Connect Xbox 360 to Surround Sound
How do I connect my Xbox 360 to Surround Sound?
If your surround sound doesn't have an optical cable or hdmi it's only $100 and it has Red And White Audio in but the Xbox 360 cables are only like 4 inches so you need an adapter of some sort or new cables? If looked all over and can't find anything.
The red and white cables will only give you stereo sound. You need optical audio or HDMI for surround sound. But, let's make due with what you have.
If your TV has a pair of red/white audio jacks labeled "SPEAKER OUT" or "AUDIO OUT" or something like that, just get a standard AV cable (ignore the yellow cable - you don't need it) and connect the red/white cables to the the TV's OUTPUT and your surround system's INPUT. This way, you can redirect all audio from the TV to the surround speakers. Use your TV remote to access the setup menu and under the Audio tab should be a setting to use external audio. You can still use the TV remote to adjust the volume. Connect your devices (360, cable box,etc.) to your TV normally.
If your TV doesn't have this feature, connect the standard AV cable that came with the 360, the one that has the red, white and yellow cables. If you have a HDTV, connect a HDMI cable from the 360 to the TV. If not, use the yellow cable. Now connect the red/white cables to the INPUT on the surround system. If they aren't long enough, go to Radio Shack and look for an extension cable with the same type of RCA connectors the AV cable uses. The color of the plugs really doesn't matter - it just makes it easier to know which cable goes into which port. Just make sure the red cable goes into the red port and the white cable goes into the white port.
In the meantime, start saving up for a real surround sound receiver - one that doesn't have a DVD or blu-ray player shoved inside of it. This way you can connect all your devices to it, get surround sound and HD video.
