[Theetjuh]

What can you expect from a tv, get a Shield and you have such a range of audio formats your ears start to bleed!

[jasmart]

What can you expect from a tv, get a Shield and you have such a range of audio formats your ears start to bleed!

I'd like to expect a more unified experience rather than a device for each. I have a PS4 for gaming, I had/have a HTPC talking to my NAS, which I used for movies before the Sony Android TV. My aim is to simplify things, not complicate them which is what the tech should do.

[fritsch]

If you want it simply working - why did you buy a Sony TV?

[fritsch]

Passthrough Changes
Audiotrack-Sink for Android was revisited the last days and made it API conform. That means, everyone gets what the official Android API supports: https://developer.android.com/reference/...CODING_AC3
Concerning passthrough that means:

< v21 API: nothing
v21, v22 API: AC3, EAC3 (broken on most firmware, please bug your vendor)
v23: AC3, EAC3, DTS, DTS-HD (if supported, not on the Nexus 5)
v24 (Android N): AC3, EAC3, DTS with the new IEC API, we miss hardware / software to implement dts-hd, truehd
On Nvidia Shield: AC3, EAC3, DTS, DTS-HD, TrueHD

For old AML devices (<= 5.0) I ported the AML specific API, dependend on this you will get: AC3, EAC3, DTS or even DTS-HD, TrueHD which I implemented last March with a core device by wetek. This does not (!) count for the broken release chinese boxes with pseudo Android 6.0 (see below).

Why was the old method of PT removed?
Starting with newer API there is a FLOAT mixer internally, which might harm your ears, as mixing is going on and that might produce a significant noise. We were warned by Android Audio staff to not use these hacks.

Whenever the first of you has Android N device (not on Nexus) available, please ping me - happy to fully implement DTS-HD, TrueHD for these.

Vendor firmware bugs
- Some Android TVs only support 384 kb/s AC3 and error out on 640 kb/s
- EAC3 7.1 is broken on all FireTV firmware. I suggest disabling EAC3 and use Dolby Transcoding _and_ speakers set to 2.0. It makes no sense to passthrough if you can output 6 or more PCM channels

Help my DTS stopped working - but it did in Jarvis - you broke my system - you are damn idiots, Team Kodi 111!!!111
If you have a broken firmware, download the shitty builds. They are named matching your firmware. Currently on this list are:
FireTV 1 and 2, Some prerelease AMLogic Android 6 versions that ship a broken, e.g. shitty FW, never released as final by AMLogic.

Current shitty version: http://mirrors.kodi.tv/test-builds/andro...bi-v7a.apk - Handle with care, you are warned. This version can kill your ears as it fakes passthrough via PCM as Jarvis did.

For semi broken firmware, e.g. Android Sony TV, Philips TV, some others with AC3 640 issues:
PCM speakers: 2.0
Enable AC3
Enable AC3-Transcoding
and (!) Enable Sync Playback to Display. This is needed to force transcoding even of native AC3 Input as that might be 640 kbit/s and the FW cannot use it.

[gazzer82]

Yes, the shitty build (kodi-20170209-02d525f-shitty-armeabi-v7a.apk) has finally enabled DD and Transcoding of DTS to work on my Shield TV again. Can't thank you enough!

What is different between this version and the Beta version that is installed from the Play Store?

I have a USB audio interface connected, but I suspect as the EDID of my TV doesn't support passthrough the shield was failing at it, but now working perfectly!

[fritsch]

They just implemented the new IEC mode and did not have external devices in focus ... the EDID does absolutely nothing with the external sound card. Keep in mind: This build will break shield's HDMI PT output for DTS-HD, TrueHD at least).

[mrtr32]

@fritsch

Hi Fritsch,

I can confirm you that build: kodi-20170210-0e4dbc5-atfix-armeabi-v7a.apk working great with all my audio files and thank you for this fix!!

I have on bug!

- When I power on my Tronsmart TV Box and play my dsf music, all play fine
- If I play different music dsf files and after that playing movies, all files play fine
So

After playing some movies files, I´m starting one of my music dsf file and I´m loosing audio, no sound on all dsf file.

The work around is to power off and power on my TV Box and my Music audio dsf file play fine again!

I don't know if it's firmware bug or Kodi bug so playing a movie seems to break music playback.

Thank you for this fix, I´m very happy with that new feature!


Martin

[fritsch]

Firmware bug - and as always: How do you think I should debug this without any Debug Log?

Btw. how is the quality of your DSF files? All fine? Decent quality?

Edit: Does it sound better with htis build: http://mirrors.kodi.tv/test-builds/andro...bi-v7a.apk or worse?

[mrtr32]

To my ears it sound better!

Sound very soft on my Denon AVR-X7200W receiver

Very happy!

Now! I can use my TV Box for playing all my medias.

Only MPG DVD files play slowly with Hardware Acceleration active in Kodi and I´m not using DVD files any more

Thank you!

Martin

[fritsch]

Are you really sure the second version sounds better? Can you triple check? :-)

Also I'd take a Debug Log of the second and one of the first version.

[gazzer82]

They just implemented the new IEC mode and did not have external devices in focus ... the EDID does absolutely nothing with the external sound card. Keep in mind: This build will break shield's HDMI PT output for DTS-HD, TrueHD at least).

That's completely fine with me, I am outputting via a USB audio interface on optical so all I want is everything converted to DD 5.1 and sent out of that port, one day I'll bring myself to upgrade my AVR, but it's not happening any time soon.

Whatever this fix is, it it something that will ever make it's way into the mainline builds, or will I always need to manually Install a special build?

Now if I could just get Netflix and Amazon Prime to do the same my world would be perfection, damn you Nvidia and your lack of DD+ decoder, grrrrr

Cheers

Gareth

[fritsch]

This won't make it into any mainline builds. It's not a kodi shortcoming but a firmware issue. The time to workaround dump vendor bugs for ~ 10 million users with different vendor bugs is luckily over ...

[mrtr32]

I can't compare older beta build with new test build easily on my Denon receiver.

The best Way to do that is to have two TV Box with the different Kodi Version connected to the same receiver and have the ability to switch playback from one box to other.

Sorry!

[Gajensen]

Jasmart, I've skimmed through this thread looking for a solution and you sound like you've got the exact same setup as me, Sony 4k 850, htpc, NAS and a wife that has to have a simple setup. Kodi 16 worked a treat but now I have no dts or DD passthrough with version 17. Have you been able to sort this yet? Cheers

[fritsch]

Should I increase the font size even more? http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=...pid2522813