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Great picture deserves equally great sound, and your Vizio Smart TV’s audio system is more capable than many people realize. From built-in speaker modes fine-tuned for dialogue clarity to full HDMI eARC passthrough for a high-end soundbar, the audio settings menu gives you precise control over how your TV delivers sound. Whether you are connecting an external audio device, correcting a lip sync issue, or simply choosing the best speaker preset for a late-night movie, this guide covers every audio option available on your Vizio TV so you can enjoy the best possible listening experience. To access audio settings, press the Menu button on your Vizio remote, navigate to Audio, and press OK. All the settings described in this guide are found within this menu.

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Audio Modes Explained

Audio modes work like picture modes — they apply a pre-configured group of equalizer and processing settings optimized for a specific type of content. Switching modes is the quickest way to improve sound quality for whatever you are watching.

Music

Boosts mid and high frequencies to bring out clarity in vocals and instruments. Best for music videos, concerts, and live performance streams where you want the full range of the audio mix to come through clearly.

Movie

Balances dialogue clarity with rich bass and surround effects. Applies subtle dynamic range compression to keep quiet dialogue audible without explosive sound effects becoming too loud. The go-to mode for films and scripted TV series.

Speech

Emphasizes the vocal frequency range to maximize dialogue intelligibility. Ideal for news broadcasts, talk shows, documentaries, and any content where clear speech matters more than cinematic sound design.

Night

Compresses dynamic range more aggressively so quiet and loud sounds are brought closer together in volume. Perfect for late-night watching when you do not want sudden loud sounds to disturb others in the house.

Custom

Lets you manually adjust individual equalizer bands and audio processing settings to create a personalized sound profile. Any manual tweaks you make to bass, treble, or surround settings are stored under Custom.
Use Movie mode for late-night watching — it compresses dynamic range so quiet dialogue stays clearly audible without explosive action scenes waking up the household.

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How to Change Audio Settings

1

Press Menu on Your Remote

Press the Menu button on your Vizio remote. The Settings panel will appear on the right side of the screen.
2

Navigate to Audio

Use the arrow keys to highlight Audio, then press OK to open the Audio settings menu.
3

Select the Setting You Want to Adjust

Scroll through the available options — Audio Mode, Volume Leveling, Surround Sound, Lip Sync, Digital Audio Out, and more. Highlight your desired setting and press OK.
4

Make Your Adjustment

For toggle settings like Surround Sound, press OK to switch between On and Off. For slider settings like Bass or Treble, use the left and right arrow keys to adjust the value.
5

Exit to Save

Press Menu or Back to exit. All changes are saved automatically — no confirmation step is required.

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Connect a Soundbar or AV Receiver

Your Vizio TV supports two primary methods for sending audio to an external soundbar or AV receiver: HDMI ARC/eARC and Optical (TOSLINK). Each method has different capabilities, and choosing the right one depends on your equipment and the audio formats you want to use.

HDMI ARC / eARC

Best for: Modern soundbars, Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, lossless audio. HDMI ARC (Audio Return Channel) carries audio from the TV back to your soundbar over the same HDMI cable used for video. eARC (Enhanced ARC), available on select Vizio models, supports higher-bandwidth audio including uncompressed Dolby Atmos and DTS:X.

Optical (TOSLINK)

Best for: Older soundbars and receivers without HDMI. Optical carries standard Dolby Digital 5.1 and stereo audio reliably, but cannot pass through Dolby Atmos or lossless audio formats. If your soundbar only has an optical input, this is your connection method.
Only use the HDMI port labeled ARC or eARC on your Vizio TV when connecting a soundbar via HDMI. Plugging into a non-ARC HDMI port will result in no audio output to the soundbar. Check the labels printed next to each HDMI port on the back of the TV.

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HDMI ARC Setup

1

Connect the HDMI Cable

Plug one end of a High-Speed HDMI cable into the HDMI ARC (or HDMI eARC) port on your Vizio TV. Connect the other end to the HDMI ARC/eARC input on your soundbar or receiver.
2

Enable CEC in TV Settings

Press Menu on your remote, navigate to System → CEC (or HDMI-CEC), and make sure it is set to On. CEC allows the TV and soundbar to communicate control signals over the HDMI connection, enabling features like automatic input switching and unified volume control.
3

Select HDMI ARC as Audio Output

Go to Menu → Audio → Digital Audio Out and select Dolby Digital or Auto to allow the TV to pass through the best available audio format to your soundbar. Some models have a dedicated TV Speakers toggle — set it to Off so audio plays through the soundbar only.
4

Test the Connection

Play some content and adjust the volume using your Vizio remote. With CEC enabled, the volume commands should control your soundbar’s volume directly.

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Optical Audio Output

If your soundbar or AV receiver uses an optical connection:
1

Connect the Optical Cable

Insert one end of a TOSLINK optical cable into the Optical Out port on your Vizio TV (typically located on the back or side of the set). Remove the plastic dust cap from both ends before connecting. Connect the other end to the Optical In port on your soundbar or receiver.
2

Select Digital Audio Output Format

Go to Menu → Audio → Digital Audio Out and select Dolby Digital for 5.1 surround compatibility with most soundbars, or PCM if your soundbar only supports stereo. Avoid selecting Auto with optical connections, as some devices handle auto-detection poorly.
3

Disable Internal Speakers

Navigate to Menu → Audio → TV Speakers and set it to Off so audio only plays through your connected soundbar.

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Volume Leveling and Surround Sound

Volume Leveling (sometimes labeled SmartCast Volume Leveling) automatically adjusts the output volume to reduce jarring jumps between quiet scenes and loud commercials or action sequences. To enable it, go to Menu → Audio → Volume Leveling and toggle it On. Virtual Surround Sound creates a simulated surround effect using your TV’s built-in speakers, making sound appear to come from a wider stage even without a physical surround sound setup. To enable it:
1

Open Audio Settings

Press Menu, select Audio, and press OK.
2

Select Surround Sound

Highlight Surround Sound and press OK to toggle it on. Some models label this option Virtual Surround or 3D Surround.
3

Evaluate the Effect

Play content with an active audio mix — an action film or TV drama works well. If the effect sounds unnatural for your room, you can toggle it back off. Surround Sound works best when you are sitting directly in front of the TV at a moderate distance.

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Lip Sync Adjustment

Lip sync problems occur when the audio and video fall out of alignment — you see an actor’s lips moving but hear the words a fraction of a second later (or earlier). This is usually caused by audio processing delay in an external soundbar or receiver. Your Vizio TV includes a Lip Sync adjustment to compensate. To correct lip sync:
1

Open Audio Settings

Press Menu, navigate to Audio, and press OK.
2

Select Lip Sync

Highlight Lip Sync and press OK. A slider will appear with a value range (typically 0 to 200 milliseconds).
3

Adjust Until Audio and Video Align

If the audio is behind the video (most common scenario), increase the Lip Sync value in small increments — try raising it by 20ms at a time while watching a scene with clear on-screen dialogue. If audio is ahead of video, some models allow a negative offset; check your model’s range.

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Bluetooth Audio

Your Vizio TV supports wireless Bluetooth audio output to headphones, speakers, and some soundbars directly from the Settings menu. This is especially useful for private listening without disturbing others. For complete pairing instructions, including step-by-step guidance for headphones, speakers, and troubleshooting connectivity issues, see the Connect Bluetooth Devices guide.

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Common Audio Issues and Fixes

First, confirm the TV is not muted (press the Mute button on your remote). Then check that TV Speakers is set to On under Menu → Audio — if it is set to Off while no external audio device is connected, you will hear nothing. If you are using an external soundbar, verify the HDMI ARC or optical cable is securely connected and the soundbar is powered on and set to the correct input.
Select a different Audio Mode — Speech mode is specifically designed to enhance dialogue clarity. Also check whether Virtual Surround Sound is enabled; while useful for some content, it can make dialogue sound hollow or distant on certain speaker configurations. Disabling it may immediately improve clarity.
An audio delay is almost always caused by processing latency in a connected soundbar or AV receiver. Use the Lip Sync setting under Menu → Audio to add a delay to the video signal and bring both streams back into alignment. If the echo sounds like it is coming from the TV’s own speakers playing simultaneously with a soundbar, make sure TV Speakers is set to Off when using an external audio device.
If adjusting volume with your Vizio remote does not control the soundbar’s volume, CEC may not be enabled or may not be supported by your soundbar. Go to Menu → System → CEC and confirm it is On. Also check your soundbar’s settings menu to ensure CEC (sometimes labeled HDMI Control or Anynet+) is enabled on the soundbar side as well.
For additional support or model-specific audio documentation, visit vizio.com/setup to find resources tailored to your exact TV model.