TechAudioWhat is HDMI eARC? Enhanced audio return channel explainedWant the best quality and least hassle when connecting your TV to a soundbar? HDMI ARC and eARC are your friendsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
TechAudioWhat is HDMI eARC? Enhanced audio return channel explainedWant the best quality and least hassle when connecting your TV to a soundbar? HDMI ARC and eARC are your friendsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Want the best quality and least hassle when connecting your TV to a soundbar? HDMI ARC and eARC are your friends
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Dennis Fischer Photography / Getty)
(Image credit: Dennis Fischer Photography / Getty)
The audio-visual world loves an acronym, so if you’ve heard about HDMI ARC or eARC and have been left scratching your head as to what these mean, then worry no more as we explain through these terms' meanings and importance.
HDMI actually stands for High-Definition Multimedia Interface, but the acronym, which is also a trademark, is so commonly used that you’ll probably never hear anyone blurt out the full-blown expression.
In its simplest terms: HDMI is used to transmit uncompressed video and audio data between devices, such as betweenthe best TVsand a Blu-ray player, games console, soundbar, and so forth.
What is ARC?
(Image credit: Samsung)
(Image credit: Samsung)
HDMI has evolved over the years, with HDMI 1.4 bringing ARC, or Audio Return Channel, into the mix back in 2009. It’s remained in every specification ever since then.
ARC is especially useful when pairing one of thebest soundbarsto a TV, for example, as you can adjust the volume of your TV and that will sync with the soundbar setup automatically. No need for multiple volume controllers for the two different products – simply use your TV remote.
However, most TVs only feature one solitary HDMI port marked with ‘ARC’, so you’ll need to ensure you use that port to connect devices with an HDMI cable, otherwise it won’t work properly.
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What about eARC?
(Image credit: Samsung)
(Image credit: Samsung)
A decade after ARC launched, the HDMI 2.1 specification arrived, including eARC, which stands for Enhanced Audio Return Channel.
The ‘enhanced’ part of the acronym is the key point here: eARC can handle higher bandwidth sound formats, meaning up to 32 channels of audio at up to 24-bit 192kHz can be sent uncompressed.
And HDMI 2.1?
(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
It’s not just eARC that came as part of the HDMI 2.1 package though, which, at the time of writing is the most current format.
HDMI 2.1 is important for new-gen gaming – if you’re usingPlayStation 5orXbox Series X– because it supports 4K resolution at up to 120Hz for the smoothest refresh rates, including compatibility withvariable refresh rate (VRR)and auto low-latency mode (ALLM).
There’s even more future-proofing in HDMI 2.1, too, as it supports 8K resolution up to 60Hz. The previous HDMI 2.0 only supported half that frame rate: 4K at 60fps and 8K at 30fps, so the seemingly small ‘0.1’ is a big jump forward.
In 2022 the HDMI Forum also released version 2.1a of the HDMI specification, which includes Source-Based Tone Mapping (SBTM) to allow a source device to control high dynamic range (HDR) mapping instead of the display device.
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