# Roamio - Dolby Sound Issues



## gt77 (Dec 22, 2014)

Newbie here.

Hello. Hoping someone can help! I recently upgraded from a Series 3 Tivo to a Roamio Plus. The Tivo is connected via HDMI and Optical to my Amplifier (Yamaha). I simply removed the connections from the old Tivo, and plugged them into the Roamio....

Now, when I un-pause any roamio recordings or live TV, I get this incredibly loud static / scratchy noise through the Amplifier. I can see that when TV is paused, the AMP is receiving PCM (2 channel from Tivo), when I un-pause it changes to 5ch audio, which is when the terrible noise occurs. I never had this problem on the old Series3.

I tried Tivo support, and they will only troubleshoot anything that connects to a TV only. Also, I don't want to buy a new AMP that supports Audio passthrough on HDMI. (apparently Tivo will do Dolby Digital over HDMI, but I can't confirm this).. The other option is to go HDMI to TV, then optical from TV to AMP, but I'm 99% sure that the TV doesn't support 5ch Audio passthrough from HDMI to Optical....

The short of it is, I think there's a problem with the Roamio, and Tivo wont even attempt to help.

any thoughts? thanks!


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## lgnad (Feb 14, 2013)

Why do you have both connections? Does your receiver not accept audio over HDMI and only pass it through? Only HDMI should be needed to get Dolby digital. This would at least simplify your troubleshooting.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

gt77 said:


> Newbie here.
> 
> Hello. Hoping someone can help! I recently upgraded from a Series 3 Tivo to a Roamio Plus. The Tivo is connected via HDMI and Optical to my Amplifier (Yamaha). I simply removed the connections from the old Tivo, and plugged them into the Roamio....
> 
> ...


Thoughts: why do you not get DD5.1 from your cable since on broadcast channels like CBS and NBC are always 5.1. I go HDMI to my AVR that indicates 5.1 unless the content is DD2.0, like some CW programs. I don't "force" my sub, so when the LFE LED illuminates I know 5.1 is active. I can also check the "info" on the channels, but I'm lazy. My TV (Sony) always passes DD5.1 out its optical port also. And I still get clear QAM HD locals with DD5.1 and feed my AVR via optical when I watch live TV on its tuner.

I have the Settings, Audio, Dolby set to Use Dolby Audio if that matters. IF I set it to PCM, what comes out is PCM 48kHz 2.0.

The noise is interesting. I would change the cable and keep the video fixed at 1080i. Just a thought.


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## waynomo (Nov 9, 2002)

I do what you're doing. Roamio to TV via HDMI and audio to my Yamaha amp via digital optical. No problems for me.

My Yamaha is over 15 years old.


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## gt77 (Dec 22, 2014)

Correct. HDMI Audio is passthrough only, not output to speakers... Yamaha HTR-6130


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## gt77 (Dec 22, 2014)

waynomo said:


> I do what you're doing. Roamio to TV via HDMI and audio to my Yamaha amp via digital optical. No problems for me.
> 
> My Yamaha is over 15 years old.


My HDMI actually goes to the AMP, then to TV. I'll try putting the HDMI to the TV and leave optical at the AMP.

thx


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## rjspring (Jul 16, 2008)

gt77 said:


> any thoughts? thanks!


Seeing a few assumptions here, thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.

First, about a year ago I had a Tivo HD running HDMI to my TV and optical to my old techniques receiver. My receiver was old enough where it had a digital breakout box for any surround sound connections (so connection was optical to break out box which connected to my receiver). The setup worked fine for years, but then started to have issues (sound would crack/skip) while watching shows and then would fail to sync properly. I ended up replacing the whole receiver setup with a new Onkyo and now run only HDMI and allow the Onkyo to do all of the video switching from my various devices.

Specific to your setup, I looked up your Yamaha and it looks like you have two HDMI inputs and one output. I'd recommend you run your output to your TV and input your Tivo (and whatever other device(s) you use) to the other HDMI input. Running both HDMI and optical could have weird issues you are experiencing as the tivo has to try and sync up the audio and video (or scan for a signal presence from either input).

On another note, not ALL broadcast channels utilize 5.1 surround sound - it is completely dependent on your local provider. Case in point, my local ABC and NBC affiliates didn't upgrade to full 5.1 broadcast until January of this year (even though the shows prominently displayed '5.1 surround'). So using that as your test can introduce issues - I'd say always use a consistent source like a DVD or Blu-Ray player (or a tivo recording for which you are certain what the audio quality should be).

Also, not all TVs will output 5.1 surround via their optical out connections. I have three Sharp HDTVs, none of them output 5.1 - they only output stereo.

Bottom line - you will be much better served with HDMI all around, it has been a godsend for my setup.


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## gt77 (Dec 22, 2014)

gt77 said:


> Newbie here.
> 
> Hello. Hoping someone can help! I recently upgraded from a Series 3 Tivo to a Roamio Plus. The Tivo is connected via HDMI and Optical to my Amplifier (Yamaha). I simply removed the connections from the old Tivo, and plugged them into the Roamio....
> 
> ...


I moved the HDMI from the AMP directly to the TV, so now I have TIVO HDMI -> TV HDMI IN and TIVO OPTICAL OUT TO AMP OPTICAL IN. So there is now no conflict between HDMI and OPTICAL as far as the AMP is concerned. Still, when I un-pause a show, I still get this annoying loud noise... A bit more detail about what I see....

When a show is paused, my amp shows no Audio signal. As soon as I un-pause, the amp shows PCM 2ch for a split second, drops back to no signal, then changes to Dolby Digital 5.1. there is a small static noise when PCM is first enabled, but a much larger static/scratching noise when the AMP detects 5.1 If I plug the optical cable back into the series 3 tivo, I can pause / un-pause with no problem. When I pause on the series 3, AMP detects no Audio. Then I un-pause, the series3, the AMP detects Dolby5.1 immediately...none of the switching/flopping that the roamio seems to do....

Any further thoughts or input would be appreciated. I'm thinking about buying another roamio just to see if I have a faulty one..


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

gt77 said:


> Any further thoughts or input would be appreciated. I'm thinking about buying another roamio just to see if I have a faulty one..


Apples to apples - same cables, same AV port? Then get another Roamio since what you see is not what anybody else sees. BTW, my Yamaha AVR is very sensitive to changes to the audio and even the slightest change gives me a small period of silence. Good luck.


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## gt77 (Dec 22, 2014)

JoeKustra said:


> Apples to apples - same cables, same AV port? Then get another Roamio since what you see is not what anybody else sees. BTW, my Yamaha AVR is very sensitive to changes to the audio and even the slightest change gives me a small period of silence. Good luck.


apples to apples.. same everything between the series3 and the roamio.. (I've tried new optical cables just in case)..

thx


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