Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems Theta HDMI FAQ - Impressive...

I agree that its best to get to the common standard LPCM. But is there any value in having Meridian do their own DTS Master or Dolby True HD decoding? I mean they wrote their own decoding for DD/DTS and claim this produced some benefits right? In a product like the 861, bragging rights are important.

Thanks for the info guys- I was confused because I have read in passing that 1.1 can transmit it/ you need 1.3. Can you pass 1080P/30/24 over 1.2? If yes then I vote for 1.2 now. If no then I vote to build more future proofing into it.

btw- would our processors be able to handle the LPCM streams? It would seem that Dolby True HD is 96/24 and I think our processors can handle this. Am I correct? Another question is would Meridian be able to take in HDMI 1.x @ full resolution, process it, and then output it in MHR to digital speakers at 96/24 or better? I would hope so but I remember we just had some discussion here where many thought this would be an uphill battle. So if thats the case I am left to ask, whats the point?

best regards,
Jerry

rb:

VK said almost verbatim what I would have said -- I have little to add in that respect.

Cheers,

If we're talking about DTS Master Audio and Dolby TrueHD I'm not going to agree with you. In a properly functioning lossless decoder all the results should (by definition) be identical.

The value add is in what happens after the decode.

1080p (up to 60Hz) is within spec for 1.1. 1.2 added in support for additional PC based changes. 1.2a added in SA-CD support. 1.3 adds deep color and bitstream transfers of DD+, DTS-HD, Dolby True HD and DTS-HD Master Audio.


Yes. This is really no different than the MHR streams that come down the cable today.

Dolby TrueHD maxes out at 24/192K. To date; all of the TrueHD tracks have been 48kHz. I don't know that there's a rush out of Hollywood to implement 96K sampling.

Yes, the processors (at least current models) can handle and process 24/96K -- they do that with 96K DVD-Audio discs. Beyond 24/96K; I have reservations.

It is too soon to tell.

Meridian should get their act together and better do something about HDMI soon. Back when I bought my 861, my decision was based on the quality and upgradeability of the unit. Where is that now? HD DVD is almost one year old now and we have no way of using the new codecs except for a solution with the IA45 card, which is not a solution for me because it sounds worse than the 1.5mbps dts bitstream via optical/coax out.

It doesn't have to be HDMI 1.3, a solution with 1.1 and LPCM would be fine. That way we could use the advanced codecs from HD DVD and BD, as well as PCM tracks from BD.

I still think the 861 is an excellent processor, but there are better analogue two-channel pre-amps. There are also multichannel processors that are very close to the 861. If I'm still sitting here by the end of this year without a working HDMI solution, I'll probably get rid of my 861 and buy a Audio Research Ref3 and a Halcro SSP80/100 (they're working on LPCM, which is 2-channel only with current units).

I thought about adding a Ref3 to my 861 before, so that would be a plus to the above solution.

I know one thing for sure, if I'd be in for a new processor right now, I wouldn't consider the 861 at this point due to the lack of HDMI and no announced upgrade plan.

In the end it's up to Meridian if they make their users happy or if they push them off to other manufacturers.

" I wouldn't consider the 861 at this point due to the lack of HDMI and no announced upgrade plan.


Just curious , Stephan , What HDMI 1.3 equipped processor would you consider ? I agree that some info on state-of-affairs would b helpful but there doesn't seem to be a huge number at the moment .

~M~

It doesn't matter if it's HMDI 1.3 or 1.1, as 1.1 works perfectly with LPCM from the new formats.

What I'd consider? Simple, Halcro SSP80/100.

but then when 1.3 comes out they will have to develop that so we end up paying twice the money for upgrades.

And all because some of us demand the connection now....?


Whats good for you may not be good for me I am glad we have to wait...

I want Meridian to get it right not throw cards at us like we are always needing the next upgrade just because.

Michael

But that will be true forever.

If they wait and develop 1.3 HDMI 1.4 will be out.

Nobody expects it to last forever.

A 1.1/1.2 HDMI would have been a smart prodductive "window" to take advantage of.

Sure, perhaps HDMI 1.3 (marketing wise) makes sense but that doesn't mean they should have skipped HDMI 1.1/1.2 in the first place.

They can always "upgrade" it and move with the technology.

I should have waited for 1080p Plasma, but I didn't. I was due for upgrade and I bought a good 1080i set. If I waited for 1080p then I would of waited for SED, etc. Maybe I should wait until Hydrogen Cars are available before I replace my car. Or I could buy a hybrid today.

I agree and I think it is high time for Meridian to ANNOUNCE they are working on HDMI if they have to get new prospective customers. I'd recommend 1.1/1.2 by fall and 1.3 by Dec '08.

No idea about 800's future :rolleyes:

Cheers,
Kishore

I have to agree as well.

Given that High-End DVD's are competeing with Joe Six Pack Blu-Ray's/HD-DVD (PS3 and XA2).

And many of us know their DSP speakers are awesome but it's also a hard sell especially to there bread and butter professional installers. Which is the reason for the new Analog Hybrid systems, which may take some time to build a reputation on for installers.

You would think they would not also risk 861/G68 series even if they did have to replace cards in year. It must be some political or technical issue that is out of their control (e.g. MHR or something).

I can certainly see them not announcing a new Speaker as it could hurt sales of current speakers. But a plan to support/upgrade to HDMI would HELP 861/G68 sales rather than no plan which could only hurt.

What exactly does 1.3 do that 1.1 can't? Deep color? From what source?

You want to pass the advanced codec bitstream instead of LPCM? Then I wouldn't worry about the costs, because that will be much more expensive than LPCM via HDMI 1.1. You'd need all the decoding done in the processor, which was pointed out before is not the best solution.

So there is really no advantage of using 1.3 over 1.1. Of course, once we get 1.3, there'll be 2.0 around the corner and you could wait again...

In the end, we all want to use the new lossless formats and we could have that now with 1.1. We'll get the exactly same results with 1.3 once that is ready, so there really is no point to wait.

Meridian should at least announce something, because right now it seems like that once so futureproof and modular 861 is a dead end. We're not that far away from High-End and I'm sure Ron will be there, so just like last year I'll bug him about HDMI, but I'll also let him know that I'll jump the ship if they don't do anything.

I'm sure they could upgrade the 800 with HD DVD, but that may not be the best solution. I love the format much more than BD, but with no new releases, the format isn't going anyway. BD on the other hand has lots of new releases. Most of them are crap movies, but that doesn't matter. I popped in Crank last weekend and it was a pain to sit through that movie. But at least with BD there's something to watch...

No matter what they do(HD DVD or BD), I think we'll see a new G-series player first, before they upgrade the 800.

HDMI v1.3 provide 10Gb/s bandwidth, which is pretty much double of what we had with v1.2, that's why deep colour (useless for now will be possible).
I don't really understand why people want v1.3.
what's the usage for us? sorry but everybody who bought the Meridian model:
Decoding in the player + upsampling and DAC in the processor should be quite happy with HDMI v1.2a or v1.1

The problem is just no news. and not which version. v2.2c anyone?

I'm running G91 into a PDP-427XD @ 720p and I love it.

Also remember Meridian has been hating Jitter since the late 80's do you think they will implement HDMI audio? my view has always been a breakout box a la G62