HDMI audio output problem

Hi All, newbie to this forum. I have a sound disappearing problem.
Yamaha RX-V371 receiver,
Vizio E 321VL TV,
Chromecast,
Win7 Laptop with HDMI output
OK, so I feed the Laptop HDMI to the Yamaha HDMI-1, the Chromecast is plugged into HDMI-2 to the Yamaha and the HDMI output of the Yamaha goes to the VIZIO HDMI-1.

I am a little hard of hearing, so I use the TV sound when watching movies with slightly muffled sound as the crappy TV speakers add just enough harshness to be useful. :)

It all works individually - sometimes. I looks to me like it depends on what setup was running when the Yamaha is turned off and then the Yamaha seems to decide what is allowed when I turn it back on. It seems like the Yamaha is deciding what sound I need over the HDMI connections when passing it through to the TV HDMI.

Sometimes the sound works on the TV and sometimes it does not. I cannot seem to find a connection or start up sequence that always works. Therefore I am not sure what is causing the issue.

If I disconnect everything then connect just the laptop, OR the just Chromecast then it works just fine. There is something going weird with the combination when all plugged in.

I am lost with this one and I am no novice to hifi, TV or computers. Try as I might I cannot find a repeatable start up sequence to begin finding out what is happening with the sound.

Thoughts and suggestions would be very much appreciated.

Thanks
Harry
 
Most every TV I've seen the user selects the input device {TV, AV, Computer, HDMI-1, HDMI-2} and all other devices are ignored - - saying when HDMI-1 is active, the other has no effect.
 
Thanks Joe, but that cannot be the issue as I mentioned above, it works on rare occasions. I just can't seem to find the combo that will make it work every time. I am using Netflix so the source is not changing, just the way the stupid Yamaha seems to be taking control.

If I plug the computer into the TV it works as expected, same for the Chromecast and that's with them selecting the same HDMI source.
 
I am strongly suggesting it should never have worked.
I use Netflix almost every night too via a WD TV live box which connects via HDMI to my Samsung tv.

Best wishes on your quest.
 
I read your OP and subscribed, but I still don't fully understand. You have:

TV, Receiver, speakers attached to receiver, various devices. Correct?

You should have this as your setup:
  • All devices attached to receiver only.
  • Sound on TV should be muted, or turned off (I do not understand why you're using TV speakers)
  • One HDMI cord between receiver and TV.
In Windows, if you are plugged into the receiver you may have the display output set as Yamaha_receiver or Vizio_TV, depending on the models (I can't confirm). Sound output needs to be set manually to use HDMI instead of analogue.

Now, since the above is working on receiverHDMI1, you can plug in Chromecast etc on to receiverHDMI2, switch the receiver to the second input, and configure it again.

Everything should be working fine, via your home theatre speakers. What happens when you switch back to receiverHDMI1?
 
I think the problem is related to encryption used by Netflix. A Chromecast plugged into an HDMI input on my TV works fine with Netflix. Another Chromecast plugged into an HDMI switchbox will produce a picture with Netflix, but no sound. Using other sources -- such as Youtube -- for this setup work flawlessly. In my case, my HDMI switchbox cannot decrypt Netflix audio. I suspect that if you plug your Chromecast directly into your TV, your Netflix sound will return. Good luck!
 
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