Would it be possible to use a multichannel USB audio device to get four or more channels into a Handheld Device to output HDMI?

[DudeRocks]

It's an SR5008. It's...OK. Seems like having the rears properly adjusted for movies makes them WAY too loud for music, which I don't understand. I'm also not crazy about how difficult it is to find out which surround mode it's currently using.

It outputs HDMI to a monitor but I don't think there are any audio-only digital outputs, optical or coaxial.

It's got that RCA 7.1 CH IN, input. Can you please run a test to see if you run any audio to one of those RCA inputs then attach a TV or another receiver to the HDMI out if any audio is moved through?

 

[SeeMoreDigital]

...I'm definitely on the market for a receiver with RCA input...

Personally, as I didn't want to buy an AVR/receiver I decided to buy one analogue stereo RCA/phono integrated amplifier along with three analogue stereo RCA/phono power amplifiers.

 

[atrocity]

It's got that RCA 7.1 CH IN, input. Can you please run a test to see if you run any audio to one of those RCA inputs then attach a TV or another receiver to the HDMI out if any audio is moved through?

Just tried it...the analog is not converted to HDMI. I don't know if it saved money or if they thought no one would use it or if the copyright hate groups thought there was some reason to prevent it.

 

[DudeRocks]

Just tried it...the analog is not converted to HDMI. I don't know if it saved money or if they thought no one would use it or if the copyright hate groups thought there was some reason to prevent it.

Say it ain't so! Thank you for checking! I asked a friend of mine who has multiple receivers sitting around storage if he had ever tried it and he said he didn't think it would work but also that he's never actually tried.

That does make sense if the copyright brigade was up in arms. HDMI is notorious for copyright protecting. Seeing as it would have no way of telling if there was digital rights management coming in from an analog signal. The search goes on!

Anybody know if there is a device that will take 5.1 RCA in to optical out?

 

[atrocity]

That does make sense if the copyright brigade was up in arms. HDMI is notorious for copyright protecting. Seeing as it would have no way of telling if there was digital rights management coming in from an analog signal.

My first instinct is always to blame them, but I could also see it simply not being worth Onkyo's time. It's easy to imagine wanting analog-to-HDMI for the sake of inputting something like the Surround Master, but I'm having a hard time dreaming up an everyday use for having a receiver convert multichannel to HDMI when 99% of the users will just be sending the HDMI out to a monitor.

But it's unquestionably stupid that the DRM wackos police HDMI/HDCP so fanatically when A) No matter what they dream up, someone breaks it and B) Who does illegal copying in real time?

Anybody know if there is a device that will take 5.1 RCA in to optical out?

Someone had a box that converted 5.1 to DTS, but that was years ago. Obviously if you need multichannel optical/coax you're limited to lossy formats on the output side.

 

[DudeRocks]

My first instinct is always to blame them, but I could also see it simply not being worth Onkyo's time. It's easy to imagine wanting analog-to-HDMI for the sake of inputting something like the Surround Master, but I'm having a hard time dreaming up an everyday use for having a receiver convert multichannel to HDMI when 99% of the users will just be sending the HDMI out to a monitor.

But it's unquestionably stupid that the DRM wackos police HDMI/HDCP so fanatically when A) No matter what they dream up, someone breaks it and B) Who does illegal copying in real time?

Someone had a box that converted 5.1 to DTS, but that was years ago. Obviously if you need multichannel optical/coax you're limited to lossy formats on the output side.

I'm looking at a few items right now to test, the INTEGRA DTR 7.4 or an INTEGRA DTR 5.4 to see if it will output to optical having the RCA input occupied, and also ordered a Pyle PREA86BTH which has HDMI output. Seeing apparently that no one on these quad forums has EVER accomplished this, I will gladly attempt to be the first or be one of many to find out that these pre-amps don't do this.

 

[quadsearcher]

It has been accomplished in a roundabout way with a multichannel capture device into a laptop, then file playback through HDMI. Generally not real-time though, but I suppose it could be with DAW program open just playing through.
The DAW is kind of the key there, it's one thing to say "analog in and hdmi out" but what digital format(?) is the missing piece. PCM would be lossless, but for a consumer unit I can see why they might want to use a lossy format. I looked into pro gear converters and it looked like over a thousand $, plus it would be a multistep process: MC audio embedder to HDSDI, then HDSDI to HDMI.
But the Pyle unit looks promising! With analog input labeled AC-3, since AC-3 has no meaning in the analog world, it sure implies it is encoding the multichannels into AC-3 format for Dolby Digital decoding.

 

[armyjazzer]

This sounds like a Kludge, or maybe I am just not understanding it well.

It seems to me like it would be much simpler for Involve to run a software application or audio plugin on a PC that would play/process the stereo audio file and output the 4 or more channels produced by the software out the HDMI port on the PC.

This would be similar to Penteo Pro only real time using Involve's process/technology.