Marantz cinema 40 with 7.3.4. Which streaming device would be best. Please help.

[Darkdemise]

Morning everyone, my first post here and desperately hoping some of the far more experienced members could help me out on a few questions. I recently installed a mini home theater in my living room that consist of the following:

Marantz Cinema 40 receiver
Lg G2 83inch oled
Front left/right, rear left/right two side sonance in wall speakers with Martin logan center. Also have 4 sonance ceiling speakers for heights.
My subs are svs pb1000 pro 12, sonance 10, klipsch 8.

Everything sounds great, surround, heights, all good except when I'm streaming from Netflix, Amazon, HBO, and basically all the other apps installed on my TV, periodically the sound just cuts out for a second or two. This happens sometimes 2 or 3 times a minute. The picture doesn't cut out and smooth sailing there just the sound. I don't think it's my connection since non of the other tvs in the house have this issue. I thought it may be my internet but I have gigabit internet with 920ish mbs upload and download speeds.

I'm hearing from best buy geek squad and a few others that it could be a handshake issue or something with the apps on the TV and I should invest in a dedicated streaming device. Basically let the TV do TV things, Xbox do gaming things and have a dedicated streamer to do just that stream. Do you think this may fix the issues. It does not cut out at all when playing blue ray and things from my Xbox one s. If so, need feedback please on which would be recommended between Nvidia shield pro or Apple Tv4k.
I also plan on getting a XboX Series X in the near future, would you just recommend streaming through that and bypass the dedicated streaming device all together? Suggestions please if you think this may solve the issue.
Thanks a ton in advance for your help and time.

 

[PENG]

Morning everyone, my first post here and desperately hoping some of the far more experienced members could help me out on a few questions. I recently installed a mini home theater in my living room that consist of the following:

Marantz Cinema 40 receiver
Lg G2 83inch oled
Front left/right, rear left/right two side sonance in wall speakers with Martin logan center. Also have 4 sonance ceiling speakers for heights.
My subs are svs pb1000 pro 12, sonance 10, klipsch 8.

Everything sounds great, surround, heights, all good except when I'm streaming from Netflix, Amazon, HBO, and basically all the other apps installed on my TV, periodically the sound just cuts out for a second or two. This happens sometimes 2 or 3 times a minute. The picture doesn't cut out and smooth sailing there just the sound. I don't think it's my connection since non of the other tvs in the house have this issue. I thought it may be my internet but I have gigabit internet with 920ish mbs upload and download speeds.

I'm hearing from best buy geek squad and a few others that it could be a handshake issue or something with the apps on the TV and I should invest in a dedicated streaming device. Basically let the TV do TV things, Xbox do gaming things and have a dedicated streamer to do just that stream. Do you think this may fix the issues. It does not cut out at all when playing blue ray and things from my Xbox one s. If so, need feedback please on which would be recommended between Nvidia shield pro or Apple Tv4k.
I also plan on getting a XboX Series X in the near future, would you just recommend streaming through that and bypass the dedicated streaming device all together? Suggestions please if you think this may solve the issue.
Thanks a ton in advance for your help and time.

If you are using the TV to stream, are you using wifi or hardwire Ethernet to the TV? Just because you pay for high speed internet, it does not mean you are getting the speed if you are using wifi. And, presumably you are using ARC to feed the signal back from the TV to the Cinema 40, are you sure your HDMI cable is of high enough quality for the task?

Also, try using lower resolution for streaming, such as the "standard" setting in Amazon music.

If the issue is the TV, then using a low cost Amazon fire stick should do the trick. There are too many to choose from, no need to spend a lot of money unless you have some specific need that those cheap devices can't deliver.

 

[Trebdp83]

Make sure the cable is Ultra Certified and supports ethernet. If getting an new XBOX Series X, make sure ALL cables are Ultra Certified. Check the TVs Sound Settings. Go to All Settings>Sound>Advanced Settings>Scroll down to Digital Sound Output and set it to Passthrough>Scroll down to eARC and turn it On.

If eARC is not On, audio signals are limited to the bandwidth of the ARC spec and lossless multi channel audio will not make its way to the receiver from devices that may be connected directly to the TV. You will have more limitations still if using an optical connection.

 

[Darkdemise]

1. As far internet connection, I have a Deco AX3000 (X55) sitting about 3 feet from the TV. The TV is actually running wireless, since when it was installed on the wall, I had not yet dropped the Ethernet cable down from upstairs. The Deco is Hardwired to the upstairs Main hub. when doing a wireless test on the TV its connected to the correct deco (one beside it) and showing 600ish mbs on both download and upload in speedtest. The reciever is hardwired into the deco.

https://www.amazon.com/WiFi-6-Mesh-System-AX3000/dp/B09PRB1MZM?ref_=ast_sto_dp&th=1&psc=1

2. As far as hdmi 2.1 cable. Currently I only have two cables attached to my tv. 1.Power cord and 2. HDMI 2.1 audioquest ocean48 running from the receiver to the back of the TV. Everything else is plugged into the back of the receiver. I have the cabled plugged into the hdmi 2 slot on the reciever which is marked as EArc

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/audioquest-ocean-7-5-4k-8k-10k-48gbps-in-wall-hdmi-cable-blue-black/6428208.p?skuId=6428208

 

[lovinthehd]

May not be internet speed particularly but behavior of the router somewhat as well. Hardwiring may improve things. Personally I moved away from tv-based apps long ago for a few reasons (audio codecs and app choices primarily, also not bothering with ARC issues). I use Amazon Fire Sticks myself, but older HD models as I don't have 4k/Atmos setups.

While I don't see an actual certification on that hdmi cable, it appears to have the right spec, altho grossly overpriced like most fraudioquest stuff.

 

[Trebdp83]

I really wish folks would stop overspending on HDMI cables from AudioQuest. There are better cables for less money.

Monoprice 8K Certified Ultra High Speed HDMI Cable - HDMI 2.1, 8K@60Hz, 48Gbps, CL2 In-Wall Rated, 30AWG, 6ft, Black - Monoprice.com

The Monoprice™ 8K Certified Ultra High Speed HDMI® Cable is the next generation of HDMI cable. Certified by an HDMI authorized testing center, these cables support up to 8K@60Hz/4K@120Hz res

www.monoprice.com

 

[Darkdemise]

Ill definitely look into the monoprice cables. Do you guys recommend Apple tv4k or Nvidia Shield pro for dedicated streamer if I choose to get one, or would Xbox series X be better. Just didnt want to clutter up the TV or Xbox with a ton of apps. Once of the TV that we have in the bedroom is 75in samsung and every app is installed on that. Runs very slow and sluggish now, and currently using 87% of available space with various apps. What im trying to avoid on this new G2.

Make sure the cable is Ultra Certified and supports ethernet. If getting an new XBOX Series X, make sure ALL cables are Ultra Certified. Check the TVs Sound Settings. Go to All Settings>Sound>Advanced Settings>Scroll down to Digital Sound Output and set it to Passthrough>Scroll down to eARC and turn it On.

If eARC is not On, audio signals are limited to the bandwidth of the ARC spec and lossless multi channel audio will not make its way to the receiver from devices that may be connected directly to the TV. You will have more limitations still if using an optical connection.

I went in and changed the Settings on the actual TV as you suggested and it seems the sound output was set to "Auto" instead of "passthrough". However Earc was already turned on. Ill let you know if that solves the issues.

 

[Trebdp83]

The Nvidia Shield Pro supports bitstream of audio codecs and supports DTS. The Apple TV 4K converts everything to LPCM and uses Dolby MAT to deliver Atmos. The LG G2 and Apple TV 4K do not support DTS.

The XBOX Series X is different than other streamers and requires the downloading of different Dolby and DTS apps for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. It’s an either/or deal with them.

 

[Darkdemise]

The Nvidia Shield Pro supports bitstream of audio codecs and supports DTS. The Apple TV 4K converts everything to LPCM and uses Dolby MAT to deliver Atmos. The LG G2 and Apple TV 4K do not support DTS.

The XBOX Series X is different than other streamers and requires the downloading of different Dolby and DTS apps for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. It’s an either/or deal with them.

With the streaming device plugging straight into the reciever though, and the reciever running to the TV though, would that matter on the LG not supporting DTS? Below are the specs of the Marantz audio formats. Which format would be better for the overall best 7.3.4 setup? From a sound quality set up though, would the Shield pro or Apple TV4k have the best theater like surround set up?

Multichannel Surround Technologies

DTS	DTS HD Master, DTS:X, DTS Neural:X, DTS Virtual:X
Dolby	Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Atmos, Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization, Dolby Atmos Music, Dolby Surround
Other	IMAX Enhanced, Auro-3D, 360 Reality Audio, MPEG H, Multichannel Stereo
Max Number of Processing (Preamp) Channels	11.4

 

[Trebdp83]

They are both excellent streamers. The Shield supports DTS. The Apple TV 4K does not support DTS. Many use the Nvidia's Plex app for media server content. If only streaming from services, DTS is not a big deal. Disney+ is supposed to be supporting IMAX DTS/DTS:X soon so that may matter to some.

Connecting directly to the receiver will enable DTS bitstream. When connected directly to an LG TV that does not support DTS, the audio is converted to Multichannel PCM when using eARC and DTS:X metadata is not recognized by the receiver.

Dolby Atmos and DTS:X cannot be cross up mixed. So, no applying DTS modes to Dolby Atmos tracks and no applying Dolby modes to DTS:X tracks.

 

[BMXTRIX]

I recommend the nVidia Shield Pro. Time and time again it is hailed as one of the best streaming devices on the market. I'm not sure any of these streamers are what anyone would consider 'perfect'. That's because there are so many different aps and one or two on every platform seems to fall a bit short of the potential that it could deliver. But, the Shield seems to be the one that consistently comes closest.