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Hi everyone,
A couple of months ago I got a NUC11PAHi7 to replace an older NUC7 as my main HTPC, and unfortunately it has an issue that is driving me crazy...
If I use a Windows native app like Media Player or Netflix I can play anything with proper multichannel audio (DD, DTS, DTS-HD, Atmos, etc.) thru my audio receiver (Denon AVR-X4800H).
However, if I use a third party app like VLC (my preference), KMplayer, Kodi, I cannot get anything other than plain 2-channel audio.
I have already tried everything I could think of to fix it:
- Double checked settings in VLC. I am very familiar with it and I have it running with no issues on several other machines, including the older NUC7;
- Updated Graphics driver;
- Updated BIOS (from 48 to 55). I even ran the BIOS update twice in a row, since I caught something about this in a search result;
- This new NUC11 is my first experience with Windows11 so I thought: what if it's a W11 issue.
I installed a new drive and then installed Windows10 just to give it a try: same issue, no audio passthrough in VLC;
- I tried the new NUC11 in a different home theatre setup, with a different receiver: no difference, same issue;
- My older NUC7 and an HP laptop both work just fine with my audio receiver, i.e. I can play any sound format in VLC with no issue.
At this point I am at a loss. I have set up various NUCs as HTPCs in the past and all worked perfectly fine, but this new NUC11PAHi7 is kind of disappointing.
Hoping there is a hidden fix somewhere... if anyone can help.
Thanks!
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NUC11PA - Technical Product Specification
I can tell you that I also had problems with the HDMI port on the NUC11, which is internally connected via a Protocol Converter (PCON). While it's not a tailor-made answer to your problem, you should consider using the USB-C/Thunderbolt port to connect to the AVR-X4800H via an appropriate HDMI adapter cable.
Product | Connection | Chip Type | Current Firmware | |
Cable Matters 201362-A | USB-C/Thunderbolt > HDMI FRL | VMM7100 | 7.02.123 | Firmware Update |
This also contains a PCON, but a better one which even allows for 4K @ 120 Hz. If it doesn't work, you can return it.
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Many thanks for your suggestion, I really appreciate it!
I will order one and report back when I had a chance to try it.
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So I had a chance to try a USB-C/Thunderbolt to HDMI adapter. I went with 201388-GRY from Cable Matters (https://www.cablematters.com/pc-1368-122-48gbps-usb-c-adapter-supporting-8k-video.aspx), since I wanted to use my already routed HDMI cable (the adapter is based on the same VMM7100 chip as the cable suggested above).
Unfortunately it did not make any difference at all. Problem persists with the exact same symptoms, i.e. no multichannel audio from VLC, only in native apps like Media Player, etc.
I have since given up on the NUC11.
I found a good deal on a barebone NUC13ANHi3 and grabbed it. I went for the i3 specifically, because it uses Intel UHD graphics, rather than Iris Xe.
Installed RAM, SSD, drivers and Windows 10 Pro.
Installed VLC, set it up for HDMI audio passthough and right away I could play ANY multichannel sound format with absolutely no issues, no delays, no fiddling with additional settings, drivers, etc.
While I cannot say with certainty it seems to me that Intel Iris Xe graphics is not a good choice for HTPC (probably driver related, but I don't know...). I will avoid anything with Iris Xe graphics going forward. I wish I didn't spend money on the NUC11PAHi7 but I will try to find some other use for it.
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UPDATE: So my bad, but it turns out I spoke too soon....
The audio passthrough issue above is NOT a NUC11 or Intel Iris Xe issue, but rather a VLC issue (and possibly KMplayer...).
I came across some posts discussing the fact that VLC can have issues on higher end machines, with high count of cores/threads.
None of the suggested fixes worked for me so I moved on.
I tried PowerDVD and it works perfectly fine, playing any multichannel format with no issues, including TrueHD, Atmos, DTS-HD.
I also gave Kodi another try and it also works fine. Turns out that you need to get into "Expert" mode in Settings to enable all sound formats, rather than just setting Audio Passthrough ON in basic settings.
And no adapter was needed, the HDMI port works just fine.
In conclusion, there is no reason to avoid NUC11s or Intel Iris Xe for HTPC, if you have issues with VLC try using something else.

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