What is the source of the videos you are playing and how is the source device connected to the receiver?

 

The source is the built in app in the tv, a Samsung QN800a 85". When I used the Sony DH590 the display said DD+ so I know the tv is outputting that format. Also, when coming from the bluray player, which is connected via HDMI eARC to the eARC HDMI input on the "One Connect" box, I am able to choose between a DD+ track and the DTS track. But, as I said, when coming from the tv, with the Denon my only choices are DSurround, and Stereo.

 

I just picked up this AVR yesterday. It sounds great, but I'm playing videos that are all both DTS-HD and DD+ w/Atmos, and the AVR always defaults to Dolby Surround, with no option to change the audio format.
Does anybody know what the problem is?

The source is the built in app in the tv, a Samsung QN800a 85".

Hi Duke_Sweden, on my Samsung while streaming built in app like Netflix/Prime (that has DD+/Atmos), go into TV Sound menu Digital Output Audio Format to select Dolby Digital Plus or Dolby Digital. Some Samsung TV will only play PCM and the Dolby Digital (or DD+) audio option will be grey out while browsing shows.

Also on the Denon remote (or Denon app) press the green MOVIE button and see what sound mode option is available.

 

Hey, thanks for responding. Unfortunately on my Samsung QN800a 85", under TV Sound menu the only choices I have are "Auto", PCM, and Pass Through (which is grayed out). It defaults to Auto.
On the Denon, when I press the MOVIE button the only choices I get are Dolby Surround, Stereo and Mono. The Samsung, as you know, doesn't off DTS sound. If I play the movie through my 4K player, I get a choice of DD+ and DTS-HD or DTS Master. So there's definitely a DD+ track in the movies I'm playing. When you're watching something with DD+ does the Denon display show "ATMOS" or "DD+"?

 

Try setting your denon sound mode to "Auto" by pressing the "Pure" button (next to the movie sound mode buttons).

Per the manual,
Auto surround playback
This mode detects the type of input digital signal, and automatically selects the corresponding mode for playback.
Perform stereo playback when the input signal is PCM. When the input signal is Dolby Digital or DTS, the music is played back according to the respective channel number.
Press PURE to select “Auto”.
Auto surround playback begins.

 

Already tried that. It still plays Dolby Surround. Trying an experiment. As I said The Beatles Get Back triggers ATMOS, and I noticed it's labeled as DD5.1, no ATMOS, no DTS. So I just grabbed another movie with just DD5.1 and am about to pop it in and see what happens. Back soon.

 

It shouldn't be possible to get Dolby Surround on Auto mode. I'd try again and make sure you set the Auto mode during playback for something you know is atmos, standard 5.1, and stereo to verify it is activating the correct speakers with the "info" button on the denon remote. Also, The Beatles movie is atmos, so its weird that it's labeled as 5.1...

 

Tv must be set to passthrough. You had mentioned that's greyed out which indicates somethings not correct. Either a cable issue or perhaps a earc setting on the receiver.

Also, not all(if any) tv's can pass lossless audio from the internal apps. And some can't pass it from external devices. So you simply may not be able to get DTS-HD from the tv. I can't on my sony. Though atmos from streaming sources works fine for me via eARC.
Best to connect devices directly to the receiver whenever possible rather than the tv.

 

Tv must be set to passthrough. You had mentioned that's greyed out which indicates somethings not correct. Either a cable issue or perhaps a earc setting on the receiver.

Also, not all(if any) tv's can pass lossless audio from the internal apps. And some can't pass it from external devices. So you simply may not be able to get DTS-HD from the tv. I can't on my sony. Though atmos from streaming sources works fine for me via eARC.
Best to connect devices directly to the receiver whenever possible rather than the tv.

Pass Through has ALWAYS been grayed out, even before this receiver. It was grayed out with the Sony as well but the Sony was getting DD+ signal from the tv. As you know DTS is not available on tv's these day, that's why I got the 4K player. I cancelled all my +apps so I can't test that way. Awaiting a couple of DDP5.1 ATMOS movies to finish downloading and I'll test those. I know those will show ATMOS on the receiver, it's a question of how good they'll sound compared to Dolby Surround. My only device is the 4K player which is connected to the receiver. TV is connected to the receiver via HDMI eARC.
UPDATE: By turning off all apps (Youtube, etc.) I was able to select Pass Through, but as soon as I played a video it defaulted back to Auto.

 

Take a moment. What is the disc player model? I am curious about the "downloading" of the material as well.

 

What kind of speaker array do you have - 5.1, 7.1, with or without Atmos speakers? It helps to know when troubleshooting. Also, Dolby Surround is an upmixer used when the source content has fewer channels than the playback system. It can be turned on or off, but will not be used by the AVR when the source content matches the playback system.

If I understand correctly, you seem to have two separate issues and I suggest addressing them separately. Start with material fed from the TV using the eARC connection to the receiver. First, confirm that the set is configured to send whatever audio format is coming from the source on the app - most will be DD 5.1 or DD+ with or without Atmos. Then, make sure the receiver is set to simply process and play whatever format it receives without any added processing like Dolby Surround. With those configurations on TV and AVR, start playing material from the TV apps.

Your second issue is sound from a Blu-ray player connected to the AVR, not the TV. As with the TV eARC output, make sure the disc player is set to bitstream whatever track is selected on the disc and that the AVR is set to simply decode and play whatever comes from the player without added processing. Then, play tracks from discs. If you play one with DTS-MA, it should show that on the AVR display.

There may actually be a third issue as you mentioned downloading a movie. Downloaded to what and played back from what?

 

Dolby Surround is not a sound format, it is the upmixer mode - your AVR is taking whatever it's getting and applying the Dolby Surround Upmixer. You need to find the mode in the AVR where you tell it to play natively whatever it's getting, with no upmixer such as Neural:X or DSU applied.

 

Did you run setup on the new receiver and tell it what speakers you have so it knows how many speakers and the configuration? They audyssey setup. And use the mic and it will play test tones for room calibration.
If not it may only think you have 2 speakers and thus you're not getting surround modes or atmos. Just a thought.

 

Did you run setup on the new receiver and tell it what speakers you have so it knows how many speakers and the configuration? They audyssey setup. And use the mic and it will play test tones for room calibration.
If not it may only think you have 2 speakers and thus you're not getting surround modes or atmos. Just a thought.

Yes, I ran Audyssey. It played test tones from each speaker.

 

There does seem to be confusion out there about audio codecs in play and sound modes applied to them. Atmos is a mixed bag as the speaker configuration will enable or disable the passing and processing of metadata. Atmos metadata will be recognized and displayed in a 7.1 or 5.1.2 configuration when playing atmos discs. It will not be recognized from discs in a 5.1 configuration UNLESS virtual speakers are ON in a receiver that is Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization enabled.

 

ok let's see if I can remember all these questions. First off, I downloaded a movie (bit torrent, alright? Don't judge me, I'm 68 and have paid more than my share of money on entertainment) that had the same specs as Get Back, and it displayed ATMOS on the AVR. Success! But the file was defective, color was way off. Trying one more movie in a few minutes.
As for the other files, the DTS-HD.MA.TrueHD.7.1.Atmos ones, they're perfectly fine, they just default to Dolby Surround. They sound great but I'm a perfectionist. I put them on a USB and play them from the tv.
The disc player is a Sony, the cheapest one, because I only need it to play DTS movies. The Samsung TV doesn't support DTS.
My speaker array is 5.2.2 with the last 2 being 2 Klipsch upfiring speakers I use as Front Height speakers since my ceiling is vaulted. The AVR is set for Front Height. The source content giving me trouble is always 7.1. I've tried Direct and Pure Direct on the AVR with no luck. I changed the tv to Pass Through but as soon as I play anything it reverts to Auto.
Finally, no, I don't have a problem with sound from the 4K player. It gives me the option of DD+ or DTS-MA. DTS=MA shows up on the AVR display, but DD+ is Dolby Surround. Grrr...
The 3rd issue is actually the first issue, movies played off a USB and plugged into and played from the TV.
I hope this isn't getting too convoluted.

 

ok let's see if I can remember all these questions. First off, I downloaded a movie (bit torrent, alright? Don't judge me, I'm 68 and have paid more than my share of money on entertainment) that had the same specs as Get Back, and it displayed ATMOS on the AVR. Success! But the file was defective, color was way off. Trying one more movie in a few minutes.
As for the other files, the DTS-HD.MA.TrueHD.7.1.Atmos ones, they're perfectly fine, they just default to Dolby Surround. They sound great but I'm a perfectionist. I put them on a USB and play them from the tv.
The disc player is a Sony, the cheapest one, because I only need it to play DTS movies. The Samsung TV doesn't support DTS.
My speaker array is 5.2.2 with the last 2 being 2 Klipsch upfiring speakers I use as Front Height speakers since my ceiling is vaulted. The AVR is set for Front Height. The source content giving me trouble is always 7.1. I've tried Direct and Pure Direct on the AVR with no luck. I changed the tv to Pass Through but as soon as I play anything it reverts to Auto.
Finally, no, I don't have a problem with sound from the 4K player. It gives me the option of DD+ or DTS-MA. DTS=MA shows up on the AVR display, but DD+ is Dolby Surround. Grrr...
The 3rd issue is actually the first issue, movies played off a USB and plugged into and played from the TV.
I hope this isn't getting too convoluted.

You don't want direct or pure direct on the receiver. Use the green button to select your mode. That's all you have to do.

atmos or other formats defaulting to dolby surround is not fine.

The tv can't handle DTS-HD MA so you're losing that by going direct to the tv. See if you can play direct from the 4k player, via USB, that's plugged directly to the receiver.
Using downloaded files to test with can be problematic as you never know what the person who uploaded that file did with it. How they ripped and processed it. Best to test with actual discs that have been purchased. For the purpose of troubleshooting. To remove another variable.
Rather than putting them on a USB stick, better to setup a plex server on the computer you're downloading from and run plex on all your devices. You'll love it!

With your atmos upfiring speakers, did you physically mount them as heights? Or are they sitting on top of the towers pointed up and set in the AVR as heights?

Don't run your bluray player direct to the TV. You aren't getting DTS-HD MA from it because the tv doesn't support DTS and it can't pass it. So you're receiver will never receive it from the TV. Run the bluray player directly from the receiver only.

What model number is your sony bluray player?

Things get confusing when you run some stuff direct from the receiver and some stuff on the TV. For the purpose of troubleshooting don't use the tv for anything. None of the smart apps on it. No players plugged into the tv. Everything direct into the receiver. Once all the sound formats are working correctly that way you can dive into the tv settings if you wish. Personally I avoid eARC altogether. Purchase a streaming device that meets your needs and run it direct into the receiver.

arc/earc can be rather buggy, and limited in what audio they can pass depending on the tv and software. So best to avoid for troubleshooting purposes and there's a lot of confusion here so this will also help with that.

 

It's getting convoluted because 3 different people are asking me a bunch of questions. Let me try to boil it down.

4K player is plugged into the AVR. Never plugged into the tv. No problems from the 4K player. I've got to double check on DD+ coming from there. It may not be defaulting to dolby surround.

With your atmos upfiring speakers, did you physically mount them as heights? Or are they sitting on top of the towers pointed up and set in the AVR as heights?
Originally placed them on top of my tower speakers. Found out later my vaulted ceiling made that ineffective, so I mounted them on the wall just above my tv.

OK, I downloaded 2 versions of Morbius, both were defective although one did play and it gave me an ATMOS on the AVR display. So I think the bottom line is, a video has to be DD+ 5.1 with ATMOS. DTS-HD with 7.1 ATMOS/Dolby ATMOS defaults to dolby surround with no option to change it. It's either surround or stereo or multi-channel stereo.
I can set Pass Through by exiting all apps first (Youtube, etc.) but as soon as I play something it defaults back to Auto.

Things get confusing when you run some stuff direct from the receiver and some stuff on the TV. For the purpose of troubleshooting don't use the tv for anything. None of the smart apps on it. No players plugged into the tv. Everything direct into the receiver. Once all the sound formats are working correctly that way you can dive into the tv settings if you wish. Personally I avoid eARC altogether. Purchase a streaming device that meets your needs and run it direct into the receiver.

I only use eARC so I can turn both the tv and AVR on with one click, and to get audio from the tv to the AVR. Is there another way to connect? I don't want or need streaming devices. Like I said, it appears that the AVR will only function properly with DDP5.1 w/ATMOS audio. The one video I got to work didn't sound any better than dolby surround, so I guess that this experiment is over. I really, really appreciate all you guys helping me. One last question. Are you saying I can run video/audio by plugging a USB into the AVR?

 

OK, I downloaded 2 versions of Morbius, both were defective although one did play and it gave me an ATMOS on the AVR display. So I think the bottom line is, a video has to be DD+ 5.1 with ATMOS. DTS-HD with 7.1 ATMOS/Dolby ATMOS defaults to dolby surround with no option to change it. It's either surround or stereo or multi-channel stereo.
I can set Pass Through by exiting all apps first (Youtube, etc.) but as soon as I play something it defaults back to Auto.

Things get confusing when you run some stuff direct from the receiver and some stuff on the TV. For the purpose of troubleshooting don't use the tv for anything. None of the smart apps on it. No players plugged into the tv. Everything direct into the receiver. Once all the sound formats are working correctly that way you can dive into the tv settings if you wish. Personally I avoid eARC altogether. Purchase a streaming device that meets your needs and run it direct into the receiver.

I only use eARC so I can turn both the tv and AVR on with one click, and to get audio from the tv to the AVR. Is there another way to connect? I don't want or need streaming devices. Like I said, it appears that the AVR will only function properly with DDP5.1 w/ATMOS audio. The one video I got to work didn't sound any better than dolby surround, so I guess that this experiment is over. I really, really appreciate all you guys helping me. One last question. Are you saying I can run video/audio by plugging a USB into the AVR?

You don't need earc/arc to turn both on. You need CEC. This is what I do. You do need arc/earc to get audio back from the TV, yes. If one wishes to use the built in apps which I despise. Even a cheap fire stick would be a better experience.

The TV can't pass lossless audio which is why you aren't getting that when you connect the USB stick directly to the tv. Either due to it's media player not supporting it or the tv itself. I can't get lossless from my tvs internal apps to my AVR either. I'm not sure if any tv works like that. So basically it sounds like in that particular scenerio your receive is just getting stereo audio.
For those files you have to have something connected directly to your receiver to do that. Various streaming devices or 4k players with a USB port or using plex.

If your 4k bluray player, which is connected to your AVR, has a USB port then yes you should be able to get all the audio that your tv cannot pass by connecting there. Try that instead of the tv.

 

Movie downloads I've seen are ripped from bluray discs and usually only have the high end audio formats like DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD (possibly with atmos) and those audio formats are not supported by TVs from internal apps for passthru over eArc to an AVR. You would have to use an external media player that supports those advanced audio formats (high end models like Nvidia Shield) to play those audio formats on downloaded movie files, best if plugged directly into the AVR to get all the formats since Samsung TVs won't passthru DTS audio at all. If you can find a video file to download that has DD+ with atmos audio format like as used by streaming services, that might passthru from the Samsung TV to the AVR via Arc or eArc, but would depend on the internal app media player and if it supports that audio, like I said before the internal Samsung USB media player app might only do stereo audio output. However other Samsung TV internal apps may support passthru of DD+ with atmos audio like streaming services including Netflix, Disney+, Paramount+, Prime Video, etc.

 

Well Duke, at least you have a good sense of humor about it all. It boils down to a couple of things. Dolby Digital Plus/Atmos and even Dolby TrueHD/Atmos can be handled by the TV using eARC. This works with externally connected devices to HDMI ports but not from apps as was mentioned. But, as you know, DTS is not supported. This is why some downloads will output two channel PCM when played from the TV USB input. As was mentioned by another, try plugging the USB stick into the blu-ray player.

 

OK, this is too weird. My Samsung TV, which as you know does not support DTS....is currently playing a DTS soundtrack!!! I mean, come on. And I know these aren't DTS videos, they're playing on Youtube, which is PCM, and the latest movie I downloaded, which is supposed to be DDP5.1. Something's not right. I fully expect the AVR to come crashing down. Now instead of relaxing I'm going to have to spend tonight endlessly testing things.

 

Are you sure you didn't just apply the DTS Neural:X up mixer in the Denon to the PCM track?

 

I wouldn't even know how to do that. The only time I've even seen that format is when I play movies with DTS soundtracks on my 4K player.
Anyway, guys, way too much information for this rapidly deteriorating brain to absorb. I thank you all, sorry for not being able to reply to every post, but I know a lot more now about how ATMOS works, that's for sure. Cheers!

 

First things first. Buy a Nvidia shield to play lossless audio for your downloaded content.
Put plex server on a computer and set your library where your content is.

Download the plex app on the shield and start streaming content.
Ensure Nvidia shield is connected to the av receiver.

When you day the colors are messed up was it possible you downloaded a Dolby vision over HDR?

I do this method myself and use it regularly.

Regards.

 

Here are a couple comments from reading the chain since I last posted.
1. The internal media player might not be decoding the audio tracks correctly, but looking up some basic docs on Samsung, it may actually support DTS and DD+ natively, which is great! Whether it can decode that content and pass over eARC to the Denon is another question. For that I don't know for sure, but it seems like it should be able to.
2. I still think you are incorrectly setting up your Denon. When you are watching something, you want your "sound field" set to "Auto", by pushing the "pure" button until it sets to "Auto". From here you should NOT push any other sound modes, as it will change from Auto. Do NOT push Music or Movie or Game or anything of that nature, because it will change your sound field mode and apply upmixing or downmixing. Denon is terrible at explaining this, so don't feel bad if you aren't familiar with their menu setups.
3. When you are playing a file, and you are set in Auto, press the "Info" button the remote. It should show you the "Input" audio codec, and the "output" audio field, and active speakers. The input and output should match, whether its DD+, DTS, or PCM. For atmos content, your height speakers should be activated, and for other formats, they shouldn't be. If you see DTS Neural:X or Dolby Surround in this menu, you are not set to Auto and are getting a fake atmos upmix. (see below for how it should look.)

 

Here are a couple comments from reading the chain since I last posted.
1. The internal media player might not be decoding the audio tracks correctly, but looking up some basic docs on Samsung, it may actually support DTS and DD+ natively, which is great! Whether it can decode that content and pass over eARC to the Denon is another question. For that I don't know for sure, but it seems like it should be able to.
2. I still think you are incorrectly setting up your Denon. When you are watching something, you want your "sound field" set to "Auto", by pushing the "pure" button until it sets to "Auto". From here you should NOT push any other sound modes, as it will change from Auto. Do NOT push Music or Movie or Game or anything of that nature, because it will change your sound field mode and apply upmixing or downmixing. Denon is terrible at explaining this, so don't feel bad if you aren't familiar with their menu setups.
3. When you are playing a file, and you are set in Auto, press the "Info" button the remote. It should show you the "Input" audio codec, and the "output" audio field, and active speakers. The input and output should match, whether its DD+, DTS, or PCM. For atmos content, your height speakers should be activated, and for other formats, they shouldn't be. If you see DTS Neural:X or Dolby Surround in this menu, you are not set to Auto and are getting a fake atmos upmix. (see below for how it should look.)
View attachment 3285596

Disagree. Do not push pure. Or perhaps rather it's not doing anything special for you(and double check if it's disabling audyssey). You use the green button to select your audio. It will play your standard audio track, whatever it is on your content(it doesn't force you to use an upmix, you can change it not to). In your image it will still play DTS-HD MA just as you show. You don't need pure/auto to achieve this. If you keep pushing the green button to choose other options including adding an upmix if you so wish. But you certainly don't have to.
In your image with just DTS-HD MA track(and not DTS:X) I would apply an upmix. I typically use dolby for my upmix but your can also use neural X or Auro if your receiver has that and you prefer it. Or neither if you don't want.
Even with using auto you can still apply an upmix.
An upmix is only used if an audio track isn't atmos/DTS:X and you wish to have sounds from your height channels. It doesn't override an atmos/DTS:X track.

 

Unfortunately, Samsung no longer supports DTS and will not pass it over eARC. I’m sure this is why some signals are coming over as PCM and displaying MULTI CH IN. The Denon’s info panel will not be visible on screen while using the TV’s USB input, HDMI inputs for devices other than the receiver or the TV’s Smart apps. So, the Denon front panel or a Smart device using the Denon controller app will have to do.

The Pure button does three things. It can put the receiver in Pure Direct Mode(no processing/bass management/EQ/on screen graphics/no front display), Direct Mode(no processing/bass management/EQ) and Auto Mode(match signal/straight processing). If the user desires sound production from all of the speakers in their configuration, these modes should be avoided for signals other than DD+/Atmos or DTS:X.

Different receivers will allow for different sound modes to be applied to different incoming signals. Whatever the signal, find the sound mode you like and use it.

DENON S960H:

 

Thanks for reminding me what a nightmare that "manual" is! It loves to tell me what can be used, what can't be used depending on a condition, etc., but it never tells me HOW to do something, like if I want to associate a sound field with PCM, it doesn't tell me how. It doesn't tell me why I can't use the graphic equalizer (I've used it twice, now it's grayed out no matter what), it only tells me that I can't. I hate this manual. Paragraphs and graphics spill over onto each other, it's a mess. But, again, thanks for trying to help!

 

It can be frustrating for sure and the manuals are not for the faint of heart. Whatever the input signal, pressing the MOVIE button repeatedly will cycle you through the sound modes and some will not be available based on the incoming signal. The TV will not send a DTS bitstream to the receiver at all. In those cases, you will be working with a PCM signal and have a few sound modes available to you. If dealing with a Dolby Atmos signal, be it Dolby Digital Plus or Dolby TrueHD based, you will be severely limited. If the signal is recognized as Dolby Digital Plus 5.1, you will have the Dolby Surround and DTS Neural:X up mixers available to you to use to get sound to all of the speakers in your configuration. Again, just use the MOVIE button to cycle through the sound modes until you find the one preferable to you.

Regarding the graphic EQ, it is not available to you when MultiEQ is ON. Turn Multi EQ Off to use the graphic EQ. It may still be unavailable to you and, if so, make sure you are not in Direct mode.

 

It can be frustrating for sure and the manuals are not for the faint of heart. Whatever the input signal, pressing the MOVIE button repeatedly will cycle you through the sound modes and some will not be available based on the incoming signal. The TV will not send a DTS bitstream to the receiver at all. In those cases, you will be working with a PCM signal and have a few sound modes available to you. If dealing with a Dolby Atmos signal, be it Dolby Digital Plus or Dolby TrueHD based, you will be severely limited. If the signal is recognized as Dolby Digital Plus 5.1, you will have the Dolby Surround and DTS Neural:X up mixers available to you to use to get sound to all of the speakers in your configuration. Again, just use the MOVIE button to cycle through the sound modes until you find the one preferable to you.

Regarding the graphic EQ, it is not available to you when MultiEQ is ON. Turn Multi EQ Off to use the graphic EQ. It may still be unavailable to you and, if so, make sure you are not in Direct mode.

My only choices when being fed a DD+ signal from the tv is Dolby Surround, Stereo, and Stereo Multi-Channel.
Where can I find MultiEQ to turn it off? Yes, that's how frustrating this manual is!

 

One final question. If I choose not to use eARC, which HDMI input should I use for the tv on the AVR? I've got an 8K tv and it has an 8K input. Should I use that or like the AUX input? Still waiting on where the hell the MultEQ on/off is located.

 

same. No need to change it whether you use earc or not. It's not one of the inputs on the AVR, it's one of the outputs.

 

I think it would be helpful when referencing various menu items if you could post screenshots. So we can ensure you're in the right place.

 

The passthrough option is available for devices connected directly to the TV via HDMI and does not apply to the Smart apps or USB ports. This is why it is not available to you.

 

The main thing I see is using the TV media player audio via arc/earc to the AVR, you will never get the best audio from torrented video files that were originally ripped from bluray/uhd discs that have the advanced lossless audio formats like DolbyTrueHD(with or without atmos) and DTS formats since those audio formats are not supported by the Samsung TV's internal apps including the USB media player. At best the TV will output only stereo which is what you are seeing at the Denon AVR with that.

The only way to get those advanced audio formats is with a device connected input to the AVR directly like your 4K bluray player - and you have no issues there. So if you want to get the advanced audio formats playable completely from downloaded video files (including DolbyTrueHD with atmos) that were originally ripped from bluray/uhd discs the only easy way is get a Nvidia Shield player that supports the advanced lossless audio formats and plug it into the AVR. The Nvidia Shield TV Pro model I believe has a USB port so it could play such files from a USB drive, it also can play them from over the local network.

No TV or AVR settings adjustments alone will help without doing that.

 

The only way to get those advanced audio formats is to with a device connected input to the AVR directly like your 4K bluray player - and you have no issues there. So if you want to get the advanced audio formats playable completely from downloaded video files (including DolbyTrueHD with atmos) that were originally ripped from bluray/uhd discs the only easy way is get a Nvidia Shield player and plug it into the AVR. No settings adjustments will help without doing that.

If his 4k UHD player has a USB port he could plug the USB drive into that and also get lossless audio from downloaded files that way without the need for another device. To save some money.
Though that doesn't solve the issues of the built in tv apps sending the wrong audio over earc. Unless the 4k UHD players has its own built in apps?
Though as a plex fan I greatly prefer a all in one streaming device.

 

I must be getting Alzheimer's. It's not a Sony, it's a Panasonic DP-UB150-K
Audio

• Surround Sound Supported
  
  DTS-HD, Dolby Digital, Dolby TrueHD
• High Resolution Audio
  
  Yes (High Resolution Audio)

 

according to the specs it states it has a USB port for media playback. Give it a try! May not work with your specific files but it's easy to test.