[LIVE] Why doesn't XBMC Live support digital audio passthrough?
#1
Question 
Why doesn't xbmc LIVE support digital audio pass through? Can it be that it uses pulseaudio?
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#2
huh? that's the silliest statement yet. of course we support passthrough! and no, we don't use pulseaudio as i told you yesterday Smile
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#3
xbmcuser01 Wrote:Why doesn't xbmc LIVE support digital audio pass through? Can it be that it uses pulseaudio?

Of course it does! As pointed out to you previously, it does not use pulseaudio.
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#4
Thanks for clearing up the pulseaudio thing. Sorry for hammering. Cool

But when I start my PC w/ the XBMC Live CD then, no matter what, I cannot get it to to pass through 5.1 Dolby Digital (DD) to my amplifier. I use Ubuntu Linux 10.04 Lucid on that same PC (= my htpc too). And on 'buntu xbmc does pass tru, but only after purging pulseaudio. So I think know what settings to use in xbmc live (for pass tru) because it works on my buntu box. That same settings seem not to work in xbmc however...

I'm trying out xbmc live because I see quite some people saying that pass tru don't work for them in "Live". Just curious. Smile
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#5
1) set audio output to digital
2) tick ac3 capable / dts capable receiver (whichever applies).

and done.
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#6
Rebooted w/ Live CD again. Of course set soundcard to my pass tru capable sound device (I've a TV card too: that one has an alsa audio "device" on it too). Set DTS and AC3 receiver etc. etc. But every thing (DD or stereo) returns the same well known error:
Code:
Failed to initialize audio device. Check your audio settings.
When I set xbmc live to use analogue instead of digital: no error (I've only got the dig. mini coax wire connected to my Amp. No analog cable, but I think analog works).

If I close down xbmc, log in w/ username=xbmc/passwd=xbmc and apt-get install mplayer I can play movies w/ passtru! So it's definitely a setting in xbmc or xbmc Live has troubles w/ pass tru. Stated up xbmc again w/ startx and choosing xbmc from the menu. Same probs again.

Has anybody actually succeeded in passing through a digital audio stream from xbmc Live to an Amp?

Note: dig. pass tru does work on this very same machine w/ Ubuntu 10.04, no pulseA & XBMC.
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#7
lol. yes, me and thousands and thousands of users. very likely your passthrough device is the wrong one then. you can specify it using custom.
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#8
xbmcuser01 Wrote:Rebooted w/ Live CD again. Of course set soundcard to my pass tru capable sound device (I've a TV card too: that one has an alsa audio "device" on it too). Set DTS and AC3 receiver etc. etc. But every thing (DD or stereo) returns the same well known error:
Code:
Failed to initialize audio device. Check your audio settings.
When I set xbmc live to use analogue instead of digital: no error (I've only got the dig. mini coax wire connected to my Amp. No analog cable, but I think analog works).

If I close down xbmc, log in w/ username=xbmc/passwd=xbmc and apt-get install mplayer I can play movies w/ passtru! So it's definitely a setting in xbmc or xbmc Live has troubles w/ pass tru. Stated up xbmc again w/ startx and choosing xbmc from the menu. Same probs again.

Has anybody actually succeeded in passing through a digital audio stream from xbmc Live to an Amp?

Note: dig. pass tru does work on this very same machine w/ Ubuntu 10.04, no pulseA & XBMC.

You have set the wrong output device.
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#9
Question 
spiff Wrote:lol. yes, me and thousands and thousands of users. very likely your passthrough device is the wrong one then. you can specify it using custom.
That's very, very weird. On my Linux box the audio device = iec958 and the pass tru device = iec958 too. The only other audio device (w/ iec958) I can choose is: C-Media CMI8738 Default, which also works.

Can anybody explain to me why the very same settings that do work in the "regular" version of xbmc won't work in xbmc live? May it be the fact that I've more than one audio device in my PC? I really don't think so, but...
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#10
Question 
prae5 Wrote:You have set the wrong output device.
One must set an audio device and a pass tru device in XBMC. See my post above. What device must I choose according to you? Because I've tried all possible combinations in xbmc live: none work, exept in analog instead of digital. Weird, aint it?
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#11
very weird. only thing i can think of is a regression in alsa. we use alsa-backports to get at newer drivers (basically what's in maverick).
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#12
spiff Wrote:very weird. only thing i can think of is a regression in alsa. we use alsa-backports to get at newer drivers (basically what's in maverick).
Yep. I even tried to copy my buntu 10.04 .asoundrc and .asoundrc.asoundconf. Caused xbmc live to crash into the desktop environment (dunno if it was xfce or enlightenement...). Although I fear that they've been created by PA (the term asoundconf is mentioned in said conf file. And Synaptic babbles something about advising PA for that...).

The home folder of xbmc live (= /home/xbmc) is completely empty: no config files. They still may be necessary ...
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#13
well using beta3 and the 04.Nvidia script to create my .asoundrc file I get "failed to imitate audio device" as well for DD DTS anything wanting to use passthrough

I set up my audio settings like so.
audio:hdmi
output plug:both
pass through alsa:hdmi

menu sounds work, but digital audio does not work.

sorry no debug log to be had as I am at work.

-=Jason=-
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[LIVE] Why doesn't XBMC Live support digital audio passthrough?0