[oo.viper.oo]

1 - 1080p via HDMI along with 2.0 Stereo sound to TV
2 - 5.1 Audio(AC3(DD) and DTS) via the Optical Out
3 - Win 10 Netflix app output 5.1 audio via optical

I never tested optical out on my ASRock J4205-ITX, but I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work. Maybe someone else uses it and confirms...

[b4cksl4sh]

Hello All,

I have been researching this thread and have decided to purchase the ASRock J4205-ITX for my HTPC build. I believe that it will accomplish all that I need but would appreciate some confirmation prior to my purchase. Most of the talk in this thread has revolved around features that I do not need at this time(i.e. 4k, HD Audio, LE)

Here is what I need out of the J4205 that will be running Win 10 and Kodi

1 - 1080p via HDMI along with 2.0 Stereo sound to TV
2 - 5.1 Audio(AC3(DD) and DTS) via the Optical Out
3 - Win 10 Netflix app output 5.1 audio via optical

I know these features sound like a no brainer to those who use HTPC's all the time but this will be my first HTPC and I can't afford to get it wrong.

Thanks!

Iam using the ASRock J4205 too and can fully recommend it. Keep in mind that the the board is very picky regarding the RAM. I can recommend Kingston KVR16LS11/4 which works reliable with the board. In case you want to save a few bucks you can perfectly stick to the J3455 as Dr.Feelgood recommended. And i would as well recommend to go with LibreELEC. There is definately no need for windows if you want to use the new build exclusively as a HTPC. Installing LE is very convenient.

[noggin]

Iam using the ASRock J4205 too and can fully recommend it. Keep in mind that the the board is very picky regarding the RAM. I can recommend Kingston KVR16LS11/4 which works reliable with the board. In case you want to save a few bucks you can perfectly stick to the J3455 as Dr.Feelgood recommended. And i would as well recommend to go with LibreELEC. There is definately no need for windows if you want to use the new build exclusively as a HTPC. Installing LE is very convenient.

OP mentions Netflix - isn't Windows a more stable platform for this? (I know there are some DRM-playback solutions for Netflix in LE - but there's no guarantee they will last forever. AIUI they don't mandate the same level of output security as other DRM platforms - and allow playback over HDMI without HDCP for instance. Can't believe Netflix and their content providers will be happy about this and let it continue indefinitely)

[b4cksl4sh]

That's very true! I overread that part with Netflix. Netflix on Linux will probably become more reliable with upcoming Kodi Leia release. For now Windows is probably the better fit in case Netflix is requirement.

[insomniac125]

I would advise against the optical out as it's controlled by separate Realtek ALC892 and might cause audio delay & sync issues. Also you lose "all HD audio" as optical cannot handle those.
DVI -> HDMI for audio out works as discussed before.
J3455-ITX is somewhat cheaper and it's excellent for Kodi, no need for 4205 for any video/audio playback.
Do you need Win 10 for anything else? Otherwise try Libreelec, much faster and lighter, i boot LE from USB stick and have Win 10 on the disk, but seldom use Win anymore.

Thanks for your input. I don't have any other option but to use the optical out. My AVR does not have HDMI in/out, nor do I need HD Audio on the HT system I will use this HTPC on. As far as Win 10, my goal is to have this become a semi All In One setup and as far as I know the Win 10 Netflix app is the only way to get 5.1 audio from Netflix. I also need the use of the Chrome browser with the Chromecast extension for many reasons that I won't list here.

With all that being said, is the optical out with possible sync issues going to be a nightmare or can it be fixed with a bit of work?

Thanks again!

[insomniac125]

Iam using the ASRock J4205 too and can fully recommend it. Keep in mind that the the board is very picky regarding the RAM. I can recommend Kingston KVR16LS11/4 which works reliable with the board. In case you want to save a few bucks you can perfectly stick to the J3455 as Dr.Feelgood recommended. And i would as well recommend to go with LibreELEC. There is definately no need for windows if you want to use the new build exclusively as a HTPC. Installing LE is very convenient.

@b4cksl4sh - Thank you for your recommendation, I will certainly buy the RAM you recommend.

[bigljd]

I would advise against the optical out as it's controlled by separate Realtek ALC892 and might cause audio delay & sync issues. Also you lose "all HD audio" as optical cannot handle those.
DVI -> HDMI for audio out works as discussed before.
J3455-ITX is somewhat cheaper and it's excellent for Kodi, no need for 4205 for any video/audio playback.
Do you need Win 10 for anything else? Otherwise try Libreelec, much faster and lighter, i boot LE from USB stick and have Win 10 on the disk, but seldom use Win anymore.

Thanks for your input. I don't have any other option but to use the optical out. My AVR does not have HDMI in/out, nor do I need HD Audio on the HT system I will use this HTPC on. As far as Win 10, my goal is to have this become a semi All In One setup and as far as I know the Win 10 Netflix app is the only way to get 5.1 audio from Netflix. I also need the use of the Chrome browser with the Chromecast extension for many reasons that I won't list here.

With all that being said, is the optical out with possible sync issues going to be a nightmare or can it be fixed with a bit of work?

Thanks again!

I'm using a 4205 running Win 10 and have been pretty happy with it at 1080p resolution. I have a 4k TV, but no 4k content, so I set the HTPC resolution at 1080 and let the TV upscale. I'm using the optical audio to a Yamaha receiver and have surround sound working pretty well for most TV shows/movies. It's an older receiver and may not even support all current Dolby stuff, but it works well enough for me. With Kodi, I did have to adjust the audio sync to -.10 seconds for the audio to be in sync with video, but aside from that I'm pretty happy with it. With other apps, like BBC iPlayer or VLC or MPC, the audio seems to be in sync on it's own - it just Kodi where I had to make an adjustment. I do want to try the DVI to HDMI option for audio, but need to pick up a cable first. I don't use Netflix so I can't comment on that, but a 4205 should work for most everything else.

[b4cksl4sh]

@b4cksl4sh - Thank you for your recommendation, I will certainly buy the RAM you recommend.

I forgot to mention that it makes sense to fill both RAM slots e.g. 2x4 Gb to benefit from dual channel performance increase instead of just filling up only one slot with e.g. 1x8 Gb. There is a good review about the board, sadly in german but maybe google translate does the job: http://www.technikaffe.de/anleitung-394-...hevc_10bit

[insomniac125]

I'm using a 4205 running Win 10 and have been pretty happy with it at 1080p resolution. I have a 4k TV, but no 4k content, so I set the HTPC resolution at 1080 and let the TV upscale. I'm using the optical audio to a Yamaha receiver and have surround sound working pretty well for most TV shows/movies. It's an older receiver and may not even support all current Dolby stuff, but it works well enough for me. With Kodi, I did have to adjust the audio sync to -.10 seconds for the audio to be in sync with video, but aside from that I'm pretty happy with it. With other apps, like BBC iPlayer or VLC or MPC, the audio seems to be in sync on it's own - it just Kodi where I had to make an adjustment. I do want to try the DVI to HDMI option for audio, but need to pick up a cable first. I don't use Netflix so I can't comment on that, but a 4205 should work for most everything else.

@bigljd - Thank you for your input. This is exactly what I was hoping to hear.

However, I must be missing something here when everyone talks about running two HDMI cables for HD Audio(one from the HDMI out and another from the DVI out via a DVI to HDMI converter). Doesn't the HDMI out carry full HD Audio like it should? It would seem to me that you would simply run the HDMI port to your AVR's HDMI input and then from the AVR's HDMI output to the TV. Therefore I don't understand the need for the second DVI->HDMI cable for audio.

[dricky]

However, I must be missing something here when everyone talks about running two HDMI cables for HD Audio(one from the HDMI out and another from the DVI out via a DVI to HDMI converter). Doesn't the HDMI out carry full HD Audio like it should? It would seem to me that you would simply run the HDMI port to your AVR's HDMI input and then from the AVR's HDMI output to the TV. Therefore I don't understand the need for the second DVI->HDMI cable for audio.

The only reason this is talked about is because of an issue with 4k video. The DP to HDMI2.0 chip isn't or wasn't passing through audio, but appears intel / megachips is working on it (maybe working in windows haven't paid attention lately). This is not a problem if you aren't connecting to an HDMI 2.0 TV. The hdmi port passes through audio just fine to my television.

[insomniac125]

However, I must be missing something here when everyone talks about running two HDMI cables for HD Audio(one from the HDMI out and another from the DVI out via a DVI to HDMI converter). Doesn't the HDMI out carry full HD Audio like it should? It would seem to me that you would simply run the HDMI port to your AVR's HDMI input and then from the AVR's HDMI output to the TV. Therefore I don't understand the need for the second DVI->HDMI cable for audio.

The only reason this is talked about is because of an issue with 4k video. The DP to HDMI2.0 chip isn't or wasn't passing through audio, but appears intel / megachips is working on it (maybe working in windows haven't paid attention lately). This is not a problem if you aren't connecting to an HDMI 2.0 TV. The hdmi port passes through audio just fine to my television.

Ok, got it! Thanks

[HDGMA]

https://downloadcenter.intel.com/downloa...dows-15-45-

Intel 21.20.16.4664 driver for Apollo Lake.

[honcho]

according to the release notes.. doesn't really fix anything for us

[Valter84]

I'm using a 4205 running Win 10 and have been pretty happy with it at 1080p resolution. I have a 4k TV, but no 4k content, so I set the HTPC resolution at 1080 and let the TV upscale. I'm using the optical audio to a Yamaha receiver and have surround sound working pretty well for most TV shows/movies. It's an older receiver and may not even support all current Dolby stuff, but it works well enough for me. With Kodi, I did have to adjust the audio sync to -.10 seconds for the audio to be in sync with video, but aside from that I'm pretty happy with it. With other apps, like BBC iPlayer or VLC or MPC, the audio seems to be in sync on it's own - it just Kodi where I had to make an adjustment. I do want to try the DVI to HDMI option for audio, but need to pick up a cable first. I don't use Netflix so I can't comment on that, but a 4205 should work for most everything else.

Same setup here with J3455.
One diference, I have 4k and HDR content, for 4k content I use kodi and I change the resolution, for HDR I use the tv movie player app, with dlna server.

Hoping to get HDR support soon.

[SkylineEX-S]

What is the disadvantage of using the DVI output for audio pass-thru only? Just buy one of those Asrock ITX boards and use the DVI out for audio. Cannot understand why is it so much focus on the HDMI output and audio pass-thru when there is very simple solution by using the DVI for audio only instead. Use the HDMI for video and DVI for audio, works like a charm for all formats ...

Is this even possible?
This is exactly what I was looking for in a HTPC. Something like the dual outputs from a stand alone player. One for video at HDMI 2.0b and one for audio at HDMI 1.4 with no video or video downconverted to 1080 or 720.

How would KODI handle this?

The reason for this is my projector is 4K HDMI 2.0b HDR capable but my processor is only HDMI 1.4 at 1080P max.

I've been reading this board as a long time lurker and this is my first post

It's fully possible on Asrock J4205-ITX, this is what i use and others have reported of same working setup as well. My receiver has only HDMI 1.4 and i use the DVI to HDMI output to the receiver for audio. HDMI 2.0 is directly connected to the TV. I have not seen any sync or other issues but i don't use the receiver often ...
Try to search thru this tread some months ago, i think my first report is from late December ...

I know this is a very simple question but something I'm still wondering about...

For example:
Can a PC (with Kabby lake hardware) output 4K HDR out of one HDMI output and also output a downscaled 1080p or lower HDMI audio output through another HDMI output.
Basically the 2 separate outputs that a standalone 4K player has. The second question related to the first is can Kodi be used as the player to support these dual outputs?