HDMI Passthrough - Blu-ray Forum

TenaciousDHo · 07-21-2009, 03:42 PM

I've seen a bunch of posts about this, but most of them are somewhat conflicting because theres no industry standard on what "HDMI Passthrough" actually means.

I just purchased a Yamaha RX-V465, which has HDMI Passthrough (although it doesn't specify if its audio or video), but I'm still trying to figure out exactly what it will do. I understand that some passthrough's just refer to outputting the same signal as the input, as opposed to upscaling signals to 1080. But I've also seen that it means that you can pass an HDMI video and/or audio signal through the receiver without having to turn it on.

Anybody know Yamaha's definition of passthrough? Ultimately, I'm trying to hook up my HD DVR through the receiver so that I can watch TV without surround sound, but have the option to turn on the Yammy if theres something good on.
Thanks in advance if you guys can shed some light on this for me.

FRAK · 07-21-2009, 03:50 PM

Similar to my set-up... I have a pass-through Yamaha reciever as well (sorry, can't remember the model.)

I don't run "through" my reciever. I have an hdmi cable running from my BD player to my TV (Kuro 111fd), and an optical digital audio cable running from my TV to my receiver. This gives us the option of watching with either the TV audio or the 5.1 receiver audio.

Hope that made sense.

langn08 · 07-21-2009, 03:53 PM

The pass-through serves as a way for the receiver to pull HD audio from the HDMI cord.

TenaciousDHo · 07-21-2009, 03:55 PM

Yeah, that makes sense, FRAK. I was originally going to run the HMDI straight to the TV, then optical to receiver... But I'm just trying to understand the whole passthrough thing with the Yammy in case there is a better set up.

gonzo nixon · 07-21-2009, 05:36 PM

I have the rxv765. For Yamaha passthrough means whatever hdmi signal is being input to the receiver can be viewed on the tv even if the receiver is off. It will show the last hdmi input selected before the receiver was turned off. This is the best configuration to use if you want to watch your dvr or whatever with just the tv for speakers as it involves fewer cables. You have to turn this feature on in the function menu.

TenaciousDHo · 07-21-2009, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gonzo nixon

I have the rxv765. For Yamaha passthrough means whatever hdmi signal is being input to the receiver can be viewed on the tv even if the receiver is off. It will show the last hdmi input selected before the receiver was turned off. This is the best configuration to use if you want to watch your dvr or whatever with just the tv for speakers as it involves fewer cables. You have to turn this feature on in the function menu.

Awesome, thanks gonzo... Does that work for audio too, or just video?

gonzo nixon · 07-21-2009, 06:42 PM

works for both.

hylong · 07-21-2009, 07:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FRAK

Similar to my set-up... I have a pass-through Yamaha reciever as well (sorry, can't remember the model.)

I don't run "through" my reciever. I have an hdmi cable running from my BD player to my TV (Kuro 111fd), and an optical digital audio cable running from my TV to my receiver. This gives us the option of watching with either the TV audio or the 5.1 receiver audio.

Hope that made sense.

Your receiver only see at best Dolby Digital, DTS 5.1. and/or PCM stereo NOT lossless 5.1 True HD, DTS MA.

langn08 · 07-21-2009, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hylong

Your receiver only see at best Dolby Digital, DTS 5.1. and/or PCM stereo NOT lossless 5.1 True HD, DTS MA.

I am assuming you are referring to the fact that he is using an optical from the TV to the receiver which will NOT give him lossless correct?

My_Two_Cents · 07-21-2009, 07:53 PM

Most of these responses are incorrect. HDMI passthrough means the your receiver will only "pass through" the audio and video to the TV/display without any sort of audio and/or video processing. HDMI passthrough does not allow you to enjoy HD audio, as the receiver cannot process audio through HDMI. You'll have to settle for lossy optical.

langn08 · 07-21-2009, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricshoe

Most of these responses are incorrect. HDMI passthrough means the your receiver will only "pass through" the audio and video to the TV/display without any sort of audio and/or video processing. HDMI passthrough does not allow you to enjoy HD audio, as the receiver cannot process audio through HDMI. You'll have to settle for lossy optical.

I guess I need clarification then, Even the ONKYO 607 lists it as HDMI passthrough. If you receiver can pull HD audio it would have to get it from the HDMI from the blu-player. So for example my PS3 is connected to my yammy 465 with HDMI and then an HDMI to my TV. My receiver is pulling PCM HD audio from the HDMI. So how is this not lossless?

JimShaw · 07-21-2009, 08:09 PM

I run an HDMI cable from the player directly to the TV and then run a multi channel audio system from the player to pass through the receiver to the speakers

The player does the audio processing and the receiver sends it to the speakers without any processing

My_Two_Cents · 07-21-2009, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by langn08

I guess I need clarification then, Even the ONKYO 607 lists it as HDMI passthrough. If you receiver can pull HD audio it would have to get it from the HDMI from the blu-player. So for example my PS3 is connected to my yammy 465 with HDMI and then an HDMI to my TV. My receiver is pulling PCM HD audio from the HDMI. So how is this not lossless?

From what you describe, that is lossless. Maybe the manufacturers are changing the terminology? Every time I've read HDMI passthrough on a receiver (or 'most' HTiB's), it means exactly what I dscribed above. I've got an Onkyo 705, and it does not list the term passthough (but of course accepts and processes HDMI audio).

I just looked up the OP's receiver, and nowhere do I read the term 'HDMI Passthrough'. It specifically stated that it decodes HD audio and switches 4 HDMI inputs.

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/p...?CNTID=5027893

got rice · 07-21-2009, 08:21 PM

The Yamaha RX-v 465 is HDMI v1.3, so the audio is capable of lossless audio, however the video is "passed through" untouched with no upconversion.

Before HDMI v1.3,(ie HDMI v1.1 )the term "pass through" meant the video was the only HD signal that was able to pass throught the HDMI cable. So the audio had to be connected with a second cable typically a digital coax, or toslink cable. These type of cables were limited to 2 channel lossless sound.

Any HDMI v1.3 that is coined Pass through is the video signal and doesn't allow upconversion.

langn08 · 07-21-2009, 08:41 PM

Ok so here is a question for you. Here is the link to my receiver the 463 (last year’s model)

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/p...ETYP=ATTRIBUTE

Now given that this model does NOT have dolby True HD, am I still receiving lossless from my PCM(PS3) via HDMI?

got rice · 07-21-2009, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by langn08

Ok so here is a question for you. Here is the link to my receiver the 463 (last year’s model)

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/p...ETYP=ATTRIBUTE

Now given that this model does NOT have dolby True HD, am I still receiving lossless from my PCM(PS3) via HDMI?

Yes as long as you have the PS3 set to LPCM, then you will be getting uncompressed lossless sound. The only thing is yourreceiver will show LPCM and not True Hd or DTS-ma. Don't let this discourage you tho, you are still getting uncompressed sound.

If you are bit streaming to your receiver then you will not be getting the lossless codecs through Dolby True HD and DTS ma.

My_Two_Cents · 07-21-2009, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by langn08

Ok so here is a question for you. Here is the link to my receiver the 463 (last year’s model)

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/p...ETYP=ATTRIBUTE

Now given that this model does NOT have dolby True HD, am I still receiving lossless from my PCM(PS3) via HDMI?

Short answer: Yes. You can tell this by the phrase "HD Audio LPCM 5.1-channel reception (up to 96kHz)" under the other notable features list.

langn08 · 07-21-2009, 09:15 PM

Thank you both for the clarification!!

FRAK · 07-21-2009, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricshoe

Most of these responses are incorrect. HDMI passthrough means the your receiver will only "pass through" the audio and video to the TV/display without any sort of audio and/or video processing. HDMI passthrough does not allow you to enjoy HD audio, as the receiver cannot process audio through HDMI. You'll have to settle for lossy optical.

That's exactly why I go the route I mentioned before. It doesn't help the audio to pass through it, and logistically it just works best for us to run our Dish box and BD player into our TV (Kuro 111fd) with hdmi cables, then run one digital optical audio cable from the TV to the receiver.

TenaciousDHo · 07-21-2009, 11:10 PM

OK, just to follow up and confirm the passthrough functionality for the Yamaha RX-V465, it WILL pass audio and video from HDMI without having the receiver turned on. As gonzo nixon said, this is a feature that you have to turn on in the setup menu.

It does produce lossless audio from my PS3 (as others stated, when it is set to LPCM) while the receiver is ON. When the receiver is OFF, I can still get 1080p signal from PS3, 1080i signal from DVR, and the audio is less than ideal, but the built-in speakers on a Samsung LCD are far from high def anyway

The appeal of this set up is if you don't care for the audio from cable, or you don't want to keep the neighbors up with audio.

Thanks for all the input, guys. Perhaps we should rally AV manufacturers to standardize "passthrough" and contrast ratio some time soon?

07-21-2009, 03:42 PM	#1
TenaciousDHo Active Member Member since:Mar 2008 Location:Chicago, IL 4K collection:80 Blu-ray collection:738 Blu-ray reviews:3 Trading Score:2	HDMI Passthrough I've seen a bunch of posts about this, but most of them are somewhat conflicting because theres no industry standard on what "HDMI Passthrough" actually means. I just purchased a Yamaha RX-V465, which has HDMI Passthrough (although it doesn't specify if its audio or video), but I'm still trying to figure out exactly what it will do. I understand that some passthrough's just refer to outputting the same signal as the input, as opposed to upscaling signals to 1080. But I've also seen that it means that you can pass an HDMI video and/or audio signal through the receiver without having to turn it on. Anybody know Yamaha's definition of passthrough? Ultimately, I'm trying to hook up my HD DVR through the receiver so that I can watch TV without surround sound, but have the option to turn on the Yammy if theres something good on. Thanks in advance if you guys can shed some light on this for me.

07-21-2009, 08:09 PM	#12
JimShaw Blu-ray Samurai Member since:Jul 2008 Location:Menifee, CA 4K collection:49 Blu-ray collection:1069 Trading Score:141	I run an HDMI cable from the player directly to the TV and then run a multi channel audio system from the player to pass through the receiver to the speakers The player does the audio processing and the receiver sends it to the speakers without any processing Last edited by JimShaw; 07-21-2009 at 08:25 PM.

07-21-2009, 08:41 PM	#15
langn08 Expert Member Member since:Jan 2009 Location:Fox Cities WI Home Theater Gallery:14 Blu-ray collection:373 Trading Score:6	Ok so here is a question for you. Here is the link to my receiver the 463 (last year’s model) http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/p...ETYP=ATTRIBUTE Now given that this model does NOT have dolby True HD, am I still receiving lossless from my PCM(PS3) via HDMI? Last edited by langn08; 07-21-2009 at 08:45 PM.

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07-21-2009, 03:50 PM	#2
FRAK Active Member Member since:Jan 2009 Location:Mt. Juliet, TN Home Theater Gallery:3 4K collection:59 Blu-ray collection:1016 DVD collection:80 Trading Score:2	Similar to my set-up... I have a pass-through Yamaha reciever as well (sorry, can't remember the model.) I don't run "through" my reciever. I have an hdmi cable running from my BD player to my TV (Kuro 111fd), and an optical digital audio cable running from my TV to my receiver. This gives us the option of watching with either the TV audio or the 5.1 receiver audio. Hope that made sense.

07-21-2009, 03:53 PM	#3
langn08 Expert Member Member since:Jan 2009 Location:Fox Cities WI Home Theater Gallery:14 Blu-ray collection:373 Trading Score:6	The pass-through serves as a way for the receiver to pull HD audio from the HDMI cord.

07-21-2009, 03:55 PM	#4
TenaciousDHo Active Member Member since:Mar 2008 Location:Chicago, IL 4K collection:80 Blu-ray collection:738 Blu-ray reviews:3 Trading Score:2	Yeah, that makes sense, FRAK. I was originally going to run the HMDI straight to the TV, then optical to receiver... But I'm just trying to understand the whole passthrough thing with the Yammy in case there is a better set up.

07-21-2009, 05:36 PM	#5
gonzo nixon Member Member since:May 2008 4K collection:14 Blu-ray collection:21 DVD collection:4	I have the rxv765. For Yamaha passthrough means whatever hdmi signal is being input to the receiver can be viewed on the tv even if the receiver is off. It will show the last hdmi input selected before the receiver was turned off. This is the best configuration to use if you want to watch your dvr or whatever with just the tv for speakers as it involves fewer cables. You have to turn this feature on in the function menu.

07-21-2009, 06:42 PM	#7
gonzo nixon Member Member since:May 2008 4K collection:14 Blu-ray collection:21 DVD collection:4	works for both.

07-21-2009, 07:53 PM	#10
My_Two_Cents Blu-ray Knight Top contributor Member since:Dec 2007 Location:Wherever I may roam.... Home Theater Gallery:40 4K collection:35 Blu-ray collection:507 DVD collection:19 Blu-ray reviews: 1 Trading Score:4	Most of these responses are incorrect. HDMI passthrough means the your receiver will only "pass through" the audio and video to the TV/display without any sort of audio and/or video processing. HDMI passthrough does not allow you to enjoy HD audio, as the receiver cannot process audio through HDMI. You'll have to settle for lossy optical.

07-21-2009, 08:21 PM	#14
got rice Senior Member Member since:Jan 2009	The Yamaha RX-v 465 is HDMI v1.3, so the audio is capable of lossless audio, however the video is "passed through" untouched with no upconversion. Before HDMI v1.3,(ie HDMI v1.1 )the term "pass through" meant the video was the only HD signal that was able to pass throught the HDMI cable. So the audio had to be connected with a second cable typically a digital coax, or toslink cable. These type of cables were limited to 2 channel lossless sound. Any HDMI v1.3 that is coined Pass through is the video signal and doesn't allow upconversion.

07-21-2009, 09:15 PM	#18
langn08 Expert Member Member since:Jan 2009 Location:Fox Cities WI Home Theater Gallery:14 Blu-ray collection:373 Trading Score:6	Thank you both for the clarification!!

07-21-2009, 11:10 PM	#20
TenaciousDHo Active Member Member since:Mar 2008 Location:Chicago, IL 4K collection:80 Blu-ray collection:738 Blu-ray reviews:3 Trading Score:2	OK, just to follow up and confirm the passthrough functionality for the Yamaha RX-V465, it WILL pass audio and video from HDMI without having the receiver turned on. As gonzo nixon said, this is a feature that you have to turn on in the setup menu. It does produce lossless audio from my PS3 (as others stated, when it is set to LPCM) while the receiver is ON. When the receiver is OFF, I can still get 1080p signal from PS3, 1080i signal from DVR, and the audio is less than ideal, but the built-in speakers on a Samsung LCD are far from high def anyway The appeal of this set up is if you don't care for the audio from cable, or you don't want to keep the neighbors up with audio. Thanks for all the input, guys. Perhaps we should rally AV manufacturers to standardize "passthrough" and contrast ratio some time soon?

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