Windows 10 PC
MSI motherboard Meg 570 motherboard with Realtek audio
Connected via optical connection to Bluesound Powernode 2i in 4.1 setup.
Use modded driver supporting dolby digital 5.1.Roon plays and supports only dual channel even with Qobuz multichannel Flac files.
Netflix and VLC-player play multichannel on this setup flawlessly both in 5.1 setup als in dolby Atmos. Even games such as Forza Horizon 4 recoginize multichannel setup.
I am curious. AFAIK, no Bluesound device will do multichannel. The Powernode 2i us a stereo device. How are you configured to get multichannel out of it with your other sources?
It is not connected over bluetooth but over the optical connection between computer and bluesound.
With the powernode and flex speakers you can create a 4.1 multichannel setup.
Works flawlessly with other multichannel sources, but Roon doesn’t seem to recognize…
I’m not sure that Roon can encode into Dolby.
Would be a real pity…
Are Netflix and VLC starting with Dolby Digital encoded data? What is this custom driver that you speak of?
If Roon thinks it’s outputting to a stereo device, then that’s what you’re going to get. If you have a real time Dolby Digital encoder that advertises a 5.1 virtual sound devIce to the operating system, then you’re going to need to debug how Roon is querying the device’s capabilities and see what it’s getting back.
Roon is perfectly happy to output multichannel audio over HDMI and USB. Roon will also perfectly happily play DTS CDs as stereo audio to a DTS decoder (in a bit perfect fashion so the DTS decoding works).
Roon doesn’t, to my knowledge, have any support for Dolby Digital. I can see how what you’re trying could work with all the right pieces, but it’s going to be very custom.
Good luck!
I have had super spotty success with multichannel. Sometimes it plays, sometimes it won’t play out the rear speakers, sometimes only one speaker will be out…I haven’t had lots of success with multichannel. I hope to figure it out one day.
Can you describe your setup and sources? Multichannel is my default playback mode so, perhaps, I can help. Others, too.
@ddean
Thanx for you reply.
Then I expect the problem is that the combination realtek/powernode only supports Dolby and not DTS…
Real shame…
Thanks, Kal! Once my Nucleus+ gets back from the shop, I will reach out to troubleshoot.
I wonder if this is part of my problem as well. I run my Nucleus+ to my Oppo UDP-205 via HDMI for multichannel. I then have HDMI OUT from the Oppo to the AVR and also the main HDMI out to my TV (for 4K). Perhaps the connection to the TV is causing the Oppo to occasionally confuse whether the destination is multichannel capable (AVR) or stereo capable (TV).
I need to update the AVR before I can just connect all HDMI to the AVR then have the AVR and TV connected via ARC. The AVR does not support 4K pass through.
I don’t know about the Oppo 205, but the Oppo 203 will bypass the Oppo DAC if you use HDMI out. You have to use analog out of the Oppo 203 to use the Oppo DAC. The Oppo 203 will support 2.0, 2.1, 5.1, and 7.1 using RCA.
Perhaps. In my CT system, I run HDMI from the macMini to the 205 and then HDMI out to the Marantz for multichannel. but I also run analog out to the 7.1 analog input on the Marantz. That way, I can choose between them.
I would love an all analogue input AVR. What Marantz are you using?
Also, have you had any luck messing around with outputting 2.0 channel stuff as multichannel? The Roon settings seem to show this is possible, but no setting adjustment has ever sent anything coded 2.0 other than 2.0.
Hi Jim. I don’t mind bypassing the DAC of the Oppo to get multichannel via HDMI to the Yamaha. It doesn’t sound horrible with Pure Direct engaged. Like I stated… sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. The Yamaha AVR reads DSD if it receives it from the Oppo, which is cool.
When I upgrade the AVR, I sure would like to have 5.1 analog inputs on it, but those are getting harder to find (and likely irrelevant once the Oppo stops working).
But if you bypass the Oppo DAC, you will only get whatever your AVR DAC can support, whatever that is.
Yes, I am aware of that. My AVR supports 24/192 PCM and 2 or 6 channel DSD. I must assume it is DSD64. The DAC isn’t bad, but it isn’t the Oppo. No worries about SQ, I just want all of the channels to continuously work. 
Oh! I have only tried PCM multichannel from Nucleus+ to Oppo to AVR. My Pioneer that allows me to rip my SACDs arrives tomorrow, so I will be able to start backing those up and will test once the Nucleus+ is back from the shop.
Not all-analog but with a 7.1 analog input in addition to others: Marantz AV8805
I don’t use it for serious music playback but I do use Auro-2D for everything else. I’ve never tried the Roon option.
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