Marc_G 92 Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 Here is an other option that does passthrough HD audio. I don't have one, but seriously thinking getting one. Looks like the V3 is currently the product to get. Flash sale for a few hours $195.99. http://www.gearbest.com/tv-box-mini-pc/pp_292915.html I think though I'm going to stick with i3 or better... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asrequested Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 Alrighty! I've read through most of the posts. SO! To set the bar, when using ET, as we all should know by now, it has it's own filter set, and has almost no involvement with the windows settings. Especially when bitstreaming and selecting WASAPI and WASAPI device. So that is 'stand alone' from all other tests with other players. I am to understand that in ET, these audio tracks are not streamed to your receiver? Have you been able to play these audio types at all, with anything? The next thing is, if you want to install LAV on your system, to use with other players, you will need to disable windows media foundation, or it won't do diddly. If you haven't been able to play these audio tracks from another device, you may have a defective receiver. If you can play them from another device, let us test using window media player, as a benchmark. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkss12 295 Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 Looks like the V3 is currently the product to get. Flash sale for a few hours $195.99. http://www.gearbest.com/tv-box-mini-pc/pp_292915.html I think though I'm going to stick with i3 or better... The V3 is only a small step above your Ara. The V1 is an Intel Pentium, which is much better, but the loud fan noise is a killer. Been looking at this,Beebox-S 7200U but way out of my budget for now. It will do everything you want. http://asrock.com/Nettop/Intel/Beebox-S%20Series%20(Kaby%20Lake)/index.asp#Specifications 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mellomade 140 Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 The tinkerer in me just has to ask. Since you are now considering moving on to a different box - may I suggest trying to install LibreELEC over your Windows installation? Just because Windows drivers do not support HD audio for this box it doesn't mean that it won't work in Linux. It sounds like you really want to use ET - but I can promise you that installing Emby for Kodi within LibreELEC could not be easier. There is no messing with codec packs, the underlying OS, or anything. 15 minutes and you'd have your answer about if that little box can in fact do HD Audio. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 Alrighty! I've read through most of the posts. SO! To set the bar, when using ET, as we all should know by now, it has it's own filter set, and has almost no involvement with the windows settings. Especially when bitstreaming and selecting WASAPI and WASAPI device. So that is 'stand alone' from all other tests with other players. I am to understand that in ET, these audio tracks are not streamed to your receiver? Have you been able to play these audio types at all, with anything? The next thing is, if you want to install LAV on your system, to use with other players, you will need to disable windows media foundation, or it won't do diddly. If you haven't been able to play these audio tracks from another device, you may have a defective receiver. If you can play them from another device, let us test using window media player, as a benchmark. Hi @ , thanks for the reply. No worries of a defective media player, or defective ripped media for that matter. I tried with two other computers yesterday, and with both of them it was like this: Step 1: Plug computer into AVR via HDMI. Check that AVR is set as output device (in both cases, yes). Check Sound \ Playback devices \ AVR \ Properties \ Supported formats. On both devices, TrueHD and DTS-HD showed up as supported formats, no muss no fuss. Step 2: Test with MPCHC: Default MPCHC installation, go into Audio Renderer (LAV), check all the bitstreaming boxes. Play an audio file, choosing HD audio track. AVR lights up reporting HD Audio coming in. Hooray. Step 3: Test with ET: Install ET, audio settings: WASAPI as the HDMI bitstreaming device, 7.1 speaker configuration. Play audio file, choosing HD audio track. AVR lights up reporting HD audio. Hooray. The Tronsmart unit, despite having a CPU capable of bitstreaming HD audio supposedly, doesn't come with an audio driver that supports bitstreaming. Since this is the layer under LAV or WMF or whatever, if it's not working it doesn't matter what player or filters I'm trying to use. So, I've given up on the Tronsmart unless I find a driver that enables bitstreaming HD audio. I got a message back from "Geekbuying" (who sell it on amazon) who said they will have their engineers test it. I've got until end of January I think to return it, so I'll wait to hear what they have to say. Right now I have moved my new Emby server box (i5-6600) down to the basement. It's quieter than my original HTPC (and a hell of a lot more powerful) and has no issues with the bitstreaming. Today I'm going to work on the "HDMI pin 19 issue" (I sometimes loose HDMI audio and screen resolution when the AVR/TV turn off). Also calibrating the video output to match my TV settings and such. Thanks guys I will keep you posted. This thread will go silent until some new info comes in. Marc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 The tinkerer in me just has to ask. Since you are now considering moving on to a different box - may I suggest trying to install LibreELEC over your Windows installation? Just because Windows drivers do not support HD audio for this box it doesn't mean that it won't work in Linux. It sounds like you really want to use ET - but I can promise you that installing Emby for Kodi within LibreELEC could not be easier. There is no messing with codec packs, the underlying OS, or anything. 15 minutes and you'd have your answer about if that little box can in fact do HD Audio. I've considered doing this, and might do if it comes down to it. I've already got Emby for Kodi running on the Tronsmart in Windows (but due to underlying driver issues in windows, no HD audio out from Kodi). But, I prefer the ET interface to Kodi, so going through the effort (small though it might be) to switch OS on the Tronsmart and get it running with LibreELEC still would be a second tier solution. Sigh. If any problem crops up with the return of the Tronsmart, I may try this though. Very good idea, thanks. Marc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mastrmind11 717 Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 (edited) If you're gonna drop $200+ on a different player, just get the Shield and be done w/ it. And Emby for Android TV is extremely mature with a very slick interface. Edited December 31, 2016 by mastrmind11 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 If you're gonna drop $200+ on a different player, just get the Shield and be done w/ it. And Emby for Android TV is extremely mature with a very slick interface. I did consider this, but finding one in stock at a reasonable price seems dicey right now. New edition of it is due out this year. Also, for reasons outside the scope of all of this, I have reason to desire a Windows computer there in the home theater, for usage outside the home theater purposes. It's not 100% required, but desirable. I do have a Remix mini PC that has been sitting here on my desk for a while... played with it briefly when I got it and then sort of lost the thread... but I plan to repurpose it as an Emby player (among other things) for the family room (which is separate from my main media room). Marc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asrequested Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 Here's your HDMI 19th pin solution. I bought 2. http://monitordetectkiller.com 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 Doofus, on 31 Dec 2016 - 12:07 PM, said: Here's your HDMI 19th pin solution. I bought 2. http://monitordetectkiller.com Amazing they can charge ~$20 + $9 shipping for a $2 dongle... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeremyFr79 228 Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 Amazing they can charge ~$20 + $9 shipping for a $2 dongle... No different that Transparent cables selling a cable for $14,000 you can make for less than $200, Or BOSE selling speakers for $2k that use less than $100 in parts in materials. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 True, something is worth what people will pay for it. But please don't bring up Bose. In 2001, I did "home theater version 1" which was a 36" Toshiba CRT TV (a great TV at the time) and a $2500 Bose Lifestyle system. It sounded good at first to my untrained ears, but after a couple months I realized I could have spent under $1000 and gotten a MUCH more capable, better sounding system. Oh, the heartache. Marc 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeremyFr79 228 Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 (edited) True, something is worth what people will pay for it. But please don't bring up Bose. In 2001, I did "home theater version 1" which was a 36" Toshiba CRT TV (a great TV at the time) and a $2500 Bose Lifestyle system. It sounded good at first to my untrained ears, but after a couple months I realized I could have spent under $1000 and gotten a MUCH more capable, better sounding system. Oh, the heartache. Marc My first true Home Theater system was a Yamaha RX-V730 and an Energy Take5+1 speaker system. I spent right around $600 total (got a nice friends and family discount at Good Guys through a buddy), Needless to say I had a buddy come over who had purchased a Bose system and was blown away at how much better my setup sounded at half the price retail. Long ago in a galaxy far away I sold A/V gear and we used to have a saying back then that "if it's got no highs, and it's got no lows, it MUST be Bose!" Needless to say I've stuck with Yamaha and Energy through several iterations of home theaters, and their sister company Mirage. Edited December 31, 2016 by JeremyFr79 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asrequested Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 (edited) Bose! Blech! Yucky! I used to be a staunch Yamaha AVR guy....then I bought a Pioneer Elite. I'm never going back. Edited December 31, 2016 by Doofus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asrequested Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 Amazing they can charge ~$20 + $9 shipping for a $2 dongle... I think these guys are in Canada Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeremyFr79 228 Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 (edited) Bose! Blech! Yucky! I used to be a staunch Yamaha AVR guy....then I bought a Pioneer Elite. I'm never going back. I've got an Aventage RX-A1060 and absolutely love it! But I've always stayed with their top tier stuff (well except for one small receiver I had purchased) Went from the RX-V730, to the RX-A800, to the 1060, major upgrade each time. The 1060 makes my Energy's it's bitch (obviously not the Take 5+1's that were retired long ago lol) Plus I couldn't pass up a one month old used 1060 in mint condition with transferable warranty for $800 vs the $1300 retail. Edited December 31, 2016 by JeremyFr79 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asrequested Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 I've got an Aventage RX-A1060 and absolutely love it! But I've always stayed with their top tier stuff (well except for one small receiver I had purchased) Went from the RX-V730, to the RX-A800, to the 1060, major upgrade each time. The 1060 makes my Energy's it's bitch (obviously not the Take 5+1's that were retired long ago lol) Plus I couldn't pass up a one month old used 1060 in mint condition with transferable warranty for $800 vs the $1300 retail. Yeah, that was a good deal! Yamaha have a nice sound. The reason I bought the Pioneer, was because I bought their Atmos enabled speakers. They're 4 ohm, and I needed to make sure the AVR could comfortably support them. Buying their AVR seemed to be the most sensible option. I'm so glad I did. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted January 1, 2017 Author Share Posted January 1, 2017 clarkss12, on 30 Dec 2016 - 10:22 PM, said: The V3 is only a small step above your Ara. The V1 is an Intel Pentium, which is much better, but the loud fan noise is a killer. Been looking at this,Beebox-S 7200U but way out of my budget for now. It will do everything you want. http://asrock.com/Nettop/Intel/Beebox-S%20Series%20(Kaby%20Lake)/index.asp#Specifications Looked at the V1, and looky here: no mention of HD codec support: (From here) Decoder Format: H.263,H.264 Video format: 4K,4K x 2K Audio format: AAC Support 5.1 Surround Sound Output: Yes The various beeboxes look pretty spiffy. Dang, an i5-7200 in that one you linked. And it acts as an access point, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkss12 295 Posted January 1, 2017 Share Posted January 1, 2017 Here is one that I "might" be able to afford, not quite as good as the Beebox, but would make a very nice media player. Good reviews here. http://freaktab.com/forum/tv-player-support/intel-based-tv-players/607616-vorke-v2-mini-pc-intel-skylake-ubuntu1-6-04-8g-ddr3l-samsung-ssd-802-11ac-wifi-gigabit-lan-usb-3-1-type-c/page2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted January 1, 2017 Author Share Posted January 1, 2017 Not a bad price considering it comes with RAM and decent sized SSD hard drive installed. I wonder when they will be available? Still, if one keeps an eye out for sales on NUCs, one could probably build something comparable for around the same price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkss12 295 Posted January 1, 2017 Share Posted January 1, 2017 Not a bad price considering it comes with RAM and decent sized SSD hard drive installed. I wonder when they will be available? Still, if one keeps an eye out for sales on NUCs, one could probably build something comparable for around the same price. They are available now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc_G 92 Posted January 2, 2017 Author Share Posted January 2, 2017 Just wrapping up this thread about the Tronsmart. I'm sending it back thanks to Amazon's easy return policy. There seems to be no way to get it to do TrueHD/DTS-HD bitstreaming despite the box claiming it does. I did get a reply on the tronsmart forum from someone who said the Z8300 SOC doesn't support HD audio. I scoured the web and didn't find any reference that definitively confirmed or denied that statement, but the box was so sluggish in general and didn't play with Emby Theater smoothly, that it was a waste of money. It's going through the Reset process now and gets dropped off at UPS tomorrow. Thanks for all your support. Marc 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37024 Posted January 2, 2017 Share Posted January 2, 2017 Great info, thanks ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Am0kSepp 6 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Regarding DTS-HD and Intel NUC i have had the similiar problem that i have no sound. My Reciever showed DTS-HD in supported list but when i try to use DTS-HD in Kodi or in EMBY Theater there where no playback. The Problem was the HDMI Firmware.....FIRMWARE not DRIVER!!! Intel has a tool to Update the Firmware, once updated to the newest Firmware DTS-HD was working fine withouth any Problems. Seven Gen. Nucs: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/de/download/26609/HDMI-2-0-Firmware-Update-Tool-for-Intel-NUC-Kit-NUC7i3BN-NUC7i5BN-NUC7i7BN-NUC6CAY Six Gen Nucs: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/26061/-HDMI-2-0-Firmware-Update-Tool-for-Intel-NUC-Kit-NUC6i7KYK Or just google yourself for intel nuc hdmi firmware update I think that should have also solved your problem in the past. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37024 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Well done ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now