Issue:
When I connect the my Bell VIP8662W 4K receiver to my Denon 7.2 Channel Full 4K Ultra HD AV receiver then I get the following error on my 1080p non-4K television: “This content can not be displayed because your TV does not support HDCP 2.2“. The 4K receiver works fine when connected directly to the television. The problem only occurs when the 4K receiver is connected through the Denon AV receiver.
“High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) is a form of digital copy protection developed by Intel Corporation to prevent copying of digital audio & video content as it travels across connections. The system is meant to stop HDCP-encrypted content from being played on unauthorized devices or devices which have been modified to copy HDCP content. Before sending data, a transmitting device checks that the receiver is authorized to receive it. (Source – Wikipedia)”
Problem:
I found that the problem was that the Denon receiver detected a 4K (HDMI 2.0) signal coming in from the Bell receiver and successfully negotiated a HDCP handshake (as it should). The Denon receiver figured that if it can successfully negotiate a HDCP transaction with the source device (the Bell 4K receiver) then surely the television must be able to negotiate a HDCP handshake (as per the HDCP specification). Of course, my television is 1080p (not 4K). So, the handshake and HDCP negotiation between the Denon receiver and the television fails with the following error: “This content can not be displayed because your TV does not support HDCP 2.2“. The Bell receiver works fine when connected directly to the television because it detects that the television is not 4K compatible therefore does not attempt HDCP negotiation.
Solution:
I found an HDMI splitter that seems to remove HDCP from the HDMI data stream. I purchased a Revesun HDMI splitter from Amazon and inserted it into the HDMI chain between the HDMI out from the Denon receiver and the input to my television. I could have inserted the splitter between the Bell 4K receiver and the input to the Denon receiver but I found that the splitter seem to be also downscaling the 5.1 audio down to stereo (not acceptable). By inserting the HDMI splitter between the output of Denon and the input to the television, I am able to process 5.1 digital audio on the Denon receiver.
Conclusion:
The setup works great and does not affect my other devices (Apple TV, BlueRay player and Chromecast). I get full 1080p resolution on my television and maintain 5.1 digital sound from my AV receiver.