-quality audio reproduction. The sound only needs to not be bad.
Thanks for your help!
My parents currently have a set of floorstanding speakers that are powered as follows: Sony TV's 3.5mm output -> Jack to RCA cable -> Tangent Ampster BT II -> Speakers.
Problem is, the TV has an issue (which I've found other people complain about on other forums) which makes it send loud noises randomly in the middle of the night through the jack output ; which results in a LOUD noise from the speakers, scaring the shit out of everyone.
They used to have a (crappy) HDMI ARC soundbar before, which allowed them to control volume through the TV's remote ; and they absolutely DON'T want to have to use two separate remotes, one for the TV and one for the amp.
So I'm a bit stuck:
* The 3.5mm output is a no-go because of the loud noises ;
* The optical output does not have volume control through the TV remote ;
* The stereo amp does not have HDMI ARC support
I thought about buying them a WiiM Amp but it's far too expensive for them ; the speakers and amp were gifted and they can't afford a $350 amp. Basically, $100 would already be a stretch, with $150 being the absolute maximum they could afford.
So, what are my options? Based on the need of having volume control through the TV, HDMI ARC is the only solution, bu tthe WiiM Amp (as well as Amp Pro & Ultra) is too expensive ; AV receivers are too expensive (and wouldn't fit in their furniture anyway).
Does anyone know of a good amp (or at least a DAC that I could plug into the Tangent amp) with good HDMI ARC support (auto power on/off + volume control)? I've seen a few like the SMSL A50 Pro but many people complain about problems with it + the lack of auto power on/off feature.
EDIT: note that sound quality isn't a priority. As long as the output quality is decent, it's fine. My folks are mostly listening to TV and watching videos on YouTube, they're not the kind to care about bit-perfect, high-quality audio reproduction. The sound only needs to not be bad.
Thanks for your help!
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