Does the RXA820 need an analog feed in combination with the HDMI input to get sound to zone 2? I believe Denon needs a one to get sound to zone 2 just wondering if this particular Yamaha does.
My situation is that I need to feed the customers cable music to zone 2. Currently the main zone gets it's audio via the HDMI. From looking at the back of the 820 I need to tell it to link one of the two analog inputs to the HDMI input to possibly work. Wow, I only see two analog inputs. What if I have the need for more. I better get my butt to a Yamaha training.

There is only one AVR/Processor that I know of that allows zone 2 audio via HDMI, and that is Lexicon. I highly doubt the Aventage receivers do it.

I just finished a Pioneer Elite and I've done a Yamaha in the past. I believe that on Zone 2, audio is only played through the analog inputs, digital and HDMI sources don't play over Zone 2 speaker outputs.

and I agree, it's pretty damn annoying that it won't, these new receivers are very limited in analog inputs.

RTFM!! Yamaha 820 and above can definitely play HDMI only sources through zone 2. there is one caveat. it must be in party mode, which turns the main zone into 5-7 Channel Stereo. You cannot have discreet surround playing in Z1 and stereo in Z2. It works fantastically great and eazy. anytime you want audio in Z2, just hit the Party button and whallah!!!

If an AVR is to play Zone 2 from sources that are only connected digitally, it must have a D-A converter for the main zone and a D-A converter for the second zone. That would cost money, and apparently none of them have even considered for a blinkin' moment spending money on this.

It's not hard to conceive of if you describe it slightly differently: You say


and


The first slightly different way to think of this is that Zone 2 is an analog system. And there's your answer.

The second is that you don't link one of the analog inputs to the HDMI input but instead you link one of the analog inputs to a device that uses an HDMI input. The way you're expressing it, HDMI has the DVD input and you need to link the analog input to the HDMI. Instead, it's that the DVD has an HDMI input and you need to link an analog input to DVD, too.

That makes sense since HDMI can only decode one sound mode at a time.

Far from perfect....but......we are talking HDMI.........

There are more than two analog inputs. They are just name weird. You have Audio 1, Audio 2, as well as the inputs label AV5 and AV6.

Thanks for all the input. Party Mode it is!!! and I'll RTFM. I was lazy, since I had to load the disc and search around.

Yamaha's are the only ones with the audio party mode and it is a life saver and should be the only avr sold for zone 2+ applications because of it...no other manufacturer can completely get rid of the delay/echo effect yet (and this is there 4th generation having the feature).