Does the Apple TV support 5.1 channel surround sound?
The Apple TV outputs a Dolby Prologic stereo signal. It does not support “true” 5.1 channel surround sound. Interestingly, in an excellent MacWorld “First Look” regarding hacking the Apple TV, the author notes that: The audio chip in the Apple TV is a Realtek ALC885, which the manufacturer describes as a “7.1+2 Channel High-Performance High Definition Audio Codec.” The specs on this chip are quite impressive, and seem to indicate that the Apple TV’s reported audio-output limitation — Dolby Pro Logic II — is due to software, not hardware. In fact, Roughly Drafted reports that if you play a sample DTS audio file through your Apple TV, the Apple TV’s optical digital-audio output jack does indeed put out 5.1 audio. On the other hand, the ALC885 also supports “advanced lossless content protection technology,” so perhaps we have hardware DRM in our video-playing future. For a technical overview of the audio standards that the Apple TV supports, might support, and does not support, you migh
