I did this and put a Mini by the couch where I watch TV. I can hear better and listen at a lower sound level at night, which people in other rooms trying to sleep do appreciate.
What if I put the two HomePod minis on my night stands in a bedroom, kinda like a his and hers right next to the bed, you might not need the volume level that high either, especially for night viewing when you don’t want to disturb the rest of the house at night
I’ve been using HomePod minis paired up to my Apple TV 4K for a few months now, definitely highly recommend. They were lacking low end so I bought a klipsch sub and used a airport express second gen for airplay 2 second hand. And with all three it sounds really good. And cheaper than 2 large HomePod minis.
We have our regular HomePods paired with a 4K 2nd gen Apple TV. Works well! And with ARC/eARC, all of the connected devices can now play audio through the HomePods. We have a few HomePod Minis as well throughout our home.
I just got one HomePod mini and, while the sound is good, it’s not quite loud enough. I’m debating whether to add a 2nd mini, or go with a single big HomePod. How do you like the sound of the two minis? Do they sound loud enough?
@davep6603 I would go with a single HomePod. The HomePod has 5 speakers and a sub. It can do Dolby Atmos and has the low end that the mini doesn’t have.
I wish the full size homepods weren't discontinued, I missed out on those. I do use a pair of Mini's as the speakers on the family living room Apple TV setup and they work great. I don't have mine right by the tv though, they're spread out in the room more and I find it really gives a more immersive sound that way, for their size.
Yes it can. In my office I use a pair of HomePods and in our a family room. In both places I have consoles plugged into the TV and sound comes out the HomePods.
Hi Scott - I have my 2 HomePods (Max) as my rear speakers and my default speakers for my AppleTV 4K. Bouncing the sound off the wall behind my lounge sounds better than having them as front speakers with no wall behind. (My local config issue). I tried to add a stereo pair of HomePod Minis via Airplay2 but lost ATMOS in the process. The AppleTV allows the connection of a stereo pair of either HomePods Max or HomePods Minis. The Minis do not support ATMOS. There does not appear to be a way of configuring the 4 speakers in an ATMOS environment. Airplay2 does not appear to support ATMOS either. Let’s hope this is improved with the HomePod2.
Sorry Dennis for being so late. As I understand it, they can’t do atmos with one speaker. I think you need multiple to create that simulated sound out of one speaker. Here is apples guid that says they don’t. support.apple.com/guide/homepod/use-homepod-with-apple-tv-4k-apdd878f126c/homepod It would be great if they could.
Yes My Set Up is The Apple TV 4K 2 gen with two OG HomePods and two HomePods Mini In living Room and next room Is Apple TV 4K 1 gen with Two HomePods mini They Sound Excellent/ But I wish Apple Had a update so i can play all 4 HomePods In Living Room Natively
My extra HomePods come on as long as I had them previously selected during my last use. I have HomePods, OG’s and minis all over the house and when selected, I turn the apple tv back on later and it broadcasts the same speakers til I deselect them,.
The Apple TV 4K allows the addition of either a pair of HomePod (Max) with ATMOS or a pair of minis with no ATMOS. There does not appear to be any way of adding 4 default speakers. One can use Airplay 2 to play to other speakers as well (Lounge Room1 & Lounge Room2) but I lost ATMOS in trying this. I assume Airplay2 does not support ATMOS.
@@CraigsTechTalk still sold on them as a super cheap sound bar alternative and I’m trapped in the whole Apple sound ecosystem anyway so there’s that. Appreciate the follow up.
I'd be curious to see how a $200 soundbar matches up to paired HomePods. I would like to move my HomePod Minis to my theatre TV or computer if a newer HomePod demotes my current ones to thread TV speakers.
Great video! I’ve heard rumours that a recent update to the HomePod Minis added Dolby Atmos support. To try this out the other day, I set up my 2 minis with my ATV 4K. Under the Audio format option, it stated ‘Auto, Atmos available’. I tried out some Dolby Atmos TH-cam videos and found the results to be excellent. I then reverted back to my TV speakers (also Atmos compatible) and experienced similar results, however, not as full sounding as the paired minis. I am finding it extremely difficult to confirm Atmos support for the minis, but my experience is that it works. Love to hear from others who have tried this.
In order to get the X-box or PS5 or any other WIRED device directly to the actual TV…apparently you have to group the Apple TV and the stereo speaker set together in the home app on your phone FIRST and then head to the Apple TV menu settings and the eARC option will become available at that point. Just make sure your actual TV itself also has the sound option as pass through and this should do it.
Great video! I have appletv4k 1st gen and 2 HomePod minis. When I add them to the appletv4k everything works great (play,pause,resume,volume) except the Siri command to play a exact series of apple +!! Is this because Siri in appletv is not supported in my country Europe or because the tv providers are not supported in my country?? Does anyone know??
Ok. So is Two HomePod mins ok for a living room? My Samsung tv up to 100 is low on regular tv shows. Ok on music. But sometimes playing a movie sounds very low for my liking. Cant understand stuff sometimes.
It does have room filling sound. I think they are way better than computer speakers. You only get so much low end out of the minis. But even that is better than TV speakers. I would think you would be happy with the volume improvement.
Question! I’m wanting to get two HomePod minis for my living room setup and was wondering? 1st: how does volume work if you have it setup to Apple TV? Do you control it through Siri? Or does the controller do the volume? 2nd: if I have them setup as a stereo pair do they no longer function as a smart home device? Or do they still respond to “Siri turn on the lights.” Thanks!
You would need a new Apple TV 4K. It is the only device that can use ARC to play sound from devices plugged into your TV. Check out my latest video on better tv sound using HomePods.
I keep getting a reply when I ask for Siri to tell me the weather like something went wrong shortcuts says you don’t have the required app to run this request? What app am I missing? Thanks I’m 79 years old and this is really getting on my nerves.
I am sorry to hear that you are having difficulties. You may have to download the shortcut app. Here is the link for iOS app apps.apple.com/us/app/shortcuts/id1462947752
Hey Craig, I just bought 4 HomePod mini - 1 to use in each bedroom and two for the entertainment center. the two for this area were out of stock so waiting for them to come in. Right now I have a Bose TV Speaker sound bar connected to the Apple TV 4K and would like to keep it at the tv and place the two home pod minis behind my sofa for full surround sound. Can this work or is it one or the other ? meaning can I only use the minis or the Bose TVS but not together?
Hi, thanks for the video. I just paired 2 minis with my Apple TV 4K but since I only have 1st Gen I don’t have the ARC option for regular tv viewing. That being said, the minis sound great when watching Apple TV. Only just started using them a couple of days ago so still learning how to fully utilize all of the Siri features. Thanks again for the video! Cheers
Hey Craig or anyone that knows answer if it’s possible to set up Stereo Pair Mini’s + an OG HomePod to all use with my PS5 using ARC? It only seems to pull through the Stereo Mini’s even though the OG HomePod is also linked. Thanks!
I have a 1st gen 4K Apple TV and I don’t believe my tv has “ARC” support either so unfortunately can’t take advantage of this for using the speakers for non Apple TV things (playing games as seldom as that is). Oh well, I find it easier sometimes to just mirror my MacBook to the Apple TV and play some stuff that way. One thing that baffles me about the remotes is they aren’t at all intuitive to use and I have no clue how people lose them but I always use my iPhone as my remote it just makes more sense.
My only criticism of apple smart speakers is that it was dumb to dump the HomePod when they brought in the mini. I have minis and an Apple TV 4K and they’re fine but they are limited in volume, fine for me but a bigger room would need more volume. Plus No atmos on the minis. They need a higher end speaker. If I desperately want to have atmos I can use my AirPods max if I’m alone. I do love where I say “hey Siri, play TH-cam on Apple TV” and it turns on my tv, my Apple TV and launches TH-cam and its ready to play through the minis.
Someone in the boardroom at Apple headquarters made the rash decision to pull the plug on the HomePod which was a huge mistake. I do hope Apple will rethink its decision and bring back an updated version of the full sized HomePod with updated chip set and thread. I’m sure Tim Cook must have full sized HomePod at his home, he must note the huge difference in sound when comparing the full sized HomePod to with the mini. The audio engineers who worked on the audio quality and sound output of both the HomePod and HomePod mini would also be very discerningly cognizant of vast difference in sound between the two.
Hi SteveinScotland - Whilst the AppleTV 4K supports ATMOS and with a pair of HomePod (Max) one can have a reasonable ATMOS experience with Apple movies or Netflix! I suspect not all streaming services on the AppleTV do. Does TH-cam support ATMOS?
You know I enjoy your videos about the HomePod mini and I think it is great you started the video with the amazing Blue and Yellow mini's but I really cannot envision using the Mini as TV speakers? I guess they would look nice hear the TV but there are much better sound bars out there that are going to provide better sound, despite being larger sized.
Thank Jav Jav for that. I think it alls come down to use. In my upcoming video on the new HomePod video that part of the benefit of using HomePods for your TV is convenience, their sound and Apple integration. I agree you can do better than any HomePod with a good sound bar or decent surround system. But if you have a small TV and Apple TV in a bedroom pairing the HomePods could be a nice step up. It really depends on the quality of the TV speakers too. I have had some TVs that the HomePod mini is a nice upgrade in sound. But I would never try to use them with my 75” TV. Thanks for watching and your comment.
Love the video I heard though that the older ATV 4K is arc and allow to display stereo output but the eArc standard only allow the Dolby Atmos output plug in Tv
I believe the new 4k is the first Arc Apple TV. No arc options are available on the 1st gen 4k that I used. That makes sense about the e arc for Dolby atmos. That is what I have been hearing from others too. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and watching the video. Happy Holidays
Another great video Craig! When paired with ARC what other devices can be used? For example I used an AT&T streaming box for direct stream. Would that work with this setup? Thanks and Merry Christmas
The problem with using HomePods (especially, in my experience, HP minis) as default audio output from Apple TV or even as audio output from my Mac is that doing so sucks major bandwidth out of my WiFi network-to the tune of 100-150 MBPs drop in WiFi speed for each such setup. According to a thread on MacRumors, this is due to the fact that default audio sets up an ad hoc network between the Apple TV and the HomePods and ad hoc networks apparently are major consumers of bandwidth.
In my experience, it doesn’t quite take up that much bandwidth, but it does take quite a bit. I have a Google Wifi puck mesh network, which isn’t the greatest, and I’m able to do it. Thread would likely solve this problem; it would be great if Apple would re-release the OG HomePods with added thread support.
I have an Apple TV and two home pod minis connected to it. When I am watching Apps like Dazn or Sky, my sound is delayed for like a second.. Anyone knows how to fix that?
Sorry I have not experienced that. It doesn’t make sense that just those apps would do that. One thing I would suggest is try force quitting those apps, by swiping them up and getting rid of them. Also double check that you’ve done a restart and any software updates. But that is strange.
@@CraigsTechTalk thanks for your answer! Tried all that.. Where should I put my phone when I do the sound calibration? On my tv or next to the HomePods?
This is what I wanted to do with Apple TV, so excited to be able to add Apple Speakers to the mix. Not a huge fan of the Smart TV, but the Apple TV much more of a fan where I can buy just what I need.
Very cool. I hope you like the HomePods for speakers. I think it adds so much more value to the HomePods with them getting some good use out of them. I am all about the Apple TV too. Thanks for watching.
It doesn’t have to be E arc. The picture in the video is the back of my TV that I used for the video. The E stands for Enhanced HDMI and offers higher bandwidth. From what I see it is more popular on newer TVs with HDMI 2.1.
@@CraigsTechTalk even for Atmos? I was under the impression that you would definitely get 5.1 over ARC, but eARC would be required for Atmos with 3rd party devices, an ATV and OG HomePods, as an eARC connection is required to pass that 3rd party device signal from the TV to the ATV, like with a sound bar. I could be wrong…I’m still using a 1st gen ATV 4K, so I only can play to HomePods through the ATV (I do get Atmos, but of course I’m not going through an ARC connection through TV).
I use 2 OG HomePods as a stereo pair as speakers for my Apple TV with arc. Works great! However with my LG TV, even after doing wireless audio calibration I can only get sound to sync up when using game mode annoyingly. And sometimes it’s off with match frame rate on as well.
This is super helpful! I’m planning on putting together a game room and using the Apple TV and HomePod Minis as my speakers and I should also have the option to just listen to the TV on headphones or use a headset with my PS5. This is going to save a lot of money over getting a fancy receiver and a 2.1 set of speakers.
i use the homepod with Dolby atmos for my main apple Tv is there way to pair to pair the homepod mini and the homepod all on the apple tv like surround sound?
Craig, you’re the best man. I would have never bought a HomePod or a Apple TV 4K without your advice and the way your put your videos together is awesome man. Right to the point while also peppering in so much info that is so helpful. Keep doing what you do man.
I just got a second Home Pod Mini (white) and set it up with the other one I've had for over a year (blue) and now I have nice stereo sound coming from my LG smart TV via my 4K Apple TV, after watching your helpful video. Thank you so much! 😃
Great video that answers a lot of my questions. Love my Apple TV 4k 2nd gen. I can finally play DVDs and get good audio. TV audio is garbage. Time to go shoppin’!
Hi - Thanks for the video! A pair of HomePods is so much better than the HomePod minis. Given that the HomePod has better speakers and supports Dolby ATMOS this is not surprising! Whilst one can add a pair of HomePods to the AppleTV which is great today there appears to be no way of adding 4 HomePods which would be awesome. I have tried a pair of HomePods and then added a pair of Minis but this appears to use AirPlay2 and one loses Dolby ATMOS. A four speaker Dolby ATMOS surround system would be fantastic and be so much better than many Soundbars. We can only hope Apple brings back the HomePod (2) as the original HomePod is so much better than the minis. Interestingly since the HomePod was discontinued the second hand market for HomePods has kept going up. Whilst many criticized Apple for the price of the original HomePod they are so much better than many Soundbars and cheaper too. Hopefully Apple will listen!
@@leejaspersamson Lee - I have both! The SONOS ARC with Sub and 2 Surround SONOS One’s is better but nearly four times the price. If Apple allowed the connection of 4 HomePods Max all supporting DOLBY ATMOS in the four corners of the room I suspect it would be a much closer contest. The SONOS SUB G3 pumps out a solid base response and this delivers a better sound than the much smaller woofer in the HomePod. Many SONOS owners are adding two subs to try and give a more spatial sound. This is not a cheap extra so it would be really interesting to hear the 4 HomePods each having its own woofer. The ATMOS speakers in the ARC are in the Soundbar so must fire upwards and bounce off the ceiling. SONOS provides a tuning app and one can adjust the volume of the height channel. Apple provides limited tuning capability. One can only hope that HomePod2 will provide better base response and more tuning capability.
Unfortunately they are not built to last. Within two years, I have one that's been buggy and the other is a brick with blinking volume buttons, a common issue.
Yeah I got tired of doing stuff that paid me a bunch of money. I found TH-cam doesn’t pay as much and it gives me something to do between working at 14 other companies.
This is unrelated to this video.....sorta. I went over to my on Christmas Eve. For merriment and nog. He is 13+ older than me. He is a rather techie guy. Old school but gets into bitcoin and such. And I was describing how I have been setting up my smart home. GH and Lady A smart plugs, switches blinds etc etc. He tells me how he doesn't trust the man. And I countered him with my basic knowledge. He pulls out a remote. Starts pushing buttons and on come lights everywhere. What is this voodoo? He tells me he can do this curtains etc etc. He said welcome to touch tone. 1970s moon landing tech. (I'd be just born-ish) I give you X10 Technology. The smart home of the future! So I challenge you, Paul Hibert, Automate Your life and tech with Bret to make a TH-cam video. Comparing the smart home of yesterday to the smart home of today. Cheers.
this shit will only work when apple tv is played in ur tv if any apps or u have media box ip tv something forget about it... its a waste of time and money
I did this and put a Mini by the couch where I watch TV. I can hear better and listen at a lower sound level at night, which people in other rooms trying to sleep do appreciate.
I got a HomePod Mini for Christmas and hooked it up to my AppleTV, sounds so much better.
What if I put the two HomePod minis on my night stands in a bedroom, kinda like a his and hers right next to the bed, you might not need the volume level that high either, especially for night viewing when you don’t want to disturb the rest of the house at night
I’ve been using HomePod minis paired up to my Apple TV 4K for a few months now, definitely highly recommend. They were lacking low end so I bought a klipsch sub and used a airport express second gen for airplay 2 second hand. And with all three it sounds really good. And cheaper than 2 large HomePod minis.
Sounds like a great idea! May I ask what kind of Klipsch sub you have? Thanks in advance!
@@heinrichalzo yeah sure, it’s a klipsch KSW 10. It’s an old one, but still sounds good and has plenty of power with the HomePods.
@@terrellclark Thanks alot!!
That is great that you are able to get that working. I had not thought about that. Thanks for sharing.
@@CraigsTechTalk no problem. I like to spread the word about it because I haven’t heard or seen very many people do it.
Would you recommend this set up over a sound bar ?
We have our regular HomePods paired with a 4K 2nd gen Apple TV. Works well! And with ARC/eARC, all of the connected devices can now play audio through the HomePods. We have a few HomePod Minis as well throughout our home.
Can you explain this more? How can other devices play audio through HomePods?
I have two HomePod minis connected to my Apple TV .. does the HomePod2 (just one) make a huge difference?
I just got one HomePod mini and, while the sound is good, it’s not quite loud enough. I’m debating whether to add a 2nd mini, or go with a single big HomePod.
How do you like the sound of the two minis? Do they sound loud enough?
@davep6603 I would go with a single HomePod. The HomePod has 5 speakers and a sub. It can do Dolby Atmos and has the low end that the mini doesn’t have.
@@CraigsTechTalk something to think about .. I’m going to look into the HomePod 👍
@maryyoung6752 I used a single HomePod for my office for 3 years and was happy with it.
@@CraigsTechTalk HomePod … here, I come 👋
I wish the full size homepods weren't discontinued, I missed out on those.
I do use a pair of Mini's as the speakers on the family living room Apple TV setup and they work great. I don't have mine right by the tv though, they're spread out in the room more and I find it really gives a more immersive sound that way, for their size.
Did you know they are back now?
is there a way you can play the Home pods and the TV speakers.. or would you want to do that at all?
No there is no way I know of doing it. You wouldn’t want to do it anyway. Most likely they would not be in sync or sound good. Thanks for watching.
Does the Apple TV stay connected to the speaker or do you have to manually change it each time?
Is it possible to setup a soundbar with apple HomePod minis as the surround speakers behind the couch without lag
Unfortunately not. You can only Lancome pods together.
@@CraigsTechTalk thank you for taking the time
Thank you for watching and the follow up. Sorry my typo came through Meant only connect HomePods together. That was way off.
will this replace a sound bar ????
Yes it can. In my office I use a pair of HomePods and in our a family room. In both places I have consoles plugged into the TV and sound comes out the HomePods.
ey Craig I've been using my original Homepods on my tv for a while. and it's greeat. Is there a way to add Homepod minis as back speakers?
Hi Scott - I have my 2 HomePods (Max) as my rear speakers and my default speakers for my AppleTV 4K. Bouncing the sound off the wall behind my lounge sounds better than having them as front speakers with no wall behind. (My local config issue). I tried to add a stereo pair of HomePod Minis via Airplay2 but lost ATMOS in the process. The AppleTV allows the connection of a stereo pair of either HomePods Max or HomePods Minis. The Minis do not support ATMOS. There does not appear to be a way of configuring the 4 speakers in an ATMOS environment. Airplay2 does not appear to support ATMOS either. Let’s hope this is improved with the HomePod2.
Thanks for the video. Is it possible to control the homepods volume via the TV remote?
So this works just fine while watching DIRECTV being at that that has its own receiver and not using the Apple TV?
Can I use the HomePods as an audio output for a monitor ?
Is it a good idea to use only one HomePod mini with an AppleTv ?
It depends on how bad your TV sounds. For many TVs it provides a more balanced sound. Ideally two would be better.
Hey Craig. I thought the Minis had Atmos now. It is an option in the Home setting for Apple Music.
Sorry Dennis for being so late. As I understand it, they can’t do atmos with one speaker. I think you need multiple to create that simulated sound out of one speaker. Here is apples guid that says they don’t. support.apple.com/guide/homepod/use-homepod-with-apple-tv-4k-apdd878f126c/homepod It would be great if they could.
Yes My Set Up is The Apple TV 4K 2 gen with two OG HomePods and two HomePods Mini In living Room and next room Is Apple TV 4K 1 gen with Two HomePods mini They Sound Excellent/ But I wish Apple Had a update so i can play all 4 HomePods In Living Room Natively
My extra HomePods come on as long as I had them previously selected during my last use. I have HomePods, OG’s and minis all over the house and when selected, I turn the apple tv back on later and it broadcasts the same speakers til I deselect them,.
The Apple TV 4K allows the addition of either a pair of HomePod (Max) with ATMOS or a pair of minis with no ATMOS. There does not appear to be any way of adding 4 default speakers. One can use Airplay 2 to play to other speakers as well (Lounge Room1 & Lounge Room2) but I lost ATMOS in trying this. I assume Airplay2 does not support ATMOS.
Hi, Craig. Any ideas on how to make HomePods Mini work simultaneously with the soundbar?
Is there a way to do dual audio? Like having tv audio playing in addition to home pods placed around the room?
No there is not. Just paired to the Apple TV or the TV speakers.
@@CraigsTechTalk still sold on them as a super cheap sound bar alternative and I’m trapped in the whole Apple sound ecosystem anyway so there’s that. Appreciate the follow up.
@@WrathofTron Who isn't trapped in the Apple Eco System? XD
Ive been wanting 4 minis to create a surround system. But im worried about the bass. How goos is it?
You can only pair two AirPods together. It’s one speaker in the mini without a lot of bass
Will this work with an Apple TV HD?
I believe it’s limited to just the 4k.
I'd be curious to see how a $200 soundbar matches up to paired HomePods. I would like to move my HomePod Minis to my theatre TV or computer if a newer HomePod demotes my current ones to thread TV speakers.
this works whit the last generation Apple TV HD?
I think it only works with the 4k. That is all I am seeing
Are these minis 20 or 40 watt speakers? And how about the bigger homepod?
Can I connect a Vizio sound bar to Apple TV
You would have to use HDMI
Can these be connected with Apple TV non 4K version?
Great video! I’ve heard rumours that a recent update to the HomePod Minis added Dolby Atmos support. To try this out the other day, I set up my 2 minis with my ATV 4K. Under the Audio format option, it stated ‘Auto, Atmos available’. I tried out some Dolby Atmos TH-cam videos and found the results to be excellent. I then reverted back to my TV speakers (also Atmos compatible) and experienced similar results, however, not as full sounding as the paired minis. I am finding it extremely difficult to confirm Atmos support for the minis, but my experience is that it works. Love to hear from others who have tried this.
It’s not work when update to HomePod mini 15.4
Hi, is it possible to listern from the HomePods and TV speakers at the same time?
Unfortunately not. Thanks for watching.
Does this ONLY work with the Apple TV 4K? Not the HD?
In order to get the X-box or PS5 or any other WIRED device directly to the actual TV…apparently you have to group the Apple TV and the stereo speaker set together in the home app on your phone FIRST and then head to the Apple TV menu settings and the eARC option will become available at that point. Just make sure your actual TV itself also has the sound option as pass through and this should do it.
Is it possible to use 4 homepod mini for surround sound or can you only paid 2 speakers??
Only 2 paired unfortunately. Thanks for watching.
Is there a delay when using ARC and the Xbox? It looks like there is when watching the video, the audio seems delayed during the gun fire.
I noticed that too! there's no way there ISN'T
Can I also use voice control with siri if I don't have the apple tv and only use the homepods?
When I watch tv using my cable box through HomePods via the Apple TV, the audio is out of sync with the video. Any suggestions?
Great video! I have appletv4k 1st gen and 2 HomePod minis. When I add them to the appletv4k everything works great (play,pause,resume,volume) except the Siri command to play a exact series of apple +!! Is this because Siri in appletv is not supported in my country Europe or because the tv providers are not supported in my country?? Does anyone know??
Question if I have a sound bar using a optical cable will they both work together or it’s just one or the other cable goes from sound bar to tv
Ok. So is Two HomePod mins ok for a living room? My Samsung tv up to 100 is low on regular tv shows. Ok on music. But sometimes playing a movie sounds very low for my liking. Cant understand stuff sometimes.
It does have room filling sound. I think they are way better than computer speakers. You only get so much low end out of the minis. But even that is better than TV speakers. I would think you would be happy with the volume improvement.
so i cannot do it with home pod? only mini>?
I wish you could pair 4 HomePods as a sorround system
Which will better work with apple tv, 2 original homepods as my tv speaker or sonos arc sound bar? Which sounds better?
Depends on your setup, but I’d imagine in most cases the Sonos Arc will sound way better, especially if you pair it with a sub
Question! I’m wanting to get two HomePod minis for my living room setup and was wondering? 1st: how does volume work if you have it setup to Apple TV? Do you control it through Siri? Or does the controller do the volume? 2nd: if I have them setup as a stereo pair do they no longer function as a smart home device? Or do they still respond to “Siri turn on the lights.” Thanks!
How can I pair my two OG HomePods to my PLAYSTATION 5?
You would need a new Apple TV 4K. It is the only device that can use ARC to play sound from devices plugged into your TV. Check out my latest video on better tv sound using HomePods.
I keep getting a reply when I ask for Siri to tell me the weather like something went wrong shortcuts says you don’t have the required app to run this request? What app am I missing?
Thanks I’m 79 years old and this is really getting on my nerves.
I am sorry to hear that you are having difficulties. You may have to download the shortcut app. Here is the link for iOS app apps.apple.com/us/app/shortcuts/id1462947752
Thank you. I have that app but probably not set up correctly. Thanks for the help.
Can one used the original HomePot for the Bass and the Mini As a stereo pair?
Hey Craig, I just bought 4 HomePod mini - 1 to use in each bedroom and two for the entertainment center. the two for this area were out of stock so waiting for them to come in. Right now I have a Bose TV Speaker sound bar connected to the Apple TV 4K and would like to keep it at the tv and place the two home pod minis behind my sofa for full surround sound. Can this work or is it one or the other ? meaning can I only use the minis or the Bose TVS but not together?
It has to be one or the other unfortunately. No mixing. Thanks for watching.
I'm assuming you can't use two Apple HomePod Minis with an Apple TV 4K and a surround soundbar?
Unfortunately not. It’s one or the other.
Hi, thanks for the video. I just paired 2 minis with my Apple TV 4K but since I only have 1st Gen I don’t have the ARC option for regular tv viewing. That being said, the minis sound great when watching Apple TV. Only just started using them a couple of days ago so still learning how to fully utilize all of the Siri features. Thanks again for the video! Cheers
Hey Craig or anyone that knows answer if it’s possible to set up Stereo Pair Mini’s + an OG HomePod to all use with my PS5 using ARC? It only seems to pull through the Stereo Mini’s even though the OG HomePod is also linked. Thanks!
I have a 1st gen 4K Apple TV and I don’t believe my tv has “ARC” support either so unfortunately can’t take advantage of this for using the speakers for non Apple TV things (playing games as seldom as that is). Oh well, I find it easier sometimes to just mirror my MacBook to the Apple TV and play some stuff that way. One thing that baffles me about the remotes is they aren’t at all intuitive to use and I have no clue how people lose them but I always use my iPhone as my remote it just makes more sense.
oh dang it! you should have covered music quality in atmos pairs too
I use a homepod mini with my ATV4 HD. I don’t have default audio output option for the speaker. Is it okay? May be it will be added after Beta?
Same for me.
My only criticism of apple smart speakers is that it was dumb to dump the HomePod when they brought in the mini. I have minis and an Apple TV 4K and they’re fine but they are limited in volume, fine for me but a bigger room would need more volume. Plus No atmos on the minis. They need a higher end speaker. If I desperately want to have atmos I can use my AirPods max if I’m alone. I do love where I say “hey Siri, play TH-cam on Apple TV” and it turns on my tv, my Apple TV and launches TH-cam and its ready to play through the minis.
Someone in the boardroom at Apple headquarters made the rash decision to pull the plug on the HomePod which was a huge mistake. I do hope Apple will rethink its decision and bring back an updated version of the full sized HomePod with updated chip set and thread. I’m sure Tim Cook must have full sized HomePod at his home, he must note the huge difference in sound when comparing the full sized HomePod to with the mini. The audio engineers who worked on the audio quality and sound output of both the HomePod and HomePod mini would also be very discerningly cognizant of vast difference in sound between the two.
Hi SteveinScotland - Whilst the AppleTV 4K supports ATMOS and with a pair of HomePod (Max) one can have a reasonable ATMOS experience with Apple movies or Netflix! I suspect not all streaming services on the AppleTV do. Does TH-cam support ATMOS?
I use a singe home pod paired with my Apple TV. Mounted on a wall stand, above in the center of my tv.
Nice. Doing the same thing in my office.
I just purchased the blue HomePod minis to connect with my Apple TV 4K, the sound is so fetch ! 👍
Very cool. Glad to hear you’re liking it.
Hey bro how are the echo subs paired with the 4th gen echo dots with the hubs
You know I enjoy your videos about the HomePod mini and I think it is great you started the video with the amazing Blue and Yellow mini's but I really cannot envision using the Mini as TV speakers? I guess they would look nice hear the TV but there are much better sound bars out there that are going to provide better sound, despite being larger sized.
Thank Jav Jav for that. I think it alls come down to use. In my upcoming video on the new HomePod video that part of the benefit of using HomePods for your TV is convenience, their sound and Apple integration. I agree you can do better than any HomePod with a good sound bar or decent surround system. But if you have a small TV and Apple TV in a bedroom pairing the HomePods could be a nice step up. It really depends on the quality of the TV speakers too. I have had some TVs that the HomePod mini is a nice upgrade in sound. But I would never try to use them with my 75” TV. Thanks for watching and your comment.
Underrated channel. 💯
Love the video
I heard though that the older ATV 4K is arc and allow to display stereo output but the eArc standard only allow the Dolby Atmos output plug in Tv
I believe the new 4k is the first Arc Apple TV. No arc options are available on the 1st gen 4k that I used. That makes sense about the e arc for Dolby atmos. That is what I have been hearing from others too. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and watching the video. Happy Holidays
Another great video Craig! When paired with ARC what other devices can be used? For example I used an AT&T streaming box for direct stream. Would that work with this setup? Thanks and Merry Christmas
The problem with using HomePods (especially, in my experience, HP minis) as default audio output from Apple TV or even as audio output from my Mac is that doing so sucks major bandwidth out of my WiFi network-to the tune of 100-150 MBPs drop in WiFi speed for each such setup. According to a thread on MacRumors, this is due to the fact that default audio sets up an ad hoc network between the Apple TV and the HomePods and ad hoc networks apparently are major consumers of bandwidth.
In my experience, it doesn’t quite take up that much bandwidth, but it does take quite a bit. I have a Google Wifi puck mesh network, which isn’t the greatest, and I’m able to do it. Thread would likely solve this problem; it would be great if Apple would re-release the OG HomePods with added thread support.
I’m really looking forward to getting something like this set up
Great video but I could barely tell the differencein sound (and I'm using ear buds) - guess you had to be there 🤷🏻♂️
If you have Beats buds or air pods, you can connect to the Apple TV via Bluetooth and get even better (and fuller) sound when watching at night. 👌🏼
I have an Apple TV and two home pod minis connected to it.
When I am watching Apps like Dazn or Sky, my sound is delayed for like a second..
Anyone knows how to fix that?
Sorry I have not experienced that. It doesn’t make sense that just those apps would do that. One thing I would suggest is try force quitting those apps, by swiping them up and getting rid of them. Also double check that you’ve done a restart and any software updates. But that is strange.
@@CraigsTechTalk thanks for your answer!
Tried all that..
Where should I put my phone when I do the sound calibration? On my tv or next to the HomePods?
Homepod Could be a SOUNDBAR format, that will have more utilities for a ROOM. I hope that apple think about that.
This is what I wanted to do with Apple TV, so excited to be able to add Apple Speakers to the mix. Not a huge fan of the Smart TV, but the Apple TV much more of a fan where I can buy just what I need.
Very cool. I hope you like the HomePods for speakers. I think it adds so much more value to the HomePods with them getting some good use out of them. I am all about the Apple TV too. Thanks for watching.
Your TV needs to have E-ARC I believe to send audio from the TV to the HomePods.
It doesn’t have to be E arc. The picture in the video is the back of my TV that I used for the video. The E stands for Enhanced HDMI and offers higher bandwidth. From what I see it is more popular on newer TVs with HDMI 2.1.
@@CraigsTechTalk oh yeah that’s correct. I’m using HomePods so E-ARC is the only way to get Atmos.
@@CraigsTechTalk even for Atmos? I was under the impression that you would definitely get 5.1 over ARC, but eARC would be required for Atmos with 3rd party devices, an ATV and OG HomePods, as an eARC connection is required to pass that 3rd party device signal from the TV to the ATV, like with a sound bar. I could be wrong…I’m still using a 1st gen ATV 4K, so I only can play to HomePods through the ATV (I do get Atmos, but of course I’m not going through an ARC connection through TV).
ARC allows;
1) Stereo 2.0 PCM (uncompressed - lossless) or
2) Dolby Digital Plus Atmos (compressed - lossy)
eARC allows full uncompressed everything;
1) Dolby True HD
2) DTS Master Audio
3) Dolby Atmos
@trinsicOffical thank you for that breakdown. Very helpful information. Happy Holidays.
I like to, but 2 HomePodos updates ago they make my Apple TV randomly restart.
I am sorry to hear that. That is not good. Thanks for sharing and watching.
You saved me with the ARC explanation! Thanks!
I'm not doing it I have sound coming from my sound bar with subwoofer
I didn’t know this was possible! Recently my soundbar died. I’m interested in this cheaper option for my Apple TV, PS4 and Xbox One!
Yeah, it is great that you can run everything through the HomePods with the latest Apple TV. Thanks for watching. Hope it works well for you.
@@CraigsTechTalk Thanks
Thanks Craig.
Awesome videos dude but if I look away at points I swear I'm hearing Randy Orton
Thank you very much 🙏 Randy Orton is a first. I know we share a similar build and all (I wish), but I had not heard his voice. 😀👍
Idid the same thing as you. One yellow and one blue mini hooked to tv.
I use 2 OG HomePods as a stereo pair as speakers for my Apple TV with arc. Works great! However with my LG TV, even after doing wireless audio calibration I can only get sound to sync up when using game mode annoyingly. And sometimes it’s off with match frame rate on as well.
Same. The new 2021 Apple TV has sync issues in general for me on the LG CX, but it’s even worse using HomePods
This is super helpful! I’m planning on putting together a game room and using the Apple TV and HomePod Minis as my speakers and I should also have the option to just listen to the TV on headphones or use a headset with my PS5. This is going to save a lot of money over getting a fancy receiver and a 2.1 set of speakers.
I am glad to hear that sounds like a good option for you. I love my stereo pair of full size HomePods in the garage. I hope they work well for you.
As always clear and concise.
I thought the mini’s played Dolby Atmos? I have a pair with my 4K Apple TV and it ices me that option…dare apple lie to us??
Thanks for cutting out “Hey Siri” so you dont trigger everyone’s apple devices haha
You are welcome. Thank you for recognizing that. Have a great day.
i use the homepod with Dolby atmos for my main apple Tv is there way to pair to pair the homepod mini and the homepod all on the apple tv like surround sound?
You pair the two minis as a stereo set… then AirPlay the large speaker
Craig, you’re the best man. I would have never bought a HomePod or a Apple TV 4K without your advice and the way your put your videos together is awesome man. Right to the point while also peppering in so much info that is so helpful. Keep doing what you do man.
I just got a second Home Pod Mini (white) and set it up with the other one I've had for over a year (blue) and now I have nice stereo sound coming from my LG smart TV via my 4K Apple TV, after watching your helpful video. Thank you so much! 😃
That is great to hear. I am glad you are enjoying it with your TV. Glad to help. Thank you for watching. Enjoy your new setup.
Oh and first one to like and consents awesome love the content it hellos me set up routines on my Alexa app with my smart homes stuff
Great video that answers a lot of my questions. Love my Apple TV 4k 2nd gen.
I can finally play DVDs and get good audio. TV audio is garbage.
Time to go shoppin’!
Hi - Thanks for the video! A pair of HomePods is so much better than the HomePod minis. Given that the HomePod has better speakers and supports Dolby ATMOS this is not surprising! Whilst one can add a pair of HomePods to the AppleTV which is great today there appears to be no way of adding 4 HomePods which would be awesome. I have tried a pair of HomePods and then added a pair of Minis but this appears to use AirPlay2 and one loses Dolby ATMOS. A four speaker Dolby ATMOS surround system would be fantastic and be so much better than many Soundbars. We can only hope Apple brings back the HomePod (2) as the original HomePod is so much better than the minis. Interestingly since the HomePod was discontinued the second hand market for HomePods has kept going up. Whilst many criticized Apple for the price of the original HomePod they are so much better than many Soundbars and cheaper too. Hopefully Apple will listen!
2 original homepods as my tv speaker or sonos arc sound bar? Which sounds better?
@@leejaspersamson Lee - I have both! The SONOS ARC with Sub and 2 Surround SONOS One’s is better but nearly four times the price. If Apple allowed the connection of 4 HomePods Max all supporting DOLBY ATMOS in the four corners of the room I suspect it would be a much closer contest. The SONOS SUB G3 pumps out a solid base response and this delivers a better sound than the much smaller woofer in the HomePod. Many SONOS owners are adding two subs to try and give a more spatial sound. This is not a cheap extra so it would be really interesting to hear the 4 HomePods each having its own woofer. The ATMOS speakers in the ARC are in the Soundbar so must fire upwards and bounce off the ceiling. SONOS provides a tuning app and one can adjust the volume of the height channel. Apple provides limited tuning capability. One can only hope that HomePod2 will provide better base response and more tuning capability.
Stereo-paired OG HomePods with Dolby Atmos are pretty incredible!
Unfortunately they are not built to last. Within two years, I have one that's been buggy and the other is a brick with blinking volume buttons, a common issue.
Did he say echo? 😂 on 2:38
Yes I did, that is what happens going back and forth between them. Thanks for watching.
HDMI out of the telly into the back of The amp…… Plus subwoofer out of the amp.
Looks like you set the LG TruMotion “On” during a movie. It is totally unacceptable! Seriously. 😜
Gonna try this in the near future.
how are you
My 2 year old M2 Pro is showing 99% battery health. Which tells me that the health reading is wrong.
I hope this works with Nintendo Switch.
When using ARC the Nintendo Switch will use the HomePod mini's as the default speakers connected to the TV
You called them echos 😂
I like to use AirPods with my Apple TV
Is it just me or are you Elon Musk and this is your side hustle?
Yeah I got tired of doing stuff that paid me a bunch of money. I found TH-cam doesn’t pay as much and it gives me something to do between working at 14 other companies.
@@CraigsTechTalk 🤣🤣
This is unrelated to this video.....sorta. I went over to my on Christmas Eve. For merriment and nog. He is 13+ older than me. He is a rather techie guy. Old school but gets into bitcoin and such. And I was describing how I have been setting up my smart home. GH and Lady A smart plugs, switches blinds etc etc.
He tells me how he doesn't trust the man. And I countered him with my basic knowledge. He pulls out a remote. Starts pushing buttons and on come lights everywhere.
What is this voodoo? He tells me he can do this curtains etc etc. He said welcome to touch tone. 1970s moon landing tech. (I'd be just born-ish) I give you X10 Technology. The smart home of the future!
So I challenge you, Paul Hibert, Automate Your life and tech with Bret to make a TH-cam video. Comparing the smart home of yesterday to the smart home of today.
Cheers.
this shit will only work when apple tv is played in ur tv if any apps or u have media box ip tv something forget about it... its a waste of time and money
It would be cool if you could pair the original HomePods with the minis. Like a surround systems
You can with new ones
Nope