How to Connect Speakers to Xbox One. (That Works)

While Xbox One is a great console to play games on, it can have issues with the sounds and audio. Since there are no standard 3.5mm jacks on the console, it gets difficult to use external speakers to get better sounds from your Xbox One.

So, if you are also having the same issue and want to get out of it, I am here to help. Here I will tell you how to connect speakers to Xbox one. I will go through several methods, choose the one that you like the most.

Let’s get going then-

How to connect speakers to Xbox one

Now, there are usually several ways to go about this. You can go for an AVR solution. Or you can go for the optical cable solution for your Xbox one. And before anything else, no, there is no way to use Bluetooth speakers or 3.5mm cables for this to work.

Let’s check out the different ways that you can try out for connecting your speakers to Xbox one.

1. Using AVR

AVR or Audio-video receiver is a device that helps you establish a connection between your devices and speakers to give you an authentic sound experience. Usually, home theater sound systems need to have an AVR even to work. And in this case, it works the same way.

Once you get an AVR, there are three ways to get the job done. One is to connect your AVR to your tv first. Then connect your Xbox One to your tv using an HDMI cable. Also, make sure to use HDMI cables to establish all the connections here. Otherwise, this doesn't work.

Another way is the direct connection of the AVR to your Xbox One. You connect your Xbox One to your AVR using an HDMI cable. And then connect your speakers to the AVR. This will give you the perfect sound experience you want to get. Keep in mind that you will still need to connect your AVR to your tv with an HDMI cable; otherwise, no video signals will pass through to your tv.

The last method is to use the optical out connection for your AVR. There should be a visual out option on Xbox one that lets you connect to audio devices. So, all you have to do is connect your speakers to the AVR and then connect the AVR to your Xbox One with the optical out connection.

This is an alternative to using HDMI cables, and it tends to produce better sounds when you use the optical cables instead of HDMI.

Related: how to connect subwoofer to receiver without subwoofer output

2. Using a TOS link cable 

For this to work, you will need a speaker or a soundbar with an optical out feature on it. Usually, soundbars have the feature by default, so you should be fine. And remember, this is the only way you can directly connect your speakers to the Xbox one console.

To do this, you need to buy a digital audio cable or optical cable, as they say. Connect the cable to the S/PDIF port on your Xbox One. Then connect the other end of the cable to your speaker or soundbar that you want to use. This should give you audio from the soundbar without any issues at all.

Also, make sure that you have connected your Xbox one to your tv or monitor using an HDMI cable; otherwise, you won't get video signals.

3. Using your TV as a receiver 

This isn't the most traditional solution to this problem, but this can work if your tv has Bluetooth or a 3.5mm port in it. It's pretty simple; you connect your Xbox One to your tv using the HDMI cable. Then, use a Bluetooth speaker and connect that to your tv; this should work for your output sounds.

You can also use a standard 3.5mm connection with your regular speakers. However, it's rare to find TVs with a 3.5mm jack connection. So, going for a Bluetooth speaker will be a better choice in most cases as most modern TVs come with Bluetooth features.

Related: How to connect soundbar to TV

4. Use external soundcard 

You can also go all technical to solve the issue pretty quickly. Just get an external sound card for your system. These usually come with a USB input, so you should be able to connect them to your Xbox One. Then, connect your speakers or audio devices to the sound card.

However, the only issue is that this isn't guaranteed to work as some sound cards may not be compatible with the Xbox one audio codecs. So, you will have to dig a little deep to find a soundcard compatible with the Xbox one.

5. Using Optical to RCA adapter

Here’s another sneaky trick that you can try out for getting sounds out of your Xbox one to your speakers. You get an adapter for the optical cable connection with the standard RCA connection of your speakers. Just connect your speakers to the optical cable adapter and use that to connect your speakers with Xbox one.

One issue with this is the sound quality may not be satisfying. Also, finding an optical to RCA adapter can be a daunting task to take at hand. So, you have to be aware of that before you opt for this method.

As you can see, there are several ways you can solve the issue for yourself. Your life will get much easier if you have a speaker with an optical out connection. Or if you have a tv with a Bluetooth feature. These won’t require too much cost or effort to get the job done.

Conclusion 

To sum up, now you know how to connect speakers to Xbox one. Some of them are pretty straightforward, and some are a bit complicated. With some of them, you may need to spend quite a lot; for example, the buying and AVR will cost you a reasonable sum of money. While going for the TOS cable shouldn’t cost too much.

Well, what you decide to do is up to you. Now that you know there are solutions to your problems, you can try them out to your liking and see what works for you the best.