Solution to play DSD audio via TOSLINK to my receiver?

[d_archivist]

First, I'm sorry to rehash an old discussion. But I can't seem to find any current information that's useful.

I recently purchased a Marantz SR5013 for my office; I have my old Pioneer SACD player attached to the multichannel analog input, and my Mac Pro 5,1 (2012) connected via optical.

I have some dsd-formatted music only files on my Mac that I can play just fine (using Pine Player) in stereo, but not in 5.1; after some research, my understanding is that the 2012 Mac Pro 5,1 will _only_ output 2-channel audio.

My first thought was to use a Raspberry Pi; I have one with a HiFiBerry digi+ and Volumio. But from what I've read online, this will similarly output only 2 channel audio via optical.

Next thought would be to use the pi's HDMI output; again, I've read that 5.1 audio isn't supported.

First question: are any of the above assumptions correct?

Second question: what's the most reliable way to play 5.1 audio files to my AVR? An Intel NUC? An Apple TV? A USB-to-Optical converter for my Mac? Grab a BDP-S6700 player to replace the Pioneer?

I'd rather not spend more than a few hundred dollars to make this work.

Thoughts?

 

[MAAC0]

the 2012 Mac Pro 5,1 will _only_ output 2-channel audio.

I'm not familiar with Apple, but check if there is a pass-thru switch in software for the bitstream.
Does it play DVD's in 5.1 or DTS via dedicated player like Windvd or Powerdvd ?

My desktop with a Creative 5.1 card plays fine DSD multi-channel In Foobar2000.
I Believe VLC also does it, but not usual media players.

 

[d_archivist]

Thanks for the reply. My understanding is that it doesn't (and my attempt to play with Pine didn't work). But I have Foobar as well, so I'll give that a try.

Thanks again!

 

[d_archivist]

Unfortunately, Foobar for Mac doesn't seem to support plugins (I could be wrong), so I wasn't able to install the SACD or DSD support. However, I was able to install in on an old LattePanda Windows 10 Pro system, and I was able to get 5.1 audio through the HDMI port.

Any recommendations for a USB soundcard that supports 5.1 DSD over optical?

 

[wealas]

You can't pass pure DSD over optical - it could work via DoP but you're still limited to 2 channels.
Looking at the manual, it shows only 2 channel support for any digital media via any digital transport (page 257 for example over network transport) so you're out of luck even if you convert DSD to multichannel PCM.

 

[d_archivist]

Good to know. Thanks for taking the time to reply.

 

[phofman]

Is it really 5.1 DSD?

 

[d_archivist]

The source files seem to be. I can play the files through my Windows 10 system using MusicBee and they display as 5.1 (and I get all channels through my AVR via HDMI). But no luck from the Mac.

I received an email from accessories4less (where I purchased my Marantz) and they state that "...yes, it will support 5.1 over digital inputs." I suppose that leaves some wiggle room as to what they consider as 5.1.

 

[phofman]

5.1 and DSD are two different things. Perhaps you meant 5.1 DTS?

 

[d_archivist]

I did and I apologize for the confusion. Thanks!

 

[phofman]

Lossy 5.1DTS (as well as DD/AC3) is typically transferred over a 2ch PCM stream. These non-PCM formats have a special header marker in their stream, for the receiver to recognize it is not PCM. In addition, non-audio bit should be set in the SPDIF preamble. The SPDIF preamble is to be set by the player, via API of the SPDIF transmitter driver. AV receivers have supported 5.1 DD/DTS over SPDIF since the very first 5.1 AVRs.

5.1 DTS uses full CD-audio bitrate - 44.1kHz x 16bit x 2 channels = 1.41Mbps. 5.1 DD requires about 650kbps, and the player pads the stream with zeros to fill the CD-audio bitrate supported by the soundcards/SPDIF transmitters.

Unrecognized DD/DTS being played as PCM produces a very loud noise (having maximum scale of the digital stream).

 

[wealas]

Looks like 5.1 audio via HDMI is possible on RPI: How to enable 5.1 channel audio over HDMI - Raspberry Pi Forums you just need to use Pulseaudio. And then make whatever player you use convert the DSD to PCM.