How to Enjoy Content Quietly with Fire TV, Apple TV, Roku, and Nvidia Shield

With many of us staying home as much as possible right now, streaming movies, TV shows, and music have become go-to options to keep us all entertained. But sometimes the combination of close quarters and sharing a home with multiple people can cause a bit of friction. Sometimes, you’d like to enjoy your content without disturbing or annoying your significant others, roommates, family members, and more. So we thought we’d take a look at a few popular streaming options out there and show you how to stream your favorite content without causing a fuss.

Amazon Fire TV

Like many of the options on this list, Amazon’s Fire TV lets you pair a set of headphones via good, ol’ Bluetooth. The pairing process is fairly straightforward, and

this guide

helps walk you through it. You’ll need to set your headphones to pairing mode. Then, on your Fire TV main screen, head to Setting, Controllers and Bluetooth Devices, and then finally Other Bluetooth Devices.

You’ll need to wait as your Fire TV searches around for any active Bluetooth devices nearby, and then select your headphones once they appear in the Discovered Devices section.

Once connected, you should be able to enjoy your Fire TV content with the audio discreetly pumped straight to your headphones instead of the TV speakers or sound system.

Apple TV

Apple TV also leverages Bluetooth to connect headphones to your streaming device. Of course, Apple’s quick to point out its own AirPods and AirPods Pro make great listening companions for your Apple TV. But the company also provides a how-to for connecting other Bluetooth accessories. Like the Fire TV’s setup,

pairing with an Apple TV

should be fairly simple.

Once your headphones are in pairing mode, you can dive into your Apple TV’s Settings menu, and then select Remotes and Devices. Click on the Bluetooth option and the search begins. You should see the name of your headphones pop up, at which point you can select them. Depending on the device, Apple points out you may need to enter a four-digit code or PIN. After that step, your headphones should appear in the My Devices section.

Nvidia Shield TV/TV Pro

Nvidia’s current lineup

of Android TV-powered media streamers consists of the tubular Shield TV and the more familiar-looking Shield TV Pro. Both support Bluetooth 5.0 + LE (low energy), meaning you shouldn’t have too much trouble hooking up some wireless headphones to either device.

From the home screen, you’ll need to head to General Settings and then select Remotes and Accessories. From here, you’ll see options like “SHIELD accessories” (for connecting the dedicated Shield game controller) and Wireless Controller (for third-party gaming options). If it’s a headphone connection you’re looking for, you’ll want to make sure your device is in pairing mode and then select “Add Bluetooth accessories.”

Once your device is found, you should be good to go.

If you have the Shield Controller, you can also plug in a pair of standard, non-Bluetooth headphones via that device’s 3.5mm headphone jack — a good option for some quiet gaming.

Roku

One of the nice perks included with several Roku devices is a traditional headphone jack along the side of the included remote control. This allows you to use non-Bluetooth headphones like you would wireless options for

what the company calls private listening

. Once plugged in, you can control the volume with the remote’s audio controls.

Alternatively, you can use Roku’s mobile app for the same purpose. Once the mobile app is launched, you should be able to connect headphones to your phone, at which point, your should see a notice about Private Listening and then the TV audio should be sent directly to your headphones. As with the Roku remote, you can use your phone’s controls to adjust volume as needed.

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