Question

Playbar, Samsung K series TV, and bluetooth

  • 3 January 2017
  • 2 replies
  • 467 views

I have a K series Samsung TV and Sonos Playbar which I got connected so they work just fine. However, when a connect a bluetooth headset to the TV, the Playbar still produces audio and can not be controlled by the remote control.

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2 replies

I don't know why I didn't think of something so simple as turning the Playbar down before making the bluetooth connection. That solves that problem.

I really like the Samsung TV and it's remote. However, the bluetooth implementation has been a letdown. In addition to this weird behavior, the range is very limited, 5-7 feet before it starts cutting out. You'd think they could use a transmitter that works as well as one in a simple smart phone.
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This is in fact a Samsung issue, as the TV still sends the audio through the optical port, even though you've connected to a Bluetooth headset. The best thing to do is mute/turn the volume down on the Playbar before connecting to the Bluetooth headset.

As to why you can't control the Playbar with the TV remote after making that connection... I would imagine that the TV goes into thinking "I'm not connected to an external audio system anymore, so I won't control that" mode, and there's probably not much that can be done as a result. I actually switched back to using my Logitech Harmony hub/controller because Samsung's "universal remote" functionality got on my nerves after my TV firmware updated itself. That takes the TV out of the equation for Sonos, as the Harmony Hub will actually send volume control commands to Sonos via the network instead of using infrared like the TV does.