Hi - like most everybody here your TV gets audio/visual via HDMI from tv 4;
an optical cable returns sound to your amp, but the TV has to be On to switch
music. Would an HDMI switch at the tv - to allow for another connection (to
both TV and simultaneously to amp) - and/or is there a better way to connect
everything and be able to listen with the TV Off?
Thanks for ideas! Tom
Apple TV (4th generation), macOS Sierra (10.12.3)
Airplay requires computer to be on. I don't understand why you
couldn't just have an HDMI switch routing the signal from tv
directly to the amp - so the whole television set w/b out of the
loop, so to speak. Why wouldn't that work? You'd set the app
using the TV's screen then turn it Off. Has that been tested?
Apple TV is a media streaming box that is designed to be connected to the TV, which needs to be on for the stream to be received via ATV. The previous models had mixed results at best. The Airport Express is there for those that just went to stream audio.
Are you stating flatly that an amp can't decode, extract, recognize etc.
the audio signal from an Apple tv - when the Apple tv is set to a music
source . . .? Well, it seems you are - you and Winston that is - are
absolutely correct. I tried and it failed. Thanks for your help. Tom
It's absolutely relevant, the TV can be the center of the audio/video brains depending on if your setup is configured one of two ways. HDMI inputs to the TV from every media source and the TV's optical audio output to the amp. Don't use the amp at all for HDMI functionality.
If the original poster has enough HDMI inputs on their TV and the TV has an energy save mode they can wire their setup this way and achieve a working solution to have music playing while the TV is "off" for all intents and purposes.
The original question clearly stated 'when the TV is off' and even if the question is re-phrased are you really sure it will do what it needs to in order to satisfy the Apple TV and enable it to send audio.
"Off" is subjective - all electronics consume electricity even when they are turned "Off" - but it doesn't really matter, I am helping explore other solutions that allow a pain-free setup to play music from an AppleTV while the TV screen is turned off. And the screen is what uses the most electricity from the TV.
The other solution requires a separate Airport Express or a Bluetooth receiver plugged into the audio amp. My solution is more elegant if the original poster's gear supports it. And yes I am sure it will work, as I do it with my setup every single day. Apple TV > HDMI to TV > Optical Audio Output to AMP.
In the quest to quench shareholder profits, cut costs, race to the bottom, reduce ports and expandability options, they got rid of the Optical Audio Output in the latest generation of the ATV - so the poster would have to buy an older Apple TV 3rd generation to bypass the TV.
Doug, as you undoubtedly know, tv 4 has to use the television set for switching
as it - the Apple - and unlike its predecessors has no optical output - it depends
entirely on HDMI for sound. I was hoping that my tv's circuitry would allow it do
the switching while in the Off state, but as Winston and vazandrew have pointed
out - and my own trial confirmed - it's not possible. As to your idea of using Energy
Saver settings, my Samsung calls it Eco something, and offers 3 settings, the lowest
amounts to "dim" - but no setting to disable the screen entirely. For the moment I'm
stuck with running the tv to hear music, unless other ideas surface. Of course one
could also run a parallel Gen 3 tv using an HDMI switch - its optical sound output
would let me get sound to my amp even when the tv's Off. To make that happen, behind
wood - I might need an IP-enabled AC switch in the cabinet. Feel free to comment. Tom
Whoops - our posts crossed in the mail. You propose "Apple TV > HDMI to TV > Optical Audio Output to AMP."
Obviously you're using a Gen3 tv. Great little unit - ran mine endlessly with tv Off - but progress marches. Gen 4
has more possibilities, e.g. you can punch up Radio station versions of fav artists directly on the television w/o
recourse to your Mac - something I wasn't able to do with Ge 3 - plus the apps can be quite elegant compared
to Gen3.
I don't care for the remote, despite increased functionality - so use Harmony's universal Smart Control.
Hopefully Apple will add streaming to multiple Airport Expresses as you can do with iTunes. Tom
I have both a Gen4 and Gen3 tv. The Gen4 I use on my primary LG TV which I turn off the screen and listen to music all day. The Gen3 I use in the basement for watching movies. It's too bad that Samsung won't let you turn off the display with the Eco setting. Perhaps this is something they could fix with a simple firmware update...but I'll bet my Gen3 tv that Samsung will never do that.
NO, if the TV isn't on the audio output is intermittent
OK. What about using an HDMI switch at the tv?
The TV currently needs to be on to get audio. If you want an audio only set up us an airport express.
Some TVs have an "Energy saver" button on the remote you can turn off/dim the screen while music plays. My LG 40 inch TV has this ability.
doug526 wrote:
Some TVs have an "Energy saver" button on the remote you can turn off/dim the screen while music plays. My LG 40 inch TV has this ability.
I'm not sure how that is relevant.
It's not the amp that can't decode anything, it's the Apple TV that won't send a signal when it is searching for an HDMI display.
Can we listen to music with TV Off?
