I’d forgotten how obnoxious Audirvana can be to setup and use on the Mac. Anyway, with the TV powered OFF, I can power ON the receiver with the Onkyo controller app and then use the Audirvana Remote app to control playback of music using the HDMI cable connection from the Mac mini M1 to the receiver without any signal issues.
Audirvana Remote app:
Onkyo Controller app:
After using the HDMI cable connection from the Mac mini M1 to the receiver, I changed the Audirvana audio output setting from AV Receiver(HDMI) to the UPnP(network) setting.
Audirvana will power ON the receiver itself when making a track selection in the Audirvana Remote app and the Onkyo Controller app can control playback when using the UPnP connection.
All still worked fine when the TV was powered OFF and also worked fine when the TV was powered ON and the screen was turned OFF using UPnP connection. It may be the preferred output setting for those having issues with the HDMI cable connection of their Mac mini to certain AVP/AVR and TV combos. Results will vary of course.
Audirvana Remote app:
Onkyo Controller app:
Audirvan Remote app:
Onkyo Controller app: