cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 
Anonymous User
Not applicable

5.1 Audio output ??

Hi there ....

Having had a lengthy 'web chat' with one of The NOW help persons, they assured me that the Black Now box should output a 5.1 Dolby signal .... Which I was failing to get, so .... After several hours of fiddling with settings on both my AV amp & resetting the Now box a couple of times, I'm still not convinced a 5.1 output is happening.

Within the settings/audio menu I've tried both the 'auto detect' ..... Which did as it said & recognised the HDMI could carry DD and DTS .... And also manually set the audio at DD (along with all the other settings) but alas all that is being fed from the Now box appears to be stereo.

 

Has anyone out there managed to configure a 5.1 output & inform if I'm missing something really simple & stupid !

Thanks in advance for any info

Cheers

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION
Anonymous User
Not applicable

@Anonymous User

 

NOW TV only supply stereo audio.  Hopefully 5.1 is something on their list for the future, especially moviesSmiley Happy

View solution in original post

173 REPLIES 173
Anonymous User
Not applicable

Was pretty surprised to see a lack of 1080p, ive been using a 720p plasma for the last 8 years and was pretty happy with nowtv for movies but having recently upgraded to a 65" 4k tv and the picture looks is so far behind netflix and amazon prime not even counting 4k content.

 

Came here looking for info on when nowtv will be going 4k and to see the picture isnt even 1080p is nuts. Fair play to you guys chasing this - doesn't make sense to me - against their competitors for streaming services it make it a much less favourable option. The film selection is great but 720 isn't good enough for newer big tvs.

 

Has there ever been a indication on a lack of 1080p?

Andy
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

Unfortunately NOW TV are pretty tight-lipped when it comes to any upcoming improvements so there's been no word on if or when 1080p might arrive, but it is something that gets asked for fairly often and the best thing you can do for now is to vote for and/or leave a comment on the Ideas Board here

http://community.nowtv.com/t5/Ideas-for-NOW-TV/HD-picture-quality/idi-p/191

Anonymous User
Not applicable

You know, the anger many us have towards Now TV for not implementing 1080p HD and 5:1 Dolby Digital is rather misdirected. The decision to withhold such features actually comes from Sky wanting a three-tier platform for its services, thus creating a bigger market share where it possesses a small but expensive top end (Sky Q), a moderately expensive but huge middle ground (Sky HD), and an emerging but volatile contract free lower end (Now TV). Such an approach gives Sky and its shareholders wicked financial dividends. It is sound business, right?

 

But here’s the thing: can it last? Sky’s corporate mentality is locked somewhere in the mid-noughties, where HD picture and DD sound used to seem luxurious benefits. Sky seems to be unwilling to recognise that those ostensible benefits are now de facto, hence why Netflix and Amazon just include it as part of their regular service. What was a luxury is now de facto.

 

Look, Sky can see the success Netflix is having with its approach to streaming media and it wants a share of that market. But the way it is doing on Now TV is out dated and weird. It cannot last. Surely the overlords at Sky can see this.

ukbobboy
Legend

@Anonymous User

 

You know IRF

 

I'm just gonna throw a little cold water on your post:

 

You said, "the anger many us have towards Now TV for not implementing 1080p HD....". This "anger" you speak of is way overstated and I believe that most Now TV consumers do not feel the way you do, some might but the majority do not.

 

As for Sky's corporate mentality, remember that they're running a tech company and tech companies know that if they do not move with the times they will go under, i.e. become a memory/a footnote in history. Plus, you must know that Sky has a mountain of various reports, e.g. trends, consumer expectations, sector profitability, etc. at their finger tips. And as such are more likely to know how to service the market sector they are operating in.

 

Sky has far more information than you have, plan every move they make and also, more than likely, keep an eye on both Netflix and Amazon to see if these companies pick up on trends they may miss.  

 

Therefore, I am sure that Sky/Now TV  will move into the 1080p 5.1 HD surround sound arena when they determine the market is ready.

 

 

UK Bob

Anonymous User
Not applicable

Yo, UK Bob, by capitalising my name, one deduces that thee is not a happy bunny with me. Come now, I’m not trying to upset my fellow Now TV community members, I just want people to fix up and look sharp. I want them to Believe in Betterand all that.

 

Mate, far be it for me to cast dispersions on Sky’s business prowess. Heck, I’m just some loser in front of a keyboard, whereas they are … well … Sky.

 

But, UK Bob, I am a consumer and have a right to be heard. I also have an ethical responsibility, I feel, to cajole others to want better. It matters to me, and some others, that Now TV gets with the times and starts streaming in 1080p HD and 5:1 Dolby Digital. I may be a minority voice but my opining on this issue shouldn’t be negated. UK Bob, mate, there was a time when the majority in Britain didn’t believe in women having a vote, but a few did, and very strongly indeed. The few changed greater consensus.

 

Sky is a powerhouse of a media empire. It has altered our indigenous culture in massive ways. Thirty years ago, the concept of rampantly expensive subscriptions for soccer and entertainment programming was characteristically un-British, whereas it is the norm now. We accept it as a culture. We are even willing to shell out extra it seems, just to watch movies in HD and DD on Sky Cinema via satellite. But are we getting a good deal or are we, as consumers, being played by Sky? It’s food for thought, bruv.

 

No-one is forcing me to be a Now TV customer. I wanna be one, sir. I would like to, however, defend my consumer position and campaign for a better service. We all should, really.

 

Peace out, homie.

SeeMoreDigital
Legend 5
Legend 5

Oh jeez.... 

ukbobboy
Legend

@Anonymous User

 

Well Irf

 

1) Maybe the capitalisation of your handle indicated some unhappiness with you at the time but I was not aware of it at the time of actual writing, it was probably an unconscious thing.

 

2) I admire your passion for your cause and your willingness to stick with it no matter what.

 

3) I guess the problem I have with your post is when you ascribe your passion to the majority of Now TV customers, that to me is stretching the truth just a little too much.

 

I came to this forum to get away from political-type exaggerations and spin doctoring, there's too much of that nonsense in the world already.

 

So please, continue your campaign, which you have a right to do, but remain on point and, above all, remain truthful. 

 

Peace.

 

 

UK Bob

Anonymous User
Not applicable

Yo, UK Bob, ta for your response.

 

You suggest that my campaigning is perhaps riddled with ‘spin’ and ‘exaggerations’ pertaining to what I perceive to be the wanton desire for 5:1 Dolby Digital sound and 1080p HD picture to be rolled out on Now TV’s Sky Cinema output; yet this is a pre-existing movement that outdates even me. The intrepid Now TV pioneer AdamJohn started this thread back in January, and countless others entered the fray to echo his sentiments, that the withholding of such technical features is baseless.

 

Mate, I am a newcomer to this campaign. Yet one just has to read through past comments of Now TV clients abjectly disheartened at having invested in myriad modern entertainment tech, only to be confronted with Now TV’s incomprehensible suppression of features that by now ought to be standard fare. We’re not asking for the world here. This thread clearly demonstrates an unmet need, son. To deny that is kind of disingenuous.

 

You are likely to claim that our collective passion is still a minority pursuit, as the majority of Now TV subscribers are content with the plenitude of material and easy about the mediocrity of technical quality. But don’t be so complacent, my brother. Now TV is offering movies that are all pretty much available to view free of charge on sites like ******** and in comparable quality. Now TV’s staunch passivity to such realities is alarming to me. You’re dealing with a generation that has few ethical qualms with illegal streaming, and Now TV has to be made aware of this. It needs to better its services and stop taking things for granted. It needs to differentiate itself by enhancing its streaming capabilities because its current trajectory will only see it so far.

 

We are having a cracking debate here, UK Bob. Now TV is lucky to have us. I reckon they may even do a Frost/ Nixon-type movie adaptation of our back and forth exchanges. Let’s keep it up until Now TV sees the light and recognises the error of its ways.

ukbobboy
Legend

@Anonymous User

 

Hi again Irf

 

You know, as I sip my beer and listen to my music, I can't help but admire your passion for this subject and, I must admit, I had a little laugh after reading your latest post.  As long as we do not let passion overflow into anger and mud slinging then I'm still with it.

 

OK, I think the reason why we have such a difference of opinion is simply because we are looking at things from our own personal perspectives which at this point are diametrically opposed (sorry, I think that's the beer talking).

 

Anyway, I believe that Sky/Now TV will upgrade their systems to include 1080p 5.1/7.1 surround sound when their marketing consultants tell them it's a viable (sub) sector to invest in. And Roku can design and make a new "next generation" box at a price point that Now TV customers will be happy with (mind you, it would make sense that such a "next generation" box with all the bells and whistles would already be on Roku's drawing board).

 

At the moment, (as I'm having another beer and bopping to my music) I am happy with  my little black box because it has allowed me to have facilities a few years ago would have been considered "pie-in-the sky".  This, I believe, is not settling for mediocrity but utilising your equipment for maximum (personal) benefit. You see, I've stopped chasing after the "next greatest thing" some time ago,  that race you can never get ahead of.  I would much rather all the possible facilities on the black box were activated, such as the USB and micro SD ports, before lookingt for something else. For me, those ports have possible facilities that can be immediately used, e.g recording programs for later playback, playing programs and music from portable media, etc. those are readily achievable goals for most Now TV customers.

 

Technology will always move on and I'm sure 1080p 5.1/7.1 will arrive but just not yet.

 

I hope what I've written is not too beer soaked.

 

UK Bob

 

PS. Irf,  you know it's not a good idea to mention pirate web-sites, you might upset some of the forum moderators.

 

4268
Legend 5
Legend 5
@Anonymous User email address in above post
Please take a moment to click thanks or marked as solution if this answered your question. I am a community contributor and pop on when I can.