Issues with 5.1 Surround Sound with Windows 10

Speaker Fill is still alive and well in Realtek drivers --- it's your motherboard's decision whether to include it or not.

I really opened this just to figure out a way to get 5.1 working in Windows 10. When I test all speakers work. When I play a dvd movie all speakers work. Nothing else does. I know Microsoft no longer pays dolby since windows 7. Back to original question. Anyone have a good work around even to just emulate 5.1? I remember realtek use to have that but no longer. Any answers?

I appreciate facts added to the discussion. The possibility that echo suppression is interfering with a Windows 10 setting the speakers at 5.1 Surround sounds plausible and I appreciate that the logic of 5.1 echo suppression may be, shall we say, a bit past the point of economic return on investment compared with tried and tested Stereo audio suppression. Stick with Stereo for Skype.

But Skype could easily determine if the sound environment it finds itself in works. We know 5.1 does not work with Skype, and so must the Skype technicians. So put in the error message. I am interested to see how Teams deals with this issue. Sooner or later there will be a fix or an error message.

There is nothing to fix. There is no failure on Microsoft's part.

Your issue comes from the fact that if you are using skype and speakers --- skype has to cancel your voice with Acoustic Echo Cancellation so that you don't get massive feedback.

Acoustic Echo Cancellation only works in stereo.

Even if you go and buy yourself a fancy soundcard (instead of using built-in Realtek onboard audio chip) and you use that fancy soundcard's AEC function --- that fancy soundcard's AEC also only works in stereo.

Well, at last some actual information about Skype's "failures".

I am expressing an opinion when I say that Skype fails completely to deliver audio when the host computer OS (Windows) is set to output 5.1 sound and that an app like Skype that absolutely depends on the best audio possible under the circumstances need not fail in such circumstances.

Your reply explains why the Dr. killed the patient but does nothing to justify the act. We do agree that Skype audio fails in 5.1 mode.

Skype, on loading, could check the environmental sound settings and issue an error message if it discovers an environment known to cause audio failures. This would be the least demanding task for a motivated programmer.

Or, Skype could engage an audio transform "app" that bridged the well-known gap between telephony analog "bit rates" and the demands of 5.1 surround sound. Some sounds get through accurately so the transformation may not be complicated.

How about a script that switches Windows to and from Stereo <-> 5.1 Surround that runs when Skype is loaded and gracefully terminated? Just a couple of mouse clicks for me to do that.