HDMI audio extractors are an excellent way to improve the sound quality throughout your entertainment room or home theater system (see also the best 7.1 home theater setups). When you need to add additional stereo speakers or use a range of different audio equipment, making use of a quality HDMI audio extractor –to separate the video and audio signals running through a single HDMI signal — can improve your listening experience very significantly. There are many different HDMI audio extractors in the market. Some of them are good, others not so much. It is essential to choose a high-quality extractor that won’t degrade the sound quality or video resolution when it extracts the audio signal from the HDMI input!

The extractor is not HDCP 2.2 compliant and doesn’t support HDR. Also, it doesn’t support 4K/60Hz resolution.Some HDMI audio extractors can extract both 1080p video signals and surround sound formats, which is helpful for feeding the video output to a large LED screen.

When selecting your HDMI audio extraction solution, be sure you have an output format that is compatible with it. RCA and 3.5mm are convertible as analog audio signals. As digital signals, Digital optical and HDMI are not convertible without the hardware to decrypt them. With Tendak, a single HDMI input connects to one output, SPDIF, and digital audio output 5.1CH setting and 2CH setting. It also comes with a 3.5mm RCA audio cable. SPDIF supports output separately to an audio connection without the need of connecting to a monitor. It has an input resolution of 1080p/60Hz 3D/24Hz. In addition, the product supports deep color 30 bit, 24 bit, and 36 bit for all channels. The product is compatible with many devices including Chromecast without having a dedicated audio output. Some of the devices are desktop, laptops PS3 and PS4, and many more. iArkPower A0301 is a little bit different than the previously mentioned extractors. It’s a little bit more capable, it can serve as an HDMI switch (multiple HDMI inputs), it supports ARC (only optical port) and, just like the previous extractors, it can output stereo and 5.1 surround sound. It’s slightly pricier than the previous HDMI audio extractors, but it’s worth it. What’s in the box?

It also supports video pass-through thanks to the HDMI output. The max supported resolution is 4K/30Hz (or 1080p/60Hz). 3D video pass-thru is also supported. The max supported bandwidth is 300MHz/3Gbps per channel (9Gbps all channel). Speaking of ports and compatibility, you’ve already figured out that there are four different audio outputs for your devices. (With the bulk of them being digital audio outputs) Unfortunately, when it comes to input devices, the same cannot be said since this audio extractor-converter only supports one HDMI input. Optical port delivers great 5.1 audio separation and HDMI port deliver Dolby Digital surround sound If your TV does have one, then you can simply run a male to male 3.5 mm cable from the TV to your speakers. However, if your TV does not have a 3.5 mm port, only HDMI ARC, then an easy solution would be to buy an RCA to 3.5 mm converter or cable. These cables are only a few pounds, and that would be the easiest and cheapest solution. Here are a few things you need to keep in mind. 1. An HDMI audio extractor should not degrade the signal quality

Lastly, we then used the best headphones splitter to connect the base unit of the Sony WH-L600 Headphones to the audio out of the J-Tech Digital 4K 60 Hz HDMI Audio Extractor. We know it doesn’t sound simple, but once you do it, you’ll understand what we are talking about. Also, the 4K quality of the TV’s video did not get affected. The simplest scenario that involves an HDMI audio extractor is when you have to route audio from an HDMI-only source to an audio-only receiver. If you are an audiophile in addition to being a cinephile, this might apply to you. For example, if you have a soundbar connected to your TV via HDMI, you can use your TV’s remote to control the audio on the soundbar, and vice versa. It’s definitely a lot more convenient to use, the alternative would be having two remotes for each device which is a hassle. The extractor can pull stereo or 5.1 sound. The supported surround sound formats in 5.1 mode are PCM/LPCM, Dolby Digital 5.1, and DTS 5.1. Other, more advanced formats, are not supported. If you want DD+ support or DTS-HD support, you need to set the EDID switch to ‘’pass’’ and use the HDMI output. J-Tech has two audio outputs – RCA and TOSLINK. RCA outputs support only 2.0 audio, while the TOSLINK output supports 5.1 (Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, and LPCM 5.1). If you want to output DD+ or some other surround sound format, you have to use the HDMI video output. TOSLINK port and HDMI output support the ARC feature.

Buyers Guide

One of the most significant disadvantages of the gadget is that it requires manual switching, which may be inconvenient for some users. While switching between devices, there may be resolution or audio signal mismatches in some cases. This HDMI audio extractor is an excellent choice for surround sound speaker systems, soundbars, and headphones with stereo output. When it comes to extractions, there are two types of HDMI, and they are classified as audio output (only AUX and RCA outputs) and audio-video outputs, referred to as surround sound. Therefore, you must select a suitable kind of HDMI audio extractor for your needs. 2. Features & Specifications ViewHD switch, just like all the others on this list, is small and compact. This one is a little bit more eye-catching because of the bright yellow color of the housing, but that should not be a deal-breaker. The control and input/output layouts are fairly clean and simple. On the front panel, you have all the buttons and indicators. There are 6 buttons (power, auto switch, 3 output buttons, and a switch button for shifting between inputs). There are also the LED indicators for each input and each output.