TV remote, AV receiver, ARC and the love that dare not speak its name - by Thirith
Thirith on 7/2/2017 at 13:42
Anyone here experienced with respect to TVs, AV receivers and how they can be... a little too chummy?
In concrete terms, here's my problem: I've got a Samsung KS8000 TV, a Sony STR-DN1070 receiver, and I'm generally very happy with both. However, since I'm using ARC (Audio Return Channel) to play sound from the TV on the receiver, I've activated options that seem to have the unwanted side effect of the receiver reacting to the buttons I press on the TV remote. Sometimes that's not a problem, e.g. when adjusting the volume, but often it is: when I press the HOME button e.g. to change some settings on the TV, the receiver also changes to its Home screen.
Is there a way to keep ARC functionality but keep the AV receiver from reacting to the TV remote control?
Thirith on 7/2/2017 at 16:08
That'll help with the remote control issues, but ARC only works if Anynet+ is switched on.
Al_B on 7/2/2017 at 17:02
Ah, ok. I saw that both are linked on the receiver but hoped the audio would still pass through from the TV. Sorry can't help - other than to suggest a separate audio cable from the TV but I'm sure you've discounted that option.
Thirith on 7/2/2017 at 17:08
I have, yeah; apparently the optical cables you get only do 5.1 sound up to a certain quality, and after that either you reduce the quality or you only get stereo sound. Can't remember the exact details, but it was definitely an issue at the time when I bought the equipment and set everything up.
heywood on 13/2/2017 at 15:23
What content are you sending from the TV to the receiver?
HD channels on cable TV have 5.1 channel AC3 audio (aka Dolby Digital). Broadcast HDTV also has 5.1 channel AC3 audio. ARC, optical SPDIF, and coax SPDIF can handle it without loss of quality. So if you're only using ARC to send broadcast or cable TV audio to the receiver, there should be no difference between using ARC vs. an optical SPDIF connection.
Some streaming services here are starting to offer Dolby Digital Plus. In theory, ARC can pass DD+ while SPDIF cannot. If you are using streaming services on your TV, and they happen to support DD+, and both your TV and receiver can support DD+ over ARC, then you might be losing something if you switch to an optical cable.
BUT.. DD+ over ARC is not universally supported yet. A quick Google search suggests Samsung KS TVs will only send AC3/DD 5.1 over ARC.
Another consideration is whether your AVR and loudspeakers are high end enough to hear the difference.
Sulphur on 13/2/2017 at 15:50
I tried ARC briefly, but didn't have that issue since I wasn't motivated enough to setup the IR blaster from the TV (a Sony) to the receiver. I suppose your Samsung doesn't need that kludge?
In any event, heywood has a point with TV sources. If it's vanilla DD/DTS, optical or S/PDIF should do you fine. Ideally, the other sources that put out hi-def audio have their own HDMI inputs on your receiver already.
Thirith on 13/2/2017 at 18:54
Good questions which I'll have to look into. The main sources I use ARC for (all via HDMI, Sulphur, no IR blaster needed) are Netflix and YouTube on the TV, as well as the set top box, but I'm pretty sure that doesn't have DD+ content. From what I've just read, it seems that Netflix on the KS8000 does, though that's just what one person wrote on a forum.
The receiver and speakers are solidly midrange, whatever that means. ;-)
heywood on 13/2/2017 at 20:45
There's probably a way to get your AVR to display the audio format it's receiving while you're streaming Netflix.
I sympathize with your situation. Over the years of being an audio geek I've had several component combinations with inconveniently overlapping RC codes.
Thirith on 14/2/2017 at 07:58
Will look into that. I'm pretty happy with my Sony AVR, but the manual is absolute shit. It is annoying that they seem to tie ARC functionality together with the remote control thing; I see why this might be handy, if it works, but where's the sense in not making the latter an option that can be switched off? In general, with both the AVR and the Samsung telly, I find that there are so many things that are automated in stupid ways (e.g. the way that sources sometimes are and sometimes aren't recognised). Why not provide an Expert mode where the user can toggle things automatically if they can't design the user experience to actually work reliably in the first place? (I know people complain about Apple removing user agency left, right and centre, but at least Apple have 99% of the UX down pat.)
