[Apollo XXVI]

I think you misunderstand just how much software just making an HDMI connection from one component to another requires. I found a bug in the linux HDMI driver when it came to connecting to my processor and that opened my eyes.

Just plugging in one HDMI to another requires the reading and interpreting of a 128byte block of data that lists all the supported audio and video formats.
Each of those formats have literally dozens to hundreds of possible parameters.

Even without supporting room correction or fancy UIs an AV processor would probably require a million lines of code. Extraordinarily convoluted and difficult to debug code.

Understood, thank you for sharing that insight...

 

[Timster]

My limited experience with the failed Emotiva UMC-1 A/V processor (and reading the lonnng threads on their forum about continual problems they still have with their modern releases) indicates precisely why Schiit has so far shunned that industry. As said before, if you want a good A/V processor stick with the companies who devote significant resources to them, and yes that means you may have to pay to get what you want.

I bought a UMC-1 direct from Emotiva when they were closing it out (and had the last of a line of firmware). Was rock solid for me, but my use case is simple with only a Bluray player (Oppo) and Apple TV out to a projector. Then I bought an XMC-1 second hand, and again have had zero issues, but similar use case, and I didn;t go through all the formware updates. Many of the problems I read about on their forum related to all the HDMI complexities with multiple sources and sometimes multiple displays (much more complexity) and HDMI/syncing factored high in the problems.

Simple use cases probably OK, but otherwise as you say, stick with the big guys!

 

[NewSchiithead]

You may have already seen this, but just in case, here's a video from Schiit showing the BF 2 update lights sequence.

Thanks, good to know what it should have looked like. Mine does the same until it goes off into Bad Things Happened land with all the lights flashing together.

 

[Timster]

I will, soon. But this week I need to purchase and install a dishwasher, our old one has died. That will consume a night or three.

The dishwasher is one of the non-negotiable appliances in our house. If it breaks down, it gets replaced (unless under warranty). We are too far out of town for a reasonable cost service call, and inevitably they come out and investigate, then go away to order stuff then come back weeks later to fix it.

So, our 10 yo dishwasher started leaking on Xmas eve a few years back. I jumped in the car, drove a 90 min round trip and arrived back with a new one. It went in 30 mins later.

*other non-negotiables are the hifi systems hahaha

 

[tafens]

I may fit the in that designation. But I'm resisting calling myself a Jones.

Oh great, now I've got that song going through my head!

Perhaps still slightly better than this one

(sorry)

 

[tafens]

On another note, ripping Sony CDs or passing the digital out still results in digital artifacts on playback. Sony sucks

Are they still at it with their “copy control” scheme inserting deliberate errors in the data stream? The idea being to confuse rippers that the disc was too faulty and give up while standard CD-players would silently interpolate over it.
In practice however all kinds of pops, cracks and other crap could be heard while playing it. Also in practice, rippers did exactly the same, and the end product was just degraded CDs that were vastly more susceptible to real scratches.
Thankfully they were never allowed to use the compact disc logo for those CDs, as they did not follow the redbook standard.

That must have been like ten years ago now though. Over here there was quite an outrage about it and they were forced to quit it.

 

[tafens]

Schiit does excellent home theatre products... provided you realize a 2ch format can provide an awesome experience without all the gimmicks...

Certainly. Sitting with my headphone system in front of the laptop screen makes for a great experience as well. Great sound adds very much to the feel of watching a movie

 

[Paladin79]

https://genius.com/Rolling-stone-the-500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-2020-annotated

Getting back to generational thinking, I was curious how many of the RS album list had music that came out as I was a teen ager. I knew the Beatles were pretty far up on the list as well as Bob Dylan, Beachboys, Stones, etc. and the answer was 12% of the 500 came out when I was a teen. Then I decided to go from age 13 to age 30 and it turned out to be 40%. Not a bad percentage but still less than half. The thing is that 40% came out in a 17 year period. The remainder of the albums came out over a 50 year period. This is mostly one genre of course but it is what I listened to growing up. The period when it seemed like every week there was an album or two I wanted to buy was from 1966 to 1978. An amazing timeframe that debuted nearly half of the top 50. YMMV but that was also the time frame when I began buying better and better audio gear.

Oh and only seven albums on this list came out prior to my turning 13. Naturally many will not agree with the list and it changes from year to year.

 

[mab1376]

My BF2/64 upgrade just arrive and is installed!

Slightly annoying lining it up without any rails to guide the card into place like I'm used to with IT equipment.

 

[twigfarm]

My BF2/64 upgrade just arrive and is installed!

Slightly annoying lining it up without any rails to guide the card into place like I'm used to with IT equipment.

For others who will be installing the new card, it might prove to be easier if you take the cover off (4 screws). That way you can see exactly where the card is going and make sure it lines up correctly. Just know the selector button is lose and will come away from the cover. Easy to put back together. Shouldn't leave any trace of opening that may void any warranty.

 

[NewSchiithead]

For others who will be installing the new card, it might prove to be easier if you take the cover off (4 screws). That way you can see exactly where the card is going and make sure it lines up correctly. Just know the selector button is lose and will come away from the cover. Easy to put back together. Shouldn't leave any trace of opening that may void any warranty.

Yes, it was MUCH easier to line it up without the top cover. I mean, in theory, it WOULD have been much easier, if I would have done it that way.

I am wondering now if having a quite early BF2 might have caused an issue with my firmware update. Because mine was one of the ones from the first couple of months that might have still had the ORGINAL firmware installed...

 

[audio philestine]

All this car talk made me want to update my journey to a new car. Have been waiting for my Cadillac CT5-V to come in. Supposed to be a month ago. Called dealer this week, now not expected until end of year . So, Cadillac canceled, new BMW M235i in my garage. I actually think I like the BMW better. Little smaller but man does it handle well.

I'm a very happy owner of a 135i, essentially the same car before the great renumbering.

 

[Alcophone]

The only reason we'd do HDMI is as a 2-channel audio endpoint to facilitate connection to TVs. And then we'd wake up and realize there are like 10,000 HDMI audio de-embedders on Amazon. And then not do it.

My biggest gripe with HDMI audio extractors is that typically they are transparent and simply pass on the destination device's (e.g. TV) supported audio formats, often just 44.1 kHz and 48 kHz.
A more useful approach would be to replace that information with what the extractor supports (e.g. everything from 44.1 to 192 kHz if it has S/PDIF outputs only), passing the audio stream on to its S/PDIF outputs as is and downsampling it as needed for the destination device.
I have an (uninformed) suspicion that such an approach wouldn't be HDMI compliant, though.

And my biggest gripe with TV optical outputs is that typically everything gets resampled to 48 kHz. Send 44.1 kHz audio from your computer to your TV via HDMI and you likely get 48 kHz from its TOSLINK out.

RCA: HMMMMMMMMMMMM...blap. Otherwise OK. Who thought "ground pin first" is a good idea?

Clueless about electrical engineering, I'd like to hear more!

 

[LarryMagoo]

Unless you listen to classical music. Or has that changed?

I don't listen to even ONE Note of that stuff....the very bottom of my music appreciation ladder....the majority of my Music is Smooth Jazz and R&R oldies.

 

[GumbyDammit223]

My biggest gripe with HDMI audio extractors is that typically they are transparent and simply pass on the destination device's (e.g. TV) supported audio formats, often just 44.1 kHz and 48 kHz.
A more useful approach would be to replace that information with what the extractor supports (e.g. everything from 44.1 to 192 kHz if it has S/PDIF outputs only), passing the audio stream on to its S/PDIF outputs as is and downsampling it as needed for the destination device.
I have an (uninformed) suspicion that such an approach wouldn't be HDMI compliant, though.

And my biggest gripe with TV optical outputs is that typically everything gets resampled to 48 kHz. Send 44.1 kHz audio from your computer to your TV via HDMI and you likely get 48 kHz from its TOSLINK out.


Clueless about electrical engineering, I'd like to hear more!

Unless I'm clearly off base, I think Jason was being sarcastic. With RCA connectors, the pin is the signal and the outer grippy piece is the shield. When you connectorize signals, especially if they include power of some sort, you make the ground/shield connections first, followed by the power. That way a circuit is grounded first and you're not applying power to essentially all components of a circuit first. With no return path, everything is brought up to an electrical potential and some things (e.g. electrolytic caps) might not like that when they then have to discharge that potential to a newly discovered ground. With audio signals, you're not dealing with power per se, but the circuit might still not like it too much.