MAMEWorld Forums - The Loony Bin - Re: HDTV + external speakers?

> I was just wondering if it was possible to use external speakers with an HDTV without
> using a receiver. I want to get my father an HDTV but I need to rig up some kind of
> speakers because he has bad hearing. However, I don't want him to have to juggle two
> remotes.
>
> I did some more digging since my original post and I found one brand so far, Vizio,
> that seems to offer an audio out with a "Variable" setting on most of their TVs so
> that you can control the volume with the normal TV remote.

Maybe a sound bar would be a good solution? Most of them seem to accept optical input, so all you'd need is a optical cable from the TV to the bar. Some of them get a little spendy, but if you don't need anything fancy, a basic 2.0 system seems pretty reasonable.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Home-Theater-Systems/Sound-Bars/abcat0205007.c?id=abcat0205007

Just know what you're getting into... my grandfather was hard of hearing in the last years of his life and refused to get a hearing aid. My aunt hooked him up with a nice home theater system, which was great for him, but intolerable for anyone else in the room. At his comfortable listening level, your best bet was to crack a window and sit in the front yard.