[weesack1]

hi there i have just built my first htpc,specs are

antec fusion case

gigabyte:Z68MA-D2H-B3 M/B
I5 2500K CPU
8GB RAM
WINDOWS 7 64BIT
LITE-ON BLU-RAY DRIVE
CORSAIR 5OOW PSU

iam using the inel graphics and the m/b audio, the problem is that all the music files yhat i have are flac files, i use an hdmi cable from the mobo to a yamaha rx-v1067 avr reciever, but it will only output pcm for music and icant get the true-hd audio either with my blu-ray, will i need a sound card to be able to listen to my media properly, as i said this is my first attempt at an htpc any help would be great

[DDDamian]

Actually that all sounds right: FLAC is PCM, just losslessly compressed, and XBMC passes TrueHD as PCM. You're as good as the current XBMC audio system can do for now. You won't see the TrueHD light up on the amp, nor DTS-HD, but those will come along in future releases.

[DDDamian]

PS - welcome to the forums

[weesack1]

cheers dddamian thanks for your input, is there anything other than xbmc that could do better or am i just being to picky

[bluray]

iam using the inel graphics and the m/b audio, the problem is that all the music files yhat i have are flac files, i use an hdmi cable from the mobo to a yamaha rx-v1067 avr reciever, but it will only output pcm for music and icant get the true-hd audio either with my blu-ray, will i need a sound card to be able to listen to my media properly, as i said this is my first attempt at an htpc any help would be great

If you haven't got the memo, XBMC don't bitstream any DTS-HD and TrueHD audio. The easiest way to bitstream HD audio with XBMC is using external player, and you use my guide from this thread- Another External Player Code, but Very Simple to Setup.

[eskro]

If you haven't got the memo, XBMC don't bitstream any DTS-HD and TrueHD audio.

well, lets say that natively, official XBMC version doesnt do such a thing...
however, CpTHOOK did succeed in doing so using the DSPLAYER branch
of XBMC!
so, using that branch, i guess we can say that XBMC's DSPLAYER branch
can natively bitstream HD-Audio
** win7 only **

[DDDamian]

cheers dddamian thanks for your input, is there anything other than xbmc that could do better or am i just being to picky

To expand a little: for Flac, most receivers will not de-compress them back to the native PCM, so XBMC does this for you, completely losslessly (see caveat below)

For TrueHD, XBMC decodes to PCM, with the caveat below.

For DTS-HD, XBMC plays the core stream, which is just standard DTS. No lossless hi-def.

Caveat: In all cases XBMC is currently limited to 16-bit sound. This is a function of the fact that XBMC was originally developed for the XBox (original) and thus was limited to 16 bits. That and the fact that at the time no higher resolutions were available to the consumer. Flacs, TrueHD and DTS-HD all use higher bitdepths, and these would be truncated to 16-bit by XBMC.

At present there are three workarounds:

1) Member Bluray gives links for using a build incorporating the unfinished AudioEngine code which is a future replacement for the existing audio code. It allows for full 24-bit output for Flacs along with TrueHD/DTS-HD direct to a compatible receiver.

2) Member Bluray gives links for incorporating the well-known MPC-HC program for video playback, which in turn can be set up for bitstreaming TrueHD/DTS-HD. Note that this is a video-only solution IIRC.

3) As member Eskro mentions, member Topfs developed DSPlayer, which is better integrated with XBMC than option 2, but like option 2 is a video-only solution. It is also unlikely to be further developed as the upcoming AudioEngine will replace it.

All these issues will be resolved directly within XBMC when the new AudioEngine is completed and merged with the main code. That is unlikely to occur over the next few months. The above workarounds have been developed to give you alternatives now, but do involve a little work to set up. If you decide to go one of these routes, either check Bluray's links for option 1) and 2) or search the forum for DSPlayer.

Hope that helps clarify a bit!

[DDDamian]

One further note: Foobar with the approprate plugins will give you high-def audio from FLAC, DVD-A and SACD, but is limited to audio (no video) and is very bare-bones compared to XBMC.

In my opinion, nothing is quite like XBMC as a media center. I can't really recommend anything "better" except in very specific areas, as above. If you want a better video player use MPC-HC. If you want a better audio player use Foobar.

If you want the best all-rounder use XBMC

[bluray]

well, lets say that natively, official XBMC version doesnt do such a thing...

Let me repeat, there is no released XBMC can bitstream HD audio. The one close to it is the un-released version in my signature.

If you want to enjoy DTS-HD/TrueHD audio with all the original menu options, external is the best of both world!

[bluray]

At present there are three workarounds:

1) Member Bluray gives links for using a build incorporating the unfinished AudioEngine code which is a future replacement for the existing audio code. It allows for full 24-bit output for Flacs along with TrueHD/DTS-HD direct to a compatible receiver.

Hey, do you have an update from Gnifs on the new XBMC AudioEngine. If he can make it happen soon, he'll be bitstreamers hero!

[DDDamian]

Hey, do you have an update from Gnifs on the new XBMC AudioEngine. If he can make it happen soon, he'll be bitstreamers hero!

lol - no kidding! still stalking, still no activity. Maybe we can find a user in New Zealand to go drag him off the golf course or at least carry his bag for him so he can code between holes

[bluray]

lol - no kidding! still stalking, still no activity. Maybe we can find a user in New Zealand to go drag him off the golf course or at least carry his bag for him so he can code between holes

If somebody can convince him to get it done, I bet your Denon AVR-3808CI will be glad to decode DTS-HD/TrueHD. He'll make life a lot easier for all bitstreamer by just download XBMC, and it can bitstream HD audio out of the box.

[DDDamian]

She's a sweet little amp Still have my pre-HDMI 3805 sitting idle (bathroom maybe? lol)

I'm mostly into the audio end of it (got the standalone BR player so no sweat for BD movies). When I drop an SACD into the Denon 5900 Universal Player, once a $4000 flagship player, it sends pure DSD down the Denon Link III line and the sound is spectacular. Same for DVD-A.

So getting 24-bit FLAC through the HDMI would be a huge plus. I rip my DVD-A's to multichannel FLACs and their at my fingertips, just at 16 bit

Foobar supports 24-bit WASAPI exclusive mode streams, and his input plugins for DVD-A MLPs and SACD iso. Now that SACD has finally been cracked via the PS3 I'm in audio heaven, all from my HTPC, no handling rare and OOP discs.

Its a big reason why I'm hoping for binary addons (SACD/DVD-A plugins) and AE. As more and more audio comes out on BD it'll become even better to have!

[bluray]

I'm mostly into the audio end of it (got the standalone BR player so no sweat for BD movies).

If you're into Audio, you'll like these two new BD's- Two great blu-ray discs to test your hardware.