Most affordable way to get Surround Sound

[Barun7]

I've got a 5.0 setup(in my signature) and I'm planning to connect the missing links for a complete experience gradually. I plan to add a decent subwoofer and probably an upgraded AVR by next year. For the time being, I need help from forum members in one aspect which is missing from my setup. Needless to say(yes, you've guessed it rightly from the thread title), I am not in a position to spend too much right now since the home ministry has other legit demands from the finance ministry!

I use the ARC from my Bravia to listen to music and to watch movies. While I do not have any complaints over the quality of the sound, the sound I get for movies is only stereo. Can't blame the TV as source as ARC is not supposed to provide immersive sound. So, something is missing - imagine the opening scene of Mad Max Fury Road when the girl whispers from the LCR! I want to have a media player/blu ray player which will take minimum input from my purse and deliver maximum output(of course, proportionate to the price) to my ears! I have searched through the forum and Googled with my limited knowledge. Either the options are too pricey or they miss out on some basic requirements. My main priority is to get true surround sound - not much interested in balls and whistles.
Having something like the Sony BDP S1500 is an option. But then, I don't want to get into a disc player as I hardly have any Blu-Ray disc presently. Also, the player won't be able to process 4K videos through the USB. The 4K Blu-Ray disc players are way above my budget. Zidoo is also good but above my budget.

My requirements are the following. Please assist with the most affordable but reliable alternative!
1. Should be able to process 4K videos smoothly.
2. I have and external HDD and the device should play the video files effectively.
3. I am not much into streaming - so that's not a big concern.
4. Should be able to play lossless audio.
5. Budget - INR 8000(can extend by some margin but not much).

 

[Barun7]

Any suggestions?

 

[Pons]

Any suggestions?

Look at mibox 4k.
Airtel xstream box is alternate but not recommended as they have bungled in audio( passes everything as dolby surround even if the source is stereo by padding up blank surround channels).
Mi box 4k does 4K hdr. U can use kodi/ vlc player to play ur movies from hdd with audio passthrough. Can play upto dolby truehd/ dts HDMA.
Price around 3500. Or
Go for raspberry pi 4 with coreelec/libreelec (around 8000) dedicated player for ur movies/music but misses out on streaming.

 

[Barun7]

Look at mibox 4k.
Airtel xstream box is alternate but not recommended as they have bungled in audio( passes everything as dolby surround even if the source is stereo by padding up blank surround channels).
Mi box 4k does 4K hdr. U can use kodi/ vlc player to play ur movies from hdd with audio passthrough. Can play upto dolby truehd/ dts HDMA.
Price around 3500. Or
Go for raspberry pi 4 with coreelec/libreelec (around 8000) dedicated player for ur movies/music but misses out on streaming.

Thanks for the reply.
One query though. Doesn't the MI Box 4k support HDMI 2.0 and has ARC port? Or will the SPDIF port will do the job in delivering true surround sound?

 

[Pons]

Thanks for the reply.
One query though. Doesn't the MI Box 4k support HDMI 2.0 and has ARC port? Or will the SPDIF port will do the job in delivering true surround sound?

It has hdmi 2.0a and does upto dolby truehd and dts hdma in kodi wiyh audio passthrough. Regular use u get upto DD+ thru hdmi. ARC is between ur avr and tv. No use case here. Audio thru optical port is upto dolby digital/ dts.
It has optical out in 3.55mm port(combo port). U will need this cable to route audio thru opt port

 

[jagadeeshwarank]

Hi @Barun7 ,

I guess we have somewhat similar setup . I was using Sony Bravia's ARC, which does support Lossy Dolby and DTS 5.1. Still using same television and its older than yours. It all depends on your source. I could have taken pictures of my settings, but Im staying at my hometown and no access to my Television.

Scenario 1:
When I use USB to play videos with DTS and Dolby encoded, it will play surround.
Scenario 2:
When I used Firetv stick on my other HDMI port, it will play surround if that movie has 5.1 sound, else stereo.
Scenario 3:
Using cable television RF port - definitely Stereo.

I think you have some confusion regarding HDMI-ARC. It can definitely passthrough lossy 5.1 surround sounds.

As for Mi Box 4k, please confirm DTS-HD MA audio passthrough before buying. I have read in Reddit about passthrough not working in Mi Box recent versions. If it works well and good, you've got a bang for the buck.

I bought a nVidia shield 2019 pro model (comes around 15k if bought from US), happy with that. I could notice good difference when comparing with HDMI-ARC output of 5.1 and nVidia Shield.