JRiver digital playback for beginners. Question and Answer Forum, 2021.

[himey]

Maybe you could install KODI, to verify that it's not a configuration problem?

...or a jRiver anomaly.

 

[RustyStatic]

Hi all, am hoping someone can help out with this. I recently upgraded to MC29 although this is happening for me in both MC28 and 29. Everything was playing from JRiver perfectly up until yesterday; I haven't changed any settings at all on my computer or in JRiver and basically everything I try to play now, JRiver is doing a forced correction/downmix to stereo 2ch. Pretty infuriating.

FYI, I have a 5.2.2 system and a Marantz SR8015. I'm running an HDMI from my iMac to the Marantz and everything has always been fine until today. I tested another source into the HDMI slot in the Marantz I'mm using from the iMac and it switched to "Multi Channel In" with no problem, and plays fine - so it's not the Marantz. The HDMI running from the iMac is playing stereo and showing video fine, and has always worked in the past... so it seems weird that it'd be the HDMI cable although I guess I can test that out (would an HDMI cable really be able to send video and stereo over with no problem but just not multichannel? When it has always worked fine in the past?)

I restarted both the computer and the Marantz to no avail.

When I check and properly set my playback settings, it looks like this:



Then I hit "Done" to save it, then hit OK on this dialogue:



And boom, it goes to stereo. When I check the settings, it shows me this:



And then when I click back into the playback settings, it shows me this:



It does the same thing even I select JRSS mixing (which is where I usually leave it) and 5.1. Is there something really silly I'm missing here? Has anyone else experienced this? I don't freakin' get it. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[kap'n krunch]

Hi all, am hoping someone can help out with this. I recently upgraded to MC29 although this is happening for me in both MC28 and 29. Everything was playing from JRiver perfectly up until yesterday; I haven't changed any settings at all on my computer or in JRiver and basically everything I try to play now, JRiver is doing a forced correction/downmix to stereo 2ch. Pretty infuriating.

FYI, I have a 5.2.2 system and a Marantz SR8015. I'm running an HDMI from my iMac to the Marantz and everything has always been fine until today. I tested another source into the HDMI slot in the Marantz I'mm using from the iMac and it switched to "Multi Channel In" with no problem, and plays fine - so it's not the Marantz. The HDMI running from the iMac is playing stereo and showing video fine, and has always worked in the past... so it seems weird that it'd be the HDMI cable although I guess I can test that out (would an HDMI cable really be able to send video and stereo over with no problem but just not multichannel? When it has always worked fine in the past?)

I restarted both the computer and the Marantz to no avail.

When I check and properly set my playback settings, it looks like this:

View attachment 76999

Then I hit "Done" to save it, then hit OK on this dialogue:

View attachment 77000

And boom, it goes to stereo. When I check the settings, it shows me this:

View attachment 77001

And then when I click back into the playback settings, it shows me this:

View attachment 77002

It does the same thing even I select JRSS mixing (which is where I usually leave it) and 5.1. Is there something really silly I'm missing here? Has anyone else experienced this? I don't freakin' get it. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

One of the many times my marantz has displayed symptoms like that I had to update the firmware, which I never do...have you tried it?

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Hi all, am hoping someone can help out with this. I recently upgraded to MC29 although this is happening for me in both MC28 and 29. Everything was playing from JRiver perfectly up until yesterday; I haven't changed any settings at all on my computer or in JRiver and basically everything I try to play now, JRiver is doing a forced correction/downmix to stereo 2ch. Pretty infuriating.

FYI, I have a 5.2.2 system and a Marantz SR8015. I'm running an HDMI from my iMac to the Marantz and everything has always been fine until today. I tested another source into the HDMI slot in the Marantz I'mm using from the iMac and it switched to "Multi Channel In" with no problem, and plays fine - so it's not the Marantz. The HDMI running from the iMac is playing stereo and showing video fine, and has always worked in the past... so it seems weird that it'd be the HDMI cable although I guess I can test that out (would an HDMI cable really be able to send video and stereo over with no problem but just not multichannel? When it has always worked fine in the past?)

I restarted both the computer and the Marantz to no avail.

When I check and properly set my playback settings, it looks like this:

View attachment 76999

Then I hit "Done" to save it, then hit OK on this dialogue:

View attachment 77000

And boom, it goes to stereo. When I check the settings, it shows me this:

View attachment 77001

And then when I click back into the playback settings, it shows me this:

View attachment 77002

It does the same thing even I select JRSS mixing (which is where I usually leave it) and 5.1. Is there something really silly I'm missing here? Has anyone else experienced this? I don't freakin' get it. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Don't use Core Audio. Try Wasapi.

 

[RustyStatic]

OK cool - thanks guys; when troubleshooting the HDMI cable to make sure that wasn't it (it wasn't), I took it all apart, including the HDMI to Thunderbolt adapter, and when put it all back together and tried again, it all miraculously worked. So I'm assuming it was something with that adapter and for lack of a better way to put it, it sending some kind of error to JRiver/the iMac where it felt it couldn't send out the multichannel feed and so it kept kicking it back into a stereo mode. It is ALWAYS something.

I have this jobby... a definite weak link in the chain:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6M2VN4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1
I think I need to find something more reliable. Definitely open to suggestions.

 

[mrcond]

I have all my discs ripped to 5.1 FLAC and think I am sold on JRiver to enhance the overall experience. The simplest thing for me to get started would be to install JRiver on my Windows PC where I do all my ripping and converting, with my USB hard drives connected to the PC and then have the PC act as a wireless server that somehow my AV system can access and display on my TV (my AV setup is in a separate room, with no hard-wired ethernet connection between my PC and AV setup). Here are my (admittedly naive) questions (I imagine all of this is already covered elsewhere but many searches have proven it isn't easy to find answers to my specific questions):

1. Is this even possible?
2. Is there any other equipment I would need?
3. Would it play my 5.1 FLAC files wirelessly? What about Atmos, if I figure out how to rip those eventually?
4. If this is possible, would I be able to control playback on the fly without having to run back to my PC to change songs/playlists etc.? Like through an iPhone app.
5. Would I be able to see the JRiver interface on my TV screen with this setup?

I am trying to find the easiest path to entry but want the ability to be able to expand/enhance as I gain more knowledge down the road (NUC, NAS, etc). Just don't want to spend money and time on the wrong stuff.

My AV equipment consists of a Denon AVR-3700H (with 7.1.4 speakers connected for full Atmos) and Sony UPB-X800M2 disc player.

Thanks in advance for any guidance you can provide me to set me on the right path.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Hello in Vernon!
1, 2. Yes but it really depends on the AVR and I doub that yours can to more than stereo.
3. See above for 5.1 but it I really unlikely for Atmos.
4. Yes, you can use JRemote on your iPhone.
5. I don't think so.

 

[mrcond]

Hello in Vernon!
1, 2. Yes but it really depends on the AVR and I doub that yours can to more than stereo.
3. See above for 5.1 but it I really unlikely for Atmos.
4. Yes, you can use JRemote on your iPhone.
5. I don't think so.

Thanks Kal for your reply. I have been playing around with it a bit and have come to the same conclusions as you indicated. I was hoping maybe I just missed a checkbox in the configuration.

I think my next step is to explore purchasing an NUC to connect directly with my AV setup. I see that JRiver sells the Id 300 unit, which they say is preloaded with the JRiver software:

https://wiki.jriver.com/index.php/Id
Does anyone have experience with that unit? Is there something better out there for similar price or less?

 

[TMV]

Hi all,

Thanks for @marpow for opening this thread. I am a complete noob but my goal is somewhat sophisticated, this I gathered from all the info I have read so far. I want to use JRiver mostly for its DSP convolver. The idea is to load wav or cgf files to MC convolver, this has been done before, to drive my 3way active system through the RME ff400.
Since 99% of my music is FLAC cd rips 44.1/16. In this day and age when CD quality streaming is available I hardly play my files. More so, streaming from smart TV is very convenient. So this is what I have been trying to do.
Smart TV =>toslink=> digital preamp =>spdif=>RME ff400 => JRiver with convolver =>RME physical outs =>amps+speakers.
If anyone could direct me hopefully step by step as to how to have JRiver take the sound from the external spdif and send it to the convolver and to the audio interface that would be great.

Thanks

 

[mrcond]

I am trying to get JRiver to play back Atmos tracks through my NUC to Denon Atmos AVR setup but am not having any success. I have successfully ripped my Atmos blu-rays into mkv files using MMH, using CUE files to import as individual mkv tracks. So far so good. These files are stored on my network and accessed by the NUC using the DLNA Media Network functionality in JRiver. I then set up a separate JRiver zone just for these files to set the NUC output to HDMI bitstream. I made sure my NUC sound configuration is set to Atmos as well. However, when I go to play one of my mkv files using this configuration, I get an error message that says the following:

Something went wrong with playback.
Details:
Playback could not be started on the output 'WASAPI' using the format '48 kHz 8ch'.
This output format may not be supported by your hardware. You can use DSP Studio to change the output to a compatible format.
Also, make sure that your system has a valid sound playback device and that it is properly configured in playback options.

Hoping someone here can help me troubleshoot this. I can play all my 5.1 FLAC files no problem using JRIver. Many thanks to @HomerJAU and @marpow and everyone else for providing a lot of valuable information to help me get this far.

 

[himey]

I am trying to get JRiver to play back Atmos tracks through my NUC to Denon Atmos AVR setup but am not having any success. I have successfully ripped my Atmos blu-rays into mkv files using MMH, using CUE files to import as individual mkv tracks. So far so good. These files are stored on my network and accessed by the NUC using the DLNA Media Network functionality in JRiver. I then set up a separate JRiver zone just for these files to set the NUC output to HDMI bitstream. I made sure my NUC sound configuration is set to Atmos as well. However, when I go to play one of my mkv files using this configuration, I get an error message that says the following:

Something went wrong with playback.
Details:
Playback could not be started on the output 'WASAPI' using the format '48 kHz 8ch'.
This output format may not be supported by your hardware. You can use DSP Studio to change the output to a compatible format.
Also, make sure that your system has a valid sound playback device and that it is properly configured in playback options.

Hoping someone here can help me troubleshoot this. I can play all my 5.1 FLAC files no problem using JRIver. Many thanks to @HomerJAU and @marpow and everyone else for providing a lot of valuable information to help me get this far.

https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=128668.0

 

[ted_b]

I would NOT set the NUC output to anything other than default. It's the AVR that does the Atmos work; don't set the NUC to Atmos.

 

[mrcond]

I would NOT set the NUC output to anything other than default. It's the AVR that does the Atmos work; don't set the NUC to Atmos.

If you are referring to the Device Settings for sound output, the default is stereo - so setting it to that for bitstream out just bypasses that setting, is that correct? Thanks for your reply.

A follow-up question to that logic would be, I was always able to get 5.1 output on FLAC files from the NUC only by setting the NUC to 5.1 on NOT bitstream from JRiver, which I think means that either JRiver or the NUC itself is doing the surround decoding, not the AVR. Is that correct? Which is confusing to me since by the same logic I should just set everything out (5.1 FLAC and Atmos mkv) to bitstream out and let the AVR do all the decoding. So much I don't know about how all this decoding actually works.

 

[LuvMyQuad]

Does Jriver allow for passthrough? I know that is what Kodi has to be set for to get Atmos playback.

 

[himey]

Does Jriver allow for passthrough? I know that is what Kodi has to be set for to get Atmos playback.

According to the link, for video with Atmos, yes, but not for audio only files.

 

[marpow]

I will look tonight when I get home what my DSP settings are for my Atmos Zone.
I have three zones, Stereo, Multichannel and Atmos, they all play perfectly.
When I rip the Atmos BluRay I take a picture of the TV showing the menu, because sometimes it is confusing when MKV lays it all out.
Then I rip always for Atmos the TRU HD.
Then I go to MMH, enable the JRiver sidecar. Select the very top arrange chapters from MKV.
If there are no gapless songs than that is the way to go. When you go into your selected folder, I always use the DOCUMENTS folder, you will see the chapters, tracks, songs whatever you want to call them. There will also be the root file, that has everything, just not in chapters.
For example Abbey Road Atmos is gapless so it needs the root folder in JRiver.
JRiver will play all forms of music gapless except MKV files, thus the reason as in the case of Abbey Road the root folder is best.
Also some releases have very cool graphic video for each song even though it is not gapless, this is another reason to use the root folder only.
After you are done with the ripping style of your choice, in my case I copy iy over from my document folder to my NAS, then I go to JRiver and import my new Atmos or whatever rip.
JRiver will recognize it as a MKV video file and will automatically go into your video section of the drop down tree. All other non MKV files go into my Recent Folder.
All my music comes out of my designated PC USB out to my Exasound external DAC and then 6 RCA's out to the in of the 7.1 section of my McIntosh MX122.
But for my ATMOS music that has to be HDMI out from the designated PC to an available HDMI in of the MX122.

If you follow above it will be successful, but let me get back to you on my exact DSP setting of my Atmos zone.

I am sure many do it sort of the same or sort of different, but I have 100% success 100% of the time.

Ted_B is correct, no tweaking of your NUC needed.

 

[marpow]

Sorry, I got home last night and was really tired.
Below are pictures with explanation of each picture above each picture. Hopefully I can help with the below. Unfortunately I am not good at explaining in depth. I am not computer savvy but I definitely never give up and scratch and claw my way threw this stuff.
As I said in my post above, my three zones (yes I know I can play multi and stereo off one zone, but I like my way better), (my way with different zones keeps me engaged to what I am listening to). Any questions, clarifications, I will do my best to answer.
I should add all my equipment is Ethernet connected, none of my equipment is wireless.
This is what my tree looks like with my 3 zones.

Right click playing now and Add Zone. Title of your choice. Mine is Atmos Zone.

Now to set up your new zone in the OUTPUT FORMAT. Output Encoding: None, Sample Rate: Output NO CHANGE, Channels: Source Number Of Channels. See picture for remainder.

Zone To Configure. Important is Bitstreaming: Yes HDMI. You can see all my selections in this picture, but I have opened up some others.

You can see here my choices are different pieces of equipment. I am HDMI out of my PC with JRiver and I have my McIntosh w/WASAPI selected.

I have Zone Switch enabled.

My Device selection

 

[mrcond]

Thanks for the above info. I will try to match your settings and see what happens, as I have not had any success so far.

 

[RustyStatic]

Thanks for the above info. I will try to match your settings and see what happens, as I have not had any success so far.

Totally, thank you for all of this!

I've been following along myself trying to get Atmos to play through JRiver ('cause I wanna grab those two new Lori Lieberman and Jacob Mann Big Band download-only Atmos titles on IAA and be able to play them as intended)... followed all of your steps on the JRiver forum, @marpow, and those above as well... and I also just can't get it to "turn over". I've got all the same settings as you but my Marantz SR8015 still keeps seeing the audio (sent directly out of my iMac via HDMI) as 7.1 and not Atmos (so it plays, but it's clearly not right - the mix is weird even though it's playing in 7.1, and the heights aren't firing).

Actually, all the same settings except one: looks to me like my issue might be that I don't have an option in Bitstreaming to select "Yes (HDMI)" as you do, even though I've got HDMI selected as my output and it works:

All I get is None, DSD, or Custom:

And Custom is just variations of DSD:

Things that make you go "hmm...."

 

[marpow]

My current version of JRiver is 29, but I believe this has been working for me as I explained since version 26?