Problems playing MKA files

[humprof]

I actually came here today to find out how to get VLC to play Atmos correctly, but am intrigued by playing in Foobar, my favorite player. I've been through all the steps above, but no luck so far. I'll keep plugging to see what I missed. LOL I'm doing this at my working/main PC which just has an analog connection to an old 5.1 AVR, not the HTPC. I'll go to the HTPC and configure it. DOH!

So anyway the only pc app I have that will play mkv w/Atmos correctly at this time is PowerDVD. The OSD from my AVR will display Atmos/TrueHD when I toggle my remote. VLC will only cause my AVR to show Dolby Surround.
This is l on my main AUDIO rig btw of which my HTPC is HDMI connected to, to be clear (I hope)
I really gotta start sleeping more.....

I've been dinking around with this a lot lately, too--with help and advice from a couple of very kind QQ'ers.

I haven't yet found a way to get Atmos to play properly in foobar, VLC, or even Kodi 19 RC1 (even though Kodi 19 is supposed to work, if I could only figure out the right combination of settings and installed components).

• foobar2000 sees the TrueHD core of an Atmos-encoded m4a, but doesn't seem to pick up or render the Atmos metadata.
• So far, I can only get Kodi to process Atmos-encoded m4as through my AVR in Dolby Surround, not Atmos.
• The Windows 10 "Movies & TV" app will play Atmos-encoded mp4 (as video) over HDMI to my AVR (remember to change speaker output settings in Windows to "Dolby Atmos for Home Theater"!), but not other Atmos formats. My Oppos will likewise recognize and play Atmos-encoded mp4 as video.
• Finally, the Oppos will recognize and play Atmos-encoded mka (as audio), but not Atmos-encoded mkv (as video). Go figure.

That's it for me, so far. (But I'll try PowerDVD.) If I have to start with Atmos-encoded m4a, it's a pain in the ass, because I can't get anything to actually play that format. And the only reliable file converter I've found is ffmpeg--the command-line version only, not one embedded into a GUI. And for some reason ffmpeg won't convert directly from m4a to mp4. Instead, you have to go m4a > mka, then mka > mp4.

Sheesh. I know this is bound to get easier in the future, but...

 

[HomerJAU]

Kodi 19 is playing Atmos from MKA and M4A for me on Windows via HDMI pass-through. I’ll post my Kodi settings today here. I don’t recall making any Windows Settings changes. There’s no soundcard, I’m using the Intel Processor’s HDMI graphics/audio.

 

[HomerJAU]

ffmpeg won't convert directly from m4a to mp4. Instead, you have to go m4a > mka, then mka > mp4

Just rename the file. It may play ok.

MMH uses ffmpeg to convert MKV to M4A by actually converting just the audio to MP4, then renaming the file to M4A. That plays fine.

 

[mandrix]

Yeah I'm bitstreaming via my puny video card on my HTPC.

OK in VLC go to Tools\preferences\Audio
I have Output Module set as; Windows Multimedia Device output (if I am remembering right: I can't access the HT right now)
Set spdif/hdmi passthrough to enabled
Hit save I think at bottom of page.

 

[HomerJAU]

Here's my Kodi Settings:

(Windows 10 Audio):

I play an M4A file with an Atmos stream and I get Atmos playback on my Denon AVR-X7200WA

 

[humprof]

Just rename the file. It may play ok.

MMH uses ffmpeg to convert MKV to M4A by actually converting just the audio to MP4, then renaming the file to M4A. That plays fine.

That would be too easy! (But I'll try it . . .)

 

[humprof]

Here's my Kodi Settings:

View attachment 62615

View attachment 62616


(Windows 10 Audio):
View attachment 62614

I play an M4A file with an Atmos stream and I get Atmos playback on my Denon AVR-X7200WA

Thanks! I think most of my settings already match, but it'll be really helpful to have those screenshots to refer to.

 

[Sixtyten]

Yeah I'm bitstreaming via my puny video card on my HTPC.

OK in VLC go to Tools\preferences\Audio
I have Output Module set as; Windows Multimedia Device output (if I am remembering right: I can't access the HT right now)
Set spdif/hdmi passthrough to enabled
Hit save I think at bottom of page.

Try this.

 

[mandrix]

Try this.

mmmm, leaving the Output module set to Automatic did not work for me.
But if it works for you I can't say it surprises me.
Windows seems so arbitrary in what it chooses to recognize, seems to me. I have both a monitor and a tv connected to my main pc rig. If I'm watching the tv in bed or using it purely as a monitor late at night I prefer the tv's speakers instead of the AVR I use for surround for the pc. But periodically Windows refuses to recognize the tv as a separate sound device, in fact "loses" it altogether. Fortunately it works fine most of the time.
...not that this setup is used for Atmos, just that the variability is nuts sometimes.

 

[humprof]

Thanks! I think most of my settings already match, but it'll be really helpful to have those screenshots to refer to.

Success! (Kodi 19RC1 will now play Atmos-encoded m4a as Atmos on my AVR.)

Here's what made the difference:
1) In Kodi's Audio Settings, cycle from Basic to Advanced to Expert.
2) Change Passthrough Output Device from "Directsound: [your AVR's name]" to "WASAPI: [your AVR's name]." That opens up all of the setting below that one, which had previously been invisible. (Except for "Dolby Digital AC-3 capable receiver.") Once I switched on "True HD capable receiver," I was good to go! Now, instead of playing Atmos files as "Dolby Surround," it plays them as Atmos.

Thanks, Garry. (And now, just for kicks, I'll try renaming an m4a file to mp4...)

 

[himey]

Success! (Kodi 19RC1 will now play Atmos-encoded m4a as Atmos on my AVR.)

Here's what made the difference:
1) In Kodi's Audio Settings, cycle from Basic to Advanced to Expert.
2) Change Passthrough Output Device from "Directsound: [your AVR's name]" to "WASAPI: [your AVR's name]." That opens up all of the setting below that one, which had previously been invisible. (Except for "Dolby Digital AC-3 capable receiver.") Once I switched on "True HD capable receiver," I was good to go! Now, instead of playing Atmos files as "Dolby Surround," it plays them as Atmos.

Thanks, Garry. (And now, just for kicks, I'll try renaming an m4a file to mp4...)

Problem with M4A is I couldn't get them to play gapless...

 

[humprof]

Problem with M4A is I couldn't get them to play gapless...

Another argument for mp4? (I don't think I've had any problems playing mp4 gaplessly in Windows Movies & TV or with the Oppo.)

 

[himey]

Another argument for mp4? (I don't think I've had any problems playing mp4 gaplessly in Windows Movies & TV or with the Oppo.)

Tagging mp4 audio files (?) or gapless isn't something I have checked out.
MKV works great but falls into the Video files category which isn't ideal for multichannel music media organization.

 

[humprof]

Just rename the file. It may play ok.

MMH uses ffmpeg to convert MKV to M4A by actually converting just the audio to MP4, then renaming the file to M4A. That plays fine.

I can't tell you how much labor and tedium you've just saved me! Indeed: merely changing the file extension from m4a to mp4 makes a file visible to (and playable in) Windows Movies & TV.

And you can simply rename m4a to mkv, too, as it turns out. (Don't ask me why that works. It shouldn't, since m4a is an audio format and mkv is video, right? Maybe the m4as I'm starting with were misnamed and are actually m4v?)

To take up @himey's question, though: come to find out that Windows Movies & TV won't play anything gaplessly--because it's designed to play one movie or TV show at a time (i.e., it doesn't support playlists). Which is sort of useless, unless you're playing a long, continuous piece like John Luther Adams's Become Desert, which is what I've been doing up till now.

Seems Oppo will also not play mp4s or mkvs gaplessly, although you maybe already knew that...

 

[himey]

I can't tell you how much labor and tedium you've just saved me! Indeed: merely changing the file extension from m4a to mp4 makes a file visible to (and playable in) Windows Movies & TV.

And you can also simply rename m4a to mkv, as it turns out.

To take up @himey's question, though: come to find out that Windows Movies & TV won't play anything gaplessly--because it's designed to play one movie or TV show at a time (i.e., it doesn't support playlists). Which is sort of useless, unless you're playing a long, continuous piece like John Luther Adams's Become Desert, which is what I've been doing up till now.

Seems Oppo will also not play mp4s or mkvs gaplessly, although you maybe already knew that...

I simply set up a seperate library in Plex specifically for my Atmos mixes. I use MakeMKV to rip the Atmos/7.1 track to one MKV. I edit the chapters to the song names. The disadvantage is they can't be stored side by side with my other multichannel music files. I will make that one concession, so I can keep the gapless playback which is more important to me.

 

[GOS]

Nothing I do in Foobar (per instructions above and elsewhere) makes my .mka or .m4a files play properly (Atmos). They play, but seems they are only playing in 5.1. And, my receiver never switches over to Atmos (like it does when I play those same files in VLC)

 

[himey]

Nothing I do in Foobar (per instructions above and elsewhere) makes my .mka or .m4a files play properly (Atmos). They play, but seems they are only playing in 5.1. And, my receiver never switches over to Atmos (like it does when I play those same files in VLC)

Under preferences and output, what device do you have selected? Is it the same as VLC?
Under Playback and DSP Manager, do you have anything changing the output? Is your volume in Foobar set to 100%.

 

[GOS]

Under preferences and output, what device do you have selected? Is it the same as VLC?
Under Playback and DSP Manager, do you have anything changing the output? Is your volume in Foobar set to 100%.

VLC just says "default" (even though Denon is a choice in the drop down and my Denon is what's driving)
Foobar says "Denon"

Yes, volume is 100%

DSP manager - nothing is selected.

 

[himey]

VLC just says "default" (even though Denon is a choice in the drop down and my Denon is what's driving)
Foobar says "Denon"

Yes, volume is 100%

DSP manager - nothing is selected.

Check for a WASAPI (or ASIO) as an output device in Foobar and check "allow for exclusive mode" in the Windows, sound, advanced properties, playback settings.

 

[GOS]

Check for a WASAPI (or ASIO) as an output device in Foobar and check "allow for exclusive mode" in the Windows, sound, advanced properties, playback settings.

Foobar - Output devices listed are:

Denon-AVRHD (Intel (R) Display Audio) (This is the one I always choose when using Foobar)
Null Output
Primary Sound Driver
Speaker (Realtek) Audio
SPDIF-OUT (USB Sound Blaster HD)
Speaker (USBSound Blaster HD)