Audio Systems: getting headphones to work on TV w/o headphone jack, headphone jack, rca line

Question
Hello Kevin-

I have a toshiba 27a42, built in Dec. 2002, and it only has a RCA line out jack- no headphone jack. Despite using the line out jack, I can't get my JVC wireless headphones (HA-W300RF) to pick up the sound from the TV, and there doesn't seem to be a menu item for shutting off the TV speakers. Can you help me?

Thanks,

Jacob

Answer
Dear Jacob,

The headphone transmitter has to be connected to a source with sufficient signal strength that it can pick up the sound. TVs have notoriously poor audio output power, and I think insufficient power for your wireless cans. What I would do is rewire your system.

Do you have a DVD player or VCR? Assuming that your signal is delivered via cable or satellite, you should run it through the ANTENNA IN and ANTENNA OUT on either device before connecting it to the TV. Then connect the AUDIO OUT on the device to a spare line level (AUX, TUNER, CD) input on your A/V receiver. When you listen to the TV through the receiver, your headphones will pick up the signal directly from the cable. Trust me, you'll have plenty of volume.

I've never heard of a TV made in the last 10 years that doesn't allow you to shut off the speakers. Weird. Once you've rewired the system, you can try the MUTE function on the TV. Since you've intercepted the audio signal from the cable before it's reached the TV, the MUTE should only shut down the TV's sound, but not the sound from the receiver.

Good luck. And thanks for choosing allexperts.com!

Kindest regards,

Kevin