Issues when your TV is connected to an external device such as DVD/BD Player, hard disk drive, PC or USB stick? Discover how to troubleshoot
This article troubleshoots connection and compatibility issues with external media playback/recording devices (PC, VC Recorder, DVD Player/Recorder, AV Receiver / Home Theatre) and external storage devices (USB Stick, HDD drive).
Note: Not covered are Set-Top Boxes and issues related to Wi-Fi Direct , or Internet and home networks in general.
Go through below steps to find a solution for your connectivity issue.
1. Check your setup and cabling
2. Troubleshooting per device type
1. USB device (Hard Disk Drive, USB stick)
3. Update and reset your TV and the connected device
1. Check your setup and cabling
Check setup
- When installing optional equipment, leave some space between the equipment and TV.
- To enjoy the best audio visual experience with your system, it is preferable to connect your best devices with the highest quality connections available. For example: your Blu-Ray Disc player or HD Set Top Box with HDMI, followed by your DVD player with Component, then your Video Cassette Recorder with S-video etcetera.
- The quality of the picture also strongly depends on the quality of the cable used. The more stars a cable has in the table below, the better the quality.
Further details and concrete examples of connectivity diagrams can be found in: How to connect the TV to other devices? (bottom of article)
Check cabling
- 1. Disconnect and reconnect all cables between the TV and the affected device(s). Make sure all cables are properly inserted.
- 2. Check that the cables in the sending device are in the OUT socket and are connected to the IN socket of the receiving device.
- 3. Ensure that your cables are not faulty. You can do this by trying with another cable of the same type.
- 4. Via the HOME button on the TV remote, make sure the correct input is selected.
2. Troubleshooting per device type
1. USB device (Hard Disk Drive, USB stick)
Difficulty using a Hard Disk Drive?
Refer to the article below to look for a solution for any hard disk drive issues.
Problems using your TV Hard Disk Drive (HDD)? Discover how to troubleshoot
Difficulty playing back particular files?
Refer to the article below to look for a solution for any issue with particular files.
Note: In case you have edited a certain file, it may not be playable anymore, despite the file extension being mentioned as compatible. Files may also be copyright protected.
Which file types are supported for home networks and USB playback?
Playback not available” message for JPEG
* Your TV may only support JPEG YCbCr 422/420 formats, while JPEG YCbCr 444 is not. If your PC is installed with photo editing software capable of JPEG conversion (444 <--> 422/420), convert the JPEG file to the TV supporting formats. Refer to the Photo editor application instruction manual for details.
* If the JPEG was downloaded from the internet and part of the file data are missing, please download the photo again as some pictures may not be displayed if a part of the file data is missing or corrupted.
* Keeping a file on your storage device for a long period of time, may make it inaccessible as well.
2. DVD / Blu-Ray Player & Recorder
Some frequent issues are listed below. Click them to find a solution to your problem.
No sound or audio when connecting Blu-ray Disc (BD) player to TV or AV amplifier via HDMI
TV screen is completely black or flashing when using a Blu-ray Disc player
How to use Bravia Sync / Control for HDMI
4. External Audio System
Home Cinema System
In case the TV is connected to a Home Cinema System via HDMI and no sound can be heard or the sound breaks up:
- Make sure to use a High Speed HDMI cable.
- TV Speaker settings must be set to Audio System via the Sync menu button on the remote commander.
1. Set Speakers to Audio System in the Sound setting.
2. Set Audio Out to Fixed in the Sound setting.
More details can be found here: How to use Bravia Sync / Home Theatre Control
Monolithic Stand / Sound bar
To get sound out of the Monolithic stand / Sound bar, use the TV remote commander to click the HOME / MENU button > Select Options > Scroll down and select Speakers > Select Audio System.
When connecting via HDMI, make sure the stand is connected to the TV HDMI socket which is labelled as HDMI ARC (Audio Return Channel).
Note: Tone controls for the stand audio can be located within the TV menu. Various sound fields can be accessed by selecting "Scene Select" via the Options button on the TV remote control.
5. Other HDMI inputs
In case your TV experiences certain symptoms with HDMI connections such as:
- Devices not detected
-
Other HDMI related symptoms
Please refer to Sony's Android TV article: " HDMI connectivity potential issues and how to solve them
Do you have the impression that your problem is not mentioned in this article? Take a look in our FAQ database by clicking the Frequently Asked Questions tab on our Support website.
Your issue is not mentioned in our FAQ database, or the proposed solution did not work? Then updating the firmware of your TV and resetting it may help.
How to update the firmware
The firmware of your TV can be updated directly via the Internet. Alternatively, you can update with a USB stick via the Sony Support site.
My TV is connected to the Internet
Perform Firmware/Software Updates for Sony Android TV
My TV is not connected to the Internet
Update Sony's Android TV using a USB flash drive
For the update procedure of the connected device, please refer to the User Manual of this device.
Not solved? Reset to factory settings
WARNING: All user settings and preferences will be erased!
To reset your TV, please apply following procedure: How to reset the TV to its original factory settings
NOTE: Discover how to perform a factory reset for Sony's Android TV
To reset your connected device, please refer to the User Manua of this device.
There may be many different reasons why you cannot correctly display content via home network*.
NOTE: On the TV models Other than Android TV™, home network is as known as DLNA.
