Set up a stereo pair with your TV

This article is for anyone with two Brane X speakers who wants left and right TV sound. It covers the three ways to connect and the wiring for each type of TV port. At the end, one speaker plays the left channel and the other plays the right. For a single speaker, read Connect Brane X to your TV.

Which should I choose?

• Your TV can connect to Bluetooth speakers: pair the TV with a stereo pair. It covers everything the TV plays, but you may need to correct an audio delay.
• You have an Apple TV and mostly stream: use AirPlay to a stereo pair. It is wireless, in sync and gives you true stereo separation.
• Neither applies, or you use a games console or disc player: wire each speaker to one channel and use Soundbar Mode. In this route the speakers are not grouped.

If the speakers stay by the TV, you can leave them plugged in and powered on. Park RAD on Idle, in the Brane Audio app under Advanced Settings, is off by default. Turning it on lets the speaker park its bass driver after 5 minutes idle to cut power draw. When playback restarts, bass is reduced until the driver has finished pressurizing.

Option 1: Bluetooth from the TV

What you need for Bluetooth

• A TV that can connect to Bluetooth speakers.
• Both speakers on the same Wi-Fi network. Grouping needs Wi-Fi even when the sound arrives over Bluetooth.

Steps for Bluetooth

1. In the Brane Audio app, open Groups, tap Create New Group and select the two speakers. Choose Stereo, then set one speaker’s slider to the left and the other’s to the right.
2. Press the Bluetooth button on one of the two speakers. Its blue light starts pulsing.
3. On the TV, open the Bluetooth settings and select that speaker.
4. Play something. The speaker you paired shares the sound with the other one.

Limits of Bluetooth

• Bluetooth adds a delay. Look in the TV’s sound settings for a correction, often called Lip Sync, Wireless Delay or Latency Mode. Not every TV has one, and a fixed correction may not line up exactly.
• Bluetooth to a group is more sensitive to wireless interference than AirPlay. If one speaker drops out briefly, it rejoins once it is back in sync.

Bluetooth sets the audio output of the TV itself, so it carries every device connected to the TV.

Option 2: AirPlay from an Apple TV

What you need for AirPlay

• An Apple TV 4K streaming box.
• Both speakers on the same Wi-Fi network as the Apple TV.

Steps for AirPlay

1. In the Brane Audio app, open Groups, tap Create New Group and select the two speakers. Choose Stereo, then set one speaker’s slider to the left and the other’s to the right.
2. On the Apple TV, open Settings.
3. Go to Video and Audio, then Audio Output.
4. Choose the group. The stereo pair appears on the Apple TV as one AirPlay speaker under the group’s name, not the names of the individual speakers, and you can choose it as the audio output, including as the default.

On tvOS 26 or later, the Apple TV can keep an AirPlay speaker you choose here as its default audio output, including after it sleeps and wakes. To switch speakers for one session only, press and hold the TV button on the remote to open Control Center, then select Audio Controls.

Limits of AirPlay

• AirPlay only carries what the Apple TV itself plays. A games console, disc player or the TV’s built-in apps need one of the other options.
• Smart TVs that list AirPlay support can only receive AirPlay. They cannot send their sound to AirPlay speakers.
• System alerts and game sounds from the Apple TV still play through the TV’s own speakers.
• On tvOS earlier than 26, the selection resets when the Apple TV sleeps. Update tvOS, or choose the group again after each sleep.
• If the group is not offered under Audio Output, check that both speakers show a solid white Wi-Fi light and are on the same network as the Apple TV, then update the Apple TV to the latest tvOS.

Option 3: Wired, one channel per speaker

Soundbar Mode (previously called AUX Passthrough) makes each Brane X behave like a wired analog speaker. Soundbar Mode cuts the delay by limiting the speaker’s digital processing, and that removes the buffering wireless groups depend on. A wired source therefore cannot be grouped while Soundbar Mode is on, so the stereo split is done by the cabling: the left channel goes to one speaker and the right channel to the other.

What you need for a wired pair

Every route ends the same way. A stereo RCA cable carries left (white) and right (red) on separate plugs, and an RCA to 3.5mm adapter on each plug goes into the AUX input on the back of one speaker. What comes before that depends on your TV.

TV with RCA audio outputs (red and white). This is the simplest route, though fewer TVs have these ports now.

1. TV RCA audio outputs
2. Stereo RCA cable
3. Two RCA to 3.5mm adapters, one per plug
4. One Brane X on each adapter

TV with a 3.5mm headphone or audio output. This should work the same way as the RCA connection.

1. TV 3.5mm output
2. 3.5mm to RCA splitter cable (one stereo plug to separate left and right RCA)
3. Two RCA to 3.5mm adapters, one per plug
4. One Brane X on each adapter

Do not use a plain headphone splitter here. It sends the same stereo signal to both speakers and does not separate left from right.

TV with an HDMI ARC or eARC port.

1. TV HDMI port labeled ARC or eARC
2. HDMI cable
3. HDMI ARC audio extractor with RCA outputs
4. Stereo RCA cable
5. Two RCA to 3.5mm adapters, one per plug
6. One Brane X on each adapter

TV with an optical (TOSLINK) output.

1. TV optical output
2. Optical cable
3. Optical-to-analog converter (DAC) with RCA outputs
4. Stereo RCA cable
5. Two RCA to 3.5mm adapters, one per plug
6. One Brane X on each adapter

More on cables and adapters in the TV setup questions on the TV setup page.

Steps for a wired pair

1. If the speakers are in a group, remove them from it in the Brane Audio app.
2. Connect the chain for your TV’s port. Put the speaker on the white plug on the left and the speaker on the red plug on the right.
3. In the Brane Audio app, open each speaker, go to Input Options and turn on Soundbar Mode. Do this on both speakers. See Use Soundbar Mode.
4. If your TV asks which audio output to use, choose the one you connected. For HDMI or optical, set the TV’s audio format to PCM.
5. Play something. A solid green light on the front of each speaker shows that its wired signal is arriving. If one side is louder, check that Max Volume, under Input Options, is the same on both speakers in the app.

Limits of a wired pair

• HDMI only works from the TV’s ARC or eARC port, and some TVs have an ARC setting that must be switched on.
• With an HDMI or optical adapter, the TV must send PCM. Most TVs are set to Auto out of the box and some to 5.1, which gives silence or distorted sound. See Fix no sound from an HDMI or optical adapter.
• Wireless sources take priority over AUX. The wired signal plays only while no Bluetooth, AirPlay, Spotify or Alexa playback is active on a speaker.
• No green light on a speaker with Soundbar Mode on means no signal is reaching it. Check its plug, adapter and cable.

Still stuck? Contact support and tell us what you have tried so far.