The Amazon Fire TV Stick or FireStick is the Amazon version of the Roku Stick+ or the Roku Express. Like Roku players, the FireStick is capable of streaming content to any display appliance, be it an HDTV, HDMI monitor, or HDMI projector. However, it works best with HDTVs since it is called the Fire TV Stick. It allows you to watch content on services like Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and so forth in a user-friendly interface as long as you have a Wi-Fi Internet connection handy.
Its main purpose is to turn any TV with an HDMI connection (or has an HDMI converter connection) into a smart TV with streaming capabilities. With that in mind, here’s what you need to know regarding how to connect firestick to the projector.
See more: How to Connect a Roku Stick to a Projector: Is It Even Possible?
What Is The Amazon Fire TV Stick?
The Amazon FireStick is a streaming player hardware you can connect to any HDTV advanced enough to feature an HDMI port. It essentially turns your HDTV into a laptop or desktop with an app that immediately accesses services ranging from Amazon Prime to CrunchyRoll. Yes, it even features access to Amazon Prime’s biggest competitor, Netflix, since Netflix is yet to have its own standalone streaming hardware available. What’s more, it allows even TVs without Wi-Fi connectivity—which is certainly applicable to vintage TVs and especially CRT TV sets—to connect to your Wi-Fi and feature streaming content.
The only real limit to the Amazon Fire TV Stick is the fact that it can’t connect to really old TVs that lack an A/V connection at the back, front, or side of the TV set to allow at least a Betamax or VHS player to link to it via SCART or RCA composite video connection. Otherwise, potentially even black and white TVs can play Stranger Things on Netflix or The Boys from Amazon Prime. Many consumers prefer using sticks like the Amazon Fire TV Stick over using actual HDTV Wi-Fi connections or app downloads because it’s far too complicated for them to program even Wi-Fi-capable TV sets by themselves. It’s preferable to use the plug-and-play nature of the FireStick instead.
How to Connect the Amazon Fire TV Stick to a Projector
It’s actually pretty straightforward to use the FireStick with a projector as long as it has at least one HDMI connection. Just plug it in and you’re good to go. You can worry about splitting the signal to accommodate the speaker or sound system of your home cinema later The actual linkage between stick to the projector is quite simple unless you’re worrying about extension wires or a non-HDMI Liquid Crystal Display projector or something.
- 100-Inch Screens and High-Definition Quality: The point of getting a projector to play the FireStick is to be able to stream quality shows on a 100-inch screen. Sure, a 480p or even 720p resolution image will look a bit blurry and blown up at a screen that size, but it’s just the right size for true HD and Ultra HD resolutions ranging from 1080p to 4K (8K resolution projectors coming soon for 2020 and beyond). Those millions of pixels fit better on a 100-inches compared to a smaller screen or HDTV where going 4K is unnecessary because your screen real estate won’t fit all that pixels anyway, so you’ll get downgraded or squished images to fit smaller screens anyway. The pixels spread out better at 100-inch screens inside your home cinema or outdoors at your backyard.
- To Connect The Amazon Fire TV Stick to a Projector: To connect an Amazon Fire TV Stick to a projector, you need to plug the FireStick to the HDMI input port of the projector while connecting the USB to a power source, whether directly on the projector or through a separate USB wall socket plug. Afterwards, turn your system on and connect your Fire TV Stick to your sound system either by a separate hookup, an HDMI cable, a 3.5-millimeter audio plug, and a converter and so forth. It can accept connections from a receiver, Bluetooth speakers, an HDMI audio extractor, or a wireless HDMI kit for good measure.
- The Signal of the FireStick Has The Audio Signal Too: The FireStick works like a USB stick (more like an HDMI stick) in that it’s the hardware you can literally plug and play with your projector with a caveat. The HDMI signal from the stick carries both the audio (Dolby Atmos) and video signals from the streaming Wi-Fi service it’s housing together. It doesn’t have a separate connection for audio, so the best solution for running your projector with it is to use the projector’s built-in speakers, connect the sound system to the projector, or link an HDMI audio extractor to the FireStick in order to split the connection to video on the projector and audio for your home cinema sound system.
- The Alexa Issue When Connecting a FireStick to a Projector: If you have a 4K Fire TV Stick, this typically includes the Alexa Voice Remote since it has Alexa built-in along with features such as Dolby Vision and Ultra HD. This is ultimately beneficial but requires getting used to. Alexa is the voice-activated program that you can “talk to” like on sci-fi shows to give commands to the FireStick such as changing the channel, finding a new show to watch, or switching services from Netflix to Amazon Prime to Disney+ and back. The FireStick seems like the perfect solution to accessing Amazon’s content library or even viewing its competitor’s archives such as Netflix and Hulu, all in 4K Ultra HD streaming. You need to learn the ropes in working Alexa and speaking clearly.
- The FireStick Hardware and Converter Solutions: The hardware is tiny, like a USB stick but as large as a candy bar. This means it’s easy to mount with the projector but is also as easy to lose as a real USB stick or your remote control. Additionally, the FireStick has remote control of its own in case you don’t want to deal with Alexa and wish to work it manually like you would your cable or satellite box. What’s not to like about the device? Firstly, if you have non-HDMI or vintage projectors, you need to hunt down a special converter or adapter to make it work, especially if your TV is of the CRT variety and uses A/V systems like composite, component video, or SCART
- Getting The Sound to an External Audio System: The most obvious solution to an audio dilemma when dealing with using a projector with your Alexa-powered Amazon FireStick is to connect the projector to speakers or soundbar amplifiers. You can even jerry-rig or put in a nice sound system filled with amps, base, subwoofers, stereos for surround sound, and much more in order to take full advantage of the Fire TV Stick’s Dolby Atmos feature (it’s like Dolby’s world-famous Surround Sound but more advanced and high-fidelity). Any audio issues you might be experiencing aren’t caused by the FireStick but instead by the limits of a projector. Even the best built-in speakers for projectors won’t be hi-fi enough for the needs of a quality home cinema.
- Enumerating Audio System Solutions for Projectors: Bluetooth speakers are ideal because Bluetooth tech ensures that you’re dealing with no wires and you won’t siphon bandwidth from your Wi-Fi, which you need to be free to ensure HD streaming for your account isn’t getting too much traffic. Otherwise, you’ll have to defend on less-than-ideal onboard speakers. HDTVs typically have decent to amazing speakers that you can amplify with a soundbar. In the case of a projector, your home cinema external audio system is more mandatory when compared to HDTVs streaming Amazon Prime using the FireStick. Dolby Atmos works best with surround-sound type speakers and the usual collection of amplifiers, bass speakers, subwoofers, stereos, and more.
- Using an HDMI Audio Extractor: We recommend the Tensun 4K HDMI to HDMI Optical SPDIF TOSLINK Converter Adapter because it can serve as an HDMI extender, optical SPDIF converter, or TOSLINK adapter that you can connect 3.5 millimeter RCA R/L stereo plug to for all your home cinema sound system needs. You can use either an HDMI link for it to work in splitting audio and video signals for your Amazon Fire TV Stick as well as your Xbox One, laptop, PC, and Blu-Ray Disc device. It covers all the most common cables needed for audio use except for Bluetooth wireless connections.
Final Thoughts
You can connect the Fire TV Stick from Amazon to many projectors out there, particularly the ones with an HDMI connection. Unlike the Roku player collection, the vast majority of the models of the FireStick are compatible with projector use via HDMI port. The ones that lack an HDMI port will require a converter of some sort, such as an A/V or VGA to HDMI converter. Adapters aren’t as good as converters in making sure that your Fire TV Stick can be recognized and read by vintage projectors.
Additionally, you have to be careful in using extension cords and splitters in order to connect your FireStick to an overhead projector that’s mounted on your ceiling and the like. This is because signal attenuation can occur from having so many connections linked together in between the FIreStick and the projector itself.
References:
- “FIRE TV STICK for projectors“, YouTube.com, July 27, 2018
- Jonah Matthes, “Can You Connect an Amazon Fire TV Stick to a Projector?“, The Home Theater DIY, January 21, 2020
- “Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice“, Amazon.com, Retrieved April 30, 2020
- “Tensun 4K HDMI to HDMI Optical SPDIF TOSLINK Converter Adapter“, Amazon.com, Retrieved May 9, 2020
Image Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/artcoustic/4340348098/