Answered 5.1 Pass through - Is xbox special??

SMV7

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Hi,
I have a Sony TV connected to a Bose Lifestyle system with an optical cable. The Bose system pre dates hdmi so all hdmi connections are made to the TV with audio going to the Bose via the optical cable. Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku Express and Macbook Air are only having PCM passed through to the Bose BUT xbox 360 is able to pass 5.1 through. I have tried connecting the other devices to the same hdmi port as the Xbox and with the same cable etc but still only the Xbox passes through 5.1. I have played about with as many settings on the TV and the other devices as I can find. Is there something unique about the Xbox that allows this that the other devices don't have or am I missing a trick? I am aware of the limitations of the Bose and the proprietary nature of all its connections but it will be with me for a little while yet. If the Xbox is the only device capable of pass through then I can live with that for now. I just don't like that I might not be getting the best out of what I have.
Any and all advice tips and tricks welcome

Cheers
Stephen
 
I'm having a guess that maybe all devices are able to pass through 5.1 but you were just not playing back a 5.1 audio track when you tested them.

The xbox is a bit special in so much as if you set it to output 5.1 it will do that all the time, even with stereo sound where it fills the empty channels with silence, so the amp thinks it's getting 5.1.
 
Thank you. I didn't realise the xbox filled empty channels.
As part of my tinkering yesterday I also changed the source that the optical cable was assigned to on the Bose system. Made no difference so changed it back to what I originally had it set to. Would you believe at this point I lost all sound from all sources over optical! Had one of those "why can't I just leave things alone" moments but unplugging the whole system and restarting restored audio including 5.1. I think maybe the Bose receiver is getting a bit flakey or maybe the optical cable isn't as good as it could be?
Anyway, for now all is well and I appreciate you taking the time to answer
 

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