Pease see my responses below: @Andy2005 -- let's go back...

[Andy2005]

Pease see my responses below:

@Andy2005 -- let's go back to a "standard" configuration:

1. disconnect all the cables from your sound-bar, except the electrical power. Done

2. set your PVR's audio-output to go through the HDMI cable. Done

3. set your TV to its internal speakers. Done

4. Tune to a TV station, to confirm that the PVR's audio-output goes to the TV's built-in speakers. OK? Yes

5. On your smart-TV, access Netflix, to confirm that its audio-output goes to the TV's built-in speakers. OK? Yes

6. On your TV, return to audio/video input from your PVR. Do you still get audio-output to the TV's built-in speakers? Yes

7. Connect the optical-output from the TV to the optical-input on the sound-bar. Power-on the sound-bar. If the sound-bar has its own volume-control, maximize it. Do you still get the audio-output from your PVR only to the TV's built-in speakers? Yes Or, to both the TV's speakers and the sound-bar, or only to the sound-bar? Not Both

8. If you "mute" the TV's built-in speakers, do you get audio-output from the PVR to the sound-bar? No

9. Unmute the TV's built-in speakers. Done

10. Switch to Netflix. Done

11. Do you still get the audio-output only to the TV's built-in speakers? Yes Or, to both the TV's speakers and the sound-bar, or only to the sound-bar? No

12. If you "mute" the TV's built-in speakers, do you get audio-output from Netflix to the sound-bar? No

13. Switch your smart-TV back to audio/video input from the PVR. ? If you mean switch PVR audio setting from HDMI to PCM then I did this. Lost all sound

14. On your TV, configure the audio-output from the "default" (internal speakers) to the "external" output (to the sound-bar). No sound from TV

15. Do you get the PVR's audio-output onto only the TV's speakers, only to the sound-bar, or to both? No sound on either on PCM setting. Switched PVR setting back to HDMI but still no sound on either TV or SB. Tried witching SB fro Optical setting to HDMI - still no change.. Switched PVR setting back to PCM - no sound.

16. Switch the TV to Netflix. No sound

17. Do you get Netflix's audio-output onto only to the TV's speakers, only to the sound-bar, or to both? No sound on either

If I switch SB to HDI setting I still didn't get sound on either Regular TV or through Netflix.  If Switch SB setting to Optical then got sound through SB for regular TV only (no Netflix)

Tell us which of the above steps give the expected output.

[Habsfan1]

You state your sound bar works for Netflix when optical cable is connected from the tv to the sound bar, does the regular tv, meaning what you watch on your Pvr box not produce sound on the sound bar with the same setup? That is basically my set up with a Shaw box connected to tv with HDMI and optical cable from tv to , in my case an amplifier, which is the same as a sound bar and I never change anything except the source of viewing on the tv. I also use the radio player app on the tv and listen to music with the same setup.

I have read thru all the posts but did not see where it was mentioned when you have sound from your tv on Netflix to your sound bar working , if you regular tv (Pvr) sound also works . My set up is Sony tv , onkyo stereo, Shaw blue curve Pvr, also have an Amazon fire stick connected to tv and all sound comes thru the stereo. Wiring is cable to Pvr box, HDMI from Pvr to tv hdmi#1(not the arc one) optical tv out to stereo optical in. Easy clean setup.

good luck

[mdk]

@Andy2005 --

13. Switch your smart-TV back to audio/video input from the PVR. ? If you mean switch PVR audio setting from HDMI to PCM then I did this. Lost all sound

14. On your TV, configure the audio-output from the "default" (internal speakers) to the "external" output (to the sound-bar). No sound from TV

==================

My response to #13 is "not, that is not what I meant". I mean to use the "input" control on your TV to select input from the HDMI cable, rather than input from the Netflix app on your smart-TV.

Since you did what you did in #13, instead of what I tried to get you to do, your outcome from #14 & #15 is what I, not you, expected.

Please repeat steps #1 to #12, and then do what I meant for you to do in #13, and continue to provide feedback?

[mdk]

@Habsfan1 -- I never change anything except the source of viewing on the TV

I think that you are "fortunate" that your SONY TV automatically outputs through the optical cable, whenever it detects that the optical cable is connected to a device, i.e., no need for you to manually change anything to "divert" the audio-output, because the TV is recognizing that because you have connected an optical cable to your TV, it will always be active.

[Andy2005]

I have spent way too much time trying to solve this issue and so have you.  I appreciate you and everyone else who has tried to help me out but I finally decided to return the unit.  What was the last straw was having my son bring his Samsung sound bar. I plugged it in, hooked up the optical cable exactly the same way I had done with the Bomaker sound bar and yes, you guess it - everything worked fine. No switching of cables required no switching back and forth with settings. The sound bar worked instantly with sound from regular TV (through PVR) and also when viewing Netflix.  The way everything should work.  We won't know whether there was actually something wrong with the sound bar or not or was simply not compatible but the fact remains it just didn't work for me while another sound bar did. End of story.

Thanks again for everyone's help

[edetcetera]

Was your problem ever solved? I just found this 2 years later, but was your cable box plugged into the HDMI ARC input on your TV?

If you are using a media amplifier first, are you using the ARC plugin. If not you should be. ARC stands for "Audio Return Channel," introduced in 2009 to strip audio so that you don't need to run cables back and forth to get audio after HDMI separation in TV. There is a lot of benefit from using the ARC feature. You can google HDMI ARC for more info if your equipment manual doesn't have this information.