Panasonic TH-42PX85U HDMI\SPDIF Question

[MDE]

My humble home theater consists of a Panasonic TH-42PX85U Plasma TV and Logitech Z680 speakers. Right now, I've got my HTPC, TiVo HD, and Xbox 360 connected to the speakers with SPDIF cables to get 5.1 sound and HDMI for video. If I connect the SPDIF cable to the TV and try to pass the audio over HDMI for some reason I only get stereo sound. Am I missing a setting or does the TV just not support this?

Cliffs:

HTPC\TiVo\Xbox360 <SPDIF> Speakers = 5.1 surround splendor
HTPC\TiVo\Xbox360 <HDMI> TV <SPDIF> Speakers = stereo sadness

 

[zerocool84]

All TV's can only pass stereo sound. It's a DRM thing they made all tv's do. Only way you can get full audio is connecting things directly to your audio output source.

 

[kornphlake]

DRM is gay, nobody is using analog outputs to pirate digital media. DRM has nothing to do with protecting the content, it has everything to do with electronics manufacturers forcing 5 year old AV receivers into obsolescence. I suspect we're close to having a new network interface imposed upon us to "protect" streaming content.

 

[Modelworks]

The MPAA strikes again.

 

[s44]

I'm pretty sure it's a hardware choice and not DRM. In any case, the TV will provide 5.1 from its own tuner, but not from any other source.