HD-PVR & GB-PVR 5.1 Audio Recording?

[smajor]

Now that I have a "proper" 5.1 speaker setup, I'm wondering if anyone is successfully recording 5.1 audio with GB-PVR?

I only ask because when I went to trans-code something with Handbrake it said the source .ts was 2 channel.

I'm using AC3, and in the ArcSoft settings it is identifying my HD-PVR as using the digital audio cable and 5.1 sound.

Any hints for me?

[athomas]

Was the recorded source actually a 5.1 audio stream? A lot of channels with 5.1 capability don't broadcast 5.1 all the time, only when broadcasting specific events like movies (even some movies may not be 5.1). Try recording an actual known 5.1 source.

[Deusxmachina]

Something like MediaInfo will tell you what kind of audio a file has. It will give you a shortcut when you right-click your mouse, so it's easy to use, and then you'll know for sure if the file has 6channel.

I started transcoding a show from this past season to downsize it from 1080i and was surprised that the audio kept coming up 2.0. But MediaInfo also says it's 2.0, so I guess it's 2.0. I recall local people in a TV forum saying that channel here often either doesn't broadcast in 5.1 or they "forget to flip the switch" or something, so I guess it is what it is since other channels come up as 5.1.

I use Dscaler5 for audio decoder since the 5.1 setting consists literally of one or two checkboxes in the setup. Something "better" like AC3filter tended to act wishy-washy.

Not sure what's going on with yours. Maybe the Windows audio card/onboard setting is set to 2.0 and so that's all it outputs. Something like that. I noticed I'm actually getting something similar when playing a 5.1 in a different player like KMplayer. It even says the input file is 5.1, but then it says output is 2.0.

[Pob]

Yes my HD recordings do play back in proper 5.1 - I use Nvidia Purevideo and it correctly identifies the input, and outputs accordingly. The pre-program advertising bits are usually only 2-channel (Prologic) so the audio stream often changes mid-play.
However I have noticed that other players like MPC Home Cinema will often default to 2-channel audio, and I have to manually select the AC3 PID through options - filters. So I am wondering if the same is happening in Handbrake?

[smajor]

Thanks for the tips, I'm using the default Arcsoft stuff in GB-PVR to record. I've tried playing back on both the machine that recorded it and on my Mac, both are reporting 2 channel.

The recording I'm testing with is from HBO (HD) and it claims it is presented in 5.1 surround sound.

Does anyone know if the default ArcSoft codecs are 5.1? I'd seem to think so since things recorded in their own app seem to be.

I am using the latest Arcsoft stuff and the latest drivers for the HD-PVR.

[athomas]

The digital video and audio stream coming into the PVR card should be saved directly to the hard drive. No encoding should happen. That is the great thing with digital signals, unlike analog signals that have to be encoded to digital. Therefore, if the original signal is 5.1, it should still be 5.1. The playback may output it as 2 channel depending on your setup, but it should still be identified as 5.1 with the appropriate programs.

When I had my satellite receiver hooked up, it had 5.1 capability and many of the channels were indicating 5.1 broadcasts, but most of them were really only stereo. It is quite possible that the original broadcast was 5.1 and the local distributor encoded it to 2 channel on the fly to save bandwidth.

[smajor]

It is quite possible that the original broadcast was 5.1 and the local distributor encoded it to 2 channel on the fly to save bandwidth.

Well, that is certainly possible with any cable provider, isn't it?