How do I get 3D through my Onkyo NR616?

-mo-

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I hope this is the right forum....
I have just set up my Panasonic BDT220 BD player, Onkyo TX NR616 and Panasonic PT-AT5000E projector. I get sound and picture but the picture states my BD player cannot detect a 3D display device and will not show 3D, only 2d.
To check, I ran each HDMI cable directly between my 3D BD player and 3D projector and the 3D worked fine, so the player, each HDMI cable and projector can show 3D. But when I connect the HDMI cables to the Onkyo TX NR616 I get the above 'No 3D display device' error. How can I get 3D to work through my 616 - is there a setting I need to know about?
TIA for any help
Maurice
 
Please check that each of the HDMI cables has the words "high speed" or "category 2" printed on them, or replace with HDMI cables having these words or official high speed logo. Ignore marketing terms such as "HDMI 1.3", "HDMI 1.4" or "super-duper pay through your nose".
 
Hi Mark-
Thanks for the reply. Yes these cables are 'high speed'. They are braided so there is no marking on the cable itself but they are sold as 'High Speed' and come with packing literature stating 'High Speed' from Amazon.co.uk.

As explained above I tested them and they both passed the 3D signal when connected directly between the blu-ray player and the projector, nothing else in between. I get a beautiful 3D video on the projector screen and no error message. The problem is when I route the cables through the Onkyo 616, the BD player 'Cannot detect a 3D display'. Any other ideas?

Incidentally I tried connecting my 5 year old HDMI cable directly, this also passed the 3D signal.
Maurice
 
I wasn't able to enable 3D on my PS3 through the Onkyo 515 until I'd set the HDMI out to "Through".
 
I wasn't able to enable 3D on my PS3 through the Onkyo 515 until I'd set the HDMI out to "Through".

Yeah, I think this is now becoming apparent with the new Onkyo amps and is due to their abilities to process HDMI sourced video. Many will have not realised this because it wasn't a feature of many amps at this level prior to the new Onkyo models. 3D video will only be accessible if passed through a device unadulterated and any video processing must be turned off.
 
OK, so it's not negotiating down due to cable speed issues (a common problem).

Check that Monitor Out is set to its default Main (not Both, unless you have two 3D enabled display devices actually connected) [Probleme mit 3D beim Onkyo TX-NR616, Onkyo - HIFI-FORUM - see the Onkyo confirmation at the end of the thread]. Manual page 52.

Assuming that's not the problem, in theory the TX-NR616 should recognize a 3D signal and pass it through automatically (Resolution at its default Auto). But try P.R.'s suggestion of setting Resolution to Through.
 
Great, these sound like worthwhile investigations, I'll try them tonight.
I'm not too techno literate but it sounds like my main reason for purchasing this amp (2 x HDMI out to enable 2D TV + 3D projector with passive pass-through) might not be achievable.
I'll let you know how I get on.
Thanks again.
Maurice
 
Many thanks to you all PR., Mark.Yudkin and dante01 - thank god for these forums! Yes I've managed to get 3d working through the amp and into the projector by following your instructions.


I have disconnected the TV from the amp and connected the projector to the amp's HDMI output 'Main' . This has resolved the 3D problem on the projector but is not ideal . I am still trying various configurations to enable use of both the amp's HDMI out - the main reason I bought this amp. I will let you know how I get on, in the meantime thanks again.
Maurice
 
Many thanks to you all PR., Mark.Yudkin and dante01 - thank god for these forums! Yes I've managed to get 3d working through the amp and into the projector by following your instructions.


I have disconnected the TV from the amp and connected the projector to the amp's HDMI output 'Main' . This has resolved the 3D problem on the projector but is not ideal . I am still trying various configurations to enable use of both the amp's HDMI out - the main reason I bought this amp. I will let you know how I get on, in the meantime thanks again.
Maurice
There is a general limitation that the output of HDMI splitting is always the common subset supported by both devices. No receiver can do anything about this, so if you route to a 2D TV and a 3D projector you get 2D.

From the link I gave:
Die Antwort vom Onkyo Support ist die gleiche die Du gegeben hast, leider funktionniert BOTH nur mit 3D wenn beide Geräte an den Ausgängen 3D fähig sind. Muss man also mit dem Umschalten leben. Zu einer neuen Firmware hat er nichts gesagt.
Explanation:
Onkyo confirmed that a non-existent device is considered a 2D only device. Hence setting BOTH when you only have one device causes a failure - it only works if both devices are 3D. The limitation means that powering down the 2D device doesn't help [considered a bug in the thread]. Onkyo state that you will need to reconfigure your receiver each time. They didnt mention anything about a firmware upgrade.

So basically, you can stop trying out various configurations for enabling "Both". Onkyo have confirmed there are none unless you have a pair of 3D displays.
 
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Ok Mark, thanks for the explanation. You obviously know your stuff, so.....

I know there are very few 2xHDMI output AVRs at under £600. Do any of them allow connection of both 2D and 3D device without having to reconfigure each time the output is changed?

Maurice
 
Ok Mark, thanks for the explanation. You obviously know your stuff, so.....

I know there are very few 2xHDMI output AVRs at under £600. Do any of them allow connection of both 2D and 3D device without having to reconfigure each time the output is changed?

Maurice

No AV amp with dual HDMI outputs will allow you to simultaneously output 3D video to both a 3D compatible display as well as a non compatible display. HDMI always takes the lower spec as being the default so the detection of a non 3D display will mean that its capabilities are used to determine what the source outputs. You invariably get the lesser spec video or no signal at all if you try using displays of differing capabilities over the same HDMI network.
 
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I know there are very few 2xHDMI output AVRs at under £600. Do any of them allow connection of both 2D and 3D device without having to reconfigure each time the output is changed?
In theory it should always work, and I only discovered yours didn't when you asked and I googled on the issue, and found it answered in on German forum.

So you'd need to test any alternative receiver to see if it works as it ought to. It's also not impossible Onkyo will fix the bug in some future firmware update, especially if they receive enough reports.

Needless to say, for your constellation to work, the 2D display device will have to powered down, that is non-existent as far as the HDMI chain is concerned. Once a 2D device is active, which includes standby (at least if CEC is enabled), the source is forced into 2D mode by the very fact that there is an active downstream device demanding a signal it can handle, as Dante01 explains.
 
I've just read the manual for the new Pioneer LX56 as I too have the same problem, I want to connect a 3D capable Projector and a standard 2D only TV.

If I've read and understood the manual correctly then the LX56 has two HDMI output ports which can be switched so that both are in use simultaneously, or output 1 only or output 2 only. This works for me as both of my display devices are in the same room and only one will be in use at a time, however if both are in use at the same time then it's dumb down to the lowest capable display, in my case the TV.
 
I've just read the manual for the new Pioneer LX56 as I too have the same problem, I want to connect a 3D capable Projector and a standard 2D only TV.

If I've read and understood the manual correctly then the LX56 has two HDMI output ports which can be switched so that both are in use simultaneously, or output 1 only or output 2 only. This works for me as both of my display devices are in the same room and only one will be in use at a time, however if both are in use at the same time then it's dumb down to the lowest capable display, in my case the TV.
You do not have the same problem. You do not have any problem at all. Your case works as expected.

If you want 3D you obviously have to "not want" 2D - as you clearly can't have both 2D and 3D from a single source simultaneously. It's known as "you can't have your cake and eat it".

The OP's problem is that his configuration doesn't work even though the 2D TV is physically disconnected - and this is a bug in his Onkyo model.
 
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I think for most people with this problem the issue would be that they have a TV and a projector in the same room and only want to use the projector for 'event' viewings. So they only need to watch one or the other, not both together. That being the case, a simple HDMI switch box on the main output would enable the amp's output to be switched to whichever display is required and the amp should then negotiate 2D to the TV and 3D to the projector.
 
I think for most people with this problem the issue would be that they have a TV and a projector in the same room and only want to use the projector for 'event' viewings. So they only need to watch one or the other, not both together. That being the case, a simple HDMI switch box on the main output would enable the amp's output to be switched to whichever display is required and the amp should then negotiate 2D to the TV and 3D to the projector.

I don't think you understand? An AV amp's dual HDMI output isn't intended for multi room output and is intended for the very purpose you suggest a switch be used. The amp can already switch between either of the HDMI outputs and is not forced to output a signal to both HDMI outputs simultaneously. The Onkyo TXNR616 doesn't even have dual HDMI output!
 
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The NR515 has dual HDMI out - I'm pretty sure the NR616 does too...

Setting Main only and using a one in two out switch should work OK (with one or the other device switched off). Setting Both is where the Onkyo bug applies as the second device is considered 2D only (even when not connected/turned off) unless it is a 3D device.
 
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I do understand the problem, dante01 - I have an NR515 myself, which also has dual output. But as has been pointed out, you cannot expect a dual-output amp (or indeed an active splitter) to be able to supply both 3D and 2D at the same time. Because to do so would require the source player to be putting out both 3D and 2D at the same time, which is impossible. The player has to configure itself to the lowest common denominator, in this case 2D. So the amp sees there's a connected 2D-only display on one port and reports back to the player that it is not 3D capable and the player throttles back to 2D.

I was simply suggesting an inexpensive solution to the problem that might be applicable in this situation.
 
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My guess is that Onkyo will issue a firmware update to fix the bug, so that it's not really worth going to the effort of finding an HDMI 1.4 1:2 switch (and possibly with ARC), these currently being rather rare and expensive (most 1:2 devices are splitters). Cheapest I can find is $799 MSRP, but hopefully you can post a link to something that costs less than the receiver it's trying to fix :).
 
I was thinking of a simple but reasonable quality passive HDMI switch, Mark - but now I've tried to actually find one... Hmmm! I guess that a truly passive 2 in, 1 out would work in reverse but I guess it might need a bit of trial and error to find one that was well engineered enough to switch the bandwidth required without problems.
 
I was thinking of a simple but reasonable quality passive HDMI switch, Mark - but now I've tried to actually find one... Hmmm! I guess that a truly passive 2 in, 1 out would work in reverse but I guess it might need a bit of trial and error to find one that was well engineered enough to switch the bandwidth required without problems.

You cannot reverse an HDMI switch in order to use it as a splitter. An HDMI splitter is a totally different thing in comparison to an HDMI switch. One cannot be utilised as the other.
 
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There's absolutely no reason you cannot reverse a PASSIVE switch, as long as you're switching all the contacts and you observe good RF design and PCB layouts. I've used passive switching to route multi-gigabit broadcast video around for years in my job. There's no directionality involved, you're just changing over a set of contacts. Loads of people are doing this already to switch between TVs and projectors, as witnessed by a number of posts on AV Forums if you google around a bit. I just couldn't find one that was guaranteed to work at the higher bandwidths we're talking about for 3D with ARC etc. Although I'm willing to bet there are some out there for just a few pounds. Hell, I could build one myself. :)

Just to be clear, I'm talking about a one input, two output SWITCH here, not a splitter. One input to either of two outputs but only one at a time. So if you switch to the projector, the connection to the TV is utterly disconnected by the switch.
 
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Hi all, I have just bought one of these Onkyo 616 Amps literally just unboxed it last night and did the updates. So am I assuming correctly that as I have a 3D Blu-Ray player and Sky HD 3D box which I use through both my 3D projector and a 2D TV that it will play 2D fine through both, but if I want to watch a 3D Blu-Ray film or Sky 3D I will need to power down the TV and change the Amp settings from both to main to get it to play in 3D.

Thanks, Chris.
 

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