Drivers & Software

[imatron]

I have an AMD Radeon HD 6870

The drivers are all up to date, but windows seems to think the device is stereo only. On the box, which I still have, it says it supports up to 7.1 surround sound, and including 5.1, but nothing I can find in the catalyst control center or Windows 10 seems to have any settings to enable 5.1. Among other issues, it also states that it supports audio over minidisplay port, which it wont do for some reason. The cables I purchase advertised audio too, but windows pops up a message any time I use them saying "display port does not support audio, you will need a separate audio cable". Mostly I just use the HDMI port anyway, but my key issue is that I want my 5.1 surround sound but cant seem to enable it anywhere in the 5 or so windows audio settings menus or the catalyst control center.

[black_zion]

If I remember correctly, on those legacy cards they used a Realtek audio processor, so be sure your Realtek driver is updated for them.

[elstaci]

in Windows 10 Sound Panel, Click and Highlight the Audio Device that you want to have 5.1 and then at the bottom left corner click on "Configure".

When you click on "Configure" it will show all the different audio setups you can use on your Audio Device. All starts at "Stereo" by default. So you must manually set it at 5.1 each time your update your AMD Audio Driver.

[elstaci]

If it only shows Stereo than you need to update the Audio driver, but your GPU is considered legacy not supported by AMD with updated drivers.

If you have your 5.1 Audio Device connected to the AMD GPU, then AMD will provide the Audio drivers. If it connected to the motherboard, then the Motherboard's Audio driver are the one powering your 5.1 audio.

I have a Onkyo 5.1 A/V Receiver connected via HMDI to my GPU card. So my GPU card Audio driver is the one that my Onkyo is listed under.

My Onkyo is listed as HT-R380 in Sound Panel and is powered by Nvidia HD Audio since I have a Nvidia GPU. But when I had a HD7850 it was the same except it stated it was powered by AMD HD Audio driver.

[imatron]

elstaci, I already found that menu after rummaging around through google but it only gives me the option for stereo. Sounds like my drivers are out of date then. I imagine the latest available drivers for my card, if not the drivers that came with it out of the box should have the 5.1 audio drivers.

Either that or the video card is pulling the TV's info through the HDMI (apparently some video cards can do that?) and reports to windows that the speakers are stereo, despite the TV's outputting my PS4 and Xbox One through the optical with surround. Seems Nvidia's video cards tend to lock audio options based on the HMDI port info reporting at least.

black_zion, I seem to think I had realtek drivers on a computer I owned, if not this one. I do not seem to have them on this PC at the moment. 

I'm using the audio from the HDMI or displayport coming from the video card itself. Apparently unplugging the HDMI lets it send audio through the displayport, a bit irritating that it doesn't just let me choose.

According to Catalyst control center, my driver packaging version is 15.201.1151.1008-151104a-296217E

In drivers my audio is listed as AMD HDMI Ouput (AMD High Definition Audio Device)

According to properties:

The drivers are listed as provided and signed by Microsoft

Driver Date: 4/11/2018

Driver version: 10.0.17134.1

Trying to check for updates through catalyst control center seems to open up Microsoft edge, who decides to hijack the page and inform me that "You should be using Microsoft Edge Browser!" and refuses to let me reach the appropriate page.

[elstaci · Accepted solution]

If your HDMI cable from the GPU Card is connected directly to the TV, that is why it will show Stereo. It isn't seeing what is connected from the output from the TV to your PS4 or XBox.

In my case, I have one HDMI cable from my GPU card connected to my Onkyo A/V Receiver and made "default Audio Device" and then I have another HDMI cable from my second GPU card output HDMI to my TV. Thus I have both 5.1 sound while the TV and Monitor are on. But the TV & Monitor speakers don't work since I have the A/V Receiver as default.

Unfortunately, you can only have one "Default Audio Device".  You may want to connect directly to the PS4 or Xbox, whichever has the 5.1 audio, directly from the GPU card and make it the "Default Audio Device". If the PS4 or Xbox has video output, then connect it to the TV.

In my case, I have from my GPU card:

1- HDMI cable connected directly to my Onkyo Receiver and made the "Default Audio Device"

2- HDMI cable connected directly to my TV

3- DisplayPort cable to my monitor.

Before I got my DP Monitor and had a previous HDMI Monitor, I had my HDMI cable connected directly from my GPU card to my Onkyo Receiver input (making it my default audio device in Sound panel). Then from my Onkyo Receiver HDMI Output I had an HDMI cable connected to my Monitor. Then I had a second HDMI cable connected from my GPU Card to my TV.  The only sound I had was from my Onkyo Receiver while still getting Video to my monitor and/or TV.

You can use an Active adapter to convert one of the Non-HDMI video outputs on your GPU card to HDMI to connect your PS4 or XBox or TV.

[imatron]

Assuming it's not a driver issue or something after all, I don't suppose there is a sensible reason that I have no option to tell it to output in 5.1 or 7.1 anyway? I mean, my PS4 and Xbox One clearly can output in 5.1 audio over their respective HDMI ports on the same TV the PC is plugged into, and the TV sends that HDMI audio out by it's optical to my 5.1 audio system just fine. Even my PS3 and 360 can output 5.1 over the HDMI. ARC and optical have been around for a while now, so it makes no sense to me that a video card that cost as much as those machines couldn't. Optical in particular was out long before my video card was released, it seems like a disservice to forcibly limit the audio output based on the monitor or TV's internal speaker when output options are usually a standard feature.

I certainly appreciate everyone's help. Maybe Ill get lucky and there's still another solution someone will think of.

[goodplay]

Not sure if this is of any use, the 'Bitstreaming audio', https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/radeon-hd-6850-6870-review,3.html

[imatron]

At the very least it's got some interesting information, and seems to confirm they intended for this card to plug into a receiver before it will output 5.1 or greater.

[imatron]

After everyone's input, it seems the solution is to order an entirely new sound system. I hoped to avoid it since my Pioneer HTS-GS1 is perfectly up to the task if not for what I consider to be questionable decision making somewhere in my video card's design process. I hope they will accept this as constructive criticism when I say My Xbox One, PS4, 360, PS3, PS2, and even my gamecube/wii have some sort of 5.1 audio output options over this surround sound speaker when routed through my TV. If the issue truly is by design and not a driver issue, I fail to see how this benefits the customer, and consider it a huge oversight that no override option is available.

Thank you everyone for your input, Ill get back to you once I've set up the new audio system, it wont be here for a while though.

EDIT/UPDATE:

The new surround system arrived much earlier than I was expecting. Plugged it in, turned everything on, and booted up my PC. The 5/7.1 options immediately unlocked as everyone suggested it might. I still think it's dumb that you can't override the setting when every console since the PS1 (Save the Switch) worked just fine routing through the TV. Please tell me drivers on more recent video cards fix this lock out >_<.

Once again, thank you everyone for your assistance.

[imatron]

Well, Ive been using an Onkyo HT-R397 for a while now. The surround WAS working, but after downloading PSO2 from the Microsoft Store and typical Microsoft problems, my hard drive got filled up with files for a game it would not let me delete or play.

After reinstalling the OS from scratch to delete the files that were crippling my system, I have once again lost the use of my 5.1 audio and cannot find any way to re-enable it. All the drivers report they are up to date. I reset the Onkyo to ensure it wasnt a button on there making it report stereo back to the PC. Ive tried changing the audio frequency according to youtube videos and the options they specify to use simply aren't there. Stereo is the only thing that shows up in the configure menu.

Only clue I have is that either it was some software that got wiped in the reinstall or a more recent software update a few days ago knocked it out, but with everything reporting the drivers are up to date, I have no idea where to look.

EDIT: OK found the solution. For some reason the GPU control panel (AMD catalyst in my case) has a check-for-updates button that incorrectly reports the drivers as being up to date. I had to go to AMD and download the newest version there. That seems to have fixed it. I don't understand  why AMD's software couldn't detect the newest version.