How do I configure my PC HMDI output for surround sound?

Hi all, 

New to the forum, but I have some experience with PCs and Hometheatre, and now I want to bring them together.

I just purchased an entry level laptop (HP G62 series) and it has an HDMI output. I connected the HDMI cable to my home theater and I got both video and audio working through it. The problem: Audio was only in stereo.

I went to the control panel and tried to reconfigure my sound from HDMI and there was "surround" option that was dull and unclickable. My computer is only letting me send a 2.0 signal through HDMI. Does anyone know how I can change this (or if I can change this?)

Sound driver is  ATI High Definition audio device

OS: Windows 7 64 bit.

Main processor ADM Athalon Dual Core P320 2.1GHz

Any help would be great - I would like to know if my hardware is capable of 5.1 (or ideally 7.1)  thanks

Ryan

Thanks for the link. I'll need to review the specs of the laptop more carefully to discover which driver update I'll need. if all else fails, I'll try and contact customer service and hopefully they can help me. Thanks for the input! Much appreciated

Hmm, read all of the release notes on the driver updates and non of theem mentioned an HDMI audio fix, or audio fixes at all for that matter. Also, the download warnings and possible failures that could result is unsettling. I have contacted AMD's costumer service directlly and hopefully they will reply to me some time next week. 

Thanks again, 

Ryan

Thanks Matt,

I really appreciate the time that you have taken to help me with this.

I downloaded the 10.8, installed it but it still is a no go. 

In that second window (second window pictured in your post), I still only have stereo as an option. 

I'm not sure what I am doing wrong here.

When I right click on the speaker icon, click playback devices, click HDMI, click properties, click properties (again), click driver it tells me I am running version 7.11.0.7703 dated for 21/01/2010. 

I don't think this is the right driver given that catalyst 10.8 was released on 25/08/2010.

I've run the installer 3 times. And each time it tells me install was successful. 

Also, on the Driver tab, there is an "Update Driver" button which is grey and unclickable. Do I then assume that because it is unclickable that I am running the most up-to-date driver for this machine?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattCR 

Doing a quick look tells me your laptop is most likely an AMDVision series.  (ATI HD4200/3300).   This means that it will only pass UNCOMPRESSED audio as 2 channel over HDMI (common) and Bitstream audio (DD/DTS) in bitstream format, to be decoded by a reciever, etc if detected.  But the HDMI will not output uncompressed multichannel on this model. 

 

If your issue is getting bitstream to correctly function with your receiver, let me know, and we can help you out ;)

Yes, it is an AMD Vision. It is running Radeon HD4250

Now with your comment here, are you saying that I won't be able to get the audio set up to display multichannel because I'm guessing the whole setup is run as uncompressed audio? To use terms that I understand - the HDMI will only do analog style sound in 2 channel, but digital it may do in multichannel?

(still trying to make sense of this here, so bear with me) but it sounds like If I drop a DVD in, the DVD could very well send a 5.1 bitstream out the HDMI (DD/DTS)? I'm I getting this right? Since it can only do 5.1 as a bit stream, it won't give me the option to see multi-channel out via the HDMI?

I'm fine with it doing a 5.1 bit stream. I'm just wondering how or where I set that bugger up. 

My set HT set up isn't as straight forward as it could be. 

It is an older Yamaha receiver without HDMI inputs. But my TV has HDMI in and optical out. The optical out on my TV send a 5.1 signal to my receiver on all over the air digital channels. So I know my TV allows a bitstream to pass through it from the tuner. But, the TV has no digital inputs other than the HDMI (my DVD player is connected straight to my receiver through an optical cable) . . . could the TV be a bottle neck in this process too? Could it be that because my TV does not have built in bitstream decoders that it is sending a message through the HDMI that all it can handle is 2 channel uncompressed? Does the device that the computer connects to need to be the device that decodes the bit stream, or can it just be a gate way to the decoder? 

I have my Yamaha surround decoders set to automatic and it works like a charm. To this day my Yamaha has recognized and decoded every bit stream that my stand alone DVD player has thrown at it. So I don't think the issue is my receiver.

So did all of this information make things more complicated? Or is it just too much information now :)

Thanks again, 

Ryan

Thanks Matt, 

Great to know the limitations of my laptop right up front. 

I gave it a whirl. I threw in a DVD and at first it was just 2 channel - but then I went into the Audio settings of the player and turned decoding off and voila the receiver detected 5.1 (I don't remember if it was DD or DTS,) I saw six icons appear on the receiver indicating the channels that the incoming signal was from. So that is good enough for me! Interestingly enough, as the DVD started, Cyberlink Power DVD (the player that came with the laptop) informed me with a pop-up box that this version of the program does not support 5.1 digital output. I clicked okay, and i looked at the receiver, and it was very clear thatthe receiver was detecting a 5.1 signal . . . so I'm not sure what that is all about . . . everything was working like my typical stand alone player - all of the opening menus and previews were typically in stereo, and when the movie itself began, it detected 5.1. So I'm not really sure what that message is all about. 

The short of it, is my HDMI is capable of passing a decoded 5.1 out, and my TV faithfully passes the 5.1 in through the HDMI and out through the optical. 

Now, my next task is to figure out  . . . upconverting: Does cyberlink do it?

Thanks for all of your help Matt,

Ryan

Thanks! 

The message seems silly though since the computer only has 2 speakers, I'm not sure why any would want the computer to decode 5.1 to 2 speakers . . . but I suppose there would be somebody out there who would select the 5.1 bit stream and then wonder what's wrong with the computer because they can't hear any sound . . . so I guess for the person who might mess with the settings and not understand what they mean, that message box might help them figure it out (actually for that matter, I should probably default the settings to 2 channel analog for any time my wife might want to use this as a stand alone DVD player - I can imagine coming home to her insisting that we need to get the laptop repaired because the sound doesn't work on DVDs.)

Thanks again for bringing clarity to what should have been obvious to me. 

Ryan