HDCP headaches

Ugg.. our TV setup is quickly driving me nuts (specifically having to listen to family members bitch about it).

We don't have a difficult media setup. Basically, before Christmas we just used a Roku connected to a Yamaha soundbar and then the TV, with a Wii U on the second TV input. Of course, a remote for the TV, a remote for the Roku, and a remote for the soundbar and everyone kept misplacing them and then complaining because they couldn't find them. So when the Caavo device went on sale I thought great, simple solution (I don't mind a $2/month subscription for voice, which the Alexa integration gets used on a daily basis) to the problem of multiple remotes and having to switch TV inputs when the kids want to play the Wii U.

Unfortunately the Roku Ultra, Caavo, soundbar, and TV aren't playing nice and at least a couple times a day trying to watch anything results in a black HDCP 2.2 error, even though the Roku is set to 1080P (no 4K tv yet). Once it throws the error, the only solution is to kill the power to all the devices (not just turn them off) and then power them back on.

Roku, Caavo, and Yamaha all say it's the HDMI cables, but I've tried swapping and replacing every combination I can think of. I've got Samsung branded high-speed HDMI cables, Monoprice ones, Amazon Basics, etc. It doesn't help that after powering back on, everything works for a random amount of time/number of shows before it throws the error again.

Running just the Roku through the Caavo to the TV works. Running just the Roku through the soundbar to the TV works. Running the Roku directly to the TV works. Intermittent issues only arise when combining all three.

Any advice on how best to troubleshoot this, ideal HDMI cables to pick up, anything? I'm usually pretty logical but this has me beating my head on the wall.

Any chance you could run the soundbar with TOSLINK Sound Out? Or just run the sound bar via HDMI ARC output (if your TV supports it), rather than routing video through it?

Since Roku->Caavo->TV works, but Roku->Caavo->SoundBar->TV does not

Sounds like just one too many hops

Unfortunately, no HDMI ARC as the TV is about the most basic 65" Samsung ever made. It also doesn't have an optical out to feed the soundbar (Yamaha ATS-1070).

Does it have an analog sound out?

Yeah, it has left/right audio outputs I guess I could try.

I'm not sure the Samsung UN65FH6001F model of TV will output the audio from a HDMI source through the analog outputs. I think I remember trying with an XBOX for some late night gaming on headphones and could never get any sound.

I had HDCP nightmares at my place. The thing that's worked like a charm for me is a simple HDMI splitter. You don't really split, just in and out - but it bypasses the HDCP handshake. I have a HDMI over CAT6 system that wouldn't work without a HDCP stripper, multiple TVs connected to a bunch of devices, HDCP was killing me.

https://www.amazon.com/ViewHD-Power...=ViewHD+2+Port+1x2+Powered+HDMI+Mini+Splitter

Read the reviews, many mention the HDCP stripping properties as a major feature.

Did you ever resolve this issue? I have a virtually identical setup and am having the same issue. I just hooked up a new-to-me Yamaha sound bar with a Roku, Caavo and Samsung TV connected over known good HDMI cables. Only the combination of all four gives issues; If I remove any one of them (except the Roku, obviously) from the equation, no problem. I can go back to the optical cable but was hoping for a real solution.

I have not I have about $40 worth of HDMI cables sitting in my Amazon cart but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. For now the family knows just to flip the power strip off and on and wait for everything to start back up.

I've been meaning to hook the old Roku 3 back up and see if it still has issues, just haven't done it. I don't want to drop cash on new cables if that isn't going to fix the issue. I've exhausted every cable combo I have on hand.

FWIW, I've tried nearly every HDMI cable I have on hand, from eBay cheapies to Amazon Basics to Monster and even the super-expensive cables that came with my two Caavos (I bought the AV package for the lifetime service). Nothing works. IMHO, there's no way it's the cables, but sorting out between four distinct companies exactly whose issue it is seems like Mission Impossible. (My inclination is to point the finger at Caavo as the newest player on the field.) That pulling any one device out of the mix just makes it that much more complicated. I considered the HDMI stripper ... err, splitter mentioned above, but it was faster, easier and cheaper for me to just use the optical cable I already had. Disappointing, to say the least, because running the HDMI through the soundbar was the single most important factor in buying it.

It's hard to describe the mass of cables I have just in the living room -

I have a Roku, a HTPC, a BluRay player, and DirecTV DVR hooked into my AVR. I have HDMI split off the DTV to the HTPC. I have HDMI split off the DTV to an HDMI over Cat6 extender and the far end of that is hooked into a AVR with a Roku on that, too. That's without even getting into the audio side.

Strippers were a life saver for me. And I use nothing but those Amazon Basics (I think that's what they are) HDMI cables. I can turn stuff on and off at will, any order. There is sometimes a blank screen for a second whil the handshake is trying to take place when something else is turned on, but I never see the HDCP screen ever.

Does the issue go away if you have the Roku plugged directly into the TV versus plugging it into the soundbar first?

elite.mafia said:

Does the issue go away if you have the Roku plugged directly into the TV versus plugging it into the soundbar first?

Click to expand...

It does for me. It's only all of the components in combination that cause the issue. I can go (Roku -> sound bar > TV) or (Roku -> Caavo -> TV) and it works. Only (Roku -> Caavo -> sound bar -> TV) results in the HDCP error.

brossow said:

It does for me. It's only all of the components in combination that cause the issue. I can go (Roku -> sound bar > TV) or (Roku -> Caavo -> TV) and it works. Only (Roku -> Caavo -> sound bar -> TV) results in the HDCP error.

Click to expand...

I have no idea what a Caavo is, but generally speaking your setup shouldn't have so many devices in a string like that. Normally you have all your video output devices going to the receiver, and then the receiver to the TV. The fact that there is an extra stop is probably what's causing the issue.

Is there no way to have your audio go a different path than your video?

elite.mafia said:

I have no idea what a Caavo is, but generally speaking your setup shouldn't have so many devices in a string like that. Normally you have all your video output devices going to the receiver, and then the receiver to the TV. The fact that there is an extra stop is probably what's causing the issue.

Click to expand...

Caavo aggregates multiple inputs, allows search and playback across connected devices, single output to TV/receiver/whatever, single remote controls everything -- so essentially a type of receiver. After reviewing the specs for the TV and the requirements for the Caavo just now, it appears that my TV doesn't support ARC, and so their recommended setup is what I ended up having to do (as below).

elite.mafia said:

Is there no way to have your audio go a different path than your video?

Click to expand...

Yes, I ended up going back to optical in/out. I was trying to minimize the number of cables to/from the TV by running everything through HDMI, but it looks like the only way to do that would be to replace the TV, which is hardly an option. Oh, well. I guess I answered my own question by RTFM.

brossow said:

It does for me. It's only all of the components in combination that cause the issue. I can go (Roku -> sound bar > TV) or (Roku -> Caavo -> TV) and it works. Only (Roku -> Caavo -> sound bar -> TV) results in the HDCP error.

Click to expand...

Same here, but honestly I'm thinking the problem lies with my Yahmaha ATS-1070 soundbar. I've tracked down the issue to powering everything off at night. If I manually turn off the TV and leave the Caavo and soundbar on.. no HDCP errors. If power everything down at night I can be 100% sure I'll get the error after turning everything on and trying to watch something in the morning. Turn it all off, kill the power strip for 5 seconds then flip it back on and power all the devices up and no more errors.

I'm going to manually turn off the soundbar and TV tonight and then check it in the morning. If everything works then my theory is an issue with the CEC between the Caavo and ATS-1070 that is breaking the HDCP handshake on a "soft" power off/on process. I may try disabling CEC and try the IR blaster instead.

Considering I've gone a week with just manually powering off/on the TV without any HDCP issues I can't believe it to be a HDMI cable issue.