5.1 Sound with PM and Reciever?

[G5Unit]

I just bought a YAMAHA HTR 5835 and connected it to my PM G5's optical output. Yet when I go on Audio MIDI setup, I can only get stereo(2 CH). I WANT 5.1! Can the PM G5 even output a 5.1 signal from DVD and stuff?

Oh and if anyone can help me configure this thing(HTR 5835) to get Dolby Digital 5.1, please do.

 

[displaced]

Hi

I use an M-Audio Transit USB audio card with a Yamaha amp on my Mac Mini. The only time I get a true 5.1 DD output stream is when using DVD Player. Check DVD Player's preferences, and you can select digital output.

At all other times, my amp shows a PCM audio stream, and I set it to Dolby Digital Pro-Logic II.

 

[Coheebuzz]

You will only get true surround when the audio is multichannel. Only movie DVD's and some games have surround sound (look for the logo ) so you won't hear any big difference when playing 2chan sounds.

 

[G5Unit]

How can I tell that I am getting full 5.1? Is there and indicator on my computer?

 

[displaced]

How can I tell that I am getting full 5.1? Is there and indicator on my computer?

Not on the computer -- your Yamaha amp should indicate the audio format it's receiving. Standard 2-channel audio is usually indicated as PCM audio. If, for example, the Mac's playing a Dolby Digital-encoded DVD, the amp will usually indicate 'DOLBY DIGITAL' or show the Dolby 'double-D' symbol.

Bear in mind that 'Dolby Digital' does not necessarily mean 5.1 audio. DD is a way of encoding audio channels. This can be anything from Stereo to 8.1 channels.