Marantz AVR Stopped Playing ATMOS from MKV Files [MY BAD]

[ar surround]

My Marantz SR7013 suddenly will not play ATMOS from MKV files:

- The MKV files are on a USB drive played using an Oppo 205 via HDMI.
- Instead of ATMOS, the AVR downmixes to Multichannel 7.1.
- It still plays ATMOS from Blu-rays.
- [EDIT: It still plays ATMOS from MP4.]
- This is something new. I have never had this problem before.

What has changed:
- I set up my laptop to play 5.1 via HDMI into the AVR a couple of weeks ago. Could this have messed up the Marantz internal configuration so that it no longer recognized ATMOS from MKV files.
- The AVR firmware was recently updated.

Any ideas on how to remedy this situation? Thanks.

Here are some screen shots:

AS SET UP...after connecting my laptop for first time. (Note: I reset this to 5.1 afterwards):

Speaker configuration on laptop for Marantz AVR:

I disabled the Marantz connection and switched to computer speakers. This did not work:

 

[GOS]

What has changed:
- I set up my laptop to play 5.1 via HDMI into the AVR a couple of weeks ago. Could this have messed up the Marantz internal configuration so that it no longer recognized ATMOS from MKV files.

So, have you not historically had your laptop connected to your AVR?

 

[ar surround]

So, have you not historically had your laptop connected to your AVR?

No, I have not. I just tested Atmos via an mp4 file. The Oppo 205 / AVR combo plays Atmos OK if contained in an mp4. It's just the MKV files that are now downmixing to 7.1.

 

[humprof]

No, I have not. I just tested Atmos via an mp4 file. The Oppo 205 / AVR combo plays Atmos OK if contained in an mp4. It's just the MKV files that are now downmixing to 7.1.

First thing I'd change is the Windows speaker settings, which I think are really "output" settings. Choose Atmos for Home Theater rather than 7.1 when you send an Atmos mkv file. With my laptop/Marantz setup (a 6013), I occasionally have to unplug & replug the HDMI cable on the laptop end to reinitiate the "handshake" with the AVR. I've also found that if a Windows update has downloaded and is waiting to install, that can somehow mess up my audio settings. . . .

 

[ar surround]

First thing I'd change is the Windows speaker settings, which I think are really "output" settings. Choose Atmos for Home Theater rather than 7.1 when you send an Atmos mkv file. With my laptop/Marantz setup (a 6013), I occasionally have to unplug & replug the HDMI cable on the laptop end to reinitiate the "handshake" with the AVR. I've also found that if a Windows update has downloaded and is waiting to install, that can somehow mess up my audio settings. . . .

Unfortunately, that option "Dolby atmos for home theater" is total bullshit. When I click on it, it asks me to go to a Dolby store and buy an Atmos player for headphones for $15.

Remember, I'm just trying to play Atmos MKV files from my Oppo 205 through the AVR like I've always done. The laptop is not in the loop under this circumstance. I'm concerned that the laptop settings somehow screwed up the AVR.

 

[humprof]

Unfortunately, that option "Dolby atmos for home theater" is total bullshit. When I click on it, it asks me to go to a Dolby store and buy an Atmos player for headphones for $15.

Remember, I'm just trying to play Atmos MKV files from my Oppo 205 through the AVR like I've always done. The laptop is not in the loop under this circumstance. I'm concerned that the laptop settings somehow screwed up the AVR.

Hm. I'm no engineer, but I can't imagine how your laptop would be able to affect anything inside the AVR. Seems like it would have to be metadata embedded into these particular MKV files that's causing the failure of the Marantz to identify them as Atmos-encoded. (For instance: it's happened to me that after using MakeMKV to rip a Blu-Ray containing both Atmos and 5.1/7.1 streams of the same program, I found I could only get the resulting MKV file to play back in 5.1/7.1. I then went back and re-ripped, being careful to check the box for the Atmos stream only. Problem solved.) But if you're suddenly experiencing this failure with all of your MKV files, then that is indeed a mystery.

As for "Dolby Atmos for Home Theater": in principle that should be free, at least post-Windows 10 Creators Update from a couple of years back. (Googling spits back all kinds of confusing info about this, however.) Dolby Atmos for Headphones, on the other hand, requires the installation of Dolby Access, which does cost money, at least after a trial period. But if you're not using your laptop for Atmos playback, it's all a moot point.

 

[GOS]

I have the exact same setup (only, I have Denon) I have mine set for 5.1, and yet, when I play an MKV file (Atmos) from my laptop desktop, it outputs Atmos. I don't think my settings are any different than yours AR.

 

[ar surround]

Ugh...the issue was with the Oppo 205 and not the AVR. The AVR played an Atmos file just fine from the laptop, so that pointed to the Oppo. Somewhere along the line, I had changed the HDMI output of the Oppo from "Bitstream" to "Auto."

Apparently, the AVR doesn't like "Auto" when playing MKV Atmos files. A simple change back to "Bitstream" solved the problem.

Now where is that GIF of the person banging his head against the table. Neil uses it as his avatar?

 

[ar surround]

The Oppo 205 manual could not have made it any clearer:

But the problem is always knowing where to look. Where are those darn grandkids when you need one?

 

[perzon57]

The Oppo 205 manual could not have made it any clearer:

View attachment 84863

But the problem is always knowing where to look. Where are those darn grandkids when you need one?

Glad you solved it.

 

[SeeMoreDigital]

There is an an old 'known issue' with certain Mediatek AV decoding chip-sets that under some circumstances they fail to parse Dolby TrueHD (with or without Atmos) audio stream correctly when muxed within the .mkv (Matroska) 'program stream' container. By contrast, the same Dolby TrueHD audio stream works perfectly when muxed within the .m2ts 'transport stream' container.

The same thing would happen from time to time with the OPPO BDP-10x range of players. Along with any other manufacturers players fitted with the same chip-set (including the Sony's).