Playbar & Sub With Sky HD Setup

Guys

Having installed the Optical Switcher (Sky & TV Optical Outs to Optical Switcher + Optical Switcher Out to Playbar) then adjusting the Digital Audio Delay on the Sky Box, testing so far appears to have resolved the lip sync issue I was experiencing.

Ratty

You mentioned ARC. My TV does have this capability so keeping the above set up, if I attach my Blu Ray DVD via HDMI to the HDMI ARC on the TV will that give digital output from the Blu Ray to th Playbar? If so do I need to specify a particular audio output from the Blu Ray?

Stuart

You also mentioned using ARC with your Samsung TV. How do you use it?

Many thanks for helping me sort the lip sync issue so quickly.

Ta

David

One of the HDMI inputs on your TV should be ARC compatible - this means that the TV will pass audio from the TV Tuner or on-bard apps when viewing back down the HDMI cable that links the switch to the TV.

Hi Stuart
My TV does have an ARC but I'm using an Optical Switch - Sky & TV connected to the switch so I'm not sure this would work for me unless I change to an HDMI switcher.
Ta
David

Hi, I had the same issue and went for a cheap HDMI 4 to 1 Switch with Toslink Optical out. all devices in to the HDMI, HDMI to TV and Optical out to Playbar. Works a treat though I some time need to manually select the HDMI source. Only issue i have and it is a SKY issue. the output is noticeably low(10 to 15db)
Hope that is helpful. It is great when it works

Thanks gavingks

I bought a decent 2 to 1 optical switcher which is doing the job perfectly for Sky and depending on content I'm getting DD5.1 which sound great. I've still got Apple TV (optical version) and Blu Ray (which doesn't have an optical out) connected to the TV by HDMI so I only get stereo sound but I can't say we use them that often. To be honest we listen to music and watch TV through Sky most of the time so I can live with the current set up.

I guess in time I might upgrade to a 4 to 1 optical switcher which would sort Apple and get a Blu Ray with optical out. In the short term I might give the HDMI switch a go.

David

Hello folks

Just purchased a playbase to add to an existing sonos system, and now banging my head against this Dolby signal issue too. My TV doesn't pass on the Dolby signal from my sky box, so the playbase is little more than an exhorbitantly expensive ghetto blaster.

Long term we will look to find a TV that does pass on the DD signal, but for now will content myself with getting a DD signal from the Sky box. I've read what sounds like people running HDMI and optical out of their sky box, HDMI carrying picture to TV, Optical carrying sound to Playbase/bar. But when I try that it doesn't work, picture goes to TV fine but no sound to the Playbase. Is this set up possible and I'm missing a setting / option, or is it impossible and I've misread?

Any advice will be hugely appreciated, I'm normally fairly savvy at this kind of thing but this has stumped me, and is massively at odds with the usual plug-and-play Sonos joy.

Cheers, Matt

Matt,

As a complete guess, I'd suspect that you haven't set the audio settings on the SkyBox device. I'd guess that it is sending something other than Dolby Digital to the PLAYBAR/PLAYBASE.

I'd also recommend, as a side thing, that you submit a diagnostic in this thread: https://en.community.sonos.com/troubleshooting-228999/no-sound-on-certain-channels-after-system-update-today-6789926 and get the latest beta release, which seems to be resolving some issues with dolby digital encoding.

Hi Bruce

Thanks for the reply. I've tried a number of options:

Option 1 - SKY HD to TV via HDMI / TV to PLAYBASE via Optical

The problem here is I cannot get the TV to even RECEIVE a DOLBY DIGITAL signal from the SKY HD box (let alone pass it on to the PLAYBASE). Taking the PLAYBASE out of the equation for now, I've connected my Sky HD box to the TV using HDMI. The TV HDMI Setting is set to DIGITAL, and the SKY HD box audio output settings are set to HDMI - DOLBY D, but there is no sound coming from the TV speakers. If I set the SKY HD HDMI output settings to ANALOGUE, then sound comes from the TV speakers.

This suggests to me that the TV is incapable of receiving a DOLBY DIGITAL signal over HDMI (let alone passing it on via Optical). And yet, on the front of the TV's Operating Instructions, there is a DOLBY DIGITAL logo, which would suggest that the TV IS capable of receiving and processing a DOLBY DIGITAL signal. I've raised this one with Panasonic.

In this configuration, and now connecting the PLAYBASE, if I do set the SKY HD HDMI Output to Analogue, the TV receives a signal and does pass it on to the PLAYBASE via Optical, but it's only a stereo signal, which makes the cost and complexity of the PLAYBASE kinda pointless.

Option 2 - SKY HD to to TV via HDMI AND via direct to PLAYBASE via Optical

The problem here is that there is no sound at all. The picture goes to the TV fine, but the PLAYBASE is receiving nothing from the SKY HD Box (this is confirmed when checking the system status in the SONOS App - No signal). The SKY HD Box Optical Output and HDMI Outputs are both set to Dolby D, but it is either sending nothing or the PLAYBAR is receiving nothing. If I change the Optical output to 'Normal', still nothing. If I change the HDMI output to Normal then sounds comes from the TV speakers, but still nothing from the PLAYBASE.

Does any of that help or sound familiar?

I have sent the diagnostic as suggested and will go and log the number in that thread now

Thanks again, Matt

It sounds like you're doing everything correctly, so this is all very odd. Your Option 1 sounds like an issue with the TV; does your TV have internal apps like Netflix you could test? It may pass 5.1 internally only, and not from external devices.

For your option 2 - Sky generally plays well with a TV signal being sent via HDMI and sound via optical (indeed quite a few years back it was the only way to get DD5.1). Sounds like either your Sky box is faulty or your optical cable is faulty - can you try a different cable?

Hi D33p5t3r

Option 1 is definitely a TV issue, which I've contacted Panasonic support about to see what Dolby Digital capabilities the TV has (if any), and also of any of their newer models have capability to pass a Dolby Digitak signal through from HDMI to Optical. I will update the relevant threads based on their response

Option 2: well, that's reassuring that I'm setting it up right at least. I'm currently on a verrrry long online chat with sky to get an engineer out to check the box and replace it if faulty. I've also ordered another optical cable to double check that.

Will keep the thread updated!

Cheers, Matt