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HBO Now 5.1 streaming

58K views 177 replies 56 participants last post by  mailiang 
#1 ·
I apologize if this is discussed to death already, but I don't have time to spend the afternoon searching for answers.... I was hoping to watch Game of Thrones tonight in 5.1 from HBO from my Macbook Pro. Is this even possible?

I've configured my Macbook to play in 5.1 through an HDMI/Mini Display Port cable. But when streaming through my PC I can't get anything to actually play in 5.1. For example, Breaking Bad will play fine in 5.1 when streaming through my Blu-Ray player, but I can't get it to play in 5.1 playing in Safari on my Macbook Pro.

I have a feeling it's not possible, but I just want to make sure.... Out of curiosity, does Game of Thrones stream in 5.1 through an Apple TV device?

I really appreciate any help here.
 
#2 ·
I apologize if this is discussed to death already, but I don't have time to spend the afternoon searching for answers.... I was hoping to watch Game of Thrones tonight in 5.1 from HBO from my Macbook Pro. Is this even possible?

I've configured my Macbook to play in 5.1 through an HDMI/Mini Display Port cable. But when streaming through my PC I can't get anything to actually play in 5.1. For example, Breaking Bad will play fine in 5.1 when streaming through my Blu-Ray player, but I can't get it to play in 5.1 playing in Safari on my Macbook Pro.

I have a feeling it's not possible, but I just want to make sure.... Out of curiosity, does Game of Thrones stream in 5.1 through an Apple TV device?

I really appreciate any help here.

Probably doesn't help; but it streams DD 5.1 via my HR-44 DTV HBO on demand (just watched last episode from last year getting ready for new season tonight).
 
#4 ·
Out of curiosity, does Game of Thrones stream in 5.1 through an Apple TV device?

I really appreciate any help here.
I can confirm that HBO Now streams in 1080p and DD 5.1 on the ATV 3 since I just took advantage of their free one month trial subscription.

I guess I'll see if there is enough content to keep me paying the $15/month fee.
 
#7 ·
I can confirm that HBO Now streams in 1080p and DD 5.1 on the ATV 3 since I just took advantage of their free one month trial subscription. I guess I'll see if there is enough content to keep me paying the $15/month fee.
I revisited the quality streaming question this morning by playing the first episode of the new season for Game of Thrones with the ATV3.

Below is the screenshot of the 10 minute average which is approximately 4.7 Mbps.



My reason for checking the stream rate was because the picture looked soft or at least not as sharp as to what I would consider HD 1080p.

So while it may stream as HD 1080p the bit-rate seems to be on the lower end of the scale.
 

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#5 ·
Thanks, guys. According to a source I've now looked at, if you are playing Netflix (or presumably HBO Now) on a computer, it will not be in 5.1 (and I think not HD either). This may have to do with piracy control. I suppose if I want 5.1 I'll have to get one of these devices, but I'm not sure I care that much. I just kept thinking there was some setting on my MacBook I had to adjust.
 
#6 · (Edited)
With a pc/laptop connected to a HDTV, you can stream Netflix at 1080 HD quality-only when using IE. Firefox, Chrome and presumably Safari 7 others, the Netflix website player will be limited to 720 HD.

Make sure your picture quality settings on all your Netflix profiles, is set to either ''High'' or ''Auto''. (Your account>My Profile>Playback settings)

Edit..and a quick scan over your initial post shows that your are using a Macbook. So, just...ignore what I just posted.:rolleyes:
 
#8 ·
I think we've wandered around the question but no one has really answered this question.

The question is about audio, not about video or resolution or quality of video. It's about getting 5.1 streamed through to a quality AV receiver (in my case an Onkyo). I have HDMI chosen as my output, but the Onkyo, which can display how many channels of input it sees, really only sees left and right.

I have manually selected "Dolby Pro Logic 2 Movie", which seems to be doing ok. I am wondering what's the best I can do. If there is true 5.1 encoded in the stereo signal I'm seeing through the HDMI or not. When I am playing through the headphone out (I also have that run over to the stereo) it's more obvious there are only 2 channels.

iTunes is a completely different beast and whether or not people have streamed previous seasons of GOT or other hbo shows from itunes to their stereo is irrelevant. iTunes is an apple product and it's obvious they "bothered" to decode that and send the info over the hdmi channel properly.

The question really boils down to whether flash player and/or Silverlight in a browser can decode 5.1 (or other PCM) through HDMI to a receiver.

Thanks for any help.
 
#9 ·
I think we've wandered around the question but no one has really answered this question.
Yes, I still haven't found a definitive answer to this question, but I've kind of given up. Loving the new season of Game of Thrones though, and really looking forward to True Detective.

I have manually selected "Dolby Pro Logic 2 Movie", which seems to be doing ok. I am wondering what's the best I can do. If there is true 5.1 encoded in the stereo signal I'm seeing through the HDMI or not. When I am playing through the headphone out (I also have that run over to the stereo) it's more obvious there are only 2 channels.
I'm just learning about this stuff myself, but from what I understand it seems unlikely that true 5.1 is encoded in the stereo signal. As I'm thinking of it, Dolby Pro Logic can either up-mix to 5.1 or decode 5.1 that's been matrix encoded at a stereo signal. I'm thinking that this is an obsolete way for 5.1 content to be encoded this way (again, as I currently understand it), so I suspect the receiver is up-mixing stereo content. Does this make sense and sound correct to you?

The question really boils down to whether flash player and/or Silverlight in a browser can decode 5.1 (or other PCM) through HDMI to a receiver.
One thing that I read somewhere online (can't remember the source) is that both Netflix and HBO NOW specifically don't stream their content in 5.1 to web browsers due to piracy issues. Sounds plausible I suppose.
 
#11 ·
Absolutely these are different software mediums even though they both happen over Apple's OS X:

AppleTV: Streaming happens through dedicated provider software compiled to output to HDMI because HDMI is guaranteed to be available

Mac computer: We're going to a web site and Flash or Silverlight is handling the decoding.

I have not seen anything that definitively states the browser can't do 5.1.

I am checking in with some friends who've worked on Flash over at Adobe. But even if the player can handle it, doesn't mean hbo streams that.

I will try an experiment with the ipad and the hbonow app. That doesn't really prove anything since the app is a completely different animal.
 
#17 ·
I too am having problems with getting 5.1 surround using HBO Now streamed via Apple TV.

I am connected via HDMI to my receiver and HDMI to my TV.
I have set Dolby Digital to ON (and not auto).

When using the Now app to watch a movie like Dawn of the Apes, I'm getting 5.1. Sweet. But when I watch GoT or Veep, I'm back to two channel stereo. The funny thing is my receiver (Sony STR-dg910) says that it's receiving a 5.1 signal in all cases.

It's super frustrating as I cancelled my cable with Comcast where I was getting GoT in 5.1.
 
#18 ·
There's something definitely up with your Sony receiver since I get both Veep and GoT in DD 5.1 using the Apple TV 3 and Denon 2309CI.

Try setting the receiver to auto...and for that matter double check all of your sound settings using your owner's manual.
 
#21 ·
So are you guys saying that HBO Now streaming is not HD on a PC and that it can't be output from a PC via HDMI to a TV either? I have been pondering getting HBO Now but either of those would be a dealbreaker. Their website says you can watch it on a computer and doesn't mention anything about reduced quality.
 
#23 ·
I am doing the one month free trial of HBONOw and I think the video is awful compared to even a standard DVD. I can only get stereo sound. I am using my HTPC to view from a browser. I watched season 1 and 2 of GoT on standard DVDs played by the same HTPC. It was light years better in both video and sound quality(5.1)
 
#25 ·
I signed up for the free trial Saturday. And my experience viewing on the pc matches earlier posts. The picture quality is astoundingly poor-Hulu and Youtube are superior to what I'm seeing. Not the quality one one expects coming from a brand as vaulted as HBO.
 
#26 ·
I've been checking out reviews on Google Play since they enabled Now for Chromecast and it looks like a good service to stay away from. With Showtime on Hulu+ I get all seasons of episodes while I read that HBO is playing "we'll only let you see some of our precious jewels" for almost twice the price.
 
#27 ·
^^ I was also surprised over the content made available on Now. Yes, the service is a little over 5 months old, and it was unrealistic to expect the entire 40 yr HBO catalog to be featured at launch, all at the same time, but given the breath and depth of what they've produced and or accumulated over the years, I was hopeful of a more dynamic range of movies-older ones especially, to be on.
Based on what's there now, I won't need to go beyond the free trial. I was thinking I'd at least keep it for a few months.
 
#28 ·
HBO Now went live for Fire TV / Fire Stick over the weekend, been mostly dissapointed with it so far. No Dolby support is my biggest complaint, second is the video quality- which seems to take longer to stabilize to HD than either Amazon or Netflix. The GoT title sequence? Most of the cast titles are illegible for almost a minute after you've started playing. Even the Amazon Prime HBO selections are delivered in better quality than this.

Hoping it's simply 1.0 issues and it'll be addressed soon. If not, I'll just cancel now and re-up next spring for GoT season six.
 
#30 ·
HBO Now looks and sounds fine on the Apple TV 3. Game of Thrones is in Dolby Digital 5.1.

I just tried watching GoT on my iMac and it looks and sounds fine.

I have TWC 15/1 service so it's not that I have screaming fast internet speeds but it's proven adequate for all my streaming needs.

I've had HBO Now since it debuted on Apple devices with no problems at all.
 
#31 · (Edited)
I also decided to try HBO Now last week since it showed up on my FireTV and was incredibly dissapointed with the PQ.

My internet service is not the best. I have theoretically 12Mbps of Download, achieve the highest tier of both Netflix 1080p and Hulu and it normally oscilates between 2/3 bars on VUDU HDX.

With HBO Now, however... I'm not sure what I was actually receiving but... pixels, macroblocks, banding all over the place! I switched between my ATV2 (limited to 720p) and my FireTV Stick at 1080p and couldn't really tell a difference between the two. Scenes without movement do have detail, but as soon as there was a slight movement, a slight camera pan of some sort... it really became painful to watch.

Some other(s) user(s) mentioned it as well, but for me Hulu also looks a lot better than what I saw with HBO Now.
 
#32 ·
My internet service is not the best. I have theoretically 12Mbps of Download, achieve the highest tier of both Netflix 1080p and Hulu and it normally oscilates between 2/3 bars on VUDU HDX.

With HBO Now, however... I'm not sure what I was actually receiving but... pixels, macroblocks, banding all over the place! I switched between my ATV2 (limited to 720p) and my FireTV Stick at 1080p and couldn't really tell a difference between the two. Scenes without movement do have detail, but as soon as there was a slight movement, a slight camera pan of some sort... it really became painful to watch.
Those are my symptoms exactly, any movement or camera pan on the screen and it becomes the exact opposite of smooth. I also have 12Mbps Internet service. CenturyLink by any chance? For comparison, HBO Go on my PS3 looked great.
 
#33 ·
HBO Go had problems on my Chromecast which I assumed had more to do with the Chromecast and wifi than HBO Go. But Go was not available on my Sony BD player which uses Ethernet. I haven't tried Now with my Chromecast which now has the Ethernet adapter but the recently acquired Nvidia Shield Console would be a better choice when HBO supports it. And I am going to wait for HBO to have something I actually want to watch. "Utopia" was on the list but apparently no longer and besides I have the original on BD.
 
#35 ·
Searching if others are having issues with the poor HBO Now sound quality brought me to this thread.

I use it with Chromecast and FireTv stick. I just sent HBO a question to ask if they're going to enable DD 5.1 (+) on either of these devices.

It isn't just that it is only 2 channel sound, it is also that the sound quality itself is of very low quality, very muffled.

Is it a lot better on an AppleTV device?

If HBO didn't make us pay via the Google store, they'd save 30% on the google tax.
 
#36 ·
I can't give you a universal answer but on my ATV3 going into a Denon 2309CI and 5.1 speaker setup it sounds fine.

DD 5.1 sounds fine on the all the ATV3 apps I use including Netflix, Hulu+ (2.0) and HBO Now. I don't hear any difference between ATV3 DD 5.1 and the Roku DD+ 5.1.

HBO Now is billed through iTunes. $15.75 including tax.
 
#96 ·
That's from August, 2015.

Now, May 2, 2016, I just got the EXACT same message back from HBO NOW when I asked why I wasn't getting 5.1 sound on my FireTV.
 
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#43 ·
I tried an experiment last night with my PC setup and the quality became much better. I have my PC connected to my AVR with an HDMI cable and that AVR is connected to my TV with another HDMI cable. I used to have my AVR be a second display but last night I tried the Duplicate Desktop option instead of Extend Desktop. HBO Now looked much better than it ever has before. Don't know if my graphics card didn't like running things at different resolutions or what (my main monitor is 1440p) but I'm much happier with HBO Now. Has anyone else tried running with a cloned desktop instead of a separate display?
 
#45 ·
i just tried this with my Roku 3 - i couldn't get 5.1 sound while watching True Detective Season 1 :( not sure if this is because i am still on the free trial? Roku actually allows you to choose between 2 audio tracks. Track 1 is stereo. when i choose track 2, the screen will not go pass the Loading message, even though it has been loaded fully...

i've posted about this on HBO Now Facebook page - hope to get some response...
 
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