5.1 Surround Sound not working from PC?!

[thomasd221]

Hi there,

I have a LG DH6420P 5.1 Surround system and I am trying to correctly get the full 5.1 working with my PC. I am running Windows 10 and I have the latest Realtek drivers. My motherboard is an ASUS Z170-A with the CrystalSound 2 audio chip, so I can't see why it wouldn't support 5.1 sound. I am using a Toslink cable between the PC and Receiver.

Stereo sound works perfectly, and comes out of all 5 speakers and subwoofer. However, I would like 5.1 to work correctly. In the Realtek HD Audio Control Panel, I have 2 options - Dolby Digital Live and DTS Interactive. The receiver should be able to support both. However, when any of these options are selected, there is a quick fuzz-type sound, followed by nothing - There is no sound output. The second I change the default format back to Default (16bit, 48,000Hz), the sound resumes perfectly.

However, I do have reason to believe the receiver is understanding that DTS is enabled on the PC. When I'm in stereo mode, the receiver shows that it's operating in PCM. When it's switched to DTS Interactive, the receiver itself shows DTS is enabled. There is just no sound output.

I have tried many things, including the "Hacked" Realtek drivers that are available. However, these did nothing. Some say it's an issue with Windows 10, but I can't see why this would be.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Thanks very much,
Tom.

 

[basroil]

Toslink = 2.0 sound only. The only way to get 5.1 is using a encoded matrix mix like Dolby Surround (not the same as Dolby Digital) or HDMI (or 3 analog cables)

I've personally stopped bothering with those theater kits, sure they might be cheap but they lack basic features that are absolutely necessary for HTPC style use

 

[thomasd221]

Toslink = 2.0 sound only. The only way to get 5.1 is using a encoded matrix mix like Dolby Surround (not the same as Dolby Digital) or HDMI (or 3 analog cables)

Thanks for your reply.

Sorry, I thought Toslink Optical Audio provided the full 5.1/7.1 surround experience, which was why it was a preferred alternative to analogue audio.

This is the rear of my receiver with all the ports (It's the best picture I could find) - http/img30.olx.ua/images_slandocomua/302189586_4_644x461_domashniy-kinoteatr-lg-dh6420p-obmen-elektronika.jpg

How would I go about making 5.1 sound work correctly with this?

Thanks very much.

 

[basroil]

Sorry, I thought Toslink Optical Audio provided the full 5.1/7.1 surround experience, which was why it was a preferred alternative to analogue audio.

This is the rear of my receiver with all the ports (It's the best picture I could find) - http/img30.olx.ua/images_slandocomua/302189586_4_644x461_domashniy-kinoteatr-lg-dh6420p-obmen-elektronika.jpg

How would I go about making 5.1 sound work correctly with this?

Thanks very much.

Toslink is in fact only 2 channels, though you can use matrix encoding to decode those two channels into five using Dolby Surround (though at a bit of quality loss)

You're pretty much out of luck with that unit, it's about as close to garbage as they come. Read the manual to see if it supports dolby surround though toslink, if it doesn't, it's time to consider an upgrade .

 

[thomasd221]

Sorry, I thought Toslink Optical Audio provided the full 5.1/7.1 surround experience, which was why it was a preferred alternative to analogue audio.

This is the rear of my receiver with all the ports (It's the best picture I could find) - http/img30.olx.ua/images_slandocomua/302189586_4_644x461_domashniy-kinoteatr-lg-dh6420p-obmen-elektronika.jpg

How would I go about making 5.1 sound work correctly with this?

Thanks very much.

Toslink is in fact only 2 channels, though you can use matrix encoding to decode those two channels into five using Dolby Surround (though at a bit of quality loss)

You're pretty much out of luck with that unit, it's about as close to garbage as they come. Read the manual to see if it supports dolby surround though toslink, if it doesn't, it's time to consider an upgrade .

Ok, thanks for clarifying Toslink for me. How would I go about using Matrix encoding? Is there an option for this?

I know the receiver is not great, but I got it for £20 a couple of weeks ago and it's far better than the Logitech speakers I had there before! :lol:

LG states that this unit should be able to support Dolby Surround, but I just need to know how to enable it.

Thanks!

 

[boju]

There isn't much bandwidth in an optical cable for uncompressed 5.1 audio thats why audio equipment have moved on to HDMI.

Optical can play 5.1 but the audio needs compression to pass that info along the wire and then the receiver would decode (like unzipping the zip file) and play.

What you may find is if you play a DVD movie on your computer through Window's media player, your receiver might pick it up then as 5.1 surround because the DVD is already compressed. Windows doesn't compress audio sadly.

 

[basroil]

Ok, thanks for clarifying Toslink for me. How would I go about using Matrix encoding? Is there an option for this?

I know the receiver is not great, but I got it for £20 a couple of weeks ago and it's far better than the Logitech speakers I had there before! :lol:

LG states that this unit should be able to support Dolby Surround, but I just need to know how to enable it.

Thanks!

matrix encoding = dolby surround. As for how to enable it, read your manuals for both the mobo and speaker kit