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Connecting external speakers to tv

dennislanier
Explorer
Explorer
Have a question about connecting my HDTV to better speakers. In my 2004 Jayco motorhome, I have replaced my old tv with a new HDTV. However as most of you know the speakers in the tv are terrible, especially with the furnace or AC running. When I bought the MH it already had a DVD/AMFM radio installed with wires running to four speakers installed in the MH. What I need to know is, can I connect my TV THRU the DVD player's speakers? Note that the DVD player is an old one and DOES NOT have an HDMI connection, if that makes any difference. What cables do I need and where do I connect them is what I need to know. Any information appreciated and any questions you may have to help me are welcomed.
31 REPLIES 31

Krusty
Nomad
Nomad
I ran into a similar issue and was able to plug a Bluetooth transmitter into the headphone jack and pair it wirelessly to a Bluetooth speaker or headphones.
Krusty
92 F-250 4x4 460 5spd 4.10LS Prodigy
97 Rustler RT190
EU2000i
Garmin

shastagary
Explorer
Explorer
optical to analog converters can be purchased but the volume on the optical output of the tv is a fixed level not controlled by its remote. optical converter
most external tv sound bars have a optical input and sometimes a coaxial digital input also.

fj12ryder
Explorer III
Explorer III
Good to know you got it figured out and problem solved. You're probably lucky your TV had a headphone jack. Ours does not, but does have a digital audio (Toslink) output jack. Other than that, it's all HDMI.
Howard and Peggy

"Don't Panic"

shastagary
Explorer
Explorer
I ordered a cable from Amazon with a 3.5mm plug on one end and rca plugs on the other end. Plugged the earphone jack into the tv and rca end into the DVD’s player. Now all my speakers work. Thanks for your input.

and by doing it that way your tv's volume control and the volume on its remote still works if your tv has a headphone jack.
many bluetooth speakers also have a auxiliary input jack that could be used to connect the tv's headphone jack to.

dennislanier
Explorer
Explorer
Posting here again in case it might help someone in the future. Someone here and on another forum suggested using the earphone jack on the tv. I ordered a cable from Amazon with a 3.5mm plug on one end and rca plugs on the other end. Plugged the earphone jack into the tv and rca end into the DVD’s player. Now all my speakers work. Thanks for your input.

wopachop
Explorer
Explorer
dennislanier wrote:
Sorry for asking, folks.
Ask away man. Your thread was awesome i learned a lot.

2oldman
Explorer II
Explorer II
dennislanier wrote:
Should have learned by now that simply asking a dumb question would cause some people to reply by reminding me what a doofus I am..
You've gotten a lot of help without telling us much of anything, so I'd go with that instead of whining.
"If I'm wearing long pants, I'm too far north" - 2oldman

mikestock
Explorer
Explorer
I bought a 32" Toshiba flat screen for outside use in the RV. The speakers were terrible. If there was any external noise at all you could not hear the tv speaker. There was no way to hook external speakers to the tv. My solution was to use the audio outputs from a DirectV receiver to a powered sound bar.

I have a couple of tv's at home with optical audio output. I bought an interface to use it, which worked ok except when I was watching an over-the-air signal. With OTA use, I got a terrible roar on all of the tv's I tried it with.

Lynnmor
Explorer
Explorer
It is difficult to help when we don't know anything about the TV, speakers or the stereo. Folks were guessing about connections available and offering advice while knowing nothing about what you have, thus my owners manual comment.

dennislanier
Explorer
Explorer
Sorry for asking, folks. Didn't intend to cause arguments etc. Should have learned by now that simply asking a dumb question would cause some people to reply by reminding me what a doofus I am.

For those that tried to help, I appreciate it. I'll figure it out for myself if I can.

APT
Explorer
Explorer
I recommend physically looking at both the DVD/stereo and the TV conecntions.
Write down what each one is labeled. Report back her, and the community can help with what kinds of cables or adapters will work.

The user manual for the TV will contain what outputs are available, such as Stereo RCA, headphone, etc. I have purchases two TVs (Westinghouse and Samsung) in the last 3 month, both of which came with paper manuals. Does OP have the user manual for the DVD/Stereo still?
A & A parents of DD 2005, DS1 2007, DS2 2009
2011 Suburban 2500 6.0L 3.73 pulling 2011 Heartland North Trail 28BRS
2017 Subaru Outback 3.6R
2x 2023 Chevrolet Bolt EUV (Gray and Black Twins)

fj12ryder
Explorer III
Explorer III
At one time Samsung was about the only company that would guarantee a monitor to have no dead pixels. I guess I'm assuming it's still the same company, even though the guarantee has been updated.

I'm very happy with all my Samsung products. Much more so than LD, Insignia, Sharp, and several others.
Howard and Peggy

"Don't Panic"

2oldman
Explorer II
Explorer II
I have been very satisfied with all my Samsung TVs.
"If I'm wearing long pants, I'm too far north" - 2oldman

Gdetrailer
Explorer III
Explorer III
Lynnmor wrote:


Bought a Samsung recently and have the very useful manual right here on my laptop. Sorry about your cheap brand.


Sorry you bought a "Samsung TV", you do know that Samsung does not make their own TVs, screens are made by one company, the main board by another and the powersupply by another and most of the parts are used in other TV brands..? Not to mention the manufacturer of those parts can vary through the model yr..

Samsung doesn't exactly have much of stellar reputation for good quality, especially with the HDMI inputs suddenly no longer working a few yrs ago and all they told people that had that issue was too bad..

You also have to realize, that most companies no longer "distribute" the full length manuals which IS part of what I was getting at, they send a "QUICK START" manual. Quick start is typically not much more than plug in and turn on and do channel scan. The full length manual sometimes is sent on a DVD with the TV, sometimes you have to go to the manufacturers website then down load..

If you fail to download that manual when you buy the device it WILL eventually disappear when the manufacturer decides to purge all of the older legacy stuff. Not "everyone" likes to read the PDF manuals, they are typically setup for "two page" PRINTING not reading or are rotated on edge..

But, everyone knows that REAL MEN do not read manuals nor do they stop and ask for directions when lost :B