Can You Use A Vizio Soundbar On An Element TV?

Element TVs are compatible with a wide range of third-party accessories that can better your smart viewing experience, and Vizio soundbars are a popular device that people are interested in using. Several models of soundbars are compatible with Elements, but is the Vizio one of them? 

Vizio soundbars can be used with Element TVs. However, they cannot be connected with an HDMI cable since it doesn’t transmit audio signals. Vizio soundbars can be connected to an Element TV with the digital audio out jack using a 3.5mm AUX cable or an optical cable. 

Connecting your Vizio soundbar to your Element TV is a little more complicated than hooking up some other third-party devices. Read on to learn more about hooking up a Vizio soundbar to an Element TV. 

Vizio Soundbars Are Compatible With Element TVs

If you have tried to hook up a Vizio soundbar to your Element TV and were unable to get the soundbar to work, it’s not because you can’t use these two devices together. 

Vizio soundbars are fully compatible with the Element TV’s software. Most people run into the issue when they have problems using a Vizio soundbar on an Element TV because they are trying to hook up the soundbar with the wrong type of cord. 

Types of Cords Needed to Connect a Vizio Soundbar

Many people think their Vizio soundbar isn’t working with their Element TV because they try to hook the two devices up with an HDMI cable. While you can hook up an HDMI cable into the soundbar and the TV, the HDMI cable isn’t capable of sending audio signals from the TV to the soundbar.

Instead, you’ll need to use a 3.5mm AUX auxiliary cable or an optical cable to hook up a Vizio soundbar with an Element TV. This cable is hooked to the digital audio out jack on the TV with whichever cable you use. 

How to Connect a Soundbar to an Element TV

No matter whether you use an optical cable or an auxiliary cable to hook up your Vizio soundbar to your Element TV, the process is simple. All you need is the right wiring. 

Connecting a Vizio Soundbar With an Optical Cable

The first option for hooking up your Vizio soundbar to an Element TV is to use an optical or SPDIF cable. To hook up your soundbar using this cable, perform the following: 

• Hook the optical cable into the TV. Take one end of the cable and plug it into the TV in the R-AUDIO or OPTICAL port on the back of your TV. Make sure the cable is seated firmly in the jack to ensure a good connection. You may have to take the plastic safety covering over the end of the optical cable. 
• Hook the optical cable into your soundbar. Take the end of the optical cable that isn’t plugged into the TV and plug it into your Vizio soundbar in the OPTICAL jack. Seat the plug firmly and make sure the wire between the TV and the soundbar setup isn’t a tripping hazard. 
• Power up the soundbar. Hook up the Vizio soundbar to a power source such as a wall outlet with the power cord. Press the POWER button (shaped like a small circle with a vertical line) to power up the soundbar. 
• Select the correct input on the soundbar remote. Depending on which type of cable you’re using, you’ll need to select SPDIF, Toslink, or Optical as your cable choice. Toggle between these options using the INPUT button on the Vizio remote. 
• Open the Vizio main menu. Select the Menu button on the Vizio remote to pull up the menu on the TV screen. 
• Set up the soundbar audio. Select Audio to pull up the soundbar’s audio settings on the TV screen on the Vizio remote. This step is important for channeling the TV’s audio into the soundbar. 
• Switch to digital audio. Toggle the audio settings in Digital Audio to Dolby Digital or Bitstream. 

Once you swap over to digital audio, your soundbar should be fully functioning and ready to transmit audio from your TV. 

Connecting a Vizio Soundbar With an Analog Cable

Other than connecting the soundbar with an optical or SPDIF cable, the other option you have is to use a 3.5mm auxiliary (AUX) or RCA cable. To use this cable type to hook up your Vizio soundbar to your Element TV, perform the following: 

• Locate the RCA cable in your soundbar materials. You’ll know this cable because it has a double analog plug setup, with red and white plugs. 
• Connect the RCA plugs to the back of the TV. You’ll find two corresponding analog plugs (R-AUDIO OUT and L-AUDIO OUT) where the plugs should be connected. 
• Connect the RCA plugs to the back of the soundbar. Take the other end of the analog cable and plug them into the corresponding AUX or AUDIO OUT plugs on the soundbar.
  
• Power up the soundbar. Plug the soundbar up into a power source and turn it on using the power button on the soundbar or the Vizio remote.
• Select the input method for the soundbar. Using the Vizio remote, input AUX as the primary audio input.  
• Swap the TV Audio settings over to Analog. Turn the TV speakers off using the Vizio remote in the Audio settings, then choose a Fixed or Variable setting on the Analog Audio Out submenu. 

Whether you want to use a digital or analog hookup, you should be able to hook up the Vizio soundbar to your Element TV easily as long as you know how to configure the audio settings after it’s powered up. There are also acouple more ways to connect a Vizio soundbar to your TV.

Vizio Is a Good Soundbar Option for Element TVs

It can sometimes be tricky to hook up third-party devices with a smart TV if you’re not sure whether they’re compatible or not and you’ve never configured an auxiliary device on your Element before. Luckily, using the methods above should have you listening to your favorite movies and TV shows on your Vizio soundbar in no time!