You will find out whether the monitor you want to buy has in-built speakers or not. Because let’s face it. Not all monitors you find in the market have speakers in them. This leads to a problem that most users experience.
How do you get sound from monitors that don’t have speakers?
If the monitor you want to purchase doesn’t have speakers but has other features that make your gaming, cinema, or even video conferencing experiences worth it, you don’t have to forego it.
There are always ways you can adopt to get sound out of it. And in the end, you will save some cash since any monitor that comes with speakers might come at a higher cost than the one that doesn’t have one. Additionally, the built-in speakers may also fail to give you the high-quality immersive sound you would love to hear when doing some of the abovementioned activities.
So, for our article today, we will give you five practical solutions you can use to get sound from a monitor that doesn’t have speakers.
How do I get sound from my monitor if it has no speakers?
Once you’ve verified that your monitor does not have any speakers, you can use the following methods to get the type of sound you want.
1. Wireless connectivity
Wireless connectivity is one of the easiest and the most recommended ways of getting sound from your monitor, especially in a world where people prefer not to use cables nowadays. If you have a wireless speaker, headphones, or a home theater system, you need to pair the monitor with it.
Power the speaker (or whichever device you are using), and make it discoverable. On the computer, click the start button>settings>Devices> Bluetooth & other devices > Add Bluetooth or other device > Bluetooth. Select the device, which should be ready to pair by now. It should prompt automatic pairing.
On the other hand, if your monitor doesn’t have Bluetooth, you can buy a USB to Bluetooth or a Bluetooth Adapter. To connect, you need to attach the adapter to the USB port on your monitor, and your Bluetooth speaker or headphone will link to it immediately.
2. Use an HDMI Audio Extractor
Compared to component AV cables, HDMI is a more desirable method of transmitting video and sound from a console to a monitor. These cables consist of a single cable that carries uncompressed audio and video digital (or High Definition) signals to output devices.
However, if your monitor doesn’t have speakers, getting quality surround sound and 3D audio by directly connecting the source device to your monitor might be impossible. Sometimes, the audio might be unavailable, depending on the device.
Investing in an HDMI audio extractor can solve the problem eventually. The device splits the audio from the video signal while maintaining the quality of both outputs.
In this case, you will need one cable to connect the splitter to the source device and two other cables that run from the splitter to the audio and monitor, respectively.
Ensure that you connect the wires appropriately to get a quality audio output.
3. Primary device’s audio connection
The primary role of any monitor is to display the video signals. If the monitor is not compatible with most of the audio connections available, another option is to use the audio connection on your primary device. This means you will use your monitor to display video signals only in this case.
For instance, if you are using a gaming console, the sound doesn’t have to go to the monitor. You can connect the device directly to your soundbar, headphones, or amplifier via the available audio output connectors on the console.
The device can also have different ports, including a 3.5mm for connecting with headphones, optical ports, or via the RCA audio jacks. By the way, most devices have one or two audio output options.
4. Using Audio Connection jack on the monitor
This is another simple way of getting audio from your monitor. Compared to the wireless connection, you will need to buy an aux cable in this case. The cable connects the monitor to your external speaker source or the amplifier.
Typically, most monitor brands come with a 3.5mm jack to connect headphones and speakers. In some cases, however, the monitor may have two separate jacks for the headphone and speakers. A wrong connection leads to distortion and poor audio quality. Hence, if possible, read the user manual to avoid this problem.
Apart from the aux cables, standard multi-port cables and component cables (or RGB cables) can be excellent alternatives. Both ensure high audio quality transmission and are preferred when connecting gaming consoles.
5. Using an optical out cable connection
The last option you can use is this one. Optical out connectivity transmits high-quality digital audio between connected devices using light, like in this case, a monitor and a gaming console or DVD player. The difference between them and component cables is that they are not prone to radio frequency interference.
Using this connectivity can bring significant benefits to the audio quality of your headphones or speaker. However, connecting the cable to your gaming console or audio source directly might assist in obtaining a better output than when you connect to the monitor.
Relevant FAQ you may have.
Does HDMI carry sound to monitors?
Yes, it does. Generally, HDMI (the short form for High Definition Media Interface) is a single cable that carries both video and audio signals from the source device to a TV or monitor. However, people ask this question whenever there’s no audio output once they connect the monitor to the audio source.
So how do you deal with this?
It will depend on the device you are using. If it’s a TV, you might check the HDMI signal format settings, configure the source device and your TV, or perform a power reset. If all these fail, buying a new TV is the other option.
| Read More – Best digital voice recorders for journalists and reporters – Best digital voice recorders for the blind and visually impaired |
Wrapping it up.
As you can see from the guide above, if your monitor does not come with speakers, there are a few ways you can get around this and still get sound out of the host system. These ways may be clunky and require additional gear to be purchased and connected. Nevertheless, we shared that, if your monitor is speakerless, it’s not the end of the world and there are many solutions that can help. Best wishes.