Issues with 5.1 Surround Sound with Windows 10

Anonymous
2019-06-25T18:59:15+00:00

I can not get 5.1 Surround Sound to play for my computer with any audio player; i.e. DVD/CD optical drive, Pandora, etc. but when I run an audio test using the device manager it tests perfectly.  I have heard that there might be a compatibility issue with 5.1/7.1 Surround Sound and Windows 10.

Please let me know if anybody has had this problem and what the solution is.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Devices and drivers

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  1. Anonymous
    2020-10-28T19:40:40+00:00

    I have 5.1 and it works (all speakers) if i use the command line to bringup netflix.com.  But if I use the app for netflix(windows 10 Pro) i get no sound at all on same program as above.  

          If i go and test the speakers in microsoft and choose 5.1 only the front speakers give the test tone. 

    Back to the beginning i have to have in microsoft the setting set to stereo -- but i get 5.1

    If i set to 5.1 i get nothing

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-10-28T16:15:13+00:00

    Do you mean that you only get stereo from Netflix? That's a problem with Netflix and the browser.

    Or do you mean you have a 5.1 speaker setup, and Windows only shows 2 speakers?

            == John ==

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  3. Anonymous
    2020-10-27T22:43:06+00:00

    It just shows stereo what do I do this is getting me so angry I'm about to break down completely

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  4. Anonymous
    2020-10-27T17:55:27+00:00

    This fix doesn't work with Realtek Audio drivers and there is no update from Realtek either.. Is there a more HD 5.1 drivers available for Windows 10 that could fix the issue... FYI it is 5.1 surround sound on Netflix though, but not on the Web or media player

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  5. Anonymous
    2020-10-27T17:37:19+00:00

    Not necessarily.

    What does it play? what does it make up to fill those channels?

    It's quite arguable. If there's no rear channel information, I don't want it faking the inside of a cathedral. Maybe you do. How do you control that choice?

    The browser tells windows "Hey, I've got two channels for you". How would windows decide to make up information for the other channels?

    I think the thing is a lot of receivers will fake surround sound, so people think Windows should. It's arguable. Windows is an operating system - they aren't always in the business of putting other software companies out of business.

    It's like getting mad at Ford that they don't include a camper in the bed of every F-150.

    There are apps out there that will turn Windows into an audio receiver. I poked around but most of them seem to want to convert surround sound into headphone sound. What you want to do is the opposite - make up information that isn't there, to take two channels and spread it out in some way to the ther channels.

    Maybe an home audio forum would be a better place to ask.

    I see some CD playing apps that'll do it, but you aren't playing a CD, you want to take what Chrome sends you and on the fly mix it into 5 channels (and hopefully without much latency).

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