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I have a desktop PC used as my PMS, I have samsung ua65hu9000 tv it uses the old orca plex app, I also have Denon AVR x2100W (2014) Model it supports * Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio and Dolby Pro Logic IIz
When i use the plex app on TV my AVR only ever shows DTS or Dolby Digital, What is the easiest / cheaper way of doing a setup so i can actually get the other sound settings?
Thanks
You need to use an external streaming box connected to the Denon AVR.
Streaming Device <-- HDMI --> Denon <-- HDMI-ARC --> Samsung TV
HDMI-ARC does not have the bandwidth to pass lossless audio. That is why you cannot pass dts-HD/dts:X and TrueHD/TrueHD + Atmos using the Plex app on the TV.
The Denon 2100 does not support Dolby Atmos nor dts:X audio. Also, from what I can find online, your TV has 4K resolution, but does not support HDR.
You’ve multiple choices for a client. It depends on whether or not you want support for Atmos audio.
2019 Nvidia Shield Pro (specs)
The Nvidia Shield is the only off the shelf streaming box that will passthrough TrueHD, including TrueHD + Atmos, dts:X, and dts-HD MA.
The 2019 Shield Pro supports HDR10 and Dolby Vision. Earlier models are HDR10 only.
Do not buy the non-Pro (tube) model. There are multiple reports in the forum of problems with high bit-rate movies.
AppleTV 4K (specs)
The AppleTV 4K converts TrueHD 5.1/7.1 to PCM 5.1/7.1 on the AppleTV (no transcoding in Plex). PCM is lossless, so there is no quality loss. Your Denon will show “Multi-Channel In” instead of TrueHD. Atmos information is lost in the process.
EDIT (17 Nov 2020): An update based on this thread. Plex Media Server transcodes TrueHD 7.1 audio to FLAC 7.1 and sends it to the Apple TV 4K. The ATV4K then converts FLAC 7.1 to PCM 7.1 and sends the audio to attached receiver via HDMI. The end result is the same, TrueHD ends up as PCM, and Atmos information is lost in the process.
dts audio is also converted to multi-channel PCM on the AppleTV.
Edit: The AppleTV decodes the dts core audio. The HD extension is discarded. Reference.
Roku Ultra
Roku devices passthrough dts audio. For dts-HD audio, they passthrough the dts 5.1 core, the “-HD” part is discarded.
For TrueHD, information I found online says a Roku sends either Dolby Digital or Dolby Digital Plus to attached devices. It was unclear if the conversion was via transcoding in Plex or happened on the Roku device. The Roku developer site does not list TrueHD as a supported audio format.
Amazon FireStick 4K & other FireTV Devices (specs)
No dts passthrough. dts is converted on the device to either Dolby Digital or Dolby Digital Plus, depending on device settings.
No TrueHD passthrough. TrueHD will be transcoded to AAC by the Plex Media Center. It will then be sent to your Denon as DD or DD+, depending on device settings.
Given the requirements listed above, the Amazon FireTV devices are not a good fit for you.
Windows Personal Computer with Plex for Windows or Plex Media Player
Both Plex for Windows and Plex Media Player support passthrough for dts-HD and TrueHD audio.
Plex Media Player, PMP, has a Home Theater PC type interface that looks similar to that on AndroidTV devices. Note that PMP is not receiving new features, so some Plex features such as Watch Together, Intro Skip, etc are not available. PMP is basically in maintenance mode.
Plex for Windows looks similar to Plex Web. It does receive updates for new features.
AFAIK, the Mac versions of both have feature parity with their Windows counterparts. However, the Mac versions do not support TrueHD passthrough (Apple restriction).
Thank you for that long post, I have a old laptop here installed Plex For Windows App just done some playing around, Hooked up the laptop to HDMI port on the receiver wouldnt work at first but with some tinkering its now working
Smallville.S10.1080p.BluRay.REMUX.AVC.DTS-HD.MA.5.1-EPSiLON
What about the new fire TV cube? TrueHD movies don’t work from my firetv gen2, it makes the video stream buffer. But the same file on a fire TV cube play just fine. I thought this was a limitation of the NAS and the size of the processor, am I wrong on that?
OP asked about passthrough audio.
TrueHD audio transcodes when played via FireTV devices.
I put my Gen 1 FireTV stick out to pasture long ago. It is too old & slow.
My FireStick 4K plays movies with TrueHD audio just fine, but the audio still transcodes.
Then it must be a limitation of the NAS. I wish this was on the plex compatibility list
How do I find OP’s post? If I have a receiver that decodes TrueHD then I should always use passthrough correct?
Top of the thread and the subject.
Edit: To directly answer your question: Yes. However, if the streaming device cannot passthrough the desired audio format, the audio will be converted to a compatible format.
There are two parts: The streaming device and your receiver.
The streaming device must passthrough the desired codecs. If you want TrueHD + Atmos you need a Nvidia Shield Pro. If you don’t care about Atmos you may consider the ATV4K or Roku.
See my post above for details.
Also these threads:
Well i bought the Nvidia Sheild TV Pro hooked it up to my AVR and it works perfectly, Decodes the proper audio
All netflix shows and movies displays DD+ on my AVR, and plex now shows DTS-HD.MA, TrueHD on my remuxes
should have bought this along time ago its a great little unit
Have you got an idea why Plex Player transcodes TrueHD and not DTSHDMA when Kodi+Plex do a direct stream for both codecs?
(All my AV components are Dolby TrueHD compliant, of course…)
For example:
Transcode EAC3
Direct stream DTS-HD
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