windows 11 dolby digital plus

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windows 11 dolby digital plus

G Singh 0

hi i can not get dolbly digital plus to work on my pc, my speakers tab shows 2ch stereo only i have tried multiple ways to enable but will not work

thanks for any help

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Answer 1

Vikki-T 5,625 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi G Singh,

I understand that you’re trying to get Dolby Digital Plus working on your Windows 11 PC, but the speaker configuration only shows 2-channel stereo. That can be confusing, especially after you have already tried several ways to enable it.

To narrow this down, could you please share a few more details?

What is the exact model of your PC or motherboard?
What audio device are you trying to use with Dolby Digital Plus? For example, built-in speakers, external speakers, headset, TV, soundbar, or AV receiver.
How is the audio device connected to the PC? For example, HDMI, USB, Bluetooth, 3.5 mm audio jack, or optical/SPDIF.
In Control Panel > Sound > Playback, what is the exact name of the playback device that you are configuring?
Have you installed the audio driver from the PC or motherboard manufacturer’s support page, or are you using the driver installed automatically by Windows?
If you are using HDMI, is the PC connected directly to a Dolby-supported TV/soundbar/receiver, or is there any adapter, dock, or converter in between?

In the meantime, please try these checks:

Go to Settings > System > Sound > Output and make sure the correct playback device is selected.
Open Control Panel > Sound > Playback, select the correct output device, click Set Default, then select Configure and check whether 5.1 or 7.1 is available.
Open the selected playback device’s Properties, then check the Supported Formats, Advanced, and Spatial sound tabs to see whether any Dolby option is available.
Download and install the latest audio driver from your PC or motherboard manufacturer’s support page. If you are using HDMI audio, please update the graphics/HDMI audio driver as well.
Restart the PC after installing the drivers, then check the speaker configuration again.
Open Microsoft Store and make sure Dolby Access is installed or updated, then check whether your audio device is detected there.

I hope these steps help you check the audio setup successfully. While my initial response may not fully resolve the issue, I truly appreciate your cooperation as we work together toward identifying the most effective solution. Thank you so much for your understanding.

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

G Singh 0 Reputation points

2026-05-12T15:33:30.6466667+00:00

Hi vikki

my motherboard is a mag z690 torpedo

i have a yahama rx675 going to 5.1 surround sound

via hdmi arc/earc from tv to av reciver hdmi out arc

then have hdmi from tv to pc both cables hdmi 2.1

in sound pc settings it will only say 2ch

ive tried dolby access app that does not work

updated sound drivers

uninstall/reinstall drivers

spartial sound only shows headphones

Thanks for the reply
Vikki-T 5,625 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-13T14:15:49.6033333+00:00
Hi G Singh,

Thank you for sharing those details, that really helps clarify the setup.

From what you described, your PC is connected to the TV via HDMI, and then the TV sends audio to the Yamaha receiver through ARC/eARC. In this kind of setup, the PC is actually “seeing” the TV as the audio device, not the receiver.

Because of that, Windows can only show the audio capabilities that the TV reports back. Many TVs report support as 2‑channel stereo over HDMI, even when they can pass surround sound to a receiver through ARC/eARC. Maybe that would explain why you are only seeing 2ch in Sound settings, why 5.1 is not available, and why Dolby Access is not detecting a compatible output.

The behavior you’re seeing with Spatial sound (showing headphones only) and Dolby Access not working is consistent with this type of connection path.

To help confirm this, you could try one check:

Connect your PC directly to the Yamaha receiver via HDMI (PC > AVR > TV), instead of going through the TV first.

After doing that:

Go to Control Panel > Sound > Playback

Select the HDMI device (now it should show the AVR name)

Click Configure and check whether 5.1 becomes available

Please let me know what you see after testing the direct HDMI connection, and we can continue from there.
G Singh 0 Reputation points

2026-05-13T14:51:04.22+00:00

Hi vikki

Thanks for the info

I really appreciate you taking the time to investigate

If I connect gpu to avr then tv I loose 120/144hz

My amp only supports 60hz

My gpu only has 1 hdmi then 3 display ports gigabyte 9060xt

Thanks again
Vikki-T 5,625 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-14T14:06:46.77+00:00
Hi G Singh,

Thank you for the clarification, that makes complete sense.

I can see why connecting through the AVR is not ideal in your setup, since it would limit you to 60Hz while your current configuration supports 120/144Hz from the GPU to the TV. Given that your GPU only has a single HDMI port, there isn’t really a straightforward way to split video and audio over HDMI in this case.

With the current connection (PC . TV > ARC/eARC > AVR), Windows will continue to detect the TV as the audio device. Because of that, it can only expose the audio formats that the TV reports back, which is why you are seeing 2-channel stereo and not 5.1 or Dolby Digital Plus.

So at this point, the behavior you’re seeing aligns with how the audio path is set up rather than something specific to Dolby Access or the audio driver on Windows.

In practical terms, this setup usually comes down to a trade-off:

Keeping the current connection preserves your high refresh rate (120/144Hz), but limits what Windows can output in terms of multichannel audio.

Routing HDMI directly through the AVR allows proper 5.1/Dolby detection, but is limited by the AVR’s 60Hz capability.

I appreciate you walking through all the tests and sharing the details, that really helped narrow things down clearly.

I hope this helps explain what’s happening with your setup. If you would like to explore alternative configurations or have any follow-up questions, feel free to share, I’ll continue to assist from here. Wishing you the best with your setup, and I look forward to your update.
G Singh 0 Reputation points

2026-05-17T16:19:53.51+00:00

Hi vikki

I was watching a movie today on the pc

And it automatically switched to dolby audio

Checking my pc speaker tabs which are not showing the EQ working

So I presume its going directly through the amp to surround sound

I guess there is not a way to do that permanently

Thanks
Ian-T 7,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-19T13:51:59.2533333+00:00

Hi

Thank you for the update.

Yes, that behavior can happen with this kind of setup. A movie app may be able to send Dolby audio in a supported format, so the AVR switches to surround for that content, even though Windows still identifies the TV as the audio device and the usual speaker/EQ options do not apply the same way.

That usually means Dolby is working for supported content, but not as a permanent setting for all PC audio in the current PC > TV > ARC/eARC > AVR path.

I hope this helps explain what you are seeing, and thank you for confirming the test result.

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