[assafl]

I have waited over a year since the first Bryston HDMI thread (which coincided with the PS3). At the time, the Silicon Image chips were hard to come by, etc.

Now all my sources and display devices support HDMI 1.3. Gone are the early glitches, crashes and hangups that my early projector would sometimes have.

I, for one, am getting itchy about pulling the trigger on an Integra DTC-9.8 or similar. Does Lexicon or Madrigal have something similar to the Intgra?

[Phil A]

There's plenty of info here less than a yr. old if you do a search.  James Tanner has indicated Bryston will be getting chips in March and will be looking at the issue.

[assafl]

Yes I read all of those threads. Nothing conclusive as far as I can see. Still have to keep all of those crappy RCA cables.

The requirements from an HDMI component are pretty strict. Therfore I would have expected Bryston to at least come up with a product marketing description by now. So we wait...

Someow Onkyo/Integra and Denon always get things done faster (much faster). And their engineering is pretty good. No discrete op-amps but good quality sound nonetheless.

[James Tanner]

Yes I read all of those threads. Nothing conclusive as far as I can see. Still have to keep all of those crappy RCA cables.

The requirements from an HDMI component are pretty strict. Therfore I would have expected Bryston to at least come up with a product marketing description by now. So we wait...

Someow Onkyo/Integra and Denon always get things done faster (much faster). And their engineering is pretty good. No discrete op-amps but good quality sound nonetheless.

Hi all,

I agree if your not going to use the 5.1 analog outputs on the new H-Def players go with one of the major companies if your an early adopter.

We are meeting in Vegas with some suppliers so hopefully I will be able to update everyone after the show.

I do have a couple of questions though:

1. When you use the HDMI out on your HD-DVD player is the Audio stream at this point Lossless Hi-Res or is it downsampled in the player to 44K or 48K?  So far the players I have tried output hi-def video but not audio?

2. I have had reports from reliable sources that the HDMI digital audio bitstream has noise issues?

james

[ec]

1. When you use the HDMI out on your HD-DVD player is the Audio stream at this point Lossless Hi-Res or is it downsampled in the player to 44K or 48K?  So far the players I have tried output hi-def video but not audio?

James, I just picked up the Toshiba A35 which is their "top of the line" HD DVD player just released a few months ago.  You have the choice on how HBR audio is output via HDMI from the manual:

Auto: When an HDMI device is equipped with built in Dolby Digital, DTS, MPEG or linear PCM decoder is connected to this player. 
When you play a disc recorded in Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD, PCM is output (core only for DTS-HD).
When you play a disc recorded in Dolby Digital or DTS format, digital audio signal (bitstream audio) is output.  If a connected HDMI device does not support Dolby Digital, DTS or MPEG, sound is converted into linear PCM to output.  To output high bit rate audio, select Auto, then make another setting (Digital Direct Audio Mode: On/Off > for amplifiers equipped with Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD decoder)

PCM: When an HDMI device which has multi channel input is connected to this player. 
When you play an HD DVD or DVD video disc recorded in multi channel in Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS or DTS-HD format, the sound is decoded and output in multi channel in linear PCM format

Downmixed PCM: When a 2 ch digital stereo AV receiver or processor is connected to this player
 - we don't need to know about this

I thought I would get the HBR audio out from the analog 5.1 outputs and this not the case.  From my understanding, the only way to get HBR is via an HDMI 1.3a into prepro / AVR that supports this.

2. I have had reports from reliable sources that the HDMI digital audio bitstream has noise issues?

Last week when I picked up the Toshiba A35 from my friends house, I heard his setup (the top of the line Onkyo Integra Pre Pro with the same model A35 HD DVD player) and I did not notice any noise.  I wan't listening crictically though.  We were watching parts of Transformers in HD DVD with the HBR audio.

[Phil A]

Yes I read all of those threads. Nothing conclusive as far as I can see. Still have to keep all of those crappy RCA cables.

The requirements from an HDMI component are pretty strict. Therfore I would have expected Bryston to at least come up with a product marketing description by now. So we wait...

Someow Onkyo/Integra and Denon always get things done faster (much faster). And their engineering is pretty good. No discrete op-amps but good quality sound nonetheless.

Mass market cos. for the most part get newer technology to the market faster.  Fortunately with limited titles and not a clear one format winner, it makes it much easier to sit on the sidelines.  I don't even have an HDMI display yet in the main room.  When I get one (hopefully sometime this year) I'll look at the state of the formats but as of now I'd probably get a better upconverting DVD player (already have a couple between the main system and bedroom system) vs. a high def player as given what they have out and carry at local stores at price points for the software.  For the most part, given the initial release sale prices, I'd probably opt for the std. def. DVD 90% of the time anyway right now.

[James Tanner]

INFO:

 Chip-maker’s Delays Cause Home Theater Industry Woes Late in 2007

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unless you are Onkyo and you are using a Texas Instruments based receiver platform and chipset, it's likely there was a little Scrooge in your Christmas. With the advent of HDMI 1.3-based formats like HD DVD and Blu-ray, complete with their copy protection and advanced surround sound formats, consumers are looking for new receivers to control their cutting edge home theater systems. However, the store shelves this holiday season are bare.

The reason for the shortage in fully functional HDMI 1.3-based receivers is delays in one of the most popular chipsets from Cirrus Logic that was promised for a March 2007 delivery. It was then reportedly redesigned after CEDIA 2007 in September with a promised (and missed) release date of December 2007. Multiple sources tell AVRev.com that the new chip from Cirrus Logic is far better with the post-CEDIA changes. Specifically, the chip is more simple and more stable, yet consumers struggle to understand why they can’t find an effective HDMI 1.3 solution for their home theater systems.

The Consumer Electronics Association refused this past fall to allow 1080p video to flow through analog component video cables, which would have kept this market shortfall from happening. Hollywood studios simply have too much say with the CEA when it comes to copy protection, thus consumers still struggle through clunky and intermittent functionality via HDMI and poorly implemented HDCP copy protection. This leaves millions of potential clients on the sidelines. And it is not just for receivers, but also for HD DVD and Blu-ray players as well as new HDTVs to go along with them.

The one cable connectivity of HDMI is of major significance, but the failures of copy protection has made HDMI a hated term with many consumers, installers and salespeople alike. Imagine a world where your Blu-ray player only took one cable plugged into your receiver with the highest level of video and audio performance, and one more cable went from your receiver to your HDTV. That’s simple to the level where uncommissioned Best Buy and Circuit City salespeople could actually embrace the complexities of today’s home theater technologies without worrying about the dreaded consumer return. Just like an Apple iMac has "A plug into B and B into C", home theaters have the potential to have the same level of simplicity.

To get to one cable fits (and works with) all connectivity, it's likely going to take the widespread release of this Cirrus Logic chip, as well as some improved updates to the HDCP copy protection via HDMI. OEM manufacturers of some of the world’s best receivers and AV preamps say that they expect these changes by late March or early April 2008 and not much later. Consumers are tired of waiting for the promise of simple connectivity. They will accept copy protection but not at the expense of the functionality of their entire system, which is the value proposition that the CEA and the Hollywood studios are forcing down throats for the past year of the HD disc format war.

by: Jerry Del Colliano