Receiver chooses multichannel pcm instead of DTS/DD on surround test file. Is this correct?

Xemaniac

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Nov 12, 2015
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4,510
So.

After building a new htpc my receiver chooses multichannel pcm on a surround test file that should be DTS/DD.

Now I understand that multichannel is better, but since the files are like 30 sec long, and around 10-30MB each, it feels lime it's too small to contain uncompressed sound.

Now when my receiver chooses this, does it mean that the surround mix will be worse than what it was scaled down to, that is to say DTS/DD?
 
Solution
In Kodi, you need to go to settings, system, audio output, and enable passthrough, choice the audio output and click the box that apply to what your receiver is capable of decoding. Then it should switch automatically when it detects a signal that is DTS/DTS-HD/DTS-MA/DD/DD+/DD+EX/etc. Mine can do just about everything I think.
Depends what you are playing the files on? Play them on MPC-HC or Kodi which both allow passthrough to be enabled, then it will simply pass the audio, untouched, to the receiver and let the receiver deal with it. Something like Windows Media Player that doesn't have the DTS/DD codecs available, can't decode them properly and falls back to straight multi-channel.

I run Kodi as my HTPC and always enable passthrough to let my Denon do all the decoding. Denon paid money for the license's to be able to decode them, so I let it. DTS-MA sounds awesome on my 6.1 through my Denon.
 

Xemaniac

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Nov 12, 2015
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4,510
Thanks for a fast reply.

I use Kodi or Vlc.

It's a brand new build so haven't tried movies on it yet.

What I understood was that the DTS or DD logo should be displayed on the receiver to show that it's being decoded correctly, but then I was wrong to assume that?

So even without the logos I should be fine?
 
In Kodi, you need to go to settings, system, audio output, and enable passthrough, choice the audio output and click the box that apply to what your receiver is capable of decoding. Then it should switch automatically when it detects a signal that is DTS/DTS-HD/DTS-MA/DD/DD+/DD+EX/etc. Mine can do just about everything I think.
 
Solution

Xemaniac

Estimable
Nov 12, 2015
5
0
4,510
Yeah, mine supports them all too, I've got an Onkyo TX-SR605

My question is more that, when you do that with your system, does the DTS/DD/DD-HD light up on your recievers OSD?

Mine just sticks with Multichannel.
 
Yes. If I play a DD or dts source through kodi with pass through on my receiver will change to that mide and display it on the screen. For kodi pass through switch it to the wsapi driver enable pass through and click all the boxes.

Should be fine. Also what gpu do you have connect to the receiver.
 

Xemaniac

Estimable
Nov 12, 2015
5
0
4,510
Yeah, that doesn't happen to me.

I use the onboard Intel 540 with a skylake i5 and gigabyte z170 MB.

Why do you recon that I can't get it to recognise dts/DD etc?

Could it be that the MB is hdmi 2.0 and onkyo 1.3?