Help needed with Plex Client

[zambas]

Hello to all,
I have the below home cinema setup which i have some issues and i would like to ask your thoughts on how to solve them. English is not my native language so excuse me for any written typos
So i am serving a Plex installation from an old pc i have, server side all works ok.
As a client i use a laptop that has an i7 12500H cpu, 2 ram sticks so its igpu is the Iris Xe and not the slower Intel UHD graphics. Laptop also has an HDMI 2.0b and also a USB-C that can altDP.
Tv is a samsung TV S90C OLED. Doesnt have DTS capability and has 4 x HDMI 2.1 connections.
AV Receiver is a Denon AVR1800H. It can play all audio formats.
Ok my issue is in order to have a full "correct" playback of audio and video i have to connect one HDMI to TV that sends only the video and one USB-C to HDMI to receiver to send only the audio parts. When i say correct i mean video to be full 4k resolution with HDR/HDR+ (tv doesnt support D.Vision) and 4.4.4 12 bit Image and sound to be DTS-HD Master Audio or Dolby TrueHD with Atmos.
I think i know what my issue is, its the HDMI versions. I need HDMI version 2.1 in order for Video and audio to pass correctly. Is this true?
Any insights would be appreciated

 

[TLS Guy]

Hello to all,
I have the below home cinema setup which i have some issues and i would like to ask your thoughts on how to solve them. English is not my native language so excuse me for any written typos
So i am serving a Plex installation from an old pc i have, server side all works ok.
As a client i use a laptop that has an i7 12500H cpu, 2 ram sticks so its igpu is the Iris Xe and not the slower Intel UHD graphics. Laptop also has an HDMI 2.0b and also a USB-C that can altDP.
Tv is a Denon AVR1800H. Doesnt have DTS capability and has 4 x HDMI 2.1 connections.
AV Receiver is a Denon AVR1800H. It can play all audio formats.
Ok my issue is in order to have a full "correct" playback of audio and video i have to connect one HDMI to TV that sends only the video and one USB-C to HDMI to receiver to send only the audio parts. When i say correct i mean video to be full 4k resolution with HDR/HDR+ (tv doesnt support D.Vision) and 4.4.4 12 bit Image and sound to be DTS-HD Master Audio or Dolby TrueHD with Atmos.
I think i know what my issue is, its the HDMI versions. I need HDMI version 2.1 in order for Video and audio to pass correctly. Is this true?
Any insights would be appreciated

That is not going to work because of DRM issues. The video and audio must be together when using HDMI.

Your sources need to connect to your Denon receiver. The Denon needs to connect to the TV. If you connect the Denon to the receiver via eARC then you can send audio back to the Denon from TV programs if you want as well. You are correct you need HDMI 2.1 for 4K. I had to build a new HTPC when I got a 4K AVP.

 

[zambas]

That is not going to work because of DRM issues. The video and audio must be together when using HDMI.

Your sources need to connect to your Denon receiver. The Denon needs to connect to the TV. If you connect the Denon to the receiver via eARC then you can send audio back to the Denon from TV programs if you want as well. You are correct you need HDMI 2.1 for 4K. I had to build a new HTPC when I got a 4K AVP.

Thx for the help TLS,
Let me clarify some things.
If i connect one hdmi to receiver and from receiver to tv i can see that i can have a 4k 4.2.0, 8 bit image along with a dolby trueHD Atmos audio just fine. If i set it to 10bit or more then i have either black screen or audio is not passing through. I tried 2 different hdmi 2.1 cables (not certified) and 1 x USB-C to hdmi (version 2.0b) and all 3 cables behaving the same.
Now really this may be just a case of bad cables but what i want to know and it would really help me is whether a system that uses hdmi v2.0b can pass full 4k HDR 4.4.4 12bit high bitrate video file along with a dolby trueHD audio and be fine. Is this possible for hdmi 2.0b? im not interested for 120hz or VRR or any other features of the hdmi v2. 1 spec.
Nvidia shield pro 2019, a machine tha uses hdmi 2.0b can do this (from what i see in various forums) so its weird a fairly new intel laptop cant do the same.
About eARC i am under the impression that my TV doesnt support DTS formats so it wont work for those but i admitedly havent tried that route

 

[TLS Guy]

Thx for the help TLS,
Let me clarify some things.
If i connect one hdmi to receiver and from receiver to tv i can see that i can have a 4k 4.2.0, 8 bit image along with a dolby trueHD Atmos audio just fine. If i set it to 10bit or more then i have either black screen or audio is not passing through. I tried 2 different hdmi 2.1 cables (not certified) and 1 x USB-C to hdmi (version 2.0b) and all 3 cables behaving the same.
Now really this may be just a case of bad cables but what i want to know and it would really help me is whether a system that uses hdmi v2.0b can pass full 4k HDR 4.4.4 12bit high bitrate video file along with a dolby trueHD audio and be fine. Is this possible for hdmi 2.0b? im not interested for 120hz or VRR or any other features of the hdmi v2. 1 spec.
Nvidia shield pro 2019, a machine tha uses hdmi 2.0b can do this (from what i see in various forums) so its weird a fairly new intel laptop cant do the same.
About eARC i am under the impression that my TV doesnt support DTS formats so it wont work for those but i admitedly havent tried that route

As far as I know you need HDMI 2.1 for 4K. eARC should work as it is the receiver handling the audio and not the TV.

One other question: - how long are your HDMI cables? 10 to 12 feet is max for passive 2.1 cable carrying 2.1 HDMI. If you are going longer than that you need active hybrid cables.

 

[zambas]

Thx for the answer TLS.
My cables are normal, 1.5 and 2 meters so that should be ok, i know and you are right cable length matters a lot when we talk about hdmi 2.1.
I tried eARC too and it can handle 8bit rgb video with HDR, TrueHD works, and fails at anything about DTS but thats a samsung issue.
Reverting back to what i was using (HDMI for audio and USB-C altDP for video) i can confirm that i can send video full (12bit and 4.4.4 chroma either RGB or YC/CB..) but i loose any lossless audio (trueHD or DTS-HD MA) and i also loose HDR.
If i ease on video and set it to 10bit and 4.4.4 then i gain everything back, HDR and lossless audio.
So yeah i think my issue is either i need to have a full HDMI v2. 1 path or its my cables.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Getting Windows (I assume it's Windows since Apple never used Intel's 12th gen CPUs in laptops) to support HDR and Atmos is an exercise in futility. Just get an Apple TV 4k or Nvidia shield tv and enjoy all of your Plex clients on it.
Here's one guide on how to get it going if you feel masochistic (make sure to read all comments)
https://www.reddit.com/r/hometheater/comments/k9wyg0

 

[zambas]

Thx for the feedback BoredSysAdmin,
I agree it seems hard to make everything works.
Tbh with you everything was checking ok and i didnt have the dolby access app installed!!
I mean Receiver says its in Atmos mode , but again tbh i didnt hear the difference, and TV reports that its in UHD resolution and in HDR.
In any case i saw the links you sent and i followed the steps and it seems the same to my eyes and ears as before..
Im thinking maybe i will end up buying one of the zidoo players and be done with it but my main question still is unanswered, Is HDMI v2.0b enough for everything to pass ok? If YES then i would like to try to solve this with what i have or else if its a NO i wont waste my time

 

[Trell]

Is HDMI v2.0b enough for everything to pass ok?

You probably need HDCP 2.2 or higher as well.

 

[zambas]

Hey Trell,
No idea if and why i need that, i though HDCP was for copy protection and as long as image is producing then its fine..
I swear nowadays you need a doctorate to connect a home cinema.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Im thinking maybe i will end up buying one of the zidoo players and be done with it but my main question still is unanswered

I tested one Zidoo player at home and won't recommend it, especially compared to Apple TV 4k or Nvidia Shield TV.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I swear nowadays you need a doctorate to connect a home cinema.

Mainly these issues are caused by fear of content owners that you'll possibly use your windows PC to steal their content, so to make 4k HDR content play from windows they force you to jump hundreds of hoops.

Here is some more "fun" reading on trying to watch 4k HDR netflix from windows:
https://www.reddit.com/r/htpc/comments/l7z9ou

 

[zambas]

Oh can i ask why?

 

[zambas]

I tested one Zidoo player at home and won't recommend it, especially compared to Apple TV 4k or Nvidia Shield TV.

Oh can i ask why?

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Oh can i ask why?

half-baked software.

 

[Trell]

Hey Trell,
No idea if and why i need that, i though HDCP was for copy protection and as long as image is producing then its fine..

To make life difficult for consumers as far as I know, all to try stop copyright infringements. If you get strange problems like picture and no sound, you know what a possible cause could be. All you need is one device in the HDMI chain giving issues.

Hopefully it works out nicely for you.

 

[zambas]

I see.
Well from youtube videos i really like apple 4k tv especially with infuse app. It doesnt have audio passthrough yet. But i feel you why you suggest that, apple products always are snappy and well coded.
Or go the nvidia route but i kinda refuse to buy a 5 year old hardware in 2024 just by principle

 

[zambas]

To make life difficult for consumers as far as I know, all to try stop copyright infringements. If you get strange problems like picture and no sound, you know what a possible cause could be. All you need is one device in the HDMI chain giving issues.

Hopefully it works out nicely for you.

True and thx for the help

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Or go the nvidia route but i kinda refuse to buy a 5 year old hardware in 2024 just by principle

I hear you and I wish Nvidia updated their media client hardware, but they are way too busy printing money (aka AI). Other than AV1 support shield TV does absolutely everything and quite well.

 

[zambas]

True
Thx for the help BoredSysAdmin.

 

[Trebdp83]

The Samsung TV supports HDMI 2.1 and has full spec 48Gbps HDMI ports. The Denon supports HDMI 2.1 but is limited to 40Gbps and only on HDMI ports #4, #5 and #6. Ports #1, #2 and #3 are 18Gbps HDMI 2.0 ports that need to be in 4K Enhanced mode for deep color. HDMI 2.0b devices support 18Gbps. Passing 4k @60Hz HDR 4:4:4 12 Bit color will exceed the HDMI 2.0b bandwidth limit and color will be subsampled and bit depth will be lowered to fit within spec. Some devices will maintain color bit depth but lower resolution from 4K to 1080p if necessary.

The Nvidia Shield will not output 4K @60 Hz 4:4:4 12 bit. It can output 4:4:4 8 bit, 4:2:2 8 bit or 4:2:0 10 bit @60Hz. Just about the same goes for the Apple TV 4K. The Nvidia Shield supports bitstream of Dolby and DTS signals. The Apple TV converts everything to LPCM for output and does not support incoming DTS signals at all and they would have to be converted for output at the source.

Keep in mind that there are no TVs on the market with 12 bit panels to make the most of 12 bit color and even 4K discs feature 4:2:0 10 bit color @24Hz with only a couple of 60Hz exceptions. To get everything out of a TV supporting HDMI 2.1 @48Gbps, you'd have to have a device that also supports HDMI 2.1 @48Gbps to get an uncompressed 4k @120Hz 4:4:4 12 bit image to it and it would use up every bit of the available bandwidth.

Ultra Certified HDMI cables for systems supporting HDMI 2.1 features should be used throughout the entire system. This will not enhance signals from HDMI 2.0b devices but will communicate all signals to all devices without the kinds of issues that arise from using various kinds of HDMI cables with varying specs.