[mythtv-users] HDMI Audio Options

[Roger Siddons]

On Tue, 16 Sep 2014 16:03:26 +0100, jmk <jmk at foofus.net> wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I have an older machine (Asus M2NPV-VM mainboard with integrated
> GeForce6) that I'm planning to connect a LCD TV. My hope is that I can
> do this with a single HDMI cable, no external speakers, etc.
> Unfortunately, I've struck out with my first couple of attempts:

I have the same board and setup.

>
> - DVI->HDMI (with audio). It sounds like some DVI ports will pass
> through audio. However, testing the various sound options within Myth,
> I'm only getting output from the headphone jack on the computer. Is
> there a definitive method to determine if the card supports this? I
> assume the GeForce6 is just too old.

Correct

>
> - DVI->HDMI + RCA. The TV has both HDMI and component inputs. It doesn't
> seem to allow video over HDMI and audio over the RCA connections
> though.
>

Modern TVs usually try to auto-detect the audio from HDMI then fallback to  
RCA. However this doesn't work with the M2NPV.
What TV do you have ?
I managed to get it to work on a Samsung F5000 by remapping the audio  
ports via the service menu but I believe Sony's don't have much of a  
service menu.

> - New discrete video card. I assume this is my best option at this
> point. Do most nVidia cards with HDMI support audio? Do I need to find
> one with an onboard connector to hookup to the mainboard's SPDIF output?
> Any known working options that are relatively cheap ($30ish)?
>

Any recent card will do HDMI audio. Just plugging it in should be  
sufficient. However the M2NPV only has a PCIe1.0 slot, which is also  
obsolete. Theoretically PCIe2.0 cards are compatible but I initially tried  
a brand new GT620 and it wasn't detected. It could have been a dud card or  
I could have a dud PCIe slot - I don't have alternative hardware to test.  
Or maybe the board is just too old! Make sure you check it works before  
splashing out!