7.1 surround on Anthem MRX300

[Johnairwave]

Hi all

I have been successfully using the MRX300 with a 5 speaker setup and have now added two additional speakers. I have the speakers correctly setup because the ARC level setup tool correctly feeds the relevant speaker - all fine

However when I play a blu-ray I do not get any sound from either rear speaker.

The front display on the AVR shows 'DOLBY 3/2' so to my mind it is not decoding the additional channels.

On mi4:ghost protocol last night, I specifically selected 7.1 true hd from the audio menu ......


Am I missing something?? How do I fault find this problem ??


Thanks

John

 

[Rock Danger]

Hi all

I have been successfully using the MRX300 with a 5 speaker setup and have now added two additional speakers. I have the speakers correctly setup because the ARC level setup tool correctly feeds the relevant speaker - all fine

However when I play a blu-ray I do not get any sound from either rear speaker.

The front display on the AVR shows 'DOLBY 3/2' so to my mind it is not decoding the additional channels.

On mi4:ghost protocol last night, I specifically selected 7.1 true hd from the audio menu ......


Am I missing something?? How do I fault find this problem ??


Thanks

John

When you set up ARC did you config it for a 7.1 setup? Assuming that you did, have you set your BD Player to bitstream the audio - because if you have selected TrueHD and it's showing Dolby 3/2 then it's not being sen to the amp right.

Have a look at your manual regarding this, once you set it to bitstream it's done and dusted.

 

[PSM1]

Was the bluray you used an actual 7.1 soundtrack? Most are only 5.1 so you would need to set a prologic setting to convert this from 5.1 to 7.1. Did you do this?

 

[Rock Danger]

Was the bluray you used an actual 7.1 soundtrack? Most are only 5.1 so you would need to set a prologic setting to convert this from 5.1 to 7.1. Did you do this?

He said he chose the 7.1 track on ghost protocol. On the Anthem, the display will show what is coming into the amp, which would be TrueHd 3/4 - pro logic has nothing to do it in this particular case.

You're thinking of using PLII as a pseudo mode to add a mono channel to rears or fronts. A dedicated 7.1 track will light the amp up display as 3/4 not 3/2 - the problem is the source.

If you do get the amp dislaying 3/4 and still have no rears or fronts then during the ARC setup you didn't tell it you had front heights / rears and you'll need to re-do.

 

[Mark.Yudkin]

The front display on the AVR shows 'DOLBY 3/2' so to my mind it is not decoding the additional channels.

On mi4:ghost protocol last night, I specifically selected 7.1 true hd from the audio menu ......

Am I missing something?? How do I fault find this problem ??

It sounds like you've configured the HDMI Audio Output option to AVR+TV, meaning that the BD player is being forced to send Dolby 3/2 as per your TV's capabilities. To get HD audio, set HDMI Audio Output to AVR.

(Also ensure you've disabled zone 2 and the listening mode presets).

 

[Johnairwave]

Thanks for good suggestions all

Just to confirm a few of your queries
- 7.1 was selected during ARC setup and all speakers will be driven during test
- I specifically mentioned ghost protocol as the disk setup allow you the choose '7.1 DOLBY TRUE HD'
- HDMI audio output is set to AVR only

I have not seen the AVR display 'TRUE HD' so I checked the blu ray player and it is set to 'Bitstream (uncompressed)'

But no joy !!

The blu ray player is a Samsung BD-D5500 and I am definitely getting audio via optical lead (audio stops when I unplug)


Any other ideas ???



Thanks John

 

[PSM1]

So you have the player connected to the receiver via an optical cable? If so then this will be your problem since only 5.1 non HD soundtracks can be sent via optical. If you want 7.1 HD audio then you need to connect it to the receiver via HDMI.

 

[Mark.Yudkin]

The blu ray player is a Samsung BD-D5500 and I am definitely getting audio via optical lead (audio stops when I unplug)

Optical cannot carry any HD audio formats whatsoever and all of the settings are being ignored as they're not applicable to optical.

HDMI cables are the only connectors capable of transporting HD audio, so you will need to use HDMI if you want the "7.1 true hd" sound-track.

 

[Johnairwave]

Spot on - thanks Mark and psm1

I had thought that the optical cable was carrying all formats ! I have just played the dust storm scene outside the Burj Kalifia in MI4:ghost protocol and scene is acoustically amazing !!

Psm1 mentioned using pro logic to convert 5.1 tracks to 7.1 - is this a 'Listening mode preset' ? Any of the modes I select do not drive the rear speakers on DOLBY3/2


A related question

The MRX300 is outputting to a JVC-X35 using a 20m hdmi cable. On blu-rays I see picture break up randomly. Some DVDs are perfect others give very minor stutters. Never had a problem with other sources (Xbox or tv). Furthermore, the blu-ray picture breakup gets much worse while I lower or rise the PJ screen.

To me this all points to a dodgy cable - I.e. picture break up with 1080p but not with lower resolutions - this sound okay??

However, if I bypass the MRX300 and plug the 20m Hdmi cable directly to the BDP then all okay - that is curious is it not ??


Thanks all

John

 

[Mark.Yudkin]

The MRX300 is outputting to a JVC-X35 using a 20m hdmi cable. On blu-rays I see picture break up randomly. Some DVDs are perfect others give very minor stutters. Never had a problem with other sources (Xbox or tv). Furthermore, the blu-ray picture breakup gets much worse while I lower or rise the PJ screen.

To me this all points to a dodgy cable - I.e. picture break up with 1080p but not with lower resolutions - this sound okay??

However, if I bypass the MRX300 and plug the 20m Hdmi cable directly to the BDP then all okay - that is curious is it not ??

1080p requires high speed cabling, 1080i requires standard speed cabling. 20m is ludicrously long for a passive high speed HDMI cable, which typically tops out at about 10m. 20m standard speed cabling does exist. Therefore I suggest sticking to 1080i if you can by disabling all video scaling and deinterlacing in the source or amp, letting the TV and projector do the work.

A solution capable of handling high speed HDMI over 20m requires spending a lot of money, typically it involves using HDMI over fibre, such as this (the 20m fibre cable will set you back another £40).

You could pray you get lucky and just try using a well-built quality cable, such as this (and no, at this length, that's the price you have to pay, and they don't come certified as they cannot pass certification). Alternatively, use certified high speed 10m cables and an externally powered (not a self-powered) repeater.

 

[PSM1]

HDMI over Cat 6 would also probably work but adds to the cost (cables are cheap but boxes to convert HDMI to cat6 and back are a little more expensive).
The addition of the AVR is probably giving a little more loss so the cable by itself may just be on the limit for the signal but adding the AVR (and associated cabling) must be dropping it to a level that you are getting problems.

 

[Johnairwave]

Thanks for the pointers. Another newbie mistake.

My cable is actually 15m long (sri) but the same comments apply. I'm obviously on a knife edge and any small loading (extra cabling through AVR, electrical noise from PJ Screen) is killing the picture. It probably explains some other intermittant issues I have been seeing also which I couldn't tie down.

I've re-checked the data on the cable and its rated for 1080p to 10m and 1080i once longer than that ... the devil is in the detail !

Looking at HDconnectivity.com they have some active HDMI cables which look like they would work Long HDMI Cables - ActiveWire from HDanywhere - 3D, Full HD 1080p & Ethernet in lengths 8-25m

However, since I've already got electrical power points in the attic, it probably makes sense to go for 2x 8m cables and a repeater as it would likely be more robust

Cheers
John

 

[Mark.Yudkin]

Looking at HDconnectivity.com they have some active HDMI cables which look like they would work Long HDMI Cables - ActiveWire from HDanywhere - 3D, Full HD 1080p & Ethernet in lengths 8-25m

However, since I've already got electrical power points in the attic, it probably makes sense to go for 2x 8m cables and a repeater as it would likely be more robust

These cables extract their power from the HDMI, so they might work or they might not. I recommend an externally powered repeater between certified high speed cables.

 

[kbfern]

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