2014-09-30, 21:32
Hello all,
It seems, DTS-HD MA or DOLBY TRUE-HD was not working for me and this is what I needed to do in order to get things working properly.
After some serious research this is what I have concluded.
1. In order for Windows and XBMC to properly be able to play back true HD audio your system has to support 8 channels of audio. You can check this by right clicking on your sound Icon in windows 7 and up and clicking on Playback Devices. Your sound devices will pop up in a window displaying which one is currently selected. For me this was an ATI HDMI Audio Device. If you right click on this device and click configure, your Windows Audio Device needs to support 7.1 audio minimum in ordrer for XBMC to allow the bit-stream required for HD audio. If the device does not list 7.1 audio you are out of luck... EVEN if your receiver supports HD audio formats.
2. If your receiver supports HD audio formats but is however 5.1 (or 6 channels) the EDID from the drivers will inform windows of this fact. In effect this reporting of only 6 channels will not permit the HD audio formats in XBMC.
3. There is a way to make your computer think your receiver is actually 8 channels, regardless of the fact that it is indeed only 6. You can do this by creating a custom driver inf file. Basically taking all the specs of your device and changing the part that says how many speakers you have. In fact windows thinks that your receiver is actually a monitor, which it isnt but for the purposes of this explanation we will just pretend it is.
4. In order to trick windows into thinking your "monitor" supports 8 channels and not 6 you will need to modify an INF file to say "I have 8 channels" You can pull the required information with something like moninfo, a popular piece of software to grab the appropriate information.
My system is an HTPC with an AMD E-450 GPU that has integrated ATI HD 6320 Graphics. My monitor in the windows device manager under the control panel was listed as Generic PnP Monitor not "Onkyo TX-SR313"
Updating the driver using the custom INF file attached for ATI cards and this specific and maybe other Onkyo recievers should fix the issue with XBMC not being able to bitstream HD Audio.
It worked for me, hopefully it works for you. IF your audio device doesn't immediately recognize the 8 channels, uninstalling and reinstalling the audio driver may be required. ALSO windows 8 does not allow unsigned drivers to be installed, so do some research on installing unsigned drivers and boot into windows with the installation of unsigned drivers enabled.
Once windows sees your "monitor" (the reciever) as 8 channels you should be good to go. Configure everything normally for 5.1 under all settings windows and XBMC alike, and ensure all HD audio formats are checked in XBMC and make sure you use the WASAPI audio for both audio device and pass through device. Ensure enabling pass thru is checked also.
After that enjoy HD audio with XBMC.. Hopefully.. Took me about 5 hours to figure this out. Sorry if it seems a bit complicated, well because it is. Too bad windows and xbmc dont support this right out of the box, however this should get it going.
Just realized I cant upload files here so cut and paste the text below into a notepad and then save as "Onkyo 8 channel.inf" Make sure to select "All files" instead of "Text files" under file type.
; INF file generated by Monitor Asset Manager (2.60.0.972), 06/01/2013
; Copyright © EnTech Taiwan, 1995-2011.
; Internet: http://www.entechtaiwan.com
[Version]
Signature="$WINDOWS NT$"
Class=Monitor
ClassGUID={4d36e96e-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318}
Provider=%MFG%
DriverVer=06/01/2013, 1.0.0.0
;CatalogFile=YourSignedCatalogFile.cat
[DestinationDirs]
DefaultDestDir=23
[SourceDisksNames]
1=%DISC%
[SourceDisksFiles]
;YourColorProfileFile.icm
[Manufacturer]
%VENDOR%=EDID_OVERRIDE,NTx86,NTamd64
[EDID_OVERRIDE.NTx86]
%PRODUCTID%=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install, MONITOR\ONK0C31
[EDID_OVERRIDE.NTamd64]
%PRODUCTID%=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTamd64, MONITOR\ONK0C31
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTx86]
DelReg=DEL_CURRENT_REG
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.AddReg, MODE1, DPMS
CopyFiles=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.CopyFiles
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTamd64]
DelReg=DEL_CURRENT_REG
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.AddReg, MODE1, DPMS
CopyFiles=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.CopyFiles
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTx86.HW]
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID_AddReg
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTamd64.HW]
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID_AddReg
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID_AddReg]
;Base EDID
HKR,EDID_OVERRIDE,"0",0x01,0x00,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0x00,0x3D,0xCB,0x31,0x0C,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x16,0x01,0x03,0x80,0x00,0x00,0x78,0x0A,0xDA,0xFF,0xA3,0x58,0x4A,0xA2,0x29,0x17,0x49,0x4B,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x1D,0x00,0xBC,0x52,0xD0,0x1E,0x20,0xB8,0x28,0x55,0x40,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x1E,0x01,0x1D,0x00,0x72,0x51,0xD0,0x1E,0x20,0x6E,0x28,0x55,0x00,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x1E,0x00,0x00,0x00,0xFC,0x00,0x54,0x58,0x2D,0x53,0x52,0x33,0x31,0x33,0x0A,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x00,0x00,0x00,0xFD,0x00,0x17,0x3D,0x0F,0x44,0x0F,0x00,0x0A,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x01,0x5D
;Extension bloc #1, e.g., CEA-EXT, DID-EXT, etc.
HKR,EDID_OVERRIDE,"1",0x01,0x02,0x03,0x4B,0x72,0x5C,0x93,0x84,0x1F,0x10,0x14,0x05,0x20,0x12,0x03,0x11,0x02,0x16,0x07,0x15,0x06,0x01,0x1E,0x0F,0x1D,0x0E,0x1A,0x0B,0x19,0x0A,0x26,0x24,0x25,0x23,0x38,0x09,0x7F,0x07,0x0F,0x7F,0x07,0x17,0x07,0x50,0x3F,0x06,0xC0,0x4D,0x02,0x00,0x57,0x06,0x00,0x5F,0x7E,0x01,0x67,0x54,0x00,0x83,0x0F,0x00,0x00,0x6C,0x03,0x0C,0x00,0x14,0x00,0xB8,0x26,0xC0,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x02,0x3A,0x80,0xD0,0x72,0x38,0x2D,0x40,0x10,0x2C,0x45,0x80,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x1E,0x01,0x1D,0x80,0xD0,0x72,0x1C,0x16,0x20,0x10,0x2C,0x25,0x80,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x9E,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0xC6
[DEL_CURRENT_REG]
HKR,MODES
HKR,EDID_OVERRIDE
HKR,,MaxResolution
HKR,,PreferredMode
HKR,,DPMS
HKR,,ICMProfile
[DPMS]
HKR,,DPMS,,0
HKR,,PreferredMode,,"1280,720,50"
[MODE1]
HKR,,MaxResolution,,"1280,720,50"
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.AddReg]
HKR,"MODES\1280,720,50",Mode1,,"15.0-68.0,23.0-61.0,+,+"
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.CopyFiles]
;YourColorProfileFile.icm for non-sRGB displays
[Strings]
MFG="EnTech Taiwan"
DISC="Monitor EDID Override Installation Disk"
PRODUCTID="Onkyo TX-SR313 (ONK0C31 EDID Override)"
VENDOR="Onkyo"
It seems, DTS-HD MA or DOLBY TRUE-HD was not working for me and this is what I needed to do in order to get things working properly.
After some serious research this is what I have concluded.
1. In order for Windows and XBMC to properly be able to play back true HD audio your system has to support 8 channels of audio. You can check this by right clicking on your sound Icon in windows 7 and up and clicking on Playback Devices. Your sound devices will pop up in a window displaying which one is currently selected. For me this was an ATI HDMI Audio Device. If you right click on this device and click configure, your Windows Audio Device needs to support 7.1 audio minimum in ordrer for XBMC to allow the bit-stream required for HD audio. If the device does not list 7.1 audio you are out of luck... EVEN if your receiver supports HD audio formats.
2. If your receiver supports HD audio formats but is however 5.1 (or 6 channels) the EDID from the drivers will inform windows of this fact. In effect this reporting of only 6 channels will not permit the HD audio formats in XBMC.
3. There is a way to make your computer think your receiver is actually 8 channels, regardless of the fact that it is indeed only 6. You can do this by creating a custom driver inf file. Basically taking all the specs of your device and changing the part that says how many speakers you have. In fact windows thinks that your receiver is actually a monitor, which it isnt but for the purposes of this explanation we will just pretend it is.
4. In order to trick windows into thinking your "monitor" supports 8 channels and not 6 you will need to modify an INF file to say "I have 8 channels" You can pull the required information with something like moninfo, a popular piece of software to grab the appropriate information.
My system is an HTPC with an AMD E-450 GPU that has integrated ATI HD 6320 Graphics. My monitor in the windows device manager under the control panel was listed as Generic PnP Monitor not "Onkyo TX-SR313"
Updating the driver using the custom INF file attached for ATI cards and this specific and maybe other Onkyo recievers should fix the issue with XBMC not being able to bitstream HD Audio.
It worked for me, hopefully it works for you. IF your audio device doesn't immediately recognize the 8 channels, uninstalling and reinstalling the audio driver may be required. ALSO windows 8 does not allow unsigned drivers to be installed, so do some research on installing unsigned drivers and boot into windows with the installation of unsigned drivers enabled.
Once windows sees your "monitor" (the reciever) as 8 channels you should be good to go. Configure everything normally for 5.1 under all settings windows and XBMC alike, and ensure all HD audio formats are checked in XBMC and make sure you use the WASAPI audio for both audio device and pass through device. Ensure enabling pass thru is checked also.
After that enjoy HD audio with XBMC.. Hopefully.. Took me about 5 hours to figure this out. Sorry if it seems a bit complicated, well because it is. Too bad windows and xbmc dont support this right out of the box, however this should get it going.
Just realized I cant upload files here so cut and paste the text below into a notepad and then save as "Onkyo 8 channel.inf" Make sure to select "All files" instead of "Text files" under file type.
; INF file generated by Monitor Asset Manager (2.60.0.972), 06/01/2013
; Copyright © EnTech Taiwan, 1995-2011.
; Internet: http://www.entechtaiwan.com
[Version]
Signature="$WINDOWS NT$"
Class=Monitor
ClassGUID={4d36e96e-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318}
Provider=%MFG%
DriverVer=06/01/2013, 1.0.0.0
;CatalogFile=YourSignedCatalogFile.cat
[DestinationDirs]
DefaultDestDir=23
[SourceDisksNames]
1=%DISC%
[SourceDisksFiles]
;YourColorProfileFile.icm
[Manufacturer]
%VENDOR%=EDID_OVERRIDE,NTx86,NTamd64
[EDID_OVERRIDE.NTx86]
%PRODUCTID%=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install, MONITOR\ONK0C31
[EDID_OVERRIDE.NTamd64]
%PRODUCTID%=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTamd64, MONITOR\ONK0C31
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTx86]
DelReg=DEL_CURRENT_REG
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.AddReg, MODE1, DPMS
CopyFiles=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.CopyFiles
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTamd64]
DelReg=DEL_CURRENT_REG
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.AddReg, MODE1, DPMS
CopyFiles=OVERRIDDEN-EDID.CopyFiles
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTx86.HW]
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID_AddReg
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.Install.NTamd64.HW]
AddReg=OVERRIDDEN-EDID_AddReg
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID_AddReg]
;Base EDID
HKR,EDID_OVERRIDE,"0",0x01,0x00,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0xFF,0x00,0x3D,0xCB,0x31,0x0C,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x16,0x01,0x03,0x80,0x00,0x00,0x78,0x0A,0xDA,0xFF,0xA3,0x58,0x4A,0xA2,0x29,0x17,0x49,0x4B,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x01,0x1D,0x00,0xBC,0x52,0xD0,0x1E,0x20,0xB8,0x28,0x55,0x40,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x1E,0x01,0x1D,0x00,0x72,0x51,0xD0,0x1E,0x20,0x6E,0x28,0x55,0x00,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x1E,0x00,0x00,0x00,0xFC,0x00,0x54,0x58,0x2D,0x53,0x52,0x33,0x31,0x33,0x0A,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x00,0x00,0x00,0xFD,0x00,0x17,0x3D,0x0F,0x44,0x0F,0x00,0x0A,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x20,0x01,0x5D
;Extension bloc #1, e.g., CEA-EXT, DID-EXT, etc.
HKR,EDID_OVERRIDE,"1",0x01,0x02,0x03,0x4B,0x72,0x5C,0x93,0x84,0x1F,0x10,0x14,0x05,0x20,0x12,0x03,0x11,0x02,0x16,0x07,0x15,0x06,0x01,0x1E,0x0F,0x1D,0x0E,0x1A,0x0B,0x19,0x0A,0x26,0x24,0x25,0x23,0x38,0x09,0x7F,0x07,0x0F,0x7F,0x07,0x17,0x07,0x50,0x3F,0x06,0xC0,0x4D,0x02,0x00,0x57,0x06,0x00,0x5F,0x7E,0x01,0x67,0x54,0x00,0x83,0x0F,0x00,0x00,0x6C,0x03,0x0C,0x00,0x14,0x00,0xB8,0x26,0xC0,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x02,0x3A,0x80,0xD0,0x72,0x38,0x2D,0x40,0x10,0x2C,0x45,0x80,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x1E,0x01,0x1D,0x80,0xD0,0x72,0x1C,0x16,0x20,0x10,0x2C,0x25,0x80,0xBA,0x88,0x21,0x00,0x00,0x9E,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0x00,0xC6
[DEL_CURRENT_REG]
HKR,MODES
HKR,EDID_OVERRIDE
HKR,,MaxResolution
HKR,,PreferredMode
HKR,,DPMS
HKR,,ICMProfile
[DPMS]
HKR,,DPMS,,0
HKR,,PreferredMode,,"1280,720,50"
[MODE1]
HKR,,MaxResolution,,"1280,720,50"
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.AddReg]
HKR,"MODES\1280,720,50",Mode1,,"15.0-68.0,23.0-61.0,+,+"
[OVERRIDDEN-EDID.CopyFiles]
;YourColorProfileFile.icm for non-sRGB displays
[Strings]
MFG="EnTech Taiwan"
DISC="Monitor EDID Override Installation Disk"
PRODUCTID="Onkyo TX-SR313 (ONK0C31 EDID Override)"
VENDOR="Onkyo"
