mono or stero through Phonak tv connector

[wub]

Hi I’m trying to do some detective work here for my 92 year old dad. He has hearing loss in both ears and we have recently bought 2 x Phonak tv connectors to help him hear the TV. This is where it gets strange. Plugged into his old small kitchen TV with the jack cable and he can hear the speech well. Plug the other Phonak tv connector into his new LG big smart tv, with the optical cable and he cant hear the speech, too muffled he describes it.

Now that got me thinking as he mentioned he can hear the radio in his car and my car very well, but he cant hear other things. I am wondering if his hearing loss is best suited to Mono sound being blue toothed to his hearing aids, as i suspect his old kitchen TV is and not stereo as i suspect his big new TV is.

Has anybody else had this or heard of it? Does anyone know what TV’s still have mono (jack lead) sound output?
I really want to make his last few years as good as possible and with his sight too bad to read, and being on his own, being able to watch TV and hear what they are saying is very important to him now.

Or is there any other solution anyone has?

many thanks
John

[z10user2]

I would investigate the sound source and turn off any surround options. You could try any RCA audio-out jacks rather than optical. Of course the other end needs to be 1/8" (3.5mm).
Is that the V1 or V2 version of the TV Connector? Does it have some “buttons” on the top?
Can you get the exact model number of the tv?

[Psych1]

I’ve got the new LG smart TV. Best TV you can get. Very smart TV, does amazing things for a TV. Got to stay ahead of it. Works great with Phonak HAs and TV connector. But, you have to let it know who’s boss. Read all manuals.

[1Bluejay]

I was also thinking along the lines of others here that perhaps there is a sound control option on that TV for the optical output?

Or! Get on the phone with Phonak Tech Support. Call them at ‭800-679-4871‬. Make YOUR problem THEIR problem. The more we beat down the doors at Phonak about day-to-day hassles and issues with our aids and the accessories they should work with, the more that message will get to product development and even marketing.

It should not be rocket science to get audio from the LG smart TV, but sometimes it may have apps on it that need you to figure out basic operations like the volume. I wish I was techie enough to help you here. Please share the solution when you find it.

[Speedskater]

Often in TV sound, speech centrally located. And noise is in stereo.
So the old mono TV sums the Left & Right signals. So the speech is being in L & R is summed.

What I do is use 5.1 channel processor and send the central channel to both ears.
On some shows it works, on others it doesn’t.

[Speedskater]

Note that each TV manufacture, year and model line will have different audio features, functions and adjustments.
My ‘LG’ (Lucky Gold) television has many adjustments that are only available on the internal loudspeakers.

[PeterH]

@wub
Welcome to the forum, many very knowledgeable folk here, worldwide.

Just a thought. Are the 2 TV Connectors in range of each other? Might one prevent the other connecting?

I have 2x V1 TV Connectors, in different parts of the house. They aren’t in range of each other, but I have them both on Smart plugs, so I can ensure one is switched off. They both connect to mid priced Smart TVs (Samsung/Panasonic), via optical TOSLINK. Neither TV has many sound options, and neither have Dolby. I think they’re both “PCM?”. They both work in full stereo, independant of the TV speakers.

Things I’ve noticed:

1. Bluetooth connections can stop the connection, as Bluetooth overrules the TV Connectors’ “Airstream” connection. So, ensure Bluetooth is switched off on nearby devices (phones etc).

2. When working, the HA Volume buttons become a mix control, so turn them up to get more TV.

3. Are they paired? Has he heard the ascending tones in both ears when it’s paired. You have to pair each TV Connector separately. The HAs will remember both pairings, once done.

4. If V2, is the volume up high enough?

I have had trouble with both Roger Select AND Roger On, when connecting to the TVs. Neither produced a stereo sound. Both base units have the Dolby logo on them, so I’ve assumed that’s the reason for that.

I’m sure it will be something basic, as the TOSLINK connection method is normally flawless. Good luck

Peter

[firenzel]

Both support stereo (+mono) audio , only V2 support Dolby (5+1 surround sound)

[PeterH]

Glad I got the V1 then, or it would be mono for me

[z10user2]

Turning off Dolby for the output (or using 3.5mm or RCA output jacks ie. analog) should still give you stereo.

[PeterH]

I have no Dolby or RCA sockets on either TV

[z10user2]

Some tv’s have 3.5mm (or 1/8") audio-out jacks and/or RCA audio-out. Some tv’s have headphone jacks but that almost always turns off the speakers.
Dolby would get turned off in the tv. If the tv doesn’t have that then you should be fine.
What’s your tv’s full model number?

[PeterH]

I’ll have a look later, but wife watching it right now . The only sockets are 3x HDMI (I think one has sound included) USB, and Toslink.

Again, I can look in the menus, but anything Dolby is already greyed out.

[PeterH]

I think Samsung use the same software for many models. I only have PCM as an option

[z10user2]

Like I said, you’re fine with the V1. What do you have for inputs? A tv set top box? The smart tv itself streaming over the internet? Bluray/DVD player? All of the above. I’m not sure if the tv would have the smarts to recognize that the TV Connector will not accept Dolby and so therefor sets it to PCM and greys the others out. Or that the input audio is being detected and it’s not Dolby. I suspect it’s the latter.

Adding - I see you have the HDMI input set to bitstream. That might be greying out Dolby as well. Not sure.

[PeterH]

My inputs are UK Sky TV, which is hardwired to 1Gb Router, XBox-X also hardwired, and Amazon FireTV.

From what I’ve read, it just doesn’t have the Dolby hardware

[z10user2]

Well, we’re talking about the TV Connector and it seems to be working for you and that’s what I expect it to do.
I did some reading and it seems to me that it can do Dolby 5.1 out the optical. But it needs the input and all the right settings to do it.

[PeterH]

I shall take another look.

So, for example, if my digital satellite box output is Dolby, it may appear as an option in the advanced settings of the TV?

[z10user2]

If your digital satellite box audio output is SET to Dolby and the show carries Dolby then have a look at that HDMI Input Audio Format for other options and then see if other options show up in the Digital Output Audio Format.
But again, what you have works for the V1. Dolby won’t.

[PeterH]

I can test it with the Roger TV units