Kodi Community Forum

EDIT:  All solved by changing to latest Kodi v21 Android nightly (18 Jan 24 build) -----

I reported this in the Hardware forum (but no response overnight - forgive me for reposting here but with Omega nearing release candidate...)

I ran some tests yesterday on my Fire TV 4K Max (2nd Gen 2023) there are Kodi playback issues with Atmos and 7.1 files: This is running Kodi Omega Beta 2 (build on 11 Jan). I have a 7.1.4 audio system with Atmos AVR.

FTV 4K Max 2nd Gen (2023):  Does not output anything to rears for any 7.x.x Atmos file (DDPlus or TrueHD).
FTV 4K Max 2nd Gen (2023):  Does not output anything to rears for any 7.1 TrueHD file or FLAC file
FTV 4K Max 2nd Gen (2023):  Does not output LFE channel for any Atmos file
FTV is set to 'Kodi IEC Packer' - I have changed the 'No. of Channels' to 7.1 and 2.0 - no difference.

My AVR shows 'Atmos' decoding but the AVR speaker output never has 'rears' activated using the FTV device connected directly to an AVR HDMI input

I suspect this may effect other Android devices?)

Additionally:
LibreElec:  Does not output anything to rears in any 7.x.x or 9.x.x Atmos file (DDPlus or TrueHD). This is a surprise. I have never noticed this previously and immediately presume there has been a recent change in Kodi  that has stopped 7.1. I have been listening to 7.1 in Kodi for many years (and 7.1.x Atmos and DTS:X for years too) - (LE 12/Kodi nightly build on 16 Jan - Generic Intel NUC8)

I have confirmed my AVR is setup correctly for my 7.1.4 speaker layout.

I have made a zip file for Kodi developers to use to test on my OneDrive containing:
A single 7.1 file (mkv) + 2 x 7.1 FLAC files)
9.1.6, 7.1.4 and 5.1.4 Atmos mixes in TrueHD
9.1.6, 7.1.4 and 5.1.4 Atmos mixes in DDplus

Link to 2.7GB test files (zipped): (replace the ** with tt)
h**ps://1drv.ms/u/s!Aqs3ia6BNDDHsAYkQXBQoqkCBfSL?e=fmSbXF

Hi,
I tested myself in my Firestick 4k max 2nd , used quietvoid omega beta2 dec10

And in Homatics box r 4kplus Coreelec Kodi 21 nightly 2024.01.13 .


All your files working good in my onkyo avr system.
My AVR is setup correctly for my 7.1.4 speaker layout

All speaker has correct sound 7.1.4, and 9.1.6 too.

Thank you @frodo19.

I'll revisit by AVR settings. At least its not a Kodi issue.

(2024-01-19, 09:43)HomerJau Wrote: [ -> ]I'll revisit by AVR settings. At least its not a Kodi issue.

You can check this by looking at the log.  Although there will be no debug info, the channel information is printed into the log anyway so you can see the layout(s) that Kodi is opening.

Thanks for the input.

I changed my Kodi version from Kodi.Nerds (11 Jan build) to the official Kodi v21 Android nightly (18 Jan) and all my FireTV 4K Max problems are solved 7.1 output, rears on Atmos and LFE all working. No changed to my AVR.

One word of advice: Don't post kodinerds specific issues in this forum without mentioning that you are using a patched up version. People like me started to revisit entire IEC packer history of my source code - just to find out, that some "downstream" patchery caused a regression? This is not how upstream support works.

I know that we are again in times, where people make a lot of wind by picking up upstream or quietvoid patches or test patches or simple settings or what so ever into their own builds and then send the people towards upstream kodi to report issues. Really - no - that won't work like this.

If there are kodi bugs, all good, but please reproduce them with an official kodi version.

Apologies @fritsch I don’t normally use patched versions and understand the issue I caused. It won’t happen again.

I will also stay on official nightlies now.

(2024-01-19, 20:32)HomerJau Wrote: [ -> ]Apologies @fritsch I don’t normally use patched versions and understand the issue I caused. It won’t happen again.

I will also stay on official nightlies now.

All fine. And I know you as longtime user with very fine bugreports. So all good. Just that I really made up my mind what I broke now again

(2024-01-19, 21:06)fritsch Wrote: [ -> ]All fine. And I know you as longtime user with very fine bugreports. So all good. Just that I really made up my mind what I broke now again

Here's a another fine bug report I just posted on the FTV:

Kodi Omega Android Nightly - Quad plays as 'Dolby Audio' (stereo only)
https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/issues/24546

Thanks again.

Which I had to close right away ... You bought the wrong device there, sorry to say ...

Thanks for the fast response.

I will pass on the news to the potential users. Android is out for us on QuadraphonicQuad then as a multichannel player.

I will probably use my test FTV for DolbyVision movies and keep my trusting NUCs for everything else, although to me DV is not critical, HDR is good enough.

It's not Android. It's FTV  works perfectly fine on e.g. the Shield.

Also see what I replied in the bugreport:

- PCM MODE
- Direct Mode of the AVR. For me the latter stops this "Dolby+" Stuff entirely ... and multi-channel is played as multi-channel.

Here: https://jenkins.kodi.tv/job/android-arm-...bi-v7a.apk - that should play your 4.0 files ... by sending a fake 5.1 with center and lfe receiving zeroes. (Workaround ... Workaround ... workaround ...)

And no - no one wants to hack that further to open e.g. 7.1 and mute 4 channels, so that SL vs. BL vs. SR vs. BR fits ...

@fritsch  Thanks for looking into this further and offering the fake 5.1 output. Good idea. Will that be an official commit?

Also on 16bit audio conversion by Kodi:
The FTV 4K Max 2nd gen specs state: PCM/Wave. Up to 192 kHz, 8 channels, 16-bit and 24-bit

Is there any chance a dev can test latest FTV 4K Max with 24bit pcm?

Kodi is currently forcing 16bit conversion. Maybe that is not necessary if the FTV 4k Max 2nd gen can do 24 bit? (This is the deal breaker for 'audiophiles')

No - this won't be an official commit ... we cannot workaround firmware shortcomings of a billion dollar amazon company. We have to support 16 million different android box users ... and if those play on e.g. the Shield in proper 4.0, why should I kill it for them. And no - not yet another 150 th option for yet another device that is obsolete in exactly 10 months ;-).

I replied on github - choose - where you want to reply. Both places -> no.

Above you cite their datasheet. Thing is the following, the word: "Up to". In the past I output the "best quality" possible towards Audiotrack, cause I thought if that guy opened it - it would do something sane. But we found out "up to" means: in Stereo yes, but in multi-channel not. But even worse, exactly the FireTV 2nd Gen was the reason we had to throw that out again: it opened multi-channel in high precission but just did not output anythig ... awesome isn't it ;-) yet another option and yet another device specific workaround. Today -2 years later - all gone, no one is using it anymore.