Toslink and 7.1 surround

2 front, 2 rear, and 2 surround and a powered sub. It comes with an Audyssey mic to set up the speakers for any size room, not sure I am truly getting 7.1, since 5.1 will come out of all the speakers. I have read mmany different things on the net, so far it's about 50/50 on whether or not Toslink will carry 7.1 surround. But since I have pass though only, (HDMI) I am not sure if the Toslink cable is carrying 7.1 to the Onkyo HT-SR800 or not. 2 front, 2 rear, and 2 surround and a powered sub. It comes with an Audyssey mic to set up the speakers for any size room, not sure I am truly getting 7.1, since 5.1 will come out of all the speakers. I have read mmany different things on the net, so far it's about 50/50 on whether or not Toslink will carry 7.1 surround. But since I have pass though only, (HDMI) I am not sure if the Toslink cable is carrying 7.1 to the Onkyo HT-SR800 or not.

No, I have 7 speakers already, 2 front, 2 rear, 2 surround (2nd pair rear) and a powered sub. My question is, does Toslink carry the 7.1 signal? Since the HT-SR800 is only pass through, and the PS3 only has 1 HDMI out, I need to carry the HDMI signal to the TV, and a Toslink directly to the receiver for surround. How can I be sure I am really listening to 7.1 (I am using a blu-ray disc with 7.1 surround on it) without a HDMI cable? I have read over and over that I need a HDMI cable to carry the audio, and that a Toslink doesn't support 7.1, then I read that Toslink WILL carry the audio. I need clarification. Thank you for your response by the way. No, I have 7 speakers already, 2 front, 2 rear, 2 surround (2nd pair rear) and a powered sub. My question is, does Toslink carry the 7.1 signal? Since the HT-SR800 is only pass through, and the PS3 only has 1 HDMI out, I need to carry the HDMI signal to the TV, and a Toslink directly to the receiver for surround. How can I be sure I am really listening to 7.1 (I am using a blu-ray disc with 7.1 surround on it) without a HDMI cable? I have read over and over that I need a HDMI cable to carry the audio, and that a Toslink doesn't support 7.1, then I read that Toslink WILL carry the audio. I need clarification. Thank you for your response by the way.