No surround sound with Xbox Series X and old Denon receiver

audio help_726 · Dec 29, 2023

Greetings!

I have an old Denon AVR 591 5.1 surround sound system. It's worked great for me for about 15 years, until recently.

I upgraded my TV to 4k last year, and realized the Denon cannot pass through 4k content. I ended up fixing this issue by setting up my system this way:

HDMI from consoles direct to TV, optical cable from receiver to TV. Set receiver to "TV" input so it will pas signal directly to/from TV. I then configured my Xbox audio options to "bitstream out" I believe - this allowed me to get 5.1 surround sound without issue.

Recently, I noticed the receiver said "Stereo - TV" instead of "Dolby Digital - TV", and that it was only playing 2.1 sound instead of 5.1. I did a little googling and figured out that I've probably had this issue for some time as Microsoft got rid of the "bitstream" option on their Xbox Series X consoles.

I've tried changing configurations on both my receiver and Xbox to no avail. I'm able to get some semblance of 5.1 by changing my Xbox audio option to "Dolby Digital" and my receiver to "Dolby PLII". When I do the sound test on my Xbox, however, the rear two speakers will sound for a split second when the front two are supposed to be playing, and there is serious delay all around. No where near what I used to have.

So what I'm wondering is if there's a way I can get some semblance of what I used to have? Any help at all is greatly appreciated!

:)

Kathy A.

Good day!

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Respectfully,

Microsoft Community Moderator

Kathy A.

Hello!

Thank you for posting in Microsoft Community.

We understand that you are trying to find a way for your surround sound system to work like it use to. It sounds like the issue may be related to the changes in audio options on the Xbox Series X.

One thing you can try is to change the audio output format on your Xbox Series X to "DTS Digital Surround" instead of "Dolby Digital" if available. This may help to restore the 5.1 surround sound that you were previously experiencing.

Additionally, you may want to check the settings on your Denon receiver to ensure that it is set up to receive and process the correct audio format. You may need to check the user manual or contact the manufacturer for your receiver to determine the correct settings.

If those steps above are already tried, we would like to ask for these details:

May we know what is the make and model of your TV?
What are the options you have for Bitstream format aside from Dolby Digital?
Have you tried playing a game on this set up: Xbox audio option to "Dolby Digital" and my receiver to "Dolby PLII"? Will the rear speakers not continue to output audio, or it will output audio in selective timeframe.

Last resort for this is to upgrade your receiver however, let us exhaust all options first before upgrading.

Sincerely,

Microsoft Community Moderator

wildwest08

I am having the same issue. I need to check my amazon prime app, but Disney+ outputs Atmos on my receiver. I have an Denon AVR with the Halo Xbox Series X and an LG CX. I have tried numerous settings, but can't get Atmos to output on the Netflix app. I have the right service on Netflix and the sound is on Atmos during the show. I have tried a few different programs, but it just stays on Dolby Surround

KosherPickles69

I have a 7.1 denon system with in wall, ceiling speakers. After ticking the surround sound beta my sound has been amazing and the display on the Denon was multi-in.

KSPslice

You should select MULTI CH IN as your surround sound mode on the Denon. This will provide surround sound, if you choose either 5.1 or 7.1 uncompressed audio on the Xbox One. This is the option that is available because is it an uncompressed PCM multi-channel
source that is coming into the AVR. Just make sure you don't have STEREO selected as your mode on the Denon. This should provide higher quality sound than DTS as it is uncompressed.

This is if you use HDMI for your audio. If you use an optical cable then your only options are stereo uncompressed and DTS Digital Sound. Then your only option is to use DTS for surround sound. It sounds like you are using HDMI as your receiver is giving
you the option of multi-channel sound.

No surround sound with Xbox Series X and old Denon receiver