Win 7 keeps resetting to 2-channel audio after reboot

[frowertr]

Have a weird problem that I can't figure out. Windows 7 always resets my 5.1 channel sound to 2-channel after reboot. Here is what I am doing.

I have my HTPC hooked to my Yamaha AVR via a HDMI cable so that I can take advantage of my 5.1 channel surround sound. My Panasonic TV is then hooked to my AVR. Pretty normal setup.

When I boot into Win 7 and head to Control Panel ---> Sound I have three playback devices listed under the Playback Tab: They are Panasonic TV, Speakers, and Realtek Digital Output.

Panasonic TV is listed as my default device, the speaker device is greyed out, and the Realtek Digital Output device is for the TOSLINK connector that I do not use.

Ok, so when I click on Panasonic-TV and then click Configure it allows me to chose my speaker configuration. I choose 5.1 and then hit test. A tone plays in all 6 of my surround speakers around the room. I then hit next and leave the Center, Subwoofer, and Side Pair checked. I then hit next again and Uncheck full range speakers. I then finally hit next again and then finish.

My AVR screen flickers and it shows it is being fed 5.1 channels from the HTPC by the images displayed on the LCD screen. I can now watch movies and play games in full 5.1 channel surround sound. However, when I reboot and get back to the desktop, the AVR info screen only shows I am back to 2 channel. Only the L and R speaker icons are displayed on the AVR LCD screen.

So then I have to go back to control panel and re-setup my speakers. This is very frustrating every time I reboot the damn HTPC. Any ideas on what is going on??

 

[Ketchup]

What component is the HDMI cable coming out of on the PC?

 

[frowertr]

What component is the HDMI cable coming out of on the PC?

There is only one HDMI port on the back of the HTPC and it is coming out of that one and going into one of the HDMI inputs on my AVR.

 

[Ketchup]

There is only one HDMI port on the back of the HTPC and it is coming out of that one and going into one of the HDMI inputs on my AVR.

OK, so this is the board in your sig? Have you looked for any Realtek updates lately?

 

[frowertr]

OK, so this is the board in your sig? Have you looked for any Realtek updates lately?

No its not. It is this: http://global.shuttle.com/main/productsDetail?productId=1628

Just checked the driver tab for audio and it shows "Release" as the version number which means its the same one I am using.

 

[frowertr]

Doing a Google search I see that a handful of people over the years have described this exact issue but I have not seen any resolutions to it.

 

[Ketchup]

OK, and forgive me if I say something you've checked 100x:

Are the TV and receiver on when you turn on the computer?

Make sure you have the latest Intel H61 drivers, since I see it is the HDMI on that chipset.
The shuttle page has some from May of last year. If you are already running those (9.2), you may want to try from this Gigabyte page, which are a little newer (9.3)

http://www.gigabyte.us/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4390#dl

Have you added anything of significance (hardware) to the Shuttle?

By the way, that is a very nice "normal setup." Let's see if we can get it working right.

 

[frowertr]

Ok. I have figured out a couple things. The receiver MUST BE ON FIRST AND STAY ON for the following paragraph to be true.

In the Sounds control panel, if I click on the Communications Tab and click the radio button "Do Nothing" I can successfully reboot the HTPC and then Windows will keep my 5.1 channel surround sound options as confirmed by the AVR LCD. In fact, I can even turn off the HTPC and turn it back on again, and as soon as I am at the desktop the AVR LCD again shows 5.1 surround.

However, if I turn off the AVR at any time that the HTPC is currently running and sitting at the desktop, as soon as I turn the AVR back on it shows 2 channel audio on the AVR LCD screen.

So basically, anytime the HTPC is on and if the AVR is not running, then Windows will reset the audio to 2-channel stereo as soon as the AVR is powered up. The AVR must ALWAYS be on first and it must NEVER be turned off when the HTPC is running or it defaults.

So windows is somehow "sensing" the downstream audio device and adjusting the settings on the fly. I am not sure if this is intended behavior or not.

I'll take a look at those drivers again ketchup and see if that changes anything.

 

[Ketchup]

... So windows is somehow "sensing" the downstream audio device and adjusting the settings on the fly. I am not sure if this is intended behavior or not.

Actually, I think this is how HDMI works. Has to see that the requested connection is available on the other side, stereo being the "default" if it doesn't see something available. But I would like it if someone else could confirm this, as I will not pretend to have the most experience with it.

 

[denis280]

I think my son got is working (not sure)I will give him a call later on and come back with the result.

 

[Ketchup]

I think my son got is working (not sure)I will give him a call later on and come back with the result.

Cool, I would like to do an HTPC at some point. Would be good to know for sure how this works.

 

[denis280]

I think my son got is working (not sure)I will give him a call later on and come back with the result.

Well no luck.he as the same problem.So back to are desk and do some home work guys.lol

 

[ViRGE]

Actually, I think this is how HDMI works. Has to see that the requested connection is available on the other side, stereo being the "default" if it doesn't see something available. But I would like it if someone else could confirm this, as I will not pretend to have the most experience with it.

That's correct. HDMI and HTPCs are something of a black art as a result. This is a fairly common problem with no simple solution short of leaving the receiver on.:|

 

[Ketchup]

That's correct. HDMI and HTPCs are something of a black art as a result. This is a fairly common problem with no simple solution short of leaving the receiver on.:|

Thanks for the confirmation ViRGE. If you turned the receiver off when the computer was off, but turned it on before booting the HTPC, would that connection still be lost?

 

[frowertr]

Thanks for the confirmation ViRGE. If you turned the receiver off when the computer was off, but turned it on before booting the HTPC, would that connection still be lost?

According to my testing, no, that is not the case. So long as I turn off the HTPC before the AVR it will keep the settings. But you must also turn on the AVR before the HTPC as well to retain the settings. This is also predicated on the fact that you MUST go into the communication tab and check the radio button that says "Do Nothing" or none of this will work and it will ALWAYS default to 2-channel stereo no matter the order of which is turned on/off first. I have no idea why this is.

Secondly, you must also be on the right input on the AVR for my above example to work. So if I follow my order by turning on the AVR first and then turning on the HTPC but notice that my AVR's input was set for my Cable Box or Blu-Ray player Windows throws it back to 2-channel stereo.

*Sigh*

Frustrating to say the least. There is no way my wife will ever want to learn the order to turn these things on. She just wants it to work when she pushes the "On" button.

 

[Ketchup]

....Frustrating to say the least. There is no way my wife will ever want to learn the order to turn these things on. She just want it to work when she pushes the "On" button.

Heh, my wife doesn't even turn the stereo on, and it is just a simple RCA connection, IIRC. Honestly haven't been back there is a while, but it is pre-hdmi.

I don't exactly have an HTPC, but I do use Samsung AllShare to send info from the server to the Blu-Ray player.

 

[frowertr]

Well I have kinda given up on this. The best I can do is what I have posted above. Setting the "Do Nothing" radio button in the Communication Tab has helped. I just have to remember to turn on the AVR first and the the HTPC and that will retain the settings.

Thanks for the help, guys. Especially ketchup79. Hopefully this thread will help someone else out in the future.

 

[Mushkins]

Yeah, it's just one of the side effects of HDMI "smartly" detecting connections. Depending on the software you can force it to push out the HDMI as the default device whether its enabled or not, but it's not reliable.

The only true fix is to leave the AVR on all the time or make sure you turn it on first. A lot of people just leave the AVR on all the time anyway, or put it in sleep/low power mode which still lets devices detect it as being on but conserves power.

 

[ViRGE]

Yeah, it's just one of the side effects of HDMI "smartly" detecting connections. Depending on the software you can force it to push out the HDMI as the default device whether its enabled or not, but it's not reliable.

The only true fix is to leave the AVR on all the time or make sure you turn it on first. A lot of people just leave the AVR on all the time anyway, or put it in sleep/low power mode which still lets devices detect it as being on but conserves power.

The frustrating part is that most consumer AV equipment works just fine. It's PCs that freak out when they can't find the receiver. They're too smart for their own good.