Ok, so I don't want to be bothered to create a new account on a new forum and I can't seem to find my answer elsewhere, so hopefully someone has already tackled these issues.

OS = Win7 64
Motherboard = Asus 785g/710 motherboard which is essentially some realtek HD/AC97 chip and a ATI 4200HD mobility graphics card

Audio) I have audio working over HDMI, but it only lets me "test" front L/R speakers. I'm plugged into a 7.1 receiver. Does windows support 7.1 over HDMI? I have an 8-channel integrated chip on the motherboard. If the only solution is running either a S/PDIF, or 8 analog cables, I'm fine with that, but I'd rather have everything through one cable.

Video) If I boot my PC before turning on my TV it won't output video over HDMI, and instead it defaults to some VGA controller. Is there any way to force HDMI output regardless? Right now if I boot in the wrong order I have to run to my other PC and VNC in.

If you use some sort of converters from DVI to HDMI or something like that, you can't have audio for those that didnt work. For 7.1 on HDMI I really don't know but I wouldnt be suprised if it was only a driver setting :P

EDIT: Why dont you plug your speakers directly in your PC if you have a 7.1 capable sound card?

I have a passive speakers system, so it has to plug into the A/V system. I can plug all 8 channels from my PC to my receiver, but that is just a ton of wires to deal with. Since it won't work over HDMI, S/PDIF is good enough.

@dahuman

HD content seems to be fine (online HD content is the only stuff I've run through it yet though), and I've read a lot of other people say they have no problem with that chipset. Also, I was reading some system requirements (WMP HD requirements) and my PC seems more than powerful enough. Oddly enough, the windows "scoring" system says my 4200 is better than the NVidia discrete card in my older PC and that handles HD content fine. However, I'll try out CoreAVC if I start to see artifacts.