Expanding Your Ceiling Speaker System: TVs, Subwoofers & Multi-Room Audio

Ceiling speakers are often installed for simple background music, but one of their biggest advantages is how easily they can grow with your needs. 

Whether you want better TV sound, deeper bass, or music in more rooms, expanding a ceiling speaker system is usually far simpler than people expect.

This guide explains the most common and practical ways to expand your ceiling speaker setup, helping you plan upgrades without starting again from scratch.

Connecting Your Ceiling Speakers To A TV

Many homeowners begin with ceiling speakers purely for music, then later decide they’d like to use them with a TV in a living room or open-plan space. 

This is a very common upgrade path and something worth thinking about early on, as choosing the right amplifier from the start can make adding TV audio much simpler later.

Hint: if you’re considering adding a TV then we’d strongly recommend that you choose an amplifier with a HDMI ARC input for best results.

HDMI ARC

The most effective way to connect ceiling speakers to a TV is via an amplifier that supports HDMI ARC or optical input such as the WiiM AMP or the OSD Audio Nero Stream ARC

This allows:

• TV sound to play directly through the ceiling speakers

• Volume control using the TV remote

• Automatic power on/off with the TV

This setup works particularly well in rooms where you want clean visuals without a soundbar or floor-standing speakers.

Optical Audio Cable

If your TV or amplifier doesn’t support HDMI ARC, such as the Q Acoustics E120, an optical audio cable is a reliable alternative.

An optical connection:

• Delivers clean digital audio from the TV

• Works with most modern televisions

• Requires separate volume control via the amplifier or remote

While it doesn’t support TV remote volume control in the same way as HDMI ARC, it remains a popular and dependable option especially if you have an easily accessible wall panel with remote control.

Bluetooth

Bluetooth is another way to connect a TV to ceiling speakers, particularly in simpler setups.

Bluetooth works well for:

• Casual TV viewing

• Occasional use or secondary rooms

• Setups where cable runs aren’t practical

However, Bluetooth can introduce slight audio delay (lip-sync issues) and usually doesn’t match the sound quality or stability of wired connections, which is why HDMI ARC or optical are generally preferred for main living areas.

If you are looking to connect via Bluetooth then we’d recommend opting for the Lithe Audio Bluetooth ceiling speakers in particular as these have a lossless audio chip that prevents any lip sync issues.

Adding A Subwoofer

Ceiling speakers deliver excellent clarity and even sound coverage, but like all in-ceiling designs, they have natural limitations when it comes to low-frequency bass. 

This is simply because there’s less cabinet volume above the ceiling compared to traditional speakers.

Adding a subwoofer is the most effective way to enhance your system, bringing weight, depth and realism without changing the clean, discreet look of your room.

Why Add a Subwoofer?

A subwoofer improves:

• Bass depth and impact, giving music more presence and authority

• TV and movie realism, especially for explosions, soundtracks and dialogue weight

• Overall fullness at lower volumes, making the system sound richer without turning it up

This upgrade is particularly noticeable in open-plan rooms, larger living spaces, or anywhere ceiling speakers are being used with a TV.

How Subwoofers Connect

Most ceiling speaker amplifiers support subwoofer expansion via a dedicated subwoofer output, making integration straightforward.

Amplifiers such as the WiiM AMP, OSD Audio Nero Stream, Bluesound Powernode etc all have dedicated subwoofer outputs.

Depending on your setup, this can be:

• A wired active subwoofer, connected using a single RCA Subwoofer cable

• A wireless subwoofer, ideal where running cables isn’t practical or where flexibility of placement is needed

Once connected, the subwoofer automatically handles the lowest frequencies. 

This allows the ceiling speakers to focus on mid and high detail, improving clarity while delivering a more balanced and immersive sound overall.

If you’re using the popular WiiM system then you can easily add a WiiM Sub Pro wireless subwoofer to any WiiM device simply by plugging the subwoofer in. This makes it super-easy to significantly enhance your system without needing to run cables.

Expanding a Wi-Fi Multi-Room System

Wi-Fi-based audio systems such as WiiM & Bluesound are designed to grow over time, which makes them ideal for homeowners who want to start with one room and expand gradually.

Rather than committing to a full whole-home system from day one, you can add rooms, zones and speakers as your needs change.

This staged approach keeps costs manageable while still giving you access to modern multi-room control and streaming features.

Likewise if you start with, or already have, a Bluetooth amplifier, you can easily change that out for a Wi-Fi amplifier to add full multi room capabilities.

How Expansion Works

Most Wi-Fi multi-room systems allow you to expand simply by adding additional devices to the same network.

Typically, you can:

• Add new amplifiers & ceiling speakers in other rooms of your house

• Add new amplifiers & outdoor speakers in the garden

• Group rooms together or play different music in each space

• Control everything from one central app

• Stream music services, internet radio and, in some cases, TV audio

Once connected to your Wi-Fi network, new zones appear in the app automatically. 

There’s no need to rewire or replace your existing ceiling speakers, each new room simply joins the system.

Mixing Ceiling Speakers With Freestanding Wi-Fi Speakers

One of the advantages of modern Wi-Fi audio systems is flexibility. 

You’re not limited to ceiling speakers in every room.

In the same system, you can:

• Use ceiling speakers in main living areas

• Add freestanding Wi-Fi speakers in bedrooms, offices or rented spaces

• Group all speakers together for whole-home audio

This is ideal where installing ceiling speakers isn’t practical, or where you want the option to move speakers around in the future.

Just bear in mind that you’d typically need to stick within an ecosystem to achieve this properly.

For example if you have a WiiM AMP powering some ceiling speakers then you’ll want a WiiM Sound freestanding speaker to work seamlessly together.

Using Speaker Selector Switches

In some situations, a speaker selector switch can be a simple way to expand a ceiling speaker system without adding additional amplifiers or Wi-Fi zones.

Speaker selector switches allow multiple pairs of ceiling speakers to be connected to a single amplifier, with manual control over which rooms are playing.

Speaker selector switches work best when:

• You want the same music playing in multiple rooms

• Independent music selection isn’t important

• You’re expanding into secondary or occasional-use rooms

• You want a cost-effective solution without adding extra amplifiers

For example if you have a bedroom with an en-suite you can easily add speakers in both rooms, powered from the same amplifier, then use a speaker selector switch to turn each set on and off.

Usually in this scenario you’d always have the same music playing at the same volume so using a speaker selector switch both saves you money (as you won’t have to buy a second amplifier) and it’s often also a bit more user-friendly in this setup.

You can also use speaker selector switches to connect more than two pairs of speakers to an amplifier without damaging the amplifier. This is great for larger rooms requiring more speakers, or in some situations where you’re happy to have the same music throughout the house but want the ability to turn rooms on and off.

While speaker selector switches are useful, they do come with limitations.

They:

• Play the same audio in all connected rooms

• Don’t support app-based control or streaming features

• Can reduce available power as more rooms are added

For this reason, speaker selector switches are best suited to simpler setups rather than fully independent multi-room systems.

Think of them more of a sub-zone expansion rather than true “zones”.

Final Thoughts

One of the biggest advantages of ceiling speakers is flexibility. 

Whether you’re starting with a single room or planning a full multi-room setup, most systems can be expanded over time without replacing what you already have.

By choosing the right amplifier and planning ahead, you can:

• Connect ceiling speakers to your TV for cleaner, clutter-free sound

• Add a subwoofer for deeper bass and greater realism

• Expand music into new rooms using Wi-Fi multi-room systems

• Use speaker selector switches where simple, shared audio is all that’s needed

The key is matching the expansion method to how you actually use your home. 

Some rooms benefit from independent control and streaming, while others simply need background music.