PC for Multichannel Music Playback - What's your Setup?

[DuncanS]

There are a lot of titles when I search for Intel NUC, so I just picked this one.
My NUC/JRiver combo has been running perfectly. Dr. Simple has been helping me a bit, as of this Saturday the NUC wanted a windows update and I did. Now my NUC does not want to read my NAS as it did before, files are there, but will play back some and not others, some thumbnails show, and then when I go to play they revert yo the red and don't play. I have rebooted NAS and NUC multiple times and with mild success, I have changed the what JRiver looks for, in my case the NAS is \\M:, which it always has been.
JRiver works perfectly, the NUC works perfectly but the connect between the two seems all messed up. I am at work now and all I can think of is how smart it was to backup the NAS. I was thinking, of course I would only do a couple files for experiment and that is to delete the NAS files and replace with the back up files, time consuming of course but not as time consuming as re-ripping which I would cry if I had to do that.
I believe in the future I will not do a Windows update or if I do I will turn off the NAS before I update the NUC.
I am so dissapointed as it was working perfectly. I even uninstalled my JRiver 24, it did not help, plus, no big deal, but I lost my players, which I now have to remake my Stereo, 5.1 and 4.0 players.
Any suggestions for fixing the connection between NAS and JRiver after a Windows update?

I doubt if there is anything wrong with the NAS. I suspect its something to do with File Sharing, and/or file format, so could be of folders or individual files, so how Windows sees the files/folders. After every Windows update I have had issues with that. A few updates ago my Oppo would no longer get to files on my PC, whereas the Linux based NAS was not a problem, I managed to get the PC to allow the Oppo then another update and it stopped sharing again. So I gave up trying to sort it, and just use the NAS, but I'm looking at getting an Intel NUC which would be Windows based and run Foobar2000, so fun ahead I imagine.

 

[DuncanS]

I don't know as much as you guys, but I rebooted the NAS from the web portal and now is working, but a lot is all goofed up still. I have stereo titles working and I still need to put back my 5.1 and my 4.0 player. I have a lot of double tracks because I used two different names for importing the \\M: server, NAS.
I am a blood hound and i know nothing about computers but I do know how to dig. All my thumbnails are showing in JRiver so no matter what I can clean up this mess now.
Yikes, they say mistakes are good for learning, ugh=

Possibly the NAS & NUC were out of 'sync', I've kept a mental note of your problem as I suspect I'll hit it when I get a NUC.

 

[marpow]

Possibly the NAS & NUC were out of 'sync', I've kept a mental note of your problem as I suspect I'll hit it when I get a NUC.

I would agree, when they have got out of sync before I have just manually turned NAS off and then turned on and all is good. I think that this time they just became out of sync again after update and I panicked, rebooting everything, uninstall, etc, which is not really bad. It was unnecessary to uninstall JRiver but I didn't lose a lick of my files, but I did lose my players, which is really not that a big of a deal, already got the stereo player rolling. The biggest mistake I made was the renaming the \\M: Nas server to \\mediavault: all this did was imported everything in duplicate , so for every album now I have duplicate tracks, and because the file destination is different between the two M drives I cant use the 'remove duplicate tracks. What a pain in the ass.
It is unlikely in the near future I will even do a Windows update if they ask but if I do I am definitely turning off the Nas.

 

[LuvMyQuad]

Again I don't use JRiver, so I don't understand the term "lost players".

I have 2 main folders for media on my NAS. They are STEREO and MULTICHANNEL . In each of those folders are subfolders for every artist. In the artist subfolders are album folders and the separate FLAC song tracks. Stereo rips and MCH rips go in the respective main folders. All of this appears in a single logical drive in Windows.

I direct Kodi to the STEREO and MULTICHANNEL directories as my music sources. They all come up at the same time in the Kodi interface. All grpuped within the same Artist's catalog. I select an artist, and select an album. If I play a stereo album I get stereo out, If I play a MCH album I get MCH out. All in the native ripped bitrate.

Are you saying that with JRiver you have to be running a specific player based on the number of channels?

 

[marpow]

Well after 3 days of frustration, I finally got at least for the moment to play stereo, 5.1 and 4.0, keep fingers crossed. This time I was really frustrated and felt like walking away, but I just kept digging, wish I could tell you in computer lingo what I did. As of this writing I am never going to do a Windows update again on my NUC. I did a lot of reading and even my own experience with PC at work and home Windows updates bring there own little problems, it's not that big of a deal at work and home because I don't have things connected to the PC, well an extra hard drive and printer but that's about it.
LUV, that is a good idea to have two folders on the NAS, I don't. I believe what you do with KODI Homer does same, I just couldn't figure it out so I did my own very successful way, assuming i don't have problems.
1. I rip the disc 2.and put in NAS 3. Import from NAS to JRiver which becomes part of my all inclusive library. I then rename each album title, like this Quadrophenia 2.0 BD-A and Quadrophenia 5.1 BD-A, it is super easy to rename anything in JRiver, highlight all, right click, rename the top line, left click and all the tracks are named the same. Now I have 3 players, left column of JRiver, each player is set up for either stereo. 5.1, or 4.0. Now if I am scrolling through my library and I see a 5.1 or a 4.0 with album title, I click player, make adjustment 1 click on my AVR (the 4.0 and 5.1 titles play HDMI out from my NUC) the stereo titles play USB out from NUC into my external DAC, (if I owned an EXASOUND38 it would be easier).
The 3 players are set up as 2 channel, 5.1, and 4.0 they recognize what I am playing, if I was to play a 5.1 in a 4.0 player it would show a popup wanting to change, which sometimes is a hassel..
Anyway that is it in a nutshell, I have no doubt somebody reading this will say, he can do it another way and it would be easier. But I am the one who set it up and I am the one who uses it and until Saturdays update crash worked flawless and I know what I am listening to with a quick view.
As a side note, because I don't have a MCH DAC, I have been working on my wife to let me have the spare bedroom upstairs which is used for nothing right now and if that was to happen I know for a fact I would get the EXASOUND38 mch DAC.
Anybody's input is always appreciated, I don't get offended.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

It is unlikely in the near future I will even do a Windows update if they ask but if I do I am definitely turning off the Nas.

You should also do an intentional JRMC library back-up before the Win update. That said, my player PC does its updates and screws a up a few things as Win updates do but it has never had any impact on JRMC, iirc.

 

[marpow]

You should also do an intentional JRMC library back-up before the Win update. That said, my player PC does its updates and screws a up a few things as Win updates do but it has never had any impact on JRMC, iirc.

Great idea Kal. I think in the end what really happened was the update impacted the read between NUC and NAS but because I paniked I made things worse, it's all working now but I am stuck with removing double files manually because the Filenames are different and the auto remove identical tracks won't work, what a pain. One file name is \\M: the other is \\Mediavault:, what a pain. Live and learn.

 

[Robert van Diggele]

Well after 3 days of frustration, I finally got at least for the moment to play stereo, 5.1 and 4.0, keep fingers crossed. This time I was really frustrated and felt like walking away, but I just kept digging, wish I could tell you in computer lingo what I did. As of this writing I am never going to do a Windows update again on my NUC. I did a lot of reading and even my own experience with PC at work and home Windows updates bring there own little problems, it's not that big of a deal at work and home because I don't have things connected to the PC, well an extra hard drive and printer but that's about it.
LUV, that is a good idea to have two folders on the NAS, I don't. I believe what you do with KODI Homer does same, I just couldn't figure it out so I did my own very successful way, assuming i don't have problems.
1. I rip the disc 2.and put in NAS 3. Import from NAS to JRiver which becomes part of my all inclusive library. I then rename each album title, like this Quadrophenia 2.0 BD-A and Quadrophenia 5.1 BD-A, it is super easy to rename anything in JRiver, highlight all, right click, rename the top line, left click and all the tracks are named the same. Now I have 3 players, left column of JRiver, each player is set up for either stereo. 5.1, or 4.0. Now if I am scrolling through my library and I see a 5.1 or a 4.0 with album title, I click player, make adjustment 1 click on my AVR (the 4.0 and 5.1 titles play HDMI out from my NUC) the stereo titles play USB out from NUC into my external DAC, (if I owned an EXASOUND38 it would be easier).
The 3 players are set up as 2 channel, 5.1, and 4.0 they recognize what I am playing, if I was to play a 5.1 in a 4.0 player it would show a popup wanting to change, which sometimes is a hassel..
Anyway that is it in a nutshell, I have no doubt somebody reading this will say, he can do it another way and it would be easier. But I am the one who set it up and I am the one who uses it and until Saturdays update crash worked flawless and I know what I am listening to with a quick view.
As a side note, because I don't have a MCH DAC, I have been working on my wife to let me have the spare bedroom upstairs which is used for nothing right now and if that was to happen I know for a fact I would get the EXASOUND38 mch DAC.
Anybody's input is always appreciated, I don't get offended.

As an exa e38 user I can recommend this great mch dac. It works very easy using Jriver and the Exa ASIO driver. It is not the cheapest solution but if you are willing to spend this kind of money do not hesitate.

 

[anibal]

Hi all!
I hope someone here can help me with an issue:
I have been trying to send multichannel audio from my laptop to my Sony receiver through HDMI with no luck. The receiver is detected but I can only send 2.0 audio.
My laptop is a relatively modern HP with USB-C/thunderbolt 4 ports so I need a USBc to DP/ HDMI adapter. The graphics card is an integrated Intel Iris XE.

Do you have any idea of what do I need to send multichannel through HDMI?
- A software driver?
- A different USBC to HDMI adapter?
- An external Nvida GPU?
- An external soundcard with HDMI output? (I searched for it and found nothing...)

 

[Kal Rubinson]

The receiver is detected but I can only send 2.0 audio.

Tell us exactly how it is detected. Direct, Wasapi.......?
What program are you using to send audio?

 

[anibal]

Tell us exactly how it is detected. Direct, Wasapi.......?
What program are you using to send audio?

I tried to use default windows audio drivers (windows 11) and send audio with VLC, foobar2000 and the default media player. It sounds fine in stereo but if I can not get multichannel, if I go to the windows sound settings it says it only supports 2 channel configurations with the receiver.

 

[humprof]

Hi all!
I hope someone here can help me with an issue:
I have been trying to send multichannel audio from my laptop to my Sony receiver through HDMI with no luck. The receiver is detected but I can only send 2.0 audio.
My laptop is a relatively modern HP with USB-C/thunderbolt 4 ports so I need a USBc to DP/ HDMI adapter. The graphics card is an integrated Intel Iris XE.

Do you have any idea of what do I need to send multichannel through HDMI?
- A software driver?
- A different USBC to HDMI adapter?
- An external Nvida GPU?
- An external soundcard with HDMI output? (I searched for it and found nothing...)

Tell us exactly how it is detected. Direct, Wasapi.......?
What program are you using to send audio?

Kal's questions are important, as the output settings of your media player will affect both what's getting to your AVR and how your AVR is processing it. You may also need to change your Windows sound output and speaker settings--not just making sure the correct output device is selected in sound settings, but also right clicking on the speaker icon in the lower righthand corner of your screen, then changing the speaker settings from 2.0 to 5.1 or Atmos for Home Theater, as appropriate.

But another problem might be that you're using a USB to HDMI adapter? I've only ever connected a PC to an AVR with HDMI to HDMI. Someone with more technical knowledge will have to confirm how many channels of multchannel audio USB-C can handle, and what resolution.

 

[anibal]

Kal's questions are important, as the output settings of your media player will affect both what's getting to your AVR and how your AVR is processing it. You may also need to change your Windows sound output and speaker settings--not just making sure the correct output device is selected in sound settings, but also right clicking on the speaker icon in the lower righthand corner of your screen, then changing the speaker settings from 2.0 to 5.1 or Atmos for Home Theater, as appropriate.

But another problem might be that you're using a USB to HDMI adapter? I've only ever connected a PC to an AVR with HDMI to HDMI. Someone with more technical knowledge will have to confirm how many channels of multchannel audio USB-C can handle, and what resolution.

I tried to activate "Atmos for Home Theater" many times but I get a "configuration error". I can not change the speaker settings from 2.0 to 5.1, I was able to do that on a multichannel USB audio interface with analogue outputs ( I do not have it anymore). I have seen youtube videos of people changing this on the HDMI outputs but I do not see a way to enable it on my computer. Shall I try to setup bitstream output from foobar or something like that?

 

[humprof]

I tried to activate "Atmos for Home Theater" many times but I get a "configuration error". I can not change the speaker settings from 2.0 to 5.1, I was able to do that on a multichannel USB audio interface with analogue outputs ( I do not have it anymore). I have seen youtube videos of people changing this on the HDMI outputs but I do not see a way to enable it on my computer. Shall I try to setup bitstream output from foobar or something like that?

If you get into the advanced settings of foobar or VLC (or Kodi), you should be able to bitstream or "pass-through" a signal to your AVR, yes--and I think that's essential for getting multi-channel playback. The speaker settings are the other essential bit, though, at least in my experience; odd that you can't change them, but possibly that's because, without pass-through selected, the HDMI "handshake" with the AVR isn't completing properly?

 

[bookofsaturdays]

If you get into the advanced settings of foobar or VLC (or Kodi), you should be able to bitstream or "pass-through" a signal to your AVR, yes--and I think that's essential for getting multi-channel playback. The speaker settings are the other essential bit, though, at least in my experience; odd that you can't change them, but possibly that's because, without pass-through selected, the HDMI "handshake" with the AVR isn't completing properly?

If I recall it’s in the VLC pretences under Audio/Video and “enable SPDIF input” must be checked” along with something underneath that about Dolby Surround.

 

[anibal]

Great, thanks! I'll be travelling for the weekend but I will try to set the pass-through/bitstream on monday

 

[mandrix]

First of all, do you not have either an HDMI or DP port on the laptop? Just verifying for sure.
OK moving on.

FYI Foobar will not bitstream. But it's pretty easy to configure. File/preferences/output/Device/ and see what drivers are listed there and if any work for you.

For VLC go to Tools/preferences/audio and make sure HDMI passthrough says enabled.

Most likely with the built in graphics you have you are using the Intel driver. You can verify this in Device Manager. Make sure it's up to date.

In Windows go to the control panel, select sound, select the sound device (might be your AVR, that would be super!) , configure, set it up for 5.1 or 7.1 whichever your AVR supports. Hit the test button and make sure all the speakers are playing.

If the option for mch output does not show up, then more work may be involved. If you have Windows 10 or 11, a little trick I learned (although it should make zero difference) is to go to the Windows store and download/install the free Dolby app. Then select your device/configure in Windows sound, then select the Dolby Atmos For Home Theater option and see what happens when you play music.

If no change leave the sound set for Dolby Atmos For Home Theater and reboot the computer with the AVR on and connected with the adapter cable. This is essential to let the pc know what sound devices are connected, and boot up is when it "sees" the devices the best. Plug and Play and all that.

Play some mch music in VLC and see if you get mch output. If not go back to Windows Sound and see if can now select 5.1 or 7.1 mch output.

There are further things that might make a difference depending on what version of Windows you have.


Note: I have no experience with USB-c/Thunderbolt output sound, but if the final connection to the AVR is HDMI you should be golden at some point.

 

[SeeMoreDigital]

VLC Player 'Audio Output' settings: -

EDIT: Image updated for clarity

 

[mandrix]

VLC Player 'Audio Output' settings: -
View attachment 89579

Uh...what ya saying there, SMD? It should be enabled for HDMI passthrough.

 

[SeeMoreDigital]

Uh...what ya saying there, SMD? It should be enabled for HDMI passthrough.

Indeed it should.

I posted the image on the off chance that (some) people might be unaware that VLC Player offered a dedicated HDMI/SPDIF output option.

Personally, I use Media Player Classic BE, which offers the following HDMI/SPDIF output option: -