Marantz/Denon HDMI ARC from LG OLED setup solved

Webbserver

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After much experimentation and lots of frustration, I have now established a faultless setup which never fails to work for me or the family so I thought I’d share it:

I have an LG B865OLED TV and a Marantz SR7011 AVR plus numerous sources, listed in my signature if it helps.
Despite owning a range of streaming devices including the latest Nvidia Shield, I much prefer the video quality of LG’s inbuilt apps especially Netflix. However, until recently I’ve struggled to get HDMI ARC working reliably which is required for the higher audio quality from the likes of Netflix (Dolby Atmos and Dolby D+). The best you’ll get from optical is the inferior Dolby D.

The key for me is to have 2 x HDMI cables connected between TV and AVR.
Also turn off ALL HDMI CEC control in Marantz/Denon and in any other devices. A universal remote is far more reliable than HDMI CEC control.
I had to add a ‘Lindy HDMI CEC less adapter‘ purchased form Amazon and connected between my Nvidia Shield and AVR as you cannot turn this feature off in the Shield even though it says it’s off in the menu!

Marantz SR7011 (or equivalent Denon) settings:
Setup Menu, Video, HDMI Setup, HDMI Control Off, ARC On, TV Audio switching Off and everything else under HDMI Control should be Off

LG OLED (B8) settings:
All Settings, Sound, Sound Out, HDMI ARC. This will automatically engage Simplink (HDMI-CEC) if not already on.

To watch LG internal Netflix app and receive audio via LG HDMI Arc to Marantz AVR:
LG HDMI 2 > Marantz HDMI 1 output (Arc). Manually switch AVR to ‘TV Audio’. This is easily added as part of a Harmony Remote Activity.

To watch source from AVR e.g. Virgin Media:
Marantz HDMI 2 out > LG HDMI 1. Manually switch LG to HDMI 1, switch AVR to HDMI output 2 and select AVR relevant source input (e.g. Cable/Satellite) to display image from AVR to TV. Again, this is seamless if setup as part of a Harmony remote activity.

I hope this post manages to help someone else.
 
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Thank you Webbserver for your information - it has helped me complete my ARC set up. I wanted to add a few points that left me puzzled and hope this complements your post:

I am using a Marantz SR7015 AVR and a LG OLED G1 myself, with a Harmony setup to automate.

The only thing I wanted to add to your guide are:

- The "TV Audio" input on newer Marantz (and I assume Denon) was hidden - this means it needs to be un-hidden in the input setup menu of the AVR. The clue to this was that the button TV Audio on the Marantz remote had no impact/change. So if you cannot find the 'TV audio' in the list of all your inputs of the AVR, make sure you make it visible first.

Finally let me share that finding out the requirement for 2 HDMI cables between TV and AVR is a stroke of genius, thank you and very well done on sharing that - it is hard to find any documentation on the topic (one that pushes video to the display, and one that carries the ARC audio from TV to AVR, the second of course connected to one end on the ARC labelled HDMI output of the AVR and on the other end to the LG HDMI2 (the only one with ARC/eARC). Seems evident once reading it but hard to figure out from the doc.

Cheers
 
Note that conventional ARC is reliant upon HDMI CEC for its functionality. Don't turn it off onboard the TV or you'll not be able to source audio on the AV receiver via ARC.

Also note that you turn off the auto audio swuitching on the AV receiver then you'd have to manually select the TV source if and when wanting to access audio via ARC. If you leave it on then the AV receiver would automatically switch to that source if and when you start playing something via any of the TV's smart apps. THe downside to this is that the AV receiver will also automatically switch to this source whenever you power it and or the TV up if that setting is left on.

On LG TVs, you'll also see a setting in association with the ARC setting relating to disgital audio output. THis should be set to either AUTO or PASS THROUGH and not PCM. THe former options equate to BITSTREAM while the latter will result in the TV downmixing multichannel formatted audio and outputting it as 2 channel PCM.

You don't need to use the second HDMI output, simply leave the auto switching ON and then add an additional command to your TV box's Harmony activity to select the associate source on the AVR that isassociated with that TV box.


snapshot001-1.jpg





Also worth mentioning that eARC is not dependant upon HDMI CEC so you could turn HDMI CEC off onboard both the TV and the AVR receiver and still use eARC. You'd still however lose the auto switching which is dependant upon CEC.
 
Note that conventional ARC is reliant upon HDMI CEC for its functionality. Don't turn it off onboard the TV or you'll not be able to source audio on the AV receiver via ARC.

Also note that you turn off the auto audio swuitching on the AV receiver then you'd have to manually select the TV source if and when wanting to access audio via ARC. If you leave it on then the AV receiver would automatically switch to that source if and when you start playing something via any of the TV's smart apps. THe downside to this is that the AV receiver will also automatically switch to this source whenever you power it and or the TV up if that setting is left on.

On LG TVs, you'll also see a setting in association with the ARC setting relating to disgital audio output. THis should be set to either AUTO or PASS THROUGH and not PCM. THe former options equate to BITSTREAM while the latter will result in the TV downmixing multichannel formatted audio and outputting it as 2 channel PCM.

You don't need to use the second HDMI output, simply leave the auto switching ON and then add an additional command to your TV box's Harmony activity to select the associate source on the AVR that isassociated with that TV box.


View attachment 1531693




Also worth mentioning that eARC is not dependant upon HDMI CEC so you could turn HDMI CEC off onboard both the TV and the AVR receiver and still use eARC. You'd still however lose the auto switching which is dependant upon CEC.
This thread refers to a Marntz AVR not Yamaha and a B8 which doesn’t have eARC, so not relevant to your post.
 
I think you'll find that a lot of what I've said isn't specific to Yamaha AVRs or the later LG TV models. The same setup would work with any Yamaha , DEnon or Marantz AVR without you having to use the second HDMI output on the AV receiver.

Some of what I conveyed is there to aid others who may read this topic.

THe Harmiony workaround dates back years and was originally posted to a thread dealing specifically with a Denon AV receiver. This did however pre date the introduction of the TV audio auto switching HDMI setting on DEnon and Marantz models.
 
I think you'll find that a lot of what I've said isn't specific to Yamaha AVRs or the later LG TV models. The same setup would work with any Yamaha , DEnon or Marantz AVR without you having to use the second HDMI output on the AV receiver.

Some of what I conveyed is there to aid others who may read this topic.

THe Harmiony workaround dates back years and was originally posted to a thread dealing specifically with a Denon AV receiver. This did however pre date the introduction of the TV audio auto switching HDMI setting on DEnon and Marantz models.
You’ve also repeated or ‘conveyed’ as you like to call it, most of what I’ve already said and added nothing to my explanation with reference to the Marantz/LG set up.
I specifically suggested manual switching in favour of auto switching for the reason stated above, but you then have to suggest otherwise and the downside of not doing so - We know, I’ve already mentioned it!

My suggested setup arrangement offers a stable solution, so I’d thank you not to pick holes in it especially when you don’t even own some of the equipment in the setup and therefore can’t speak from experience, but what you’ve read elsewhere.
 
You appear to want to be purposefully antagonistic?

So you didn't omit anything from your post that I conveyed in the post I submitted then?

I'll pick holes in whatever I like thank you :hiya:





And again, if you've a Harmony remote then you can negate the adverse behaviour without need of using the second HDMI output or disabling the auto audio switching. How do I know that? Because I've been doing it before Denon and or Marantz even included an option to turn TV audio auto switching off.

 
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🥱
 
Thank you @dante01 for the info as your input has helped me to resolve (and simplify) a fair bit of my setup - and I have to say that i am now running a single HDMI cable between the TV and AVR - and yes the Marrantz SR7015 does auto sensing and switched to TV Audio automatically.

@Webbserver Thank you also for your input also, your post helped a lot as previously stated, I just respectfully wanted to mention that dante01 post did help me too.

Now, a few things have changed in my setup and wanted to see if the forum could help. I have searched the forum and found other post with the same issue but apparently app and firmware updates have helped those members sort those issues. Not for me. Note that i run the latest Marrantz firmware, TV firmware and Dolby Access Windows app.

Setup:

  • TV LG OLED C1 65'' (hdmi 2.1 + eARC)
  • AVR: Marantz SR7015
  • All cables ares HDMI 2.1 48gbps
  • PreAmp/Amp on FL/FR pre-out of the Marantz to the speakers for stereo/2.1 channel music.
  • The other speakers (5.1.2 setup) are connected directly to the Marrantz (Center, SW, DolbyFL, DolbyFR, Surround L and R).

Effectively, switching CEC back on allows relatively reliable directional switching of the sound data flow (TV -> eARC to the AVR). Thank you as was not aware they were dependant on each other. Thank you for the Harmony tips too - albeit i was aware and had a few workarounds similar myself before.

This setup is for my gaming PC - which HDMI output connects directly to the TV as I have given up getting DLSS/VRR as well as G-Sync to work across the AVR despite the HMDI 2.1 features advertised (getting early on tech heh :/).

My issue is that despite the TV eARC output setting being on pass through (or Auto) in bitstream format (and not PCM), my AVR never recognises Atmos/DTS:X or richer formats. It registers as Multi Ch Stereo no matter the format I play from the PC. I have setup the Dolby access app on Windows (10) multiple times and I can swtich audio to be stereo or Dolby Atmos but somehow on the later sound positioning and speaker placement doesn't sound accurate compare to what i hear on a UHD disc (dialogue out of center, plan on the left of screen coming out of left speaker etc..). Instead, it sounds exactly like when i select a Multi Ch Stereo output on the AVR from a 2ch/stereo source.

When i play from other sources that do not use eARC, then every format is recognised and indicated on the AVR and app with no issue.

My best hope is that the problem is only cosmetic, meaning that it is indeed ATMOS/DTS:X being played across all channels (but sound distribution across channel sounds way off)- simply not indicated as such in the AVR? Or maybe I have missed something stupid?

Many thanks in advance for any advice.
 
Your AVR should be able to receive multichannel PCM, Atmos and other Dplby formats if passing them through your LG C1 and if using eARC. Ensure that you've selected eARC and not just ARC in the settings and also ensure to select the PASS THROUGH option on the TV relative to the eARC digital audio output options. It is worth noting that you wont be able to passthrough DTS:X because current and more recent LG TVs don't include any support for DTS formatted audio, meaning that you cannot use the TV to play such formats or pass such formats through the TV using ARC or eARC. If wanting to access such formats then the source would need to be connected directly to the AV receiver as opposed to being connected to the TV, using ARC or eARC to pass the audio through to the AV receiver.

Note that if the AV receiver were receiving Atmos then it would indicate this on its front display and within its audio information menu. If not then it isn't and wouldn't be portraying Atmos.
 
So after testing back and forth - it does work but really is hit and miss - after restarting the AVR multiple times, it eventually display 'Multi Ch In" and indeed, Atmos sound is tagged as so. Thank you for the reminder on LG TV and DTS/DTS:X.

All setting as per above, eARC and right connected ports (HDMI 2 on the LG), and the fact that Atmos is now tagged on the AVR tells me all is configured correctly. Thank you for the assistance, I will toy around priority and delay on Harmony to get it just right.
 
Thank you Webbserver for your information - it has helped me complete my ARC set up. I wanted to add a few points that left me puzzled and hope this complements your post:

I am using a Marantz SR7015 AVR and a LG OLED G1 myself, with a Harmony setup to automate.

The only thing I wanted to add to your guide are:

- The "TV Audio" input on newer Marantz (and I assume Denon) was hidden - this means it needs to be un-hidden in the input setup menu of the AVR. The clue to this was that the button TV Audio on the Marantz remote had no impact/change. So if you cannot find the 'TV audio' in the list of all your inputs of the AVR, make sure you make it visible first.

Finally let me share that finding out the requirement for 2 HDMI cables between TV and AVR is a stroke of genius, thank you and very well done on sharing that - it is hard to find any documentation on the topic (one that pushes video to the display, and one that carries the ARC audio from TV to AVR, the second of course connected to one end on the ARC labelled HDMI output of the AVR and on the other end to the LG HDMI2 (the only one with ARC/eARC). Seems evident once reading it but hard to figure out from the doc.

Cheers

For the life of me, I could NOT find the "TV Audio" input and the manual made no mention of it. I spent DAYS looking for it. But I finally found it in the input setup menu after reading your post, and now my ARC is working. You saved me another weekend of trying to figure out if my issue was my tv, cable, or receiver. I cant thank you enough!
 
After much experimentation and lots of frustration, I have now established a faultless setup which never fails to work for me or the family so I thought I’d share it:

I have an LG B865OLED TV and a Marantz SR7011 AVR plus numerous sources, listed in my signature if it helps.
Despite owning a range of streaming devices including the latest Nvidia Shield, I much prefer the video quality of LG’s inbuilt apps especially Netflix. However, until recently I’ve struggled to get HDMI ARC working reliably which is required for the higher audio quality from the likes of Netflix (Dolby Atmos and Dolby D+). The best you’ll get from optical is the inferior Dolby D.

The key for me is to have 2 x HDMI cables connected between TV and AVR.
Also turn off ALL HDMI CEC control in Marantz/Denon and in any other devices. A universal remote is far more reliable than HDMI CEC control.
I had to add a ‘Lindy HDMI CEC less adapter‘ purchased form Amazon and connected between my Nvidia Shield and AVR as you cannot turn this feature off in the Shield even though it says it’s off in the menu!

Marantz SR7011 (or equivalent Denon) settings:
Setup Menu, Video, HDMI Setup, HDMI Control Off, ARC On, TV Audio switching Off and everything else under HDMI Control should be Off

LG OLED (B8) settings:
All Settings, Sound, Sound Out, HDMI ARC. This will automatically engage Simplink (HDMI-CEC) if not already on.

To watch LG internal Netflix app and receive audio via LG HDMI Arc to Marantz AVR:
LG HDMI 2 > Marantz HDMI 1 output (Arc). Manually switch AVR to ‘TV Audio’. This is easily added as part of a Harmony Remote Activity.

To watch source from AVR e.g. Virgin Media:
Marantz HDMI 2 out > LG HDMI 1. Manually switch LG to HDMI 1, switch AVR to HDMI output 2 and select AVR relevant source input (e.g. Cable/Satellite) to display image from AVR to TV. Again, this is seamless if setup as part of a Harmony remote activity.

I hope this post manages to help someone else.
Where are 2 HDMI cables connected?
 

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