Question

How can I get multi-channel audio from Freeview HD channels?

Background

Some Freeview HD channels are are transmitted with a 5.1 AAC audio stream.   This type of audio can not be bitstreamed to a receiver which means it must be decoded on the PC.   The only connections to get multi-channel audio from the PC are:

• LPCM via HDMI (some older motherboards with HDMI do not support this)
• Analogue connections

This means that it is not possible to output multichannel audio directly via S/PDIF (optical / coax) connections however this can be converted on the fly into a Dolby Digital (AC3) bitstream which can then be output

Answer

The answer will depend on which connections are available.