Dolby Atmos question?

[dougan]

I am looking at buying the Denon 550 sound bar. My Samsung 4k TV only has ARC and not eARC.
Am I correct in thinking that you cannot output Dolby Atmos via ARC? I have a Samsung 4k player, and would like to hear Atmos from the discs.
If I connect the 4k player to the soundbar HDMI input, would it then output Atmos, even though the TV is connected via ARC only to the soundbar.

Thanks

 

[outoftheknow]

Am I correct in thinking that you cannot output Dolby Atmos via ARC?

Not quite. ARC can carry lossy Dolby Digital + which can deliver Atmos. ARC can’t carry lossless codecs like Dolby True HD which also carries Atmos.

If I connect the 4k player to the soundbar HDMI input, would it then output Atmos, even though the TV is connected via ARC only to the soundbar.

Yes.

The ARC connection is for audio from or via the TV.

 

[Joe Fernand]

As above ARC carries Video to the Display plus can carry Audio from the TV to the connected Soundbar or AVR.

Assuming the Soundbar does not impose any limitations on the video you wish to send to the TV then Source > Soundbar > TV will be your best option in terms of optimising the audio capabilities of the BDP.

Joe