Video Asylum

I don't think the new Samsung is the player for you...

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racerguy

In Reply to: RE: I didn't think much about the LG BH100 either but it's grown on me.... posted by oscar on December 06, 2007 at 19:06:48

>>I'll seriously consider replacing/supplanting it with a player which can internally decode DTS HD MA for the 5.1 analog outputs<<

Although Samsung says that DTS-HD is one of the decoded formats, it sure doesn't say anything about DTS-HD Master Audio.

Pure speculation on my part, but I'd be willing to bet that its DTS-HD decode capability is confined to "core" (IOW, it's really just doing garden-variety DTS decoding).

I think it's going to be quite a while before we see any players that can do internal decoding of anything other than DTS core. It's too bad, because I've got a brand-new concert HD DVD with a DTS-HD soundtrack sitting next to me. Oh well.

Follow Ups:

That "DTS HD" logo is pretty misleading; when I got the LG originally.... - oscar 19:27:49 12/06/07 (6)
I thought I was getting DTS HD MA.... whoops. Still the 1.5m core DTS is pretty good, better than almost everything I had on DVD.

The Denon was supposed to be able to decode DTS HD MA but now I'm not so sure; it may simply bitstream it over HDMI in which I'd need an HDMI-capable preamp/processor. That's not in the cards anytime soon.
- You've got that right - racerguy 19:38:47 12/06/07 (5)
  > > it may simply bitstream it over HDMI in which I'd need an HDMI-capable preamp/processor. < <
  
  So far it seems that this is the only way to get anything other than DTS core from the current hi-def media.
  
  > > That's not in the cards anytime soon. < <
  
  Indeed. So far the only pre/pro I'm aware of that even has the capability of decoding the new stuff is the Integra. It's just an upper-end Onkyo A/V receiver with the amp section stripped out. It's even got a radio tuner in it!
  - I've got a friend who swears his Halcro pre/pro upgrade supports DTS HD MA. - oscar 19:42:02 12/06/07 (4)
    I'll take his word for it but at $10K that's a bit steep and I'm not sure the Halcro's preamp stage is any better than my own.
    - Your friend is wrong, it seems - racerguy 19:52:47 12/06/07 (3)
      Unless Halcro is keeping their advanced codec capability a secret. :-)
      
      I'm not surprised you think the Halcro's preamp stage is inferior to yours. IIRC, the Halcro digitizes everything from its analog inputs.
      - My (aborted) pre/pro upgrade also would have re-digitized my MC SACD analogs... - oscar 19:58:37 12/06/07 (2)
        
        In Reply to: RE: Your friend is wrong, it seems posted by racerguy on December 06, 2007 at 19:52:47
        
        hence, why I went with a low WAF pro-audio, multichannel analog preamp solution. Unfortunately it's suddenly become inconvenient for my system to only support one (1) optical audio input at a time.
        
        I've seriously considered a multichannel analog pream - racerguy 20:47:02 12/06/07 (1)
        
        In Reply to: RE: My (aborted) pre/pro upgrade also would have re-digitized my MC SACD analogs... posted by oscar on December 06, 2007 at 19:58:37
        
        I have a Lexicon processor now. It's front-ended by a "real" preamp for the two front channels, through the preamp's processor unity-gain loop.
        The Lexicon is an excellent processor, and even has "real" multi-channel analog pass-through, but it's still primariliy a digital device. When I switch from two-channel to multi-channel music I get lots of benefits from MC, but there's a noticeable loss in transparency and clarity. The Lexicon sounds somewhat more closed-in, and there's a slight "grain" to the music which I theorize is created by all the digital circuitry in the processor section.
        The problem is that if I go all-analog, I lose the capability of connecting digital devices that don't have multi-channel analog outs (a gaming console, for instance), and I'm left with the limited processing capability of the decoders built in to my source devices. I have yet to find a player that does a better job on Dolby Digital or DTS than the Lexicon.
        It's a real pickle, to be sure.
        
        Edits: 12/06/07
        
        I still use a Proceed AVP to do the DD/DTS, then feed it's output through the Meitner... - oscar 04:53:23 12/07/07 (0)
        
        In Reply to: RE: I've seriously considered a multichannel analog pream posted by racerguy on December 06, 2007 at 20:47:02
        
        After all, the Meitner can't do any more "damage" than the Proceed already has done. I also feed the Meitner 6 channel analog feeds from a DVD-V/DVD-A/SACD Universal player and more recently a 6 channel feed from the LG Dual format player. An HD source player with "audiophile-grade" DACs/power supplies/audio/video decoding etc is the next step but that may not happen for several years (if at all).
        
        I've tried both a McCormack and the Meitner multichannel analog preamps and both killed the Proceed on preamp performance. I guess having to deal with video processing and digital switching/volume control in the same box simply compromises analog preamp performance too much.

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