AirPlay/ Denon & Marantz FAQ: start here - Page 2

I successfully downloaded Airplay on my Denon A100 but I do not have an Ipod touch just yet. Can itunes stream to The Denon just from the PC only? Some are talking about a speaker symbol but I dont see it on the PC itunes. I do stream other content and denon is recognized
-Dave

Nobody really knows although I spent a very frustrating hour explaining the "situation" to Denon support. After first learning that nobody in the support center had even loaded the update yet (this is yesterday/Monday) and after having to escalate to Japan (supposedly), I was informed Airplay is implemented as designed

Until we get an answer from Denon Jeff who I hope is taking this back to product management, we are stuck with a flawed implementation that makes Airplay useless for many people. Hopefully the $50 they got from me along with others on this forum who feel similarly ripped off will be put into developing a "fix" for this.

I wonder what they'd do if you asked for a refund?

For $50 more get an ATV2 or Airport Express and stream relialbly and with video. Use an iTouch or iPhone as the remote and get full album artork and info as well without squinting at the AVR display or having a TV on. Load the Pandora and LastFM apps on the iDevice and stream that content withour even having the PC on.

+1

Or do what I did, HDMI from my Mac Pro to the AVR. I can mirror the displays for watching movies rented on itunes. And I use the free remote app on my iphone to control my itunes library. All with 0 audio/video quality loss.

As mayhem mentioned going the ATV or Airport express is a great option if you can't run HDMI from your computer.

For the HDMI out from my Mac I use a DVI/Optical to HDMI converter from monoprice. Works like a charm.

iTunes can indeed stream from the PC only.

If your computer is connected to the network and your receiver is running Airplay successfully, you should see an icon allowing you to stream to the receiver in the bottom right corner of iTunes. It looks like a rectangle with a filled in triangle at the bottom and give you the choice of your computer or the Denon. (I'm running a sister Marantz with the update, and it's working great and reliably here, but I don't know if the Denon might work any differently - I shouldn't think it should...).

Hope this helps.

My 4th ATV arrived this morning. I like the speed and interface of the 2nd generation so I've updated both TVs in the house. I am using the toslink out from one of the older ATVs as a digital input to zone2 on a Denon 4311. This has replaced an old airport express which has been retired because it was G radio only among other things. Incidentally iTunes runs from a mac mini which is connected via USB M-Audio output to an external DAC into a Rotel Pre-amp on to 500W power amp and then 2 channel stereo B&W 803Ds. The same mac mini is controlled from iPads and iPhones via the remote app and destinations over AirPlay (formerly airtunes) are selected for output.

I say all this just to establish bona fides when it comes to the world of iTunes and Apple centric music streaming. I've been doing it since the very first airtunes airport express shipped several years ago.

Needless to say this isn't about the money for me just the principle of being charged $50 for what I believe is a very poorly implemented feature by Denon/Marantz. If they correct it and I can stream directly to zone 2 on my 4311 then I'll be very happy and it will be $50 well spent. I would get to remove another link in the chain, power down an old ATV and I get the original source (albeit downsampled) directly to the AVR.

The best suggestion for fixing this I have read on this forum is for the AVR to present all three zones (if configured/selected) to iTunes. If only one zone can be configured for AirPlay control (there may be a processor limitation) then make it optional in the configration. What really gets me about all this is what on earth was Denon thinking when they decided to do it this way. Given that Airplay (as far as an AVR is concerned) is for streaming audio and specifically *not* video then why lock it to the home theatre zone? Seriously does anyone really care to see "what's playing" on their big home theatre screens? For those that don't use zones why would anyone spend $50 for AirPlay when you can get a complete ATV2 for $99? The *only* rationale for AirPlay on an AVR that makes the remotest sense to me is to support audio to the other zones.

DenonJeff has confirmed that the Airplay feature is working as designed and that there is no firmware update expected to correct the issue of Airplay Zone 2 taking over the main zone audio.

I would expect nothing less than a reflexive it's the other guys problem but I don't buy it for a second. This was very poorly thought out at the requirements specification stage. We already know that net/USB works to zone 2 independently.. 'nuff said.

I can get it to work flawlessly from iTunes, but if I try from iPod on my iPad it changes my Marantz SR7005 input over to NET / USB as it should, but nothing happens. And of course I choose in iPod software to use my Marantz (SR7005) to play the music.

I have latest firmware on both my iPad and Marantz, I've restarted all units, and as I said it works fine from iTunes, and iTunes is closed when I try from my iPad.

I have not tried from the REMOTE, but it should work from the iPod on my iPad right?

Hi there,

I have a couple of problems with my Denon 3311ci after the airplay upgrade. I've scanned the forums and this thread and haven't seen anyone with these issues, so I thought maybe someone had some suggestions:

1) The on screen display for net/usb is not displaying anything on my TV anymore. Other display options work just fine, i.e. when I switch the source. Also, the volume display works for the net/usb source.

2) I can select the receiver for airplay when playing music on my iPhone, but I don't get any sound. The airplay icon turns blue, so it seems like it's connecting. Interestingly, on iTunes on my mac, when I try to select the receiver, it doesn't allow me to do so (but with no error message -- it just doesn't select).

Any help would be most appreciated!

Thanks!

One problem solved: I disabled IPv6 on my mac's network connection and I can now connect iTunes to the Denon via airplay. Unfortunately it seems that there is no option to disable IPv6 on iOS 4.2 devices so that's not going to work for the iPhone or iPad. Unless anyone here knows how that might be possible...?

Still having the problem with the OSD disappearing for the NET/USB connection, though.

I recently upgraded my denon 3311.
Sometimes i have to reset my linksys router because itunes doesnt recognize the Denon.
Today i was listening music but when i connect my notebook the music stopped and the denon dissapeared from my itunes.
Any suggestions ?

Thanks

Hi All

I have downloaded the Airplay upgrade, but there is no Airplay icon in my Itunes, i have followed the manual but no luck. I have the Denon 3311 an Iphone 4 an Iphone 3gs and a Macbook all on the same network.. Anybody with a good idea of was is wrong??

Thanks

I am glad I didn't jump on the airplay purchase right away. I am quite disappointed that this feature isn't any better than using an airport express/apple tv2. When I spent $1200 I expected that a small feature like this would be included especially since it doesn't add $50 worth of functionality.

I was alos quite shocked at how basic the gui was. I felt like I was back on windows 3.1 or something compared to the samsung tv, blu-ray player, apple tv2 or xbox.

Unfortunately, I downloaded Airplay as I trusted Denon to do the right -but not. I suffered the $50 and was disappointed. Do yourself a favor and get ATV2 as I was so frustrated with Airplay. Glad I did. I wanted Zone 2 to play Airplay and it will not. I don't think ATV2 will either for that matter but the $100 spent on the ATV2 gave me better value for my money
-Dave

^^^

fwiw, on my av7005, airplay most certainly WILL stream to the sub-zones... the issue is that it also hijacks the main zone in the process...

that "hijacking" of the main zone is why i decided to go back to using my mac mini as my "main streamer"... that being said, the convenience of having airplay enabled on the pre-pro/avr is nice as well... i still use it, as sometimes my main itunes library on the mini is in use by someone else...

airplay "is what it is"... is it as functional as an atv (or other solution)? no, it is not... but for what it does do (stream music from any idevice, etc.), it's a functional tool, and with the exception of the "hijacking" drawback (which isn't relevant if the user isn't using multiple zones), it works pretty good...

as far as the atv streaming to zone 2... depends on the avr/pre-pro, not the atv itself... it doesn't care...

$50 for an "upgrade" that can't distinguish between zones? That's crazy.

This is my first experience with Denon, but I certainly expect better of Apple.

Any chance that this might be corrected in future iterations of AirPlay? I know it was mentioned that this is "working as designed," but when it's been designed by lobotomized monkeys, surely there has to be a feature/bugfix update in the works?

This has NOTHING to do with Apple or Airplay. it's simply a limitation of input matrixing for the Denon. Airplay SENDS the signal to the AVR. It's up to the AVR to do the rest. Maybe Denon shouldn't have commited themselves to 3rd party support KNOWING that the hardware was not capable of supporting it in a way that it's users are accustomed.

In other words, spend the extra $50 and get the device that APPLE DOES RIGHT, the Airport express or ATV2 of which ANY AVR can use and those with multi zone/multi source can matrix.

Now if the unfounded Apple smash is done, can we continue with something usefull please?

Apple dictates how their technology is implemented and they should be blamed. Watch and see if and when other companies add airplay the same problems will exist. I cant understand why Apple always gets off scott free. People will complain to H/K for example because they have to buy a new dock when they get a new iPhone/iPod when it is Apples greed with regards to licensing that causes these problems.

Mark

I agree that apple will only licence product that works to the standards intended. I imagine you feel that Apple knowingly liscenced DENON as a third party supporter of Airplay regardless of the release issues, impacting the perception of Apple's Airplay functionality? I would also imagine that Apple felt this early release of Denon third party support so important regardless of the fact, or that the DENON feature and others like it will impact sales of Apples current line of airplay products which work just fine?

Wow.....i never thought of it this way! Apple being so stupid as to overlook common business sense. How did they ever get to be the global corporation that they are? Dumb luck i guess.

Come on man, use some common sense. There was ABSOLUTELY NO VALUE in Apple knowingly liscencing DENON with known isssues. If you need to blame someone......blame DENON.

and all of this discussion adds no value to the thread at all...

guys, if you want to fight your little wars, find another thread to do it in so this one doesn't get cluttered up...

1 post is hardly a little war and apple has released product with issues before (iPhone 4 release).

Mark

So when I am change the speakers from DENON back the computer speakers why does the AVR not turn off? I have a 4311

Don't understand the question..or maybe the syntax? Are you expecting the Denon to physically power off or just stop playing music? When working with the REMOTE APP and the Airplay menu or the Airplay menu in iTunes on your PC, you have to turn each zone on AND off individually. This lets you have multiple zones playing simultanious. Simply check and uncheck want you want......or don't.

Has anyone been able to use the Party mode feature after they did the AirPlay upgrade?

I can start Party mode and select an Internet radio station, but the 3311 that is the Party Attendee has no audio. The display does show the same as on the 3311 that is the Party Organizer, but no audio.

I had it working before the Airplay upgrade. Not sure if related.

So now that I bought this unit for the airplay upgrade feature and it turns out it doesn't work like the other net usb functions. I am giving up and looking at a 2nd atv2. Can anyone confirm that the atv2 will work streaming itunes to lets say zone 2 while a movie is playing via blueray/hdmi on the main zone?

Any fixes for the above? I am having the same problem, where streaming from iTunes is fine, but no sound from iPhone4. Denon switches to Net/USB and even shows title and song but no sound. On the iPhone, when it first switches over it appears the track is "paused" (track time stops moving) but then continues playing but no sound on the receiver.

Thanks.

You'll need an Airport Express for that instead with analog output. Better for audio only anyways as the stream is bit perfect compared to 44.1 for the ATV2.

Update - My iphone now streams via airplay. The problem was the connection between my phone and router (linksys e3000) was poor. I always had a "strong" wifi signal and wifi would "work" but it turns out it was extremely slow. After some tweaking from this article "http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2476883&start=120&tstart=0" as well as this one "http://supremetechs.com/2009/07/24/slow-wifi-iphone-3gs/" i was able to greatly improve my wifi speeds AND use airplay to the denon. Hope this helps if you're having a similar problem.