Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems 598 SDI mod in US ???

Anyone think that an HDMI mod for the 598 will be offered by someone?

HDMI would be tough to retrofit. i guess they could just always turn HDCP on and call it a day, but it's not a few simple solders like SDI mod is. that'd require, presumably, an SDI mod and then a circuit board to convert the signal to the new connector.

that'd be real work.

doody.

Has anyone checked which video DAC the 598 has?
The chip should be labled ADV...

thanks

And it is the various between voltages that cause fixed pattern noise on LCD and LCOS. Some LCOS have the ability to adjust the values and remove the noise.

I am a big fan of DLP. My biggest gripe is the dither on a single chip. DLP is the only true digital display device.

I can't stand plasma at all. The Sanyo Z2 is probably the only LCD I would ever consider buying. At $2k it is a good deal.

I don't think you will ever see HDMI for the 598. I have no inside knowledge, just a hunch.

An after market HDMI mod won't happen. The upfront cost to get into HDMI is very high. It is very impressive that Meridian was one of the first companies to offer HDMI.

Stacey,

One point re: Startup costs for HDMI...

While it is expensive, it does fit well with the company's overall philosophy of keeping the signal in robust digital state for as long as possible

Cheers,

sorry to resurrect a four month old semi-hijacked :-) thread, but my original question still stands.

immersive is no longer doing SDI mods. key digital is no longer doing SDI mods. JVB has never done a 598 nor 596. PMS has never seen the inside of a 598 (and they're in hong kong). DVDUpgrades doesn't list any M products though i'm waiting to hear back from them via their very weird contact process (and they're in switzerland).

i have asked Meridian if they can point me anywhere, but they haven't responded. i've asked two of my dealers and they don't appear to have any data either.

i've contacted the aforementioned cinematrix folks but haven't gotten any solid response back.

is anyone here personally aware of ANY 598 EVER being SDI modded or is this research a complete dead-end exercise? i've found two or three people on the net who say it's doable, but can't get any verification that anybody's actually seen it done.

is the chip in the 598 sdi-modifiable? it's c-cube, correct? anybody know what chip it is specifically?.

are there other shops that do this sort of thing that i haven't stumbled over yet?

thanks,
doody.

Doody,

It is definitely doable. I've done it on the 596 and 598 for friends. That was back when you could get the serializer chip pre-mounted as a development board from the manufacturer (National Semiconductors).

The C-Cubed chip is the Ziva-3, if memory serves me correctly...

There are still some active threads on AVS for this topic. Perhaps someone there can help you?
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=47128

Regards, Peter

I have spoken to JVB to mod my 800 for SDI output.
They thought it was possible, but wanted to look at the 800 first.
I never went further, but i might still go for it. Perhaps only to find out if it is better.

It shoulw be quite easy for a 800. Plenty of room inside, and points enough to tap into the signal it seems.

Jaco

Doody

I'm happy to go and see the PMS folks if you're interested. I don't have a 598 to show them though.

Regards

Mark

a-ha! progress!

abqpete - that's very helpful news - thank you.

markh - thank you for the offer. i will definitely keep you posted.

my search continues - thanks guys.

doody.

I am trying to find an experienced source to modify my 596. I am based in England but can ship the unit to wherever. I am following this thread carefully. If I come up with a source I will let everyone know (discretely).
Keep the news flowing!

Colin,
I think JVB can do it. They have not done one before, but he was pretty sure he could do my 800 if it was NOT a 601 chipset. I opened a trhead about Immerisve SDI cards for a 800, and someone confirmed Meridian DVD players use a chipset with 656 and not 601.

You can ask JVB: www.jvb.nl

Jaco