DTS-HD and usb hard drives

[alucard2050]

I have my blu-ray backups on an external usb hard drive. It plays great. No frame skips but I have noticed a downconvertion in the audio when it goes from my PC to my reciever. When I play the ISO from an internal hard drive connected SATA it plays in DTS-HD or DD or True-HD which is the only audio track on the ISO but when I play the same file from an external USB drive the stream is not the same. Why is this? Being I only have 1 audio track in the ISO and yes my sound card supports it since it plays from a drive connected to a SATA port....Thanx!

[Baldrick]

It sounds VERY strange...but more information would be good

What software player? And I guess you are using SPDIF?
And HOW is the audio downconverted? What does the receiver say?
Are you mounting the iso with for example virtual clonedrive? or just playing the iso?

[alucard2050]

I am useing Powerdvd to play it. I am useing Optical for the sound. Mounting with VCD...An example of what I call downconverting. I play Wall-E from the external USB drive. My receiver says DPL2+Movie+THX. But when I use the same ISO file except it is now stored on an internal hard drive connected to a SATA port it says, ES Matrix+thx..Which is the DTS signal....I get all 7 speakers to light up on this setting. If I select Auto Surround on USB it goes to "Stereo" mode. If I select auto on the Sata it goes to Es Matrix......I'm, just wondering if USB has something to do with not being able to process or handle the signal the same as a SATA port....Thanx..

[neomaine]

Alucard2050,

OK, let's step through this...

There should be no difference between playing a file from SATA, USB, firewire or whatever other then the connection being able to sustain the required bitrate. Even then, I would only expect choppyness, studdering (what you're calling frame skips) if they could not. Similar situation for any virtual drives. None of them care what kind of ISO (properly contructed of course...) they are mounting.

Your differences would have to come from the software player. Even then, if its playing from the virtual drive, PowerDVD really doesn't know where the ISO is. It only knows that's its gettiing the movie from the virtual drive. Sounds strange, but there might be something up with VCD. Have you tried other virtual drive software like Daemon Tools (I think the Lite version is still free)?

[alucard2050]

Maybe its not from USB....I just noticed something. I am useing MCE2005. I select the Blu-Ray ISO from Mymovies. I have my ISO's set to load in VCD. It mounts. Then I backtrack with the reverse button to the Powerdvd plug-in for MCE2005. Powerdvd boots. I press play and the ISO plays. EXCEPT: It plays in a default stereo 2 speaker mode. If I stop the playback. I can go into settings and selct SPDIF and it wil then play in DTS.....So! Why would powerdvd revert back to stereo 2 speakers everytime I am useing the plug-in through MCE2005? Powerdvd is Powerdvd. If I maunally mount the ISO to VCD without the media center. then play in powerdvd it remains as DTS...So I wonder. Could it be mounting in Mymovies? Could it be MCE2005? Could it be the plug-in for Powerdvd? Whichever it is. It is reverting powerdvd back in the settings to stereo 2 speakers..thus causing my player to not read the stream as I want....thanX!

Just checked...I tried Deamon Tools. It does the same thing...

[alucard2050]

I have narrowed it down. It happens between selecting it in my moivies then playing from the powerdvd plug-in in MCE2005.. hears my tests.

1. I used Mymovies to select the ISO which mounted to VCD. I closed media center then manually opened powerdvd. Movie played with DTS.

2. I used Mymovies to mount again. Clicked back to the Powerdvd plug-in and when Powerdvd played, it opened as Stereo 2 speakers.....

Looks like the Powerdvd plug-in since it mounts fine and plays in powerdvd fine if I manually select the Powerdvd app from my desktop........Anyone with any suggestions. I'm heading over to the creator of the plug-in to see if they have any recomendations.......Thanx...........

[neomaine]

Do you need to use MCE? Sounds like the plug-in isn't retaining its settings. Why not just use PowerDVD 'from the desktop' where it works all the time? You using a media extender to access MCE?

[alucard2050]

Yeah! Its the plug-in....Resets Powerdvd settings for some reason....No. I'm not useing an extender...I'm gonna head over and see if the creator of the plug-in ha any support for it...MCE is just the convienance of haveing it all right there with the click of my remote. But When it comes to Blu-Ray I need to use Powerdvd from the desktop if I want the sound to be right....