HDMI ARC and splitter problem

[Alan55]

I want to take advantage of my ARC connection from my TV to my Yamaha Reciever ! Problem is I have a few Monitors. Living room, garage, bed room and my office. So I come out of the reciever HDMI out (ARC) to an HDMI splitter that connects my other monitors. Why do they not put two monitor HDMI outs on recievers?? so if I just go strait with one HDMI cable to use all things ARC than how do I run my other monitors???

 

[lovinthehd]

Some avrs have multiple hdmi outputs. You're just trying to bypass built in protections it seems. No one really cares how you can bypass the intended system, tho

 

[Alan55]

So what should I do ? I have a Yamaha Reciever and have always had one. Is there a solution?

 

[lovinthehd]

Describe your desired setup in more detail perhaps for ideas....but generally the thought is you should buy more gear

 

[Alan55]

Fine I explained the situation perfectly so just tell me what AVR has more than one monitor out!

 

[lovinthehd]

Fine I explained the situation perfectly so just tell me what AVR has more than one monitor out!

My older Denon 4520 has two hdmi outputs. Not that unusual or do you mean something else?

 

[BMXTRIX]

You will want a HDMI splitter with ARC support. But, I'm not sure this exists. The idea being that if you have a 1x4 HDMI splitter currently, you will want to replace it with a unit that has ARC on output 1 and just normal HDMI on the rest of the outputs. The rest of the outputs will not support ARC and will only carry video from your receiver to the other displays. So, if you are using ARC, none of your other displays will show anything... because that's how ARC works. It overrides the internal audio/video of the receiver and takes audio only from the source.

Since this doesn't seem to actually exist, then you can't do it. INSTEAD - Just run fiber from your TV to your receiver and use that for surround sound. Assuming your television has a optical audio output. This should give you the same quality audio as if you were using ARC.

OR - Use a Roku. Unless there is something specifically built into your TV that you MUST have that Roku doesn't support, then just use an external 'smart' streaming device like Roku, AppleTV, or Amazon Fire. Those devices just plug into your receiver and you get great video and audio directly to the receiver and your splitter without using ARC.

Plenty of receivers out there have dual HDMI outputs. Some also have dual zones, so you can run a cable box in the family room, and watch something different in another room.

For example, this has two outputs for the main zone as well as a third HDMI output to feed a second zone by itself directly.

RX-A1080 - Overview - Yamaha USA

Architected for Performance. Constructed for performance, this 7.2-channel AV receiver features an ESS SABRE™ DAC, seven HDMI inputs, three HDMI outputs, Dolby Atmos® and DTS:X™, Zone 2 function, Phono input, Wi-Fi®, YPAO™ with Precision EQ and much more.

usa.yamaha.com

 

[Trebdp83]

External streamers will usually have more apps available to them and better audio from those apps than most TVs. The problem with HDMI switching to various monitors will be handshake issues and the output of the video signal potentially being limited by the monitor with the weakest video capabilities.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Also, be aware, that receivers may not pass stereo audio on to any other displays.

The reason receivers don't do what you want them to do is that they aren't designed to do that. You are trying to use them for something they simply aren't designed to do at all. You pay more for a multi-zone receiver, because there is licensing required to get the video and audio to work to multiple areas properly. You will need the ability to pass audio to other displays if you want to use them. There is also a chance that all audio will be downgraded from surround sound to stereo, because the other zone is using the same source that's in use in the main zone. You likely will also see flickering from the source as DHCP is renegotiated across multiple TVs.

There are actual products which solve this, but price starts going up quickly and it's often cheaper to just setup each system independently. Especially when a Roku streaming stick is only 50 bucks. I mean, you can't get a quality 4K HDMI cable over 30 feet for that cheap.

 

[Trebdp83]

What he is trying to do was more easily accomplished in the analog days when you could use a switcher to get audio and video to other rooms from a source connected to an AVR. Now that I think about it, it’s only possible to get audio as well these days using the zone feature if going out from the AVR because sending audio through to TV cuts it out from receiver speakers. One could run a switcher from the source, say a streaming device and send signal to AVR and other TVs/monitors but they will all communicate and the weak link rule will apply to both audio and video.

 

[stalag2005]

HDMI is point to point. When you lose HDCP encryption, it goes out to lunch. Digital is not analog.

 

[Trebdp83]

Sorry, the assumption was that everything had the required HDCP encryption but that doesn't mean it will all still play well together and that different device limitations will not hamper other devices.

 

[BMXTRIX]

HDMI is point to point. When you lose HDCP encryption, it goes out to lunch. Digital is not analog.

I have a 16x16HDMI matrix in my home. HDMI can go to a lot of different places at once if you have the right gear.
My matrix also downmixes audio from surround sound to stereo for rooms that have in-ceiling speakers to listen to the source, while preserving surround sound for my surround receivers.

There is a LOT that is possible with HDMI, just as there was with analog stuff.

You can STRIP HDCP with certain devices, and nothing goes out to lunch. You just need the right pieces which do that job. But, almost all devices have HDCP built in and multiple end points are supported with switching, splitting, and the like.