Bluetooth transmitter for my TV
December 31, 2014 8:46 AM Subscribe
I want to be able to watch TV with headphones on. I already have a pair of bluetooth headphones that I use with my tablet at the gym so I thought it would be a good route to go but I can't find much information about adding transmitters to a TV. So far in my researches I've only seen portable battery powered bluetooth transmitters. Are there socket powered transmitters? Are they any good? What should I look for?
In terms of a price ceiling I can always just get Wirecutter's cheap pick which is two headsets and a radio transmitter for about $80 or the Sennheiser recommended at the bottom of this question from 2009 for about the same.
In terms of a price ceiling I can always just get Wirecutter's cheap pick which is two headsets and a radio transmitter for about $80 or the Sennheiser recommended at the bottom of this question from 2009 for about the same.
I was trying to do the same thing a couple of years ago and bought this device from Sony. It worked, but the audio lag/latency was intolerable so I returned it. Googling a bit suggests that this is an issue with Bluetooth, though it appears that the lag isn't as pronounced for some hardware.
posted by yqxnflld at 10:18 AM on December 31, 2014
posted by yqxnflld at 10:18 AM on December 31, 2014
I don't know if the 3.5mm jack (or RCA-stereo pair) is going to provide nearly enough power for a bluetooth transmitter. (although... if the tv internal speaker circuit is rated at maybe 3W, and, say the bluetooth doodad wants 5V, that's 600mA, which in theory should be plenty) - but, I haven't been able to find any device like that, much as I want one my own-self.
I've been considering the same thing, and looking at this one which seems to be the most popular/well-reviewed. it says it can be used while charging, which is obvs good. but doesn't come with an actual charger, so a cheap usb5V brick/wallwart would be necessary. hell with it, I ordered one, I'll write back with my experience over the weekend.
semi-related: I've used some bluetooth speakers that store up to 8 pairings, and some bluetooth headsets that only store 1. so switching between tablet and tv could be a constant re-pairing inconvenience, depending on what your headset supports.
semi-related: mid-price (BEM cube) and higher-range (supertooth disco v1) speakers have been great for me. but super-cheapie headsets I've used always had super-annoying lag.
also, most (all?) bluetooth transmitters are not going to support more than 1 speaker, so if you are occasionally going to want more than 1 headset, the sennheiser products I've tried are not bad.
posted by dorian at 10:24 AM on December 31, 2014
I've been considering the same thing, and looking at this one which seems to be the most popular/well-reviewed. it says it can be used while charging, which is obvs good. but doesn't come with an actual charger, so a cheap usb5V brick/wallwart would be necessary. hell with it, I ordered one, I'll write back with my experience over the weekend.
semi-related: I've used some bluetooth speakers that store up to 8 pairings, and some bluetooth headsets that only store 1. so switching between tablet and tv could be a constant re-pairing inconvenience, depending on what your headset supports.
semi-related: mid-price (BEM cube) and higher-range (supertooth disco v1) speakers have been great for me. but super-cheapie headsets I've used always had super-annoying lag.
also, most (all?) bluetooth transmitters are not going to support more than 1 speaker, so if you are occasionally going to want more than 1 headset, the sennheiser products I've tried are not bad.
posted by dorian at 10:24 AM on December 31, 2014
My understanding is that non-bluetooth RF wireless headphones don't have the lag issue that bluetooth ones do, so you might look into those if that's a concern.
posted by Aleyn at 11:21 AM on December 31, 2014
posted by Aleyn at 11:21 AM on December 31, 2014
I was trying to do the same thing a couple of years ago and bought this device from Sony. It worked, but the audio lag/latency was intolerable so I returned it. Googling a bit suggests that this is an issue with Bluetooth, though it appears that the lag isn't as pronounced for some hardware.
posted by yqxnflld at 1:18 PM on December 31 [+] [!]
I tried this for a couple of years, so that I could watch TV at a loud enough volume to hear and understand when I am on a treadmill. I must have spent a couple of hundred dollars on various dongles and transmitters and headphones. In the end, the lag got me every time. I hope you have better luck.
posted by Slap Factory at 3:39 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by yqxnflld at 1:18 PM on December 31 [+] [!]
I tried this for a couple of years, so that I could watch TV at a loud enough volume to hear and understand when I am on a treadmill. I must have spent a couple of hundred dollars on various dongles and transmitters and headphones. In the end, the lag got me every time. I hope you have better luck.
posted by Slap Factory at 3:39 PM on December 31, 2014
that's been the thing with my cheap headset - used with a phone it's ok, b/c if you're only listening to music, there's no video to notice the difference from. or a voice call, eh, we're all used to occasional slight weirdnesses/delays talking on phones.
using my headset for tv/film in the past, was always with a computer/BT and XBMC, so it was possible to adjust the audio delay +/- as needed - still an annoyance, but possible.
(although it was never a constant difference - it would progressively creep one way, and once you'd fixed adjusting, start to creep the other way, continue ad nauseam.)
what I plan to test when the TaoTronics doodad arrives, is going to be a little weird - I don't even know where my headset is, plus it's junk anyway. so I'm going to try to pair the BEM cube, which will be neat if that works because:
- I've never once had a lag issue with the cube (of course, combined with the doodad, may be a different story, we'll see...)
- the cube is one of the very few BT speakers that has an aux-out 3.5mm, i.e. you can attach basically any of your favorite analog-stereo headphones/earbuds. obvs this reduces battery runtime a bit.
(although honestly it is so small yet with beyond-amazing stereo and a wonderfully-impossible tiny-rumbly-bumblebee bass, you can basically put it in your lap or next to you, and you'll get great sound that won't carry enough to bother others, headphones unnecessary)
((sadly the price of the cube mostly sticks at 2x of what it should do; there are quite often discount sales, but they are random / unpredictable))
posted by dorian at 4:29 AM on January 1, 2015
using my headset for tv/film in the past, was always with a computer/BT and XBMC, so it was possible to adjust the audio delay +/- as needed - still an annoyance, but possible.
(although it was never a constant difference - it would progressively creep one way, and once you'd fixed adjusting, start to creep the other way, continue ad nauseam.)
what I plan to test when the TaoTronics doodad arrives, is going to be a little weird - I don't even know where my headset is, plus it's junk anyway. so I'm going to try to pair the BEM cube, which will be neat if that works because:
- I've never once had a lag issue with the cube (of course, combined with the doodad, may be a different story, we'll see...)
- the cube is one of the very few BT speakers that has an aux-out 3.5mm, i.e. you can attach basically any of your favorite analog-stereo headphones/earbuds. obvs this reduces battery runtime a bit.
(although honestly it is so small yet with beyond-amazing stereo and a wonderfully-impossible tiny-rumbly-bumblebee bass, you can basically put it in your lap or next to you, and you'll get great sound that won't carry enough to bother others, headphones unnecessary)
((sadly the price of the cube mostly sticks at 2x of what it should do; there are quite often discount sales, but they are random / unpredictable))
posted by dorian at 4:29 AM on January 1, 2015
so, the TAO doodad is about 1/2 the size of a pack of gum. "charge the battery 2-4 hours before using" - hrmm... given the thing weighs about as much as air, it's kinda-sorta hard to believe there's any battery in there at all. srsly it doesn't weigh as much as a pack of gum, it doesn't even seem to weigh as much as a single stick of gum. but, ok, 4 hours it is.
situation: spamazon-FireTV -> hdmi -> actual-LED/TV -> 3.5mm jack -> TAO-bluetooth-thingy -> BT BEM cube. it. rocks.
NB: from the manual: will only pair with devices with PINs of: 0000, 1111, 1234, 8888. I know from personal experience that there are devices with NO/zero/blank pin, so, beware. it had no problem pairing with the BEM cube.
the mini-USB charge port seems designed to fail (jeez c'mon guyz have you heard about this thing called duty cycles?) - lucky for me, the charger is never going to leave its side.
so far, there is no lag. none. voice (but not overall audio) is slightly muddy fwiw. BEM cube FTW.
posted by dorian at 1:10 PM on January 3, 2015
situation: spamazon-FireTV -> hdmi -> actual-LED/TV -> 3.5mm jack -> TAO-bluetooth-thingy -> BT BEM cube. it. rocks.
NB: from the manual: will only pair with devices with PINs of: 0000, 1111, 1234, 8888. I know from personal experience that there are devices with NO/zero/blank pin, so, beware. it had no problem pairing with the BEM cube.
the mini-USB charge port seems designed to fail (jeez c'mon guyz have you heard about this thing called duty cycles?) - lucky for me, the charger is never going to leave its side.
so far, there is no lag. none. voice (but not overall audio) is slightly muddy fwiw. BEM cube FTW.
posted by dorian at 1:10 PM on January 3, 2015
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This one claims to be low latency and, while it is battery powered, will work while charging (USB though).
posted by zinon at 10:16 AM on December 31, 2014