Am I better to link the TiVo optical audio direct to my sound bar, and the hdmi to the tv? + I have hdmi arc too, so belt and braces do I connect the tv and soundbar this way too.
Does the soundbar have a single HDMI port? If so connect it to the TV's HDMI ARC port and see how it works. I'd leave the other port alone unless you need it.
so if my TiVo goes to tv via hdmi, and my TiVo goes to soundbar via the optical audio cable then this is ideal and I shouldn't bother with the hdmi arc? OR, should I hdmi to soundbar and hdmi arc to the tv? I thought I might lose some picture quality having it go through a soundbar?