One listening position, two paths
A native TV app decodes on the television and may send audio back to a soundbar or receiver. An external box can decode elsewhere or pass a format directly to that equipment. The TV's return-channel capability matters in one route in a different way from the other.
HDMI documents ARC and eARC as return-audio functions. Their presence does not establish every codec, app implementation or passthrough combination.
Keep the source comparison honest
Use the same programme and edition when legally available through both paths. Record the selected audio track in each app. If one route chooses a stereo language track and the other chooses a different multichannel track, the comparison is not isolating equipment.
Also note any receiver listening mode, TV processing and output conversion. A front-panel word alone does not describe the source track.
Change one stage
First establish audible output with the correct destination and input selected. Then compare documented format choices. A PCM stereo fallback can help identify a format-path issue, but its result is not a full surround test.
If direct player-to-receiver works while TV-return does not, preserve that finding. It does not automatically prove the cable is defective; the return path has additional capability and configuration conditions.
Make the finding useful
Report the equipment sequence and ports for each route. State whether the difference is silence, channel layout, loudness, delay or an equipment label. Those observations call for different investigations.
This explanation concerns documented connection roles and proposed comparisons. It is not a physical test of your TV, an assertion that an app is mislabelled or a guarantee that an IPTV Canada source supplies a particular soundtrack. The practical outcome is knowing which route needs further support.
Delay needs its own observation
If both routes are audible but one is late, compare the same spoken line or visible impact and report the direction of the offset. Do not call every difference unsupported audio. Timing processing can differ even when decoding succeeds. A global sync adjustment made for one route may worsen another, so retain its original value and verify the ordinary route after any documented change.
Sources and scope
Scope notes distinguish published documentation, supplied information and editorial methods. They do not report a hands-on service test.
- HDMI enhanced Audio Return Channel — Official current HDMI documentation excerpt: eARC and ARC capability distinctions; not a promise about any connected app.
- LG webOS24 sound output — Official article section inspected: All Settings, Sound, Sound out and wired/wireless choices; other models may differ.
