RasPlex volume control mode (CEC vs. ?)

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1

It appears that there are two different volume control modes in RasPlex. In one mode (the default I assume), adjusting the volume with the Raspberry Pi remote control causes a dropdown volume gadget to display in the upper right corner (max is 0db but pressing VolDown will lower it). But there's another mode where the RasPlex doesn't do that but sends HDMI-CEC commands to raise and lower the volume on the receiver (the gadget is not displayed but the receiver's volume goes up or down).

 

Sometimes that CEC mode works perfectly for me and other times RasPlex goes into the first mode and doesn't send CEC commands even though both the TV and Receiver are turned on (with CEC enabled) and I can't figure out how to get RasPlex back into the CEC mode again. Rebooting the Raspberry Pi, TV, and Receiver doesn't help. If I fuss with it long enough it will "magically" pop back into CEC mode eventually, but I haven't figured out what causes that to happen. Dropping out of CEC mode occurs when the TV goes into standby (which I guess makes sense since the TV controls CEC), but it doesn't recover from this when the TV comes back out of standby. It's like the Raspberry Pi doesn't realized that it's connected to a receiver any more.

 

Is there some way to get the Raspberry Pi to reset it's volume control mode and recognize it should be doing CEC commands again? The CEC on the TV and Receiver seem to be working because the TV's volume controls modify the receiver's volume. It's just that the Raspberry Pi doesn't attempt to use CEC any longer for some reason.

 

Help! Thanks!

2

Depending on devices attached, CEC can be very finicky in a correct-phase-of-the-moon kind of manner. I would just try various methods of troubleshooting down to unplugging and replugging devices in random orders, swapping HDMI cables, turning them off and on in different orders, etc..

As an example I had a temporary issue with my setup. Mine goes TV > AVR > Pi. Pi was unplugged at the time upgrading Rasplex. The TV lost CEC connectivity with the AVR so automatic power on/off didn't work and it was forcing both the TV and AVR speakers to run at the same time. Plug the Pi back in and power cycle everything and back to normal. 

3

Yeah, you're right about the CEC stuff. Unfortunately all that correct-phase-of-the-moon stuff leads to a really bad Spousal Acceptance Factor though. Worse, my HDMI audio completely quit working last night (no sound no matter what I did). I finally got it working again this morning after disabling everything and unplugging all the pieces, but this just isn't going to be acceptable for the wife.

Entertainment equipment either works 99% of the time or it doesn't and I'm afraid RasPlex doesn't in my system. I'm going to have to go with something else instead. I retired an old Windows 7 HTPC from this role and wanted something simpler/quieter. I had a Raspberry Pi 2 anyway and it seemed like a good option, but it's too finicky. I'll likely go with an Amazon Fire TV or Roku instead.