It works as expected, but not super stable, it requires restart from time to time.

Did the required job without incident.

I feel like I've written this before, but Monoprice is asking me again... this works and works well in two home setups I have where I want to run a new, non-optical-output Apple TV to a TV for video, and an older, still fantastic AVR for audio. Apple's hatred of ports is Monoprice's gain.

Note: 4 stars if you have a 5.1 setup (which I do), if you have a 7.1 setup this device will work perfectly for you given that you read the specs and it fits the bill.

First let me address the mention that the 3.5 mm stereo sockets are too close. They are, but they aren't. I have multiple sets of 3.5 mm to RCA stereo cables only one of them disallows other cables from connecting. I also decided on just using 3.5 mm stereo end to end and it fits with wiggle room. However as many have said, if it's an issue you're probably safe to shave off some sheathing if needed.

Now my hope is that there's a dedicated 5.1 LPCM switch. Optical / Co-ax will auto-negotiate capabilities with the downstream receiver, however it seems devices may not recognize what they can output.

For my XBOX One and PS3 I can explicitly specify LPCM to 5.1 and it works flawlessly. The Nintendo Switch only has "Surround" and it also works.

For my PS4 Slim, it doesn't seem LPCM 5.1 is auto-detected. I can specify the HDMI mode as far as Bitstream or LPCM however when it goes to LPCM it detects 7.1, which makes sense. However here is where it gets weird, when I turn my receiver off and the on again, the PS4 Slim detects 5.1 LPCM and it works as such.

My only other issue and one others have mentioned is that center and LFE (i.e. subwoofer) are reversed. Not a big deal but again, a toggle / switch on the device itself would resolve this so I don't have to do some cable / adapter jutsu (i.e. art) to get it to send the right channel to the right speaker. I have several receivers but this issue was seen in my Logitech Z-680's and Z-5500's.

Now as much as this has nothing to do with the extractor or the device manufacturers my use case is special. I have a 5.1 setup and it's a good setup.

There is a literal issue with the Roku and it's on Roku's side of the fence. I've only been able to isolate it to the Roku. Regardless of whatever I try, it will not output surround.

To confirm that it is an issue with Roku and not the extractor, I connected my Apple TV 2nd generation, and XBOX 360 as they can only do bitstream compressed formats similar to Roku. They both worked flawlessly.

All in all this product works, it does what it should. It works for anything you can throw at it except for a Roku and that fault lies with Roku. The only actual "issue" I ran into, which is easily accommodated for via cable/adapter jutsu, is Center / SubWoofer (i.e. LFE) being reversed for certain receiver inputs.

This is the cheapest multi-channel analog surround sound extractor, it seems like. I had some trouble, but did eventually get it to work as a way to get surround sound into my venue PA system. Using a Behringer X32 mixer, if you happen to be in pro audio. No issues once it was set up. Two significant issues, first is that yes, the 1/8” plugs are too close together. You might think, whatever, but only slim plugs will fit. Monoprice’s own 1/8” to rca converters (pn# 5611) don’t fit. I have two of the monoprice 1/8” to dual 1/4” cables plugged in, but you can’t fit a third or it pries the plug crooked. Have a slim (smartphone style) extender that is slim enough to fit next to the other plugs. If one were desperate, you can whittle off some of the plug’s molded insulation with a knife to squeeze them together, as long as you don’t go too deep and expose the electrical connections. Figure in special breakout cables, to the price of what you pay here.

Other major issue is this doesn’t support Dolby Digital, a very common format for surround sound. My Amazon Fire TV box ONLY outputs Dolby Digital, so this converter will never work with it. It only supports uncompressed, PCM surround audio, or DTS. Make sure you can dive into your sources audio settings and switch to one of these formats. I have used it successfully with an Xbox one x, and a Samsung blu Ray player. Apparently the Roku streaming box can output DTS.

Less important, but a little confusing, the silkscreen on mine says LFE/C, but the order is reversed, center channel is tip, LFE channel is the ring connection.

Other than that, no issues in operation once I stumbled through what it does and doesn’t do. The metal box is nice. It is small. No video issues so far running the monoprice 75’ active hdmi cable (pn#7697) to a projector from front of house.

Enclosed is a drawing of a common way to hook this up to a PA system for venue surround sound

I wish it were at least prosumer. The mini plugs are too close together and too close to the HDMI port. Quarter inch would be better than mini but at least if the mini ports weren’t so jammed together I could get a decent adapter in there.

I purchased two of these and tried using them to extract audio from a Roku (and eventually HDMI-matrixed PCs) before sending video to a projector. Both times shortly after connecting the Roku, the Extractor's power LED went dark for good, and no amount of waiting, pressing its power button, or power cycling would bring it back. Not once did either one pass video or audio.

Does its job. Turning off the device connected to the output will cause temporary audio loss. S/PDIF output uses TOSLINK instead of RCA which causes more jitter without any benefits which is a poor design choice on whoever designed this.

It works, not warning the HDMI connection is so close to the 1/8 that only some 1/8 plugs work. The monoprice 1/8 Jack I got from monoprice does not fit while HDMI is plugged in.

Power is extremely finicky. You can't even press a button on the unit without it losing power and sending a spike to your speakers. Center channel does not work (speaker and wires tested out good).