More > JRiver Media Center 27 for Mac
Multichannel flac playback fails, outputs only stereo. Need help.
RoderickGI:
--- Quote from: psychoscott on October 15, 2020, 12:51:48 am ---Regarding VLC playback, I've subsequently noticed that for VLC to send multichannel information to the Yamaha, the actual device setting in VLC is "Samsung (encoded)", a setting not otherwise available, to the finder or MC. Might be a clue, nevertheless, if I knew what that meant to VLC.
--- End quote ---
I believe that "Samsung (encoded)" means that VLC is sending multi-channel audio encoded in Dolby Digital, which is encoded in stereo channels. So VLC is actually sending stereo, but your Yamaha is decoding DD to multiple channels. Your Yamaha should display that it is receiving DD when you play multi-channel files to it using that setting, as a confirmation. The fact that this setting refers to the Samsung TV, and not the Yamaha Receiver, shows that the TV is being considered the endpoint/sink.
MC can do that as well, by setting the Output Encoding under Output Format in DSP settings to "Dolby Digital". But you will lose audio quality as encoding to DD and decoding is a lossy process. If you have set the "Options > Audio > Advanced > Auto configure output settings on playback error:" to "Ask", MC may even ask if you want to encode to DD when it hits this problem. I can't remember if it does that or not, as it has been a long time since I used that configuration. Although it wouldn't be that hard for me to check...
Just to clarify, if this is actually an HDMI issue, MC thinks it is playing to a stereo device. Hence, a device not capable of playing multi-channel surround sound. The device in this case is the Core Audio driver, not the Yamaha. In fact, if Core Audio works anything like sound in Windows, it is OSX telling MC you are playing to a stereo device, based on what the Core Audio driver is telling OSX, based on the HDMI audio chain the driver has detected. So as Wer says, I wasn't being insulting, I was stating the facts, and I explained why I had come to that conclusion. Wer's tests will validate if that was the correct conclusion.
BTW, "Web Interface" means Panel.
wer:
I didn't notice that encoded mention in the post. That is key.
Scott, look at page 102 of your Yamaha manual to see how to access the diagnostic screen I was talking about. It's what I was asking for before. I think you were looking at the wrong screen.
The Yamaha will identify the format and the number of channels it is receiving. Do this while VLC is playing your file.
If the format shows as DTS or DD/AC-3, then VLC is sending an encoded bitstream, a 5.1 channel signal encoded in a 2-channel package. If that is so, then your OS is seeing a 2-channel interface, and this is not an MC problem. MC could work around it, but that would not be the correct solution; the correct solution would be what I described before.
If the screen, when VLC is playing, reveals the format as PCM and the channels as 6 (5.1), then we have a different situation.
pscott:
I checked & confirmed your expectations about multichannel VLC output. As you predicted, the Yamaha receiver shows that the the multichannel audio from VLC is DTS or DD 5.1.
Also tested MC playback of 24-bit multichannel flac with a "headless" Mac Mini. Disconnected from the receiver to the Samsung TV and controlled the Mac Mini using screen sharing from another Mac. With the Samsung disconnected, the Yamaha receiver was recognized as an audio device available to the OS and MC. When selected as the audio device, MC was able to play the 6-channel flac files directly, without conversion to 2-channel stereo. As soon as I reconnected hdmi to the TV, though, playback reverted to stereo. Evidently, EDID info from the TV via hdmi convinces MC that it can't output multichannel audio.
About the only prediction by my expert advisors that failed, sort of, has to do with a suggestion regarding telling MC to "ask" what to do when it encounters a playback error. When I do that, nothing changes if the sound is 2-channel, it plays normally, but if it is multichannel, MC crashes instead of rather than asking what to do, showing the playback error more dramatically than intended. That seems to be an MC bug on the Mac, at least for my system.
I don't have time tonight to go into more detail or respond to anyone's suggestions or questions. However, I did want to confirm predictions by Rod and Wer. The next question is how to address this problem. I'm not getting another TV just to play an occasional multichannel file. The 60+" HD TV I have is good enough for now. When I do upgrade it'll be to 4K. There might be other ways to address this playback limitation, but I'll probably try an hdmi spoofing device. I know next to nothing about those, but I'll start my research tomorrow. In the meantime, I'd love to hear about anyone's experience or recommendation for such a device.
Thanks again for everyone's help. -- ;D
Scott
RoderickGI:
Good to hear Wer and I were on the right track.
--- Quote from: psychoscott on October 15, 2020, 10:38:07 pm ---When I do that, nothing changes if the sound is 2-channel, it plays normally, but if it is multichannel, MC crashes instead of rather than asking what to do, showing the playback error more dramatically than intended. That seems to be an MC bug on the Mac, at least for my system.
--- End quote ---
That is definitely not normal. I use Ask on my Windows PC all the time. You may want to start a separate thread on that as a possible bug report, so it isn't lost in this thread.
Wer knows more about EDID Emulators/spoofing devices, so I'll let him recommend what to try.
Also, I am quite sure that someone else who had this problem with a Yamaha receiver fixed it with a setting in the receiver. But I can't find the reference to that right now.
RoderickGI:
A little better search terms found this: https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,117404.msg813550.html#msg813550
I think that is the thread I was thinking of, and the solution there wasn't a Yamaha setting, but a HDMI Emulator. However read it to the end, as Wer makes a suggestion which never received a response.
EDIT:
This one also worth a read. Specific post and whole thread: https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,93619.msg685233.html#msg685233
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