By now, almost all TataSky HD & HD+ users with a home theater system know that the last software update that happened in April 2011 introduced a major bug in their set top boxes. The bug stopped sending Dolby 5.1 surround sound audio signals over the HDMI cable. If the subscribers had connected the HDMI cable to their home theater systems, they could no longer enjoy the Dolby 5.1 (or 7.1) audio as advertised in the media. Instead, the users get a scaled down 2 channel stereo audio experience.
The only way to experience Dolby Digital 5.1 audio is to connect the TataSky set top box to your home theater using the optical or coaxial cable. But that is a hassle and increases the cable clutter. Moreover, a coaxial connection is susceptible to electrical noise.
However, TataSky has confirmed to us in a tweet that this issue will be fixed in the next software update scheduled to go live “soon”. We do not know what “soon” means here, but my guess would be a few weeks. All we can hope for is that this update does not introduce any more bugs.