How to make Surround Sound work?

[TochaRude]

Hey all,

I might need some help on setting everything up correctly.

I installed this fork on my S95B and the stream is running fine. I have no issues - just some stuttering which I need to troubleshoot.
But after I configure 5.1 or 7.1 sound - all sounds become some sort of "metallic".

I use Apollo on my host and have set up the Steam Streaming Speakers.
Unfortunately there is no way to configure it as a Surround System under Windows 11.

My Client is an S95B65" with a 7.1 Soundbar (JBL BAR 1000), which is also able to use Dolby Atmos.
I understand that Sunshine/Apollo and Moonlight do not use Atmos - propably due to licensing, but even is I use PCM, the sound is metallic.

The sounds start already to be metallic in Steam Big Picture, therefore I assume its either a Host-Setting- or a Client-thing.

Maybe I'm doing something wrong - I'm pretty new in this topic.
Does somebody have similar issues and was able to fix this or has some ideas how I can fix this?

Thanks in advance :)

Here are some logs - I also tried to change the sample rate on the Steam Streaming Speakers, hoping that it might help:

[2025-11-20 13:13:38.250]: Info: CLIENT CONNECTED
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.391]: Info: Selected audio sink: {0.0.0.00000000}.{26ca9e44-e4e6-4aaa-ab70-258a86599d9b}
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.396]: Info: Audio mixer format is 32-bit, 48000 Hz, no resampling needed
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.403]: Info: Audio capture format is [F32 48000 7.1]
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.404]: Info: Opus initialized: 48 kHz, 8 channels, 2048 kbps (total), LOWDELAY
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.717]: Info:
Device Description : NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
Device Vendor ID : 0x000010DE
Device Device ID : 0x00002B85
Device Video Mem : 32101 MiB
Device Sys Mem : 0 MiB
Share Sys Mem : 15956 MiB
Feature Level : 0x0000B100
Capture size : 3840x2160
Offset : 0x0
Virtual Desktop : 3840x2160
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.717]: Info: Active GPU has HAGS enabled
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.717]: Info: Using realtime GPU priority
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.718]: Info:
Colorspace : DXGI_COLOR_SPACE_RGB_FULL_G2084_NONE_P2020
Bits Per Color : 10
Red Primary : [0.639648,0.330078]
Green Primary : [0.299805,0.599609]
Blue Primary : [0.150391,0.0595703]
White Point : [0.3125,0.329102]
Min Luminance : 0 nits
Max Luminance : 3805.55 nits
Max Full Luminance : 3805.55 nits
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.718]: Info: Desktop resolution [3840x2160]
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.718]: Info: Desktop format [DXGI_FORMAT_R16G16B16A16_FLOAT]
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.718]: Info: Display refresh rate [120Hz]
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.718]: Info: Requested frame rate [120fps]
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.719]: Info: Client dynamicRange: 1, Display is HDR: true
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.719]: Info: Creating encoder [hevc_nvenc]
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.719]: Info: Color coding: HDR (Rec. 2020 + SMPTE 2084 PQ)
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.719]: Info: Color depth: 10-bit
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.719]: Info: Color range: JPEG
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.728]: Info: Capture format [DXGI_FORMAT_R16G16B16A16_FLOAT]
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.790]: Info: NvEnc: created encoder HEVC P1 async 10-bit two-pass rfi
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.791]: Info: Minimum FPS target set to ~12fps (8.33333e+07ns)
[2025-11-20 13:13:38.791]: Info: Encoding Frame threshold: 8333333ns
[2025-11-20 13:15:19.898]: Info: Reinitializing audio capture
[2025-11-20 13:15:19.907]: Info: Audio mixer format is 32-bit, 192000 Hz, will be resampled to 48000 by Windows
[2025-11-20 13:15:19.912]: Info: Audio capture format is [F32 48000 7.1]
[2025-11-20 13:16:12.817]: Info: CLIENT DISCONNECTED

[TochaRude]

I checked the id of the "Selected audio sink: {0.0.0.00000000}.{26ca9e44-e4e6-4aaa-ab70-258a86599d9b}".

It seems like apollo is already selecting the Steam Streaming Speakers.
I was able to set them up as Surround 7.1 speakers in the "old" Sound-Settings menu. By selecting "Setup speakers".

The sound remains "metallic" or static.
Seems like my client setup is just not capable in processing the sound packages correctly.

Edit:
Is it possible, that the app is not using eARC correctly?
I read about it on several reddit posts, that the 7.1 sound will get compressed to stereo and therefore sound like I described.

[brightcraft]

Thanks for all the details and for testing the 5.1/7.1 surround sound setup.

Here’s the situation with audio channels on Moonlight Tizen:

1. Clarifications about multi-channels audio

• When you select 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound in the Moonlight settings, the client sends a request for a multi-channel audio stream to your Sunshine/Apollo host PC.
• The Moonlight core library does support multi-channel audio, which is why the setting exists.
• However, Tizen applications currently only guarantee proper audio playback for Stereo (2-channel).
• As a result, multi-channel output often leads to metallic or distorted sound on Samsung TVs, which is exactly what you’re experiencing.
• Encoded formats like Dolby Digital, DTS, Dolby Atmos are not supported by Moonlight, and Sunshine/Apollo don’t output them either.
• This is why the Audio configuration option in Moonlight is marked Experimental, as this feature may or may not work, even if the Steam Streaming Speakers are properly configured for surround sound on Windows.
• Perhaps in the future, Tizen apps will support multi-channel audio (take it for granted). But for now, Stereo is the recommended and reliable option for streaming.

2. Recommended audio settings

• Steam Streaming Speakers: 16-bit, 48 kHz, Stereo
• Moonlight Audio Configuration: Stereo

3. Regarding eARC

• eARC only affects HDMI connections between your TV and soundbar. It does not affect Moonlight streaming, which sends raw PCM over the network to the TV.

Summary: Your host PC is correctly set up for surround sound, but the limitation comes from the Tizen platform, where apps only reliably support 2-channel PCM. Sticking to Stereo in Moonlight and Steam Streaming Speakers is the recommended setup to avoid this issue.

[TochaRude]

Hey @brightcraft !

Thanks for the clarification!
I already thought so, that the Tizen Platform might limit us there.

Maybe I will search for some workarounds for my sound setup - like transmitting the sound separately and directly to the soundbar.

I will close this discussion then at this point, since it's clear now.

Appreciate your work!