Stereo PCM is uncompressed, 5.1 channel is Dolby Digital or DTS. Not all TVs support outputting multichannel over ARC, or only do so under certain circumstances.

The new eARC standard does support uncompressed multichannel audio, but the Model 976 was released far before eARC.
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Outlaw Audio Model 976 / 7700 / Ultra-X13
B&W CM9, CM Center, DS3 (side), DM303 (back)
Blue Jeans Cables (XLRs, Canare 4S11 Bi-wire, HDMI)
Tivo Bolt, Xbox Series X, Panasonic ub820, AppleTV 4k, LG C765P
Roon, Allo Digione Signature, Sonore MicroRendu, Uptone Audio LPS-1, Peachtree Audio Nova 150
GIK Acoustics Soffit Bass Traps, 244 Panels, Monster Bass Traps, QRD7 / Polyfusor Diffusers