Best Wireless TV Headphones for Night Watching (No Bluetooth Needed)

Also considered, with no buy button here: Sony WH-RF400, Sennheiser RS 120-W, Sennheiser RS 195-U. See each maker’s own page for specs and where to buy.

Apartment Audio Lab Editorial Updated Oct 13, 2026 Researched from maker specs, manuals and retailer listings

Quick answer · TV headphones at night

Yes, you can get wireless headphones for a TV without Bluetooth. They come with their own transmitter dock that plugs into the TV with a cable, so the TV never has to pair with anything. For watching TV in bed, pick a set whose dock also charges the headphones.

Which TV outputs work: the Sennheiser RS 175-U dock takes the TV’s headphone jack or optical (digital audio out). HDMI ARC does not work directly, because the dock has no HDMI input. See which outputs work, HDMI eARC vs optical and honest HDMI & optical cables.

Which TV outputs work (check this first)

Look at the back or side of your TV before you buy. The RS 175-U connects through a small base station (the transmitter). The base station needs one of these outputs:

TV output	Works?	Notes
Optical / digital audio out (square port, often labeled OPTICAL or DIGITAL AUDIO OUT)	Yes	Plugs straight into the RS 175-U dock. Set the TV’s audio output to PCM (plain stereo); Sennheiser says surround formats aren’t supported on optical.
Headphone jack / 3.5 mm	Yes	Turn the TV’s headphone volume up to at least a medium level so the signal is strong enough.
RCA audio out (red / white “Audio Out L/R”)	With an adapter	The RS 175-U needs an RCA-to-3.5 mm adapter (sold separately).
HDMI ARC / eARC	Not directly	The dock has no HDMI input. If ARC is your only audio output, you’d need an HDMI ARC audio extractor with an optical or analog output. Read HDMI eARC vs optical first, including its section on TVs without optical.

If a soundbar already uses your TV’s audio output, check the TV’s sound output menu. Many TVs send sound to one output at a time, so you may need to switch outputs for headphone time. Cable questions? See honest HDMI & optical cables. The RS 175-U includes an optical cable in the box.

Our pick

Sennheiser RS 175-U: top pick

Top pickOptical input

Sennheiser RS 175-U

Closed over-ear TV headphones · dock with optical + 3.5 mm inputs · charging cradle

Best for: Most people watching late at night. The dock takes the TV’s optical output, so you don’t touch the TV’s headphone volume at all, and it doubles as the charging stand.

Skip if: Your TV has no optical or headphone output (HDMI ARC only), or you want the lightest possible headphones.

Pros

Optical and 3.5 mm analog inputs, with a switch between them. Sennheiser includes both an optical cable and an analog cable
Charging cradle: set the headphones on the dock after the show and they recharge
Closed-back over-ear cups keep more sound in than open headphones, which helps when someone is asleep nearby
Bass boost and two virtual surround modes. One dock can feed up to two RS 175 headphones (second pair sold separately)

Cons

Setup note: when using optical, set the TV’s audio output to PCM (plain stereo), because this dock’s optical input takes only PCM
Uses two AAA NiMH rechargeable cells. Sennheiser says the first charge takes up to 16 hours

Spec	Value
Dock inputs	Optical + 3.5 mm analog
Range	Up to 100 m (line of sight)
Battery	Up to 18 hours; about 8.5 hours to recharge
Headphones per dock	Up to 2

Evidence: Specs from Sennheiser’s RS 175 product page, spec sheet and instruction manual.

Headphones for watching TV in bed

Pick closed-back if someone sleeps next to you. The RS 175-U is a closed-back over-ear design, which keeps more sound in than open-back headphones.
Put the dock where you’ll set the headphones down. The RS 175-U charges on its dock, so the dock becomes the nightstand habit. Use a longer optical or 3.5 mm cable if the TV is across the room.
Mind the TV speakers. On many TVs, plugging into the headphone jack turns off the TV speakers. The Roku TV guide describes this behavior. With optical, you may need to mute the TV speakers yourself in the sound menu.
Keep captions handy. Headphones keep most of the sound off shared walls, but a quiet mix can still bury voices. The free settings in TV dialogue hard to hear at night still help.
Want to share the room sound instead? A dialogue-first speaker may suit you better. See best TV speakers for clear dialogue.

FAQ

Are there wireless headphones for TV without Bluetooth?

Yes. The RS 175-U uses its own transmitter dock that connects to the TV with an optical or headphone cable. The TV doesn’t need Bluetooth and there’s nothing to pair.

Can I plug these into my TV’s HDMI ARC port?

Not directly. The docks have no HDMI input. Use the TV’s headphone output instead, or its optical output with the RS 175-U. If ARC is the only audio output, an HDMI ARC audio extractor with optical or analog out is the usual workaround. HDMI eARC vs optical explains the options.

My TV has optical but I hear nothing. What should I check?

Set the TV’s digital audio output format to PCM (sometimes called stereo), because the RS 175-U doesn’t take surround formats over optical. Also make sure the dock’s input switch is set to digital.

Can two people listen at once?

With the RS 175, one dock supports two headphones (the second pair is sold separately).