Just got done setting up my Chromecast and can answer some "connecting to a receiver" questions. I have a Pioneer VSX-1020 that's only a year old which I have the Chromecast hooked up to directly. Works fine when you switch to the proper HDMI. I have a Logitech Harmony so I just created an Activity to automatically switch to the proper HDMI with a button click. Volume controls still work from phone/tablet/PC which control the Chromecast output not the receiver volume. Most Netflix movies are encoded in 5.1 which the receiver sees as Dolby Digital Plus. Think of it like virtual 5.1 surround which is OK but no where near as good as a Blu-ray disc. Some movies are still encoded in stereo such as Avengers which I was surprised by. During movie playback you can press an icon from the Netflix app to select the audio format being pushed. YouTube and Google Music will decode as stereo only, if you want 5.1 you need to switch the receiver to Dolby Pro Logic or Circle Surround depending on your receiver or preference. Google Play Movies was the biggest disappointment. The two movies I tried (Transformers and Tron: Legacy) both played naitively in 2-channel stereo not 5.1. Had to force virtual 5.1 through receiver to get all my speakers going. Hopefully this is addressed very soon. I also had some experimentation with wi-fi bands. I run everything in my apartment on the 5 GHz spectrum so I had to drop my phone and tablet down to the 2.4 GHz to set up the Chromecast initially. I was bummed out by this at first but then realized that after your setup is complete you can go back onto your 5 GHz band and still control the Chromecast just fine. My 2.4 and 5 GHz channels have different SSID names which didn't seem to matter. (Chromecast is a 2.4 GHz only device, FYI)
Some other tidbits:
- I'm not able to listen to Google Music while having the TV screen off. Once the TV is turned off the audio cuts out immediately even though the Chromecast is plugged directly into my receiver.
- The rumors about HDMI 1.4 being able to power the Chromecast are false. As soon as I unplugged the USB cable from the Chromecast itself it powered off. My receiver has 1.4a ports.
Feel free to ask any questions or make any requests.
Some other tidbits:
- I'm not able to listen to Google Music while having the TV screen off. Once the TV is turned off the audio cuts out immediately even though the Chromecast is plugged directly into my receiver.
- The rumors about HDMI 1.4 being able to power the Chromecast are false. As soon as I unplugged the USB cable from the Chromecast itself it powered off. My receiver has 1.4a ports.
Feel free to ask any questions or make any requests.