How to TrueHD or DTS Master HDMI to receiver

[andrespibr]

When are we having this option working on MACOS ? I could get Encoded output with DTS but not TrueHD.

[guykuo]

Short answer - you cannot output advanced audio formats via bitstream under MacOS. It was reportedly possible on the Intel Mac Mini's if they were running Windows, but MacOS doesn't support output of more than 5.1 in bitstream. Apparently, the M1 Mac Mini doesn't have the HDMI hardware to make it possible, but lacking a Windows build for Apple Silicon, we'll never know.

The best, partial work around is to enable 7.1 channels using the MIDI device utility. That lets you send 8 channels of audio out the HDMI port in PCM format. Set system audio output to that 8 channel device. VLC then gets set to use system device as the audio output. It's not as good as a raw bitstream output of things like Atoms, but it can be fairly convincing to run the ground level 7.1 channels through dolby surround or DTS-X up mixer on your receiver. That will get you to about 60% of the height effects of a proper bitstream output. I do that with my Mac Mini M1 feeding a 7.2.4 audio system.

YES - bitstream of Dolby Atmos from a streaming device definitely sounds bigger and with more precise effects in the height layer. The 7.1 channel work around is the best you can do with a MacOS machine (as of this writing)

Setting VLC to output "encoded" won't help because MacOS will only let the 5.1 channels out via bitstream.

BTW, if you use the Midii 8 channel work around, you will probably need to reassign some channels to make each speaker play is correct channel.