Use Soundbar Mode

This article is for anyone who connects a TV, games console or other video source to Brane X with a cable. It explains what Soundbar Mode does, how to turn it on, what the green light tells you and how volume behaves. At the end, your wired sound stays in sync with the picture.

What Soundbar Mode does

Soundbar Mode was previously called AUX Passthrough. Normally, sound from the 3.5mm AUX input passes through the speaker’s digital processing before it is played, which adds a small delay. That does not matter for music, but with video it can put speech out of step with the picture.

With Soundbar Mode on, the speaker limits that processing for the AUX signal to cut the delay. Brane X then behaves like a wired analog speaker, with no delay to correct.

Turn it on

1. Open your speaker in the Brane Audio app. The app reaches the speaker over Bluetooth or over Wi-Fi, so either connection works.
2. Go to Input Options.
3. Turn on Soundbar Mode.

Soundbar Mode is off by default. It only applies while the speaker is receiving audio through the AUX port, so you can leave it on without affecting other connection types.

Check the green light

A solid green light on the front of the speaker means two things at once: Soundbar Mode is on, and the speaker is receiving a wired signal on its AUX input. Turning the mode on is not enough to light it.

• Green light on: the wired signal is arriving and playing.
• No green light with Soundbar Mode on: no signal is reaching the AUX input. Check that the source is playing, that the cable is pushed in fully at both ends and that the TV is set to the audio output you connected. With an HDMI or optical adapter, see Fix no sound from an HDMI or optical adapter.
• A wireless source is playing: Bluetooth, AirPlay, Spotify and Alexa take over from AUX while they play. Stop them to hear the wired source again.

How volume works

• In Soundbar Mode, the volume buttons on the speaker do not change the volume of the AUX signal. They still set the volume of voice prompts and of other sources such as Bluetooth and AirPlay.
• Change the volume at the source: the TV remote, or the control on your HDMI or optical adapter.
• Input Options also has Max Volume, which appears while Soundbar Mode is on. It sets the maximum volume for AUX audio. Because the volume is set at the source, Max Volume decides how loud the speaker is when the source is at 100%. It starts at 75%. You can raise it, but a higher setting can let white noise (hiss) through, so adjust it while the source plays at your usual listening volume.

Good to know

• Groups. Wireless sources and wireless groups are not affected by leaving Soundbar Mode on. What does not work is playing a wired AUX source to a group while Soundbar Mode is on, because cutting the delay removes the buffering that keeps grouped speakers in step. For stereo TV sound over cables, wire one channel to each speaker. See Set up a stereo pair with your TV.
• Wireless sources come first. Bluetooth, AirPlay, Spotify and Alexa still work in Soundbar Mode. They take priority over the AUX input, with the mode on or off, so the wired source plays only while no wireless source is active.

When to leave it off

For music from a wired source, such as a record player, the normal AUX input is fine and the speaker’s volume buttons work as usual. Leave Soundbar Mode off if you want a wired source to play across a speaker group. See Connect with an AUX cable.

Related

• Connect Brane X to your TV
• Fix no sound from an HDMI or optical adapter
• Soundbar Mode in the Brane X guide

Still stuck? In the Brane Audio app, go to Resources > Help & Contact, or contact support and tell us what you have tried so far.