Use this foolproof guide to use your wireless Bluetooth headphones with your TV.
I don’t care what anyone says. Binge-watching Netflix on the TV feels 10 times more awesome than crouching over the 12-inch laptop, or even worse, a palm-sized mobile phone.
But you might be wondering, “Can you use wireless headphones with a TV“?
The answer is an absolutely yes. If your TV has built-in Bluetooth capability, connecting wireless headphones is a matter of on-screen configuration. But if it doesn’t have Bluetooth, you are still able to use wireless headphones with the TV, using the help of third-party devices such as Bluetooth audio transmitter.
This foolproof guide is to help you navigate smoothly through this complicated mess.
Quick Lesson 1: How do wireless headphones work for TV?
To establish a wireless connection between the TV and your wireless headphones requires just two components:
- A wireless transmitter
- A wireless receiver
The transmitter sends digital audio signals over to the receiver which in turn converts them into analog signals (sound) that you hear in the headphones.
The wireless headphones is the wireless receiver. However, your TV might or might not be the wireless transmitter.
It all depends on whether the TV has a built-in Bluetooth transmitter. So how do you know if it supports Bluetooth? See Quick Lesson #2.
How to Use This Guide?
To proceed with this guide efficiently, we need you to answer this question:
Quick Lesson 2: How to check if your TV has Bluetooth support?
If you have a Samsung TV, this is the official answer from Samsung:
If your TV came with a Smart Remote, it supports Bluetooth because that’s how it pairs to the TV.
No matter what remote came with your TV, you can still check by looking in your settings menu. From Settings, select Sound, and then select Sound Output. If the option Bluetooth Speaker List appears, then your TV supports Bluetooth.
But if the brand of your TV is not Samsung, you can:
- Read the user manual. The user manual should state if it supports Bluetooth.
- Is your TV labeled as “Smart TV”? If it is, it most likely has Bluetooth support. Go to the TV’s service menu and look at the “Audio” settings.
- What if your TV doesn’t have a service menu? It might have a hidden service menu that television technician used for diagnostic checks. Use this website to find out how to access the hidden service menu.
Yes, My TV has Bluetooth Support.
Congratulations! You are pretty close to the end of the journey.
How to connect Bluetooth headphones to the TV?
Bluetooth is currently the standard connection for most headphones and other devices. With that said, connecting them to PC or Mac is usually quite simple. However, the same cannot be said for TV. Here’s a quick guide on how to connect Bluetooth headphones to your TV:
- Put your headphones into pairing mode. Wireless headphones will have a blue blinking light to indicate that it is in pairing mode.
- Enable the Bluetooth function on the TV. Every TV has a different way to access the Bluetooth support. We will show you an example with an LG TV.
- Click on “Setting” or the gear icon on the remote.
- Go to “Sound” mode and select Sound Out
- Click on “Setting” or the gear icon on the remote.
- Once the Bluetooth is enabled on the TV, it will do a scan of the surrounding Bluetooth devices that are in pairing mode.
- Select “LG SoundSync/Bluetooth” and click on “DEVICE SELECTION”.
- The TV starts searching for available Bluetooth devices.
- Select “LG SoundSync/Bluetooth” and click on “DEVICE SELECTION”.
- After the scanning is done, you should be able to see your headphones in the list of detected devices. A list of Bluetooth devices in pairing mode will be on the “Available Devices” list.
- Select the pair of headphones that you want to connect to. Once paired, you will see it in the “Paired Devices” list.
No, My TV does not have Bluetooth Support.
Don’t freak out if you land here. How do you connect your wireless headphones to your TV if there is no Bluetooth?
How to connect wireless headphones to tv without Bluetooth?
You just need some “extra” help. You might be surprised to find that you already own some of these:
Bluetooth Audio Transmitter
If you own a pair of Bluetooth headphones but your TV has no Bluetooth support, you should definitely look into this solution.
Bluetooth Audio Transmitter is an external device that can be plugged into your TV audio output. It enables the transmission of audio via Bluetooth to your headphones. This is a painless and quick way of connecting your TV to your wireless headphones.
Recommended Bluetooth transmitters:
- Taotronics TT-BA01 (3.5mm jack)
- Avantree Audikast (3.5mm, RCA and optical digital Toslink)
Quick Lesson 3: Checking what audio output is available on your TV
For the transmitter to plug successfully into the TV audio output, you need to understand what type of audio output is available on your TV.
The different types of audio output can be found at the back of the TV. An example can be seen from the above image. All the audio output are in the red box.
- The ones labeled “L” and “R” are the RCA jacks
- The one labeled “AUDIO” is the 3.5mm headphone jack
- The one labeled “OPTICAL” is the optical TOSLINK output
Some of the older TV models do not have the 3.5mm headphones jack and the optical TOSLINK output. They only have the RCA jacks as audio output.
Some TV is even more troublesome and only has optical TOSLINK as the only audio output. You will need something like the Prozar DAC where it converts the TOSLINK into 3.5mm and RCA audio output.
Make sure you physically check your TV audio output. Don’t take it for granted or you might be spending unnecessary cash on buying plug adapters.
Media Streamers
Media streamers are set-top boxes that allow you to watch shows from the internet on your TV. Some of these streamers provide a nifty Bluetooth interface that allows your wireless headphones to be connected.
Amazon Fire TV Cube (Check Price)
- Go to Fire TV’s service menu and select Settings > Controllers and Bluetooth Devices
- Choose Other Bluetooth Devices.
- Wait for your Bluetooth headphones to appear in the Discovered Devices section.
- Once it appears, select it and wait for pairing to be successful.
NVIDIA SHIELD TV (Check Price)
- Go to SHIELD TV’s service menu, then select Wireless and Networks / Connected Devices.
- Turn it on and wait for your headphones to be discovered.
- Once it appears, select it and wait for pairing to be successful.
Sling AirTV 4K (Check Price)
- Press and hold the Remote button on the top of the AirTV Player until the pairing screen displays
- A “Searching for accessories” screen will appear.
- Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the pairing of the device to the AirTV Player
Xiaomi Mi Box (Check Price)
- Go to the Mi Box’s service menu.
- Select Remote & accessories > Add accessory.
- Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the pairing of the headphones.
Roku
To connect your Roku products to wireless headphones requires additional Macgyver-level configuration.
- Download the Official Roku app on your Android or iOS phone/tab.
- Make sure your phone and Roku streaming device are connected to the same wifi network.
- Connect your Bluetooth headphones and phone/tab by selecting your headphones on the list of detected devices on your phone/tab.
- Launch the Roku app, then tap the Remote tab at the bottom of the screen.
- Activate your Bluetooth headphones’ pairing button AND your Bluetooth connection on your phone/tab.
- On the Remote screen of the Roku app, press the headset icon. You can now stream audio from your Roku streaming device to your wireless headphones.
Apple TV 4K (Check Price)
- From the Apple TV Home screen, go to Settings
- Click on Remotes and Devices.
- Click on Bluetooth.
- Let it search for Bluetooth devices.
- When you see your headphones pop up, choose them from the list.
- Some Bluetooth accessories require a PIN. If Apple TV prompts you, type in the PIN.
Dedicated Wireless TV Headphones
Dedicated wireless tv headphones are headphones that come with a base station. The base station acts a transmitter that is connected to the TV which will then transmit the audio signals to the headphones.
The base station is rarely disconnected from the TV, hence, the term – dedicated. The upside of having a dedicated headphone is that you have immediate access to a wireless audio connection to the TV.
Dedicated wireless headphones come with different types of wireless connections. Other than the familiar Bluetooth connection, there are Radio Frequency (RF) and Infrared (IR) options. We have stated the pros and cons of Bluetooth, RF and IR headphones below.
Recommended Bluetooth Dedicated Headphones:
Recommended RF Dedicated Headphones:
Recommended IF Dedicated Headphones:
Quick Lesson 4: The benefits and downsides of Bluetooth, RF and IF connections
Bluetooth Connection
- Easily pair with any Bluetooth headphones
- You have the flexibility to change your Bluetooth headphones
- Better connection stability than RF and infrared
- Slower transmission speed than RF and infrared
- Might cause laggy-ness or delay in audio transmission
- More setup steps required
Radio Frequency Connection
With RF, the listeners can transmit audio at a longer range (up to ~328 feet or ~100 meters) than what a Bluetooth connection can offer.
But it doesn’t come without a downside. The quality of the RF connection can be interfered by other electronic devices such as microwave and mobile phones. Any device that uses the same frequency (from 900MHz – 3.2GHz) as an RF headphone will add noise to the connection.
- Fast transmission rate
- No delay in audio
- Very long range
- Fast and easy setup.
- Prone to noise interference with other RF devices
- Make sure your TV is in an isolated room
- RF headphones can’t be easily used for other audio devices like PC and smartphones
Infrared Connection
Infrared is the technology that powers our remote control and it also used for wireless TV headphones.
Unlike the RF, the quality of the connection is not hampered by neighboring devices using the same frequency. It is also said to be able to deliver better sound quality to the headphones than Bluetooth.
However, an infrared connection works on “line-of-sight” technology. Any obstruction between the transmitter and receiver will cause the connection quality to deteriorate. You will see this with your remote controls. Just block the remote with your hand and you will not be able to switch your channels.
Another thing about infrared is that its connectivity range is even shorter than Bluetooth.
- Fast transmission rate
- No delay in audio
- Supposedly best sound quality
- Line-of-sight technology means there must be absolutely no blockage between the TV and the headphones
- Short-range
Gaming Consoles
The options for Bluetooth support on gaming console are not great. For example, Xbox One doesn’t naturally allow wireless headphones to be connected, except those with specific Xbox Wireless connection. Using regular Bluetooth headphones on Xbox One will require some nifty workarounds.
Even though Sony PS4 does provide Bluetooth connectivity, not all Bluetooth headphones are supported natively.
Sony PS4 Pro / PS4 Slim (Check Price)
- Go to PS4 Settings > Devices > Bluetooth Devices.
- Select the name of your headset to connect.
- If it connects successfully, you can try to play games now with your Bluetooth headset.
However, this might be not successful. If you will see the above error message, or “Cannot connect to the Bluetooth device within the time limit” pops up, try the alternative steps below.
You will need a Bluetooth USB adapter for this method.
- Insert the USB adapter to the PS4 USB slot.
- Turn on your Bluetooth headset.
- Go to PS4 Settings > Devices > Audio Devices.
- Click Output Device, and select USB Headset.
- Click Volume Control, and adjust it to medium or louder.
- Click Output to Headphones, and select All Audio.
Nintendo Switch (Check Price)
Even though Switch has Bluetooth support, it is used solely for the wireless controllers. They do have 4.0.0 patch that allows wireless headphones connection via USB dongles, though.
There are two connection modes for the Switch – docked and undocked.
When docked,
- Put your wireless headphones in pairing mode.
- Plug the dongle into one of the USB ports on the side of the Switch’s dock.
- Wait for the on-screen prompt of the USB volume control. You can now use your wireless headphones with your Switch.
When undocked,
- Put your wireless headphones in pairing mode.
- Plug the USB-to-USB-C connector into the USB-C port on the bottom of the Nintendo Switch.
- Plug the USB dongle for your wireless headset into the connector.
- Wait for the on-screen prompt of the USB volume control. You can now use your wireless headphones with your Switch.
For more details, check out our comprehensive guide on how to connect Bluetooth headphones to Switch.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- How to Connect Wireless Headphones to TV Without Audio Output?
For most modern TVs, it is almost impossible for a TV to not have ANY audio output at all. It is more likely that you cannot identify the audio output.
- How Do I Play Sound from Both the TV and Headphones at the Same Time?
This is highly dependant on the TV models itself and unfortunately, not many models support such a feature. Many TVs including Samsung TVs will mute their internal speakers once you connect your headphones to the TV.
However, it is said that LG TV does support this feature. If you are an LG TV owner, you are in luck. See if the below steps works for you.
Unfortunately, this above steps only worked for me to a certain extent. My TV only has support for simultaneous audio support for Internal TV Speaker + Wired Headphones. It doesn’t work for wireless headphones.
So what if you do not want to fork out the price of a brand new TV just for this simultaneous playback feature?
There is a simpler and cheaper solution and it comes in the form of Avantree Oasis Plus.
The Oasis Plus allows you to play audio through an external speaker like soundbar and also wirelessly to your headphones at the same time.
Who says you can’t have your cake and eat it too? 🙂
- What Are the Best Wireless Headphones for TV?
So with all the knowledge you learned, you can now be the go-to source for anything headphones and TV-related. But what about the best wireless headphones for TV?
No worries, we got you covered with this compiled list of best wireless headphones for TV.
It has a good mix of Bluetooth and RF headphones with varying prices and design. You will bound to find something that you like.
Conclusion
By this part of the article, you should know everything you need to know when it comes to connecting Bluetooth headphones to your TV. Go on and wwatch your favorite series without disturbing anyone else!
However, if you encounter any audio problem, we’ve got various guides for you. Whether you’re experiencing sound delays, audio drop outs, or if you hear no sound at all, we got you covered.
Got any tips? Or is there anything you’re still unsure of? Share them in the comments section below!
Thanks, a very useful article, it has solved my problem.
Glad that it helped!
My LG TV has Bluetooth and I used to connect it with my LG Gruve Bluetooth Headset. The headsets broke, but LG does not sell BT headsets anymore (only sports buds). So I tried with regular BT headsets (tried 5 different brands and models) but they don’t even show up in the “devices to pair” list. How can I solve this?
LG TV Model: 50LB6300
Thank you,
You can still buy LG Gruve Headset on Amazon
I’d rather not buy a discontinued product. Plus I’ve had two of them already. ?The headband breaks easily. Not very good quality. I’d rather use my Bose, Plantronics or Motorola’s. Really good headphones. But can’t connect them. Can you help?
I’m not familiar with the TV model. You can approach your TV manufacturer support website for that. My only recommendation is to buy an external Bluetooth transmitter for your tv.
What do I need to purchase to connect my headphones (and no they are not blue tooth headphones!!) and no I do not have a smart tv – I just need to know how how to get the sound from Roku through my headphones which are not blue tooth. Can anyway help a person who is very ticked off with not being able to find an answer. Would a blue tooth transmitter work!!!! Help!
No. Bluetooth transmitter won’t work for non Bluetooth headphones. You need to check and see what audio outputs your tv has. What type of headphones are they? I.e. wired wireless et cetera. Depending on the connection they have, and the outputs your tv has, will help solve your problem.
is there a way to use my rf headphones on my smart samsung tv? The headphones work through my cable box (assigned to HMDI1) but when I try to use my smart tv, the sound from the cable box is all that comes out
I have a TaoTronics TT-BA06 transmitter but cannot for the life of me figure out how to pair it with my Cowin E7 Bluetooth headset.
Internet note, updated:
The answer is an absolutely yes. If your TV has built-in Bluetooth capability, connecting wireless headphones is a matter of on-screen configuration. But if it doesn’t have Bluetooth, you are still able to use wireless headphones with the TV, using the help of third-party devices such as Bluetooth audio transmitter. Mar 20, 2020
Looking for some advice to save my marriage. I share a home with my in law and my wife and I watch tv in our bedroom. We have tried several things but what we need is a system where we have 2 sets of wireless head phones we can use at same time without having to plug and unplug cords and wires to connect up everytime we both want headsets. Any thoughts would be helpfull.
Brian, take a look at the best wireless tv headphones article: https://www.headphonesty.com/2019/04/best-wireless-bluetooth-tv-headphones/ There are headphones which both can be paired and stream to the TV at the same time
Hello I have a similar problem to Jose at the top of the page but my smart T V is a Samsung. When I go to the settings and enable Bluetooth It says it can’t find any Samsung headphones. Does this mean i have to but Samsungs own make of headphones.
So thorough! Thanks for this awesome resource. I’ve got a Taotronics transmitter aptx LL and Bluetooth headphones that explicitly support aptx LL paired successfully. Sound output is set to optical out. HI can hear tv navigation sounds, on, off etc, but as soon as I open an app like Netflix, it plays the opening sound briefly, but is cut short. Then i cannot hear the sound on any shows once I hit play at all. Any ideas about what could be happening? I’m growing desperate to solve this problem and have already bought two pieces of tech. Hoping it’s a setting issue or something.
Shouldn’t be a range issue. I’m within 3 meters and can hear the tv navigation sounds just fine.
Dear All,
I recently bought an LG TV – 55UM76 model. It has only one sound output- Optical Digital Audio out. My Stereo Amplifier has only RCA sound Input. How do I connect? – can you pls suggest? I think I have to use an Optical Audio to RCA converter. But this is not readily available. Pls reply to my email. Thanks so much. = Hisema
Unbelievably helpful, as i have an old non Bluetooth plasma TV, which doesn’t support wireless headphones, and neither does my sky sat box. But now I’m “cutting the cord”, and the streaming box does…but it’s very helpful, although too late now!..????
Re: Dedicated Wireless TV headphones (prob RF).
They work great for standard TV, but don’t pick up anything streamed. Would love a reply from you. Nothing but bad advice from others so far.
I have a Sony tv without an audio port but my RCA wireless headphones will not transmit sound. There is crackling only.
Thanks! Your help was amazing. It save buying a new tv. Didn’t know I could connect wireless earphones to my amazon box. Your instructions were straightforward and easy to understand.
Help ! Trying to pair bluetooth heaphones to LG TV model 50UN6951ZUF. I bought my husband bluetooth headphones for Christmas, however I just discovered the TV does not have bluetooth. So I ordered a bluetooth transmitter, plugged it in the USB port and in the audio output (no option for audio headphone jack, just the RCA white & red audio jacks). I have tried all the settings and even though I see the transmitter and the headphones are paired, it is not discovered in the devices. They both work on my laptop. I called LG and they were not helpful. I have a Bose speaker connected in the optical output, if that makes a difference. Could it be that LG only supports LG devices ? Thank you very much !
Hi Caroline. I had the very same problem but solved it as follows:
My wireless transmitter has two cable options to connect to the tv.
1, mini jack to rca
2, optical to optical.
I first tried the mini jack (transmitter input) to RCA in on the tv. No sound. The RCA audio outonly works with powered speakers or audio units.
Optical out socket on the LG TV is the only audio that works, but there’s only one on my LG TV and that goes to my soundbar. I bought a 2 to 1 splitter box and plugged both the transmitter and the soundbar into the one input on the tv and that worked. Only thing now is working out how to control the volume on my earbuds, so I would suggest using headset/buds with their own volume control. Hope that is of some help.
I have samsung smart tv. It is not bluetooth enabled. I have a bluetooth headphone and also have a MPOW BT receiver cum transmitter. when I try to pair MPOW device with my bt headphone so that I can connect MPOW transmitter to TV (3.5 mm jack) and hear through my BT headphone, I am not able to pair . the flickering lights in MPOW device continues to flicker and not paired. BT headphone is already paired with my cell phone. Is this the problem or any other problem? I am from India and super senior citizen perhaps not technically highly savvy. thanks
Maybe I cannot read but I dont see anywhere how to connect my Sony RF headphones to a Bluetooth TV
i have a prolink cordless headphone ir430 that igot for the tv. all i get is static can anybody help Thanks Jim
I have a Sony Bravia (before bluetooth era). The TV has an audio jack and R&L audio output. I’d like to connect a dedicated IR based headphone to improve MY hearing. The hearing of my wife is OK and she prefers the normal audio output via the build in speakers. If I would connect the base of such headphones via the audio jack the TV is silenced I assume. How can I avoid this? Does using the R&L audio output avoid this or not? What else can I do?
Thank you so very much for your help.
I am super senior. used senheisser RS 120. got damaged. got RS120 II. find more difficult to tune (single 3.5 mm jack available back of tv and can make main tv speaker out). still I find tuning very critical and so difficut. so always volume low due to not correct tuning. any suggestions. from India
I have a Sony smart TV that I can bluetooth to my Phonak hearing
aids via the Phonak Com Pilot. I would also like to Bluetooth from
my TV to bluetooth compatible ear buds.
Can you tell me if I can and what earbuds I should consider that offers
best qualities for listening to TV.
Also, could I use the earbuds for phones?
Can you pair up parrot zik headphones to a tv
I have an LG TV with no audio output at all. No optical or RCA. Just absolutely no audio out. My Mom would like to use wireless headphones but there does not seem to be a way to hook them up either by Bluetooth (which the tv does not have) or by any of the other common means since there is no audio output, What can I do?
Blimey! Not even a 3.5mm aux port? All TVs usually incorporate the option to connect external speakers and headphones. I would have suggested a third party bluetooth transmitter, but with the absence of anything compatible to connect to, it would appear to be a dead end.
Hi,
Thanks for writing this article, unfortunately I still have some issues.
My grandfather is hard of hearing, my gran isn’t. Therefore, they’d like a to be able to have sound going through the TV and wireless headphones at the same time. Unfortunately, their TV isn’t Bluetooth enabled. They also don’t have internet, so using a firestick or similar isn’t an option.
I have bought them Bluetooth headphones and a Bluetooth transmitter. Unfortunately, I can’t get these to connect as for the headphones to connect to a source you have to select them on the source, but the transmitter doesn’t have some way for me to select the Bluetooth headphones. Do you have any ideas how I could solve this issue? Thanks in advance for the help.
Kind regards,
Kieran
If my TV doesn’t have BT capability and I purchase a BT transmitter to connect to Bose wireless earbuds will I be the only one to hear the TV?