Jeff,

"I was wondering if FIRST activating/ switching to HDMI 5 on the Lumagen first so that the Halcro can be read the projector EDID (thru the Lumagen), that it may give the Halcro what it is looking for and lock on to it as a sink....Then, of course, switch the Lumagen HDMI input to the proper source input (e.g. Lumagen HDMI Input1 for BD)."

No need to switch to HDMI5. All inputs are always active on the Lumagen. If you are using 'USER EDID' the Lumagen creates its own EDID, it does not use the projectors. Are you set to USER EDID for video too?

Shawn

I don't recall 'User EDID' for video... WHere is it in the menu system? What should I try setting it to?

Thanks.

Shawn,

Found VIDEO EDID in the manual.....I suppose I should have looked closer;)

That said, I have not yet modified it. So, it is in its default...

I see choices are : USER, DFLT, DFLT + EXT, PASS, OFF

I assume I am in DFLT... I'll select USER per your suggestion for all my configs... Which settings in USER EDID should I try out??

Thanks.

Well, my SSP-100 is now upgraded, and it sounds very nice. I do hear a slight hiss/static sound when listening to 24bit/96khz sources though. This isn't just when switching sources, but while the music/movie is playing. It is almost like the hiss you hear when playing and LP. Is anyone else hearing this? This isn't limited to just one disc or player, so I know it isn't a source issue.

Thanks,
Darrell

I haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary... How close do you have to be to hear it? Is it only with HDMI sources?

I don't have any 24/96 sources, so I con't comment..but 24/48 is OK.

I , too, am very pleased with the MLPCM sound.

On a seperate note, I sent my unit in for the upgrade on November 19th. It was finally working correctly on 12/28.

I sent it in on 11/19, and got it back ~3 weeks later. the unit had the wrong firmware on it, and had huge amounts of hiss/static when playing high res sources. It was obvious the minute you hooked it up. Obviously the Service Center didn't test the unit out.

Gary from Halcro did everything possible, helping me debug and test for several hours. In the end, he decided the unit had to be sent back. He arranged for overnight shipping to and from the Service Center. His support was top notch.

The Service Center got the unit back, and said there was nothing wrong with the unit. I asked Gary to make sure they were testing with high res sources. They said they were. At that point Gary offered to fly out with the unit. Wow, talk about making the effort...

I hated to have Gary fly out if it was truely a config issue, so I asked him to ship it back out. I had hoped the Service Center had done something to get it working and just didn't mention it, or that I had configured the unit wrong.

I got the unit back, and used the settings the Service Center had on the unit. Still, the loud hissing and popping was there. How could I and the Service Center get such different results??? I still think they were testing with DD+, not TruHD, SACD, or DVD-A.

So Gary flys out after Christmas. I found Gary to be a very sharp guy with lots of experience in the audio field. We had lots of time to chat that day as he alloted several hours to the repair of my unit.

Anyway, Gary does everything he can, and agrees that there is a problem with the unit. He had brought out a spare test unit just in case, so he sets me up with that. I now have a working unit.

I am really annoyed with the Service Center. They had my unit twice and still didn't get it right. The upgrade ended up taking 2.5 weeks more than it should have, and an extra 20 hours of my time than it should have. This is the same Service Center that screwed up a repair earlier this year. I hope Halcro stops using them. Based on my experience, they worthless, and they make Halcro look very bad.

Gary did mention that they have a new Service Center they are starting to use. Hopefully that Center does good work, and they can move away from using the current one.

I would like to thank Gary and Halcro for their extrordinary commitment to make things right in the end. Having Gary fly out to get this fixed was terrific. Gary is commited getting our issues resolved.

Would I do it again? I don't know. It has been a long frustrating road.

Would I recommned Halcro to a friend? I would recommend that they give Halcro a try if they can buy a unit with a 30 day return policy. If the unit works out of the box, great, because the Halcros do sound nice when working. If there are ANY issues, return it and run like hell.

Jeff,

I hear it from my listening position which is 9 ft from the front speakers, and 7 ft from the rears.

It is only with the high resolution sources. It doesn't do it with DD, CD, or DTS, even when going through the MPCM HDMI setup on the Halcro. I too am fine with 24/48 sources. It is the 24/96 that do it.

The sound is slight, but noticable. It is very similar to the hiss you get when playing an LP.

Darrell

I haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary... How close do you have to be to hear it? Is it only with HDMI sources?

I don't have any 24/96 sources, so I con't comment..but 24/48 is OK.

I , too, am very pleased with the MLPCM sound.

Jeff,

I hear it from my listening position which is 9 ft from the front speakers, and 7 ft from the rears.

It is only with the high resolution sources. It doesn't do it with DD, CD, or DTS, even when going through the MPCM HDMI setup on the Halcro. I too am fine with 24/48 sources. It is the 24/96 that do it.

The sound is slight, but noticable. It is very similar to the hiss you get when playing an LP.

Darrell

The only thing I have that is 24/96 PCM is the Chris Botti Live Blu-ray. I have not noticed any hiss while playing that disc myself but it has been a few weeks since I heard it.

I will try it out tomorrow, If I hear a hiss I will have to wonder, hmmmmm is it the track or my brain recovering from a hangover;)

Happy New Year everyone!!!!!

MJ you drunk

]More to come, still recovering, I have a very long named bacteria infection. More serious than I thought, lots of
antibiotics... Be back soon...:)

Shawn (The other one)

Shawn (The other one)

Hope you are feeling better! Looking forward to your next installment on these comparisons.

Best
Ray

Bland,

Both blacks and whites are being clipped by the Halcro. Bring up the 10 -100 ire ramp pattern and you'll see it right away. Reported this to Halcro about a year ago and was hoping that it would have been fixed in the last firmware update.

JBM,

Do you know if this will be fixed via firmware? Or is this a problem do to some hardware limitation with the HDMI board?

No

Its a software issue at this point. The engineers are working on it as well as the 1080p24 pass thru. (Note to the Bland)

The 96hz white noise from the A1 is not getting traction. I have a an A1 and have not been able to reproduce what is happening on Goodsonics unit. I need to get my hands on a couple more disc to determine if it is hardware related, disc related or software related. Unfortunately the Halcro takes the hit as the culprit. It could be related to just his unit ( I doubt it) It could be some form of negative feedback thru his speakers. It could be his cables. Hell it could be his neighbors cat.

No

Its a software issue at this point. The engineers are working on it as well as the 1080p24 pass thru. (Note to the Bland)

The 96hz white noise from the A1 is not getting traction. I have a an A1 and have not been able to reproduce what is happening on Goodsonics unit. I need to get my hands on a couple more disc to determine if it is hardware related, disc related or software related. Unfortunately the Halcro takes the hit as the culprit. It could be related to just his unit ( I doubt it) It could be some form of negative feedback thru his speakers. It could be his cables. Hell it could be his neighbors cat.

JMB,

Thanks for looking into the issue I am having with 96khz sources. Over the last few days, the situation has gotten worse. Now I am also having problems passing video via HDMI. Irregardless of which of my 3 HCMI sources I use, the video on the TV monitor comes out as pure static (like a tv station that is off the air). I do have basic connectity. The TV shows the signal changing from 720p to 480i when I press the Menu button on the Halcro.

I tested the cables, source, and TV. I get good video if I take the Halcro out of the loop.

I worked with Gary at Halcro to debug the issue. We couldn't resolve the issue. Obviously, this is an issue with my individual unit.

At this point, I don't know what to do. Despite good intent and efforts by Halcro, they seem to have my unit almost as often as I do. The said they would let me know my options tomorrow. I'm not sure if I am hoping that they offer me a refund, or another unit.

Thanks for looking into the audio issues JBM.

Darrell

NAD T175s are in stock and working beautifully.......... ;)

How do they sound John? Is it better or worse than the AVP2+6 that you heard at my place?

JMB,

Thanks for looking into the issue I am having with 96khz sources. Over the last few days, the situation has gotten worse. Now I am also having problems passing video via HDMI. Irregardless of which of my 3 HCMI sources I use, the video on the TV monitor comes out as pure static (like a tv station that is off the air). I do have basic connectity. The TV shows the signal changing from 720p to 480i when I press the Menu button on the Halcro.

I tested the cables, source, and TV. I get good video if I take the Halcro out of the loop.

I worked with Gary at Halcro to debug the issue. We couldn't resolve the issue. Obviously, this is an issue with my individual unit.

At this point, I don't know what to do. Despite good intent and efforts by Halcro, they seem to have my unit almost as often as I do. The said they would let me know my options tomorrow. I'm not sure if I am hoping that they offer me a refund, or another unit.

Thanks for looking into the audio issues JBM.

Darrell

Cable type?
Cable length?
Looks like you are losing the HDMI handshaking.

If you are going from the Tosh A-1 to a different source I found this to be an issue. The A20 will cause this once in a while. The A1 would constantly cause this to occur. Changing HDMI inputs would not help. Never had a issue if I went from the PS 3 to the A1. You would loose the output and get the snow.

If that is what you are experiencing; I put the blame squarely on the A! It is the only unit where I have seen that happen.

See if you borrow a A 35 or A 20 from someone. I believe the first gen machines have introduced too many issues into the loop. The A20 caused it as well; but not as often. I have not had issues with the A35

Hope this helps.

Welcome to the world of HDMI HDCP Bulls**t

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=950172&page=3

People might want to read up on this. Like I said I am not sure this is a Halcro issue.

Though it could be the processor, those issues certainly seem to point to a cable, source, etc.

What about your Blu Ray player? Other HDMI source? Is it only HD DVD via HDMI?

Cable type?
Cable length?
Looks like you are losing the HDMI handshaking.

If you are going from the Tosh A-1 to a different source I found this to be an issue. The A20 will cause this once in a while. The A1 would constantly cause this to occur. Changing HDMI inputs would not help. Never had a issue if I went from the PS 3 to the A1. You would loose the output and get the snow.

If that is what you are experiencing; I put the blame squarely on the A! It is the only unit where I have seen that happen.

See if you borrow a A 35 or A 20 from someone. I believe the first gen machines have introduced too many issues into the loop. The A20 caused it as well; but not as often. I have not had issues with the A35

Hope this helps.

Though it could be the processor, those issues certainly seem to point to a cable, source, etc.

What about your Blu Ray player? Other HDMI source? Is it only HD DVD via HDMI?

JBM and Jeff,

Thanks for the ideas. Here is what I tried and found out...

I have 3 sources. They are the Toshiba HD-A1, Denon 3930 Universal player, and a PS3. All three have HDMI outputs. All three worked fine last week when Gary from Halcro was out. I have not switched the configuration of these since then.

Last night, I took the 15' HDMI cable that runs from my TV to the Halcro, and ran it directly from the PS3 to the TV. The picture came up and looked great. No issues, I think this clears the TV-Halcro HDMI cable.

I had the same issue on 3 sources two nights ago. Since I know the Toshiba can be flaky when it comes to HDMI, I didn't even power it on during last nghts testing. I just used the Denon and PS3.

I don't think it is a switching issue. At one point, I power off all the units and unplugged them for a couple of minutes. The last source used was the Denon. When I powered things up and tried the Denon (no swithcing). It had the all static display.

I did the same thing with the PS3. I brought it up without switching to/from anything else. It had the same static display problem.

I agree that there is an HDMI issue, but I think I have cleared the sources, and the HDMI cables as being the problem. The same cables/sources/display, work fine when I remove the Halcro from the loop and connect them directly.

If you have any other suggestions, please let me know. I can test more tonight.

Thanks for your help.
Darrell

How do they sound John? Is it better or worse than the AVP2+6 that you heard at my place?

It would be hard to tell short of a direct replacement, but it sounded a bit warmer and smoother than the NHT Controller it replaced driving Xds. The Paul Barton tuned Audyssey could be a big help in most rooms. I haven't heard of any expensive units out there using it.

Just kind of joking around to an extent, but it does seem like the more expensive the unit, the worse the HDMI problems.

Also, Darrell, I wouldn't totally rule out that cable. Many high-end cables mess with the signal enough that it makes the signal spotty. Greg from NAD says they have too much capacitance. We had that with some Straightwires that just didn't work, but tested fine on our [basic] HDMI tester. Cheap Accell cables seem to work in every situation we've tested them.

PS - if you need anything for a tester, be glad to lend you a cable or two or even let you try the T175 or NHT Controller demo to see if one of those work. The NHT shares some DNA with the Halcro, so maybe it would have similar issues, though they've been working pretty well outside of one or two exceptions.

Goodsonics,

I hope it works out for you.. Sounds like you have eliminated most other possibilities short of the processor.

I recently sent the guys at Halcro a congratultory email on how pleased I now am with the piece. The sonics are simply without equal for film soundtracks.

I hope you get to experience this as well...

Hi Shawn - any timeline on when you plan to finish your review?

Hi Shawn - any timeline on when you plan to finish your review?

I cannot speak for Shawn (The other one) but I saw he was selling his equipment on Audiogon and was in the process of a European relocation according to his ad. Perhaps that is the reason for the delay.

Halcro had a great room set-up at CES. The MPCM demo was ridiculously impressive (switching back and forth between regular Dolby Digital and Uncompressed PCM) and is one of those talked about sonic improvements that can actually be heard.

Did Halcro say anything about the SSP-180 (MPCM upgrade of the SSP-80)? How about high bit rate codecs?

I just watched 3:10 to Yuma (7.1 uncompressed Blu Ray)...and though mostly a quiet soundtrack..there were parts that were so spectacular relative to surround activity, steering etc.... that I was just amazed. The gun shots weren't quite up to Open Range but the train rolling into town was so powerfully strong I thought the room was going to implode.... Lossless is where it is at... The sound was so unrestrained and open. I watched at +1 over reference but could've gone higher.

I just received a HD FURY HDMI stripper to act as an HDMI sink for my Halcro. As you might recall, HDMI audio requires a display to sink with the processor for LPCM audio delivery. My video does not go through my Halco at all. Audio only. I can report that the HD FURY works as an HDMI sink...no more plugging HDMI into my plasma / or extra Lumagen Radiance HDMI input.

Moreover, 2 more weeks with LPCM in my theater. I can easily conclude that it is a worthy upgrade... I would subjectively call the improvement over my already excellent lossy sound to be on the order of ~ 20%.

Dynamics, subjectively lower noise floor, surround effects (particularly more improved than any other area), AND dialog intelligibility. All improved........but bass is not too perceivably improved over lossy. No worse for sure but only minutely improved if at all.

Yeah...surround effects, ambiance, etc seems to be most improved area of the lossless surround sound experience. More detail, ambiance, localization, etc..

Very cool stuff!

Did Halcro say anything about the SSP-180 (MPCM upgrade of the SSP-80)?

No, why? I believe its available.

No, why? I believe its available.

That's not what I was told, and I have seen no postings to the contrary.

That's not what I was told, and I have seen no postings to the contrary.

I'll ask them for you and post the status (unless someone beats me to it), but I did think they were now in stock.

Please let me know what you find out.

Halcro had a great room set-up at CES. The MPCM demo was ridiculously impressive (switching back and forth between regular Dolby Digital and Uncompressed PCM) and is one of those talked about sonic improvements that can actually be heard.

What movie were they using for a demo this year?

What movie were they using for a demo this year?

For that particular demo - Stealth Blu Ray.

That's not what I was told, and I have seen no postings to the contrary.

It is available approx. 3-4 weeks for deleivery.

Thanks very much.

Since the PS3 can not yet decode DTS-HD MA (though it's supposedly in the works), would the upgraded Halcro be able to decode it via bitstream? I don't own any DTS-HD MA discs so I can't test this.

Since the PS3 can not yet decode DTS-HD MA (though it's supposedly in the works), would the upgraded Halcro be able to decode it via bitstream? I don't own any DTS-HD MA discs so I can't test this.

No. You need HDMI 1.3 for bitstream TRUE HD or DTS MA.

That said, the upcoming Denon, Marantz, Panasonic and Pioneer Blu Ray players WILL decode DTS MA 7.1 / TRUE HD 7.1 to LPCM for the Halcro to accept!

Not sure when the PS3 will be updated to do so.

1 month now with the LPCM Halcro. Update / Mini Review:

All is good. The platform is stable and there are no audio issues or hand shake issues with HDMI / HDCP that I have encountered.

It takes the 5.1 LPCM / TRUE HD tracks and converts them to 7.1 and plays the 7.1 LPCM tracks as 7.1.

I can recommend the piece at this point. It works well. Sonically, it is dynamic as hell. But the biggest improvement with LPCM seems to be ambiance and surround effects. Dialog is also significantly improved over lossy tracks... Bass, however, is only marginally improved.. All of the above, of course, are subjective improvements.

There is a BTB issue over HDMI I found. I spoke with Halcro yesterday and they are aware and are developing a fix very soon. Also, 1080P24 capability as well. Both will be on the update.

I am anxiously awaiting a player that decodes DTS MA.. Looks like it'll be a month or two.

Oh, BTW..I asked about Vinci...Apparently Halcro hasn't used them since last June. They are working with someone else. So, I guess we can put that to rest.

1
Bass, however, is only marginally improved.. All of the above, of course, are subjective improvements.


Oh, BTW..I asked about [B]Vinci...Apparently Halcro hasn't used them since last June. They are working with someone else. So, I guess we can put that to rest.
The ear is not as sensitive to resolution increases in the bass. Great news about the Vinci labs being dumped. Looks like you are all set.

The ear is not as sensitive to resolution increases in the bass. Great news about the Vinci labs being dumped. Looks like you are all set.

Well...In this hobby...you are never really 'set'.... Just more set at some times rather than others....;)

Oh...And there is software to upload / download your settings to your PC..

[B]I can recommend the piece at this point.

You've been recommending the Halcro since you got it. HA!

When are you gonna get some Halcro amps???

Jeff,

Glad to hear your enjoying the upgrade.

My impressions of it were very similar to yours.

Got a question for you. Have you been able to configure your XA2 to send DD and DTS over HDMI to allow the preamp to decode them? I recently pickup of the player and can't seem to figure it out. I can only get PCM when using the MPCM setting on the Halcro. Do you have to allocate another HDMI port and not engage the MPCM option on that port?

Halcro releasing the BTB fix and the 1080p24 support in the same patch is good news. Hope they also throw in a fix for the popping during HDMI sync.

When you say that Halcro is no longer working with Vinci. Does that imply they have arranged some form of support for us that have the Vinci boards? Or that their products from this day forward will no longer be using that solution?

You right, when it comes to CE products one is never set. :)

When are you gonna get some Halcro amps???

Can't speak for Jeff, but I'll be sticking with my Dreadnaught II.

I'm sure the amps are quite good. It's just I can't get myself to buy a Class D amp. Give me AB any day.

Now if your talking about their DM series.... Well that would be just way over the top. :D

Well...In this hobby...you are never really 'set'.... Just more set at some times rather than others....;)

Or so we sometimes think!

Jeff,

Glad to hear your enjoying the upgrade.

My impressions of it were very similar to yours.

Got a question for you. Have you been able to configure your XA2 to send DD and DTS over HDMI to allow the preamp to decode them? I recently pickup of the player and can't seem to figure it out. I can only get PCM when using the MPCM setting on the Halcro. Do you have to allocate another HDMI port and not engage the MPCM option on that port?

Halcro releasing the BTB fix and the 1080p24 support in the same patch is good news. Hope they also throw in a fix for the popping during HDMI sync.

When you say that Halcro is no longer working with Vinci. Does that imply they have arranged some form of support for us that have the Vinci boards? Or that their products from this day forward will no longer be using that solution?

You right, when it comes to CE products one is never set. :)
Dennis,

Halcro did mention addressing an HDMI issue. I believe it was that issue you mentioned... I haven't noticed it in my unit... But I rarely switch HDMI ports as my Lumagen takes all my sources and is feeding the Halcro through input 1.

Regarding DD / DTS.... I noticed the same thing. It likely will not be changed as MPCM is for PCM only (not bitstream). If you set your DVD player to output DD and DTS as PCM (rather than bitstream), you'll be OK.

If prefer want to Bitstream DD / DTS, I'd simply set up another video input / memory (using the same HDMI port for video but selecting SPDIF COAX or TOS as the digital audio input (e.g. Input 2 through 6).

I am not sure where Vinci left off.... This upgrade is new and they said they ended things with Vinci back in June. Perhaps, they have a solution as things are moving forward. It was addressed to me as a non issue at this point.

Regarding DD / DTS.... I noticed the same thing. It likely will not be changed as MPCM is for PCM only (not bitstream). If you set your DVD player to output DD and DTS as PCM (rather than bitstream), you'll be OK.

If prefer want to Bitstream DD / DTS, I'd simply set up another video input / memory (using the same HDMI port for video but selecting SPDIF COAX or TOS as the digital audio input (e.g. Input 2 through 6).



Thanks Jeff,

I suspected as much. At least now I know I did not miss anything.

Here's the interesting thing. When I use the PS3 I can get DD & DTS to bitstream on the HDMI port that is configured for MPCM. This leads me to believe it's not an issue with the SSP but in how Toshiba handles output through HDMI. I think the player has an either or condition when it comes to bitstreaming and PCM.
Not a big deal. As you highlighted the Halcro is flexable enough to get around the issue.

Thanks again.

PS. Heres to hoping the update comes soon. I'm really missing having 1080p24 ouput.:)

Regarding DD / DTS.... I noticed the same thing. It likely will not be changed as MPCM is for PCM only (not bitstream). If you set your DVD player to output DD and DTS as PCM (rather than bitstream), you'll be OK.

If prefer want to Bitstream DD / DTS, I'd simply set up another video input / memory (using the same HDMI port for video but selecting SPDIF COAX or TOS as the digital audio input (e.g. Input 2 through 6).


For DD/DTS tracks, is there any difference between decoding within the DVD player or the Halcro SSP? I thought I could get rid of my coax and optical cables with the MPCM upgrade, but maybe not?

Can't speak for Jeff, but I'll be sticking with my Dreadnaught II.

I'm sure the amps are quite good. It's just I can't get myself to buy a Class D amp. Give me AB any day.

Now if your talking about their DM series.... Well that would be just way over the top. :D

I demo'd the Theta along with several other amps and went with a pair of Halcros for my Aerials. They're dynamic, ridiculously efficient (it barely gets warm), and have almost no distortion. They outperform many Class AB amps. If I were to go Class A, it would be the Sim Audio Titan, but the heat and noise were too much to bear. Does anyone here use the DM series?

I will play around with it. Actually, this issue had never occured to me. I haven't noted an issue with the DTS MA BD discs that send lossy DTS over HDMI (as I can't decode it) to my Halcro's MPCM HDMI input so I would guess the Halcro is OK with it..


I don't have a problem as I run a separate DVD player (OPPO) for SD DVD. I run it to the Halcro via HDMI for video AND bitstream audio.

I will play around with it. Actually, this issue had never occured to me. I haven't noted an issue with the DTS MA BD discs that send lossy DTS over HDMI (as I can't decode it) to my Halcro's MPCM HDMI input so I would guess the Halcro is OK with it..


I don't have a problem as I run a separate DVD player (OPPO) for SD DVD. I run it to the Halcro via HDMI for video AND bitstream audio.

If I had a Radiance, I would use my Oppo for R1 SD DVDs as well, but for now I'll have touse the XA2 to upconvert. That's a bit of a bummer if it can't bitstream properly over HDMI. I'm just curious if there is any qualitative difference. My guess is that letting the Halcro decode DD/DTS would be the best way to go.

It can properly bitstream over HDMI (i do so with my SD DVD player and D-Theater deck. Read my post above....you can bitstream over the same HDMI CABLE (AND Halcro INPUT) by simply configuring a 2nd input in the Halcro. So, still no need for a Tos cable.

It may be a moot point as it will accept decoded PCM over HDMI...

It can properly bitstream over HDMI (i do so with my SD DVD player and D-Theater deck. Read my post above....you can bitstream over the same HDMI CABLE (AND Halcro INPUT) by simply configuring a 2nd input in the Halcro. So, still no need for a Tos cable.

It may be a moot point as it will accept decoded PCM over HDMI...

Right, the Oppo bistreams over HDMI just fine, but the upscaling quality is better on my XA2, so that's what I use primarily for watching R1 SD DVDs. I have a lot of non-R1 stuff which I still use the Oppo for, until the region-free/PAL firmware situation for the XA2 is sorted out... looks like some are getting it up and running on the A2.

It can properly bitstream over HDMI (i do so with my SD DVD player and D-Theater deck. Read my post above....you can bitstream over the same HDMI CABLE (AND Halcro INPUT) by simply configuring a 2nd input in the Halcro. So, still no need for a Tos cable.

It may be a moot point as it will accept decoded PCM over HDMI...

Oh ok, I see what you mean. I just configured another input with MPCM disengaged and it seems to work okay.

What I'm wondering is if there is any qualitative difference. I guess I'll spend some time tonight to see!

Where's the rest of the report between all the pre pros ?

Where's the rest of the report between all the pre pros ?

Last I heard he was selling his stuff on Audiogon and moving to Europe for a year. I wish he would at least do a quick watered down version as there were a lot of people waiting to hear the differences. Oh well, sucks for us.

Hi guys, I still have my Halcro SSP-100 but I was very sick and it is more serious then first diagnosed. I am still recovering and yes I am going to be out of the country but I will still be on here. Please understand I really want to get this up but I want it to be accurate. I am recovering as quickly as I can. You guys have been great...:)

Shawn (The other one)

Please understand I really want to get this up but I want it to be accurate.That should be the least of your concerns. Get better first.

Sanjay

Hey Shawn,

I hope you get better soon.

I guess everyone is anxious to hear what you have to say since you did a real nice job on the first part of your review.

Take care of yourself.

Mike

Well, I ended up getting out of ht Halcro unit, and I wanted to thank this group for all the help and advise yoyu have given over the last several months.

Halcro really went above and beyond trying to help figure out my issues, but after 3 units, we both gave up. The closest I could get, was to have the Halcro pass either HDMI Audio, OR HDMI Video. The unit couldn't pass both at the same time. The other two units, would only pass staticy audio.

My local Denon/Krell/B&W dealer lent me a Denon 4308 receiver to see if it was a source or cable issue. The Denon reciever worked flawlessly. It was able to pass audio and video via HDMI for all 4 of my sources.

Since Gary at Halcro tested 2 of the 3 units he sent me, I assume there is a compatibilty issue, but I could not narrow it down, even pluggin in one source at a time, using different cables. I even tried things using a different dispaly (made by a different co.). Its been quite perplexing...

But anyway, thanks to you all for your help. Now I need to find the "next best thing" that passes HDMI. After hearing the Halcro, I am sonically spoiled, and the bar for the replacement unit will be high.

Darrell

Hey Darrell,

Sorry to hear you couldn't get your issues resolved with the Halcro, as you have already stated the SQ of it is outstanding and it will be hard to replace for movies.

I did use a Denon 3808 as a pre-amp while my Halcro was away for the upgrade and thought it was very good. Since you have the 4308 you may be better off using it as a stop gap until something you really want is out there. It will probably be 3 to 6 months before we see anything besides the Integra and Denon pre-pro's that feature HDMI 1.3.

I have had my Halcro SSP-100 for close to 1 1/2 years and still cannot be any happier with the performance.

If you find something that works out really well for you then make sure and let us all know on this forum.

Good luck.

Mike

Shawn,

C'mon, get your butt out of bed and write the review.:D

Seriously, hope you get well soon. We can sometimes get so involved in this hobby/addiction that we forget about life's more important issues.

Jim

Jeff,

Just curious about what your biggest disappointment has been with the Halcro?

Jeff,

Have you implemented my suggested workaround your Blu Ray player's LFE issue, by configuring one of the Halcro's Presets just for your BD playerr?

I really don't have any disappointments now. All I ever wanted in this unit is LPCM.

There is a bug with not passing BTB over and it will soon pass 1080P24. I have work arounds for each issue so not a big deal... A software fix is due soon.

It sounds great and I am pleased that I'm in the lossless game and am not compromising the audio at this early stage in lossless audio transmission.

While my unit worked initially after the MPCM upgrade, it soon developed a loud, persistent clicking noise (the same click when you switch sources on a functioning unit) that occurs when the unit is powered on, regardless of which source it is switched to. The sound coming out of my speakers is choppy, intermittent, and unintelligible. The unit also powered off randomly. Needless to say, this was a very disappointing result for an "upgrade."
After reporting this issue to Halcro, they said to send the unit back. However, since I'm currently in the midst of pre-production on a major motion picture, the SSP100 is vital to my screening room where I'm screening footage for the key creative team. I cannot afford any down time, so I began looking into picking up an Integra DTC-9.8.
Then, on a whim, I smacked the unit a few times as it was making the godawful clicking noise (as one might do to silence a faulty fan in a PC) and lo' and behold the SSP began to work again. Operation was relatively normal for about two weeks before the clicking returned in full force. There were sporadic clicks even during seemingly normal playback and use, but it was operational enough to get the job done. Again, this applied to all inputs, both analog and digital. There were also random audio dropouts during movies (in addition to the clicking) and occasional video blackouts over HDMI. Unfortunately, the unit has now reverted back to its previous state and is now pretty much inoperable. If Halcro is able to send me an advance replacement or loaner, then I'll give it another chance, but the timing is critical. If not, I will have to go with the next best thing. And that seems to be the Integra (I'm not going back to Anthem).

My question is: how does the Integra 9.8 compare to the Halcro? I seem to remember Coyoteshawn doing a comparison. I need something that can do HD audio formats, but more importantly, I need something reliable. I'm just wondering how much I'll miss the Halcro if I "downgrade" to the Integra. Anyone out there who has experience with both units?

I don't know that the Integra is so much of a 'downgrade' as a different beast. I just replaced my Lexicon MC12 with the Integra (5 weeks ago) and have enjoyed the capabilities of this unit. There are some obvious differences, but using the MPCM or bitstream capabilities of the unit...there are no issues. HDMI 1.3a takes some getting used to as each manufacturers source with HDMI (CD, DVR, HDDVD and BluRay) requires careful setup to ensure proper operation. The audyssey system seems to work appropriately or as intended for speaker level, distance and room correction with a few quirks. Some of the menus and other aspects are not as intuitive as I found them to be with the Lexicon.

I don't know that the Integra is so much of a 'downgrade' as a different beast. I just replaced my Lexicon MC12 with the Integra (5 weeks ago) and have enjoyed the capabilities of this unit.

How would you compare the sound quality between the Integra and Lexicon for music and movies? (MPCM aside)

I had a Anthem D2 for over a year and switched to the Halcro SSP-200 this past October. Right out of the box the Halcro was not doing the MPCM all I would get is static and popping noises. The dealer told me he would get me a replacement unit but it would be about a month because of alot of SSP-100 upgrades and because the SSP-200 had just started shipping. I received the second unit just after Thanksgiving and the MPCM worked on this unit but it had issues when switching between inputs and cutting off. I went through the phone calls with the dealer and Gary but nothing ended up fixing the problems. The dealer was absolutely amazing and took both units back.

I was keeping my eye on the Integra 9.8 while dealing with the Halcro for two months and told myself if the Halcro doesn't work out I am going to try and get my hands on one of these. The day the Halcro dealer told me that he would take the units back I found a guy who left a post in the 9.8 forums about a place that had two more for sale. I called the place and got the last one.

Out of the three units that I have owned over the last 6 months the Halcro had the best sound quaility on music (2 channel) and movies (Not MPCM just DD/DTS). I think the Anthem D2 and the Integra 9.8 are very close in sound quality but I give the Anthem the advantage in music and the Integra 9.8 the advantage with movies. The Integra 9.8 has worked flawlessly with my blu-ray players and my HD-DVD player since hooking it up.

I really like the Anthem D2 and the Halcro but if it doesn't work properly it makes the situation hard to deal with. The Integra 9.8 has served me well these past couple of months and although it doesn't sound quite as good as the Halcro and Anthem it at least works. For me a working unit that has no issues is more important right now than that last 10-20% or so of sound quailty I will get from another unit with nothing but issues. My intentions are to get another pre/pro when the higher end companies get there sh!t together and come out with something that works properly.

KX250F, Thanks for you impressions. I've managed to find an Integra 9.8 unit nearby for a quick replacement in case Halcro isn't able to resolve this. Given my circumstances, I'm willing to sacrifice 10% sound quality for a unit that is fully functional for the time being, plus the Integra can handle bitstreamed DTS-HD MA, and costs less than the MPCM upgrade on the Halcro, to boot!
Prior to the MPCM upgrade, my Halcro ran flawlessly for many months and I was very happy with its performance. When MPCM was working, it was quite impressive. But performance isn't everything, which is why I prefer Japanese motorcycles ;)

How would you compare the sound quality between the Integra and Lexicon for music and movies? (MPCM aside)

Out of the box, the Lexicon sounded better. The Audyssuey calibration seemed to help quite a bit after calibration. I obviously can not compare the MPCM or HD bitstreams because of the lack of capability with the LEX, but I would venture to say that the Lexicon was somewhat better. I really liked the 7.1 channel processing incorporated in the Lexicon! Is the Lexicon (with PCM capability) worth five times as much.....I don't think so.

To be fair though, the Integra has numerous (new) processing modes for 5.1 and 7.1 which allow us to take advantage of HD bitstreams and I have not had a chance to really tweak these processing modes the same way in which I had tweaked the Lexicon. I will have to spend more time tweaking and playing:D

For 7.1 channel processing (depending upon the input from source, Bitstream or MPCM) you have the possibility of adding THX, THX Neural, PLIIX etc.

I had a Anthem D2 for over a year and switched to the Halcro SSP-200 this past October. Right out of the box the Halcro was not doing the MPCM all I would get is static and popping noises. The dealer told me he would get me a replacement unit but it would be about a month because of alot of SSP-100 upgrades and because the SSP-200 had just started shipping. I received the second unit just after Thanksgiving and the MPCM worked on this unit but it had issues when switching between inputs and cutting off. I went through the phone calls with the dealer and Gary but nothing ended up fixing the problems. The dealer was absolutely amazing and took both units back.



I had the same issue that you did with your first unit. I went through 3 units, all with the static problem via HDMI. I tried out a Denon AVR and everything worked via HDMI, not a single problem.

Halcro work hard to make things right. Sometimes they can fix things. Sometimes they will issue a refund.

i think HDMI is going to put more than a few companies out of business. NAD has far more resources than most and they are releasing HDMI tweaks about every 3 weeks. Most companies can't do that. Hopefully, things are going to stabilize here soon.

I wonder if there's a class action suit that can be taken against the movie industry for putting this EXTREMELY expensive unfunded mandate on us and having people lose their asses once again.

HDMI is a pain in the ass..

I am having some issues getting proper audio thru 3 display devices I am running thru my Lumagen Radiance (using a Gefen 2X2 splitter as well - boy does that throw a wrench into things)... I think I will be able to figure it out but it has been a lot of trial and error playing with various EDID configurations.

I don't understand how some can work and others not.

When I updated, I 'upgraded' to the SSP 200. I haven't had any problems at all.

I guess they either work perfectly or not at all...

i think HDMI is going to put more than a few companies out of business. NAD has far more resources than most and they are releasing HDMI tweaks about every 3 weeks. Most companies can't do that. Hopefully, things are going to stabilize here soon.

I wonder if there's a class action suit that can be taken against the movie industry for putting this EXTREMELY expensive unfunded mandate on us and having people lose their asses once again.

I guess you could argue "negligent design.":)

Jim

any word on 1080-24 (eta):)

No word.....I asked last week....'We're working on it'.

Fortunately thwe sonics are rock solid.

My SSP200 has worked perfect out of the box and continues to do so

I finally received my Pioneer plasma with HDMI input, and discovered 96/24 still would not work, and the main speaker output was being sent to the rear speakers. I contacted Halcro and was informed that, being amongst the first to receive the SSP200 upgrade I also received the buggy first version (0.32). They quickly sent me the latest (0.36), and some answers to questions we've been asking.

To quote Gary Barker:
"Vinci was an engineering firm rather than a manufacturer, so when we broke off relations with Vinci last April, it made little difference in the manufacture of the SSP’s.

Some notes on the current and future firmware. The black crush issue was corrected last June for the Gen 6 units but apparently never got ported over to Gen 7 firmware, which yours is now. This will be corrected in the next release. When switching sources, it is necessary to reset the input, so the HDMI lock will take significantly longer than it has been, and odd messages will appear on the display until final lock is achieved. We are hoping to improve this in the next release. Also, you may find that the cursor occasionally hangs when navigating the set up menus, again we hope to resolve this in the next release. We are still working on 1080p/24, but there may be an interim release to deal with the more pressing issues.

HDMI 1.3 is not an issue. We are offering all the useful benefits of HDMI 1.3 already, namely the MPCM. The Deep Color feature is not likely to be implemented by the studios, as it would add a lot of cost to production and offer little or no benefit."

That's the latest.

Terry,

Sorry to hear you are having a problem. Is your Halcro a brand new 200 or an upgraded 100? Does the start up on the TFT screen, say Halcro SSP 200 or 100?

I haven't noticed switching problems as I have all my inputs going to my scaler and send out an HDMI output from it to the Halcro....So, I don't ever switch inputs on the Halcro.

It's an upgraded 100. I'll let you know how the firmware upgrade to 0.36 goes.

Good luck. I haven't had any playback issues but do notice the cursor hanging up when in the set up menu... Even switching isn't as bad as was described above. I am sure you'll be good.

BTW - how is your update loaded to your SSP? Data stick, software download?

BTW - how is your update loaded to your SSP? Data stick, software download?

You have to have the Halcro SSP updater software installed on your computer and the new patch. You can connect from your computer to either the RS-232 or USB on the Halcro.

To quote Gary Barker:
"The Deep Color feature is not likely to be implemented by the studios, as it would add a lot of cost to production and offer little or no benefit."Not to mention that Deep Colour is not in the HD DVD and Blu-ray spec.

Sanjay

They emailed me the new firmware, and recommended using the RS232 connection. I had had problems with previous updates using the USB- couldn't get the PC to recognize the Halcro.

You have to have the Halcro SSP updater software installed on your computer and the new patch. You can connect from your computer to either the RS-232 or USB on the Halcro.


As far as I know, you can only do the update via USB. You will need to also install the FTDI USB drivers on your computer.

Edit: As a dealer wanting to help my clients update their SSP-100's, the Halcro folks made a big stink that USB is the only way to do the software updates. USB connections caused 95% of the issues with the installs. Are you saying that Halcro made me do the updates the hard way, rather than with RS-232?

I'm guessing that with all the USB problems, they've modified the configuration in the new Gen7 units, such that now they definitely recommend using the RS232 connection for firmware upgrades.

Right.. Gary told me to use the RS-232 in the rear only.

I was told to use the RS-232 in the back of the unit as well and the upgrade went perfectly.

Right.. Gary told me to use the RS-232 in the rear only.

Maybe you should rephrase that one ;)

I'm planning on doing my update this weekend. Any words of advice? Using the RS-232 does the Halcro show up immediately in the software window, or do you still need to fool around with Device Manager and COM ports as with USB?

I'm planning on doing my update this weekend. Any words of advice? Using the RS-232 does the Halcro show up immediately in the software window, or do you still need to fool around with Device Manager and COM ports as with USB?


Words of Advice:

1. Don't shut off the SSP or the computer during the upgrade. You will be unhappy if you do.

2. If you've already installed the USB drivers on your computer, updating via USB should go a lot faster than RS-232.

3. If you believe in God, Pray the update goes well for you and that you don't end up with a doorstop!

The Halcro has a USB port?

RayJr

The Halcro has a USB port?

RayJr

Look behind the access door at the lower center of the faceplate. You will find many surprises.

Well, the update process was very simple and quick using the RS-232 port. The misdirected channel glitch seems to be fixed, but it still will not process 96/24 or multichannel SACD through HDMI using my PS3. I get a few seconds of sound, then a pop, then silence. A few minutes later I may get another few seconds of sound, then pop. Everything else seems to working fine now. As I generally listen to SACD through 7 channel analog inputs using my Esoteric, and only have 2 blu-ray disks which are 96/24, it's not a killer, but for the money I certainly expect it to do what it's supposed to. Anyone else had this problem with the upgrade?

Hello im new here and i bought a SSP-100 with the MPCM upgrade .. Now is there a way to see what version i have ... and on the MPCM can i get all the audio codecs DTS-MA etc .. even though i have a ps3 which doesnt support DTS-MA .. does the SSP-100 do that or do i need a BRP that has DTS-MA .. BTW i have a MC-5 amp

To see what version you have, hold down the "on" button when turning on the unit. You'll see a series of screens on the display. The first screen will tell you the version number (the latest is 0.36).
The SSP does not decode DTS-MA. The decoding needs to be done in the player and sent PCM to the SSP.

To see what version you have, hold down the "on" button when turning on the unit. You'll see a series of screens on the display. The first screen will tell you the version number (the latest is 0.36).
The SSP does not decode DTS-MA. The decoding needs to be done in the player and sent PCM to the SSP.
Thank you very much i have .36 i have the MC-50 and i like it very much , i use that with acoustic zen adagios , audes grand sentral and audes blues rear, with a EAD theatervision P and granite audio 657 Tube output CD player .... This is a very nice forum.. Thank you again Mike in Milw WI:)

Terry,

I'm sorry to hear about the issues. I also had 94/24 problems with a upgraded SSP-100. When it came back from being upgraded, it had firmware .32 Gary sent me version .36 but the unit still had problems. I ended having to send it back.

Darrell

Well, the update process was very simple and quick using the RS-232 port. The misdirected channel glitch seems to be fixed, but it still will not process 96/24 or multichannel SACD through HDMI using my PS3. I get a few seconds of sound, then a pop, then silence. A few minutes later I may get another few seconds of sound, then pop. Everything else seems to working fine now. As I generally listen to SACD through 7 channel analog inputs using my Esoteric, and only have 2 blu-ray disks which are 96/24, it's not a killer, but for the money I certainly expect it to do what it's supposed to. Anyone else had this problem with the upgrade?

I have the original software and can play SACD thru my PS 3 all day. I have just added the Lumagen XD in the loop and play SACD thru the second output with no problem. Bland you have a similiar setup as mine; can you play SACD thru your Halcro / Lumagen setup? I have not tried 96/24 yet. The fallacy that the Halcro will not play SACD is just not true for all situations.

I have the original software and can play SACD thru my PS 3 all day. I have just added the Lumagen XD in the loop and play SACD thru the second output with no problem. Bland you have a similiar setup as mine; can you play SACD thru your Halcro / Lumagen setup? I have not tried 96/24 yet. The fallacy that the Halcro will not play SACD is just not true for all situations.

The reason that you can play SACD thru your Halcro is because the PS3 decodes the SACD into MPCM then send it to you Harco via HDMI.
The HDMI MPCM upgrade Board is what allows that in the Halcro...you can do the same thing with any of the Oppo DVD players as they decode SACD to MPCM also.....I have been doing it with my MC-12HD and an oppo 981 for a little over a year.

RayJr

"The misdirected channel glitch seems to be fixed, but it still will not process 96/24 or multichannel SACD through HDMI using my PS3. I get a few seconds of sound, then a pop, then silence."

May not help but go into the PS3s audio setup and set the formats allowed manually. Select everything from 96kHz and below but nothing above that and try again.

Shawn

I have the original software and can play SACD thru my PS 3 all day. I have just added the Lumagen XD in the loop and play SACD thru the second output with no problem. Bland you have a similiar setup as mine; can you play SACD thru your Halcro / Lumagen setup? I have not tried 96/24 yet. The fallacy that the Halcro will not play SACD is just not true for all situations.

I have an OPPO but have no SACDs to try (I am not a music guy).

That said, I would imagine it has to be sent LPCM to the Halcro to work.

I rechecked all my settings, which were right to begin with, downloaded Profile 2 (v 2.20 firmware) for my PS3, rechecked and recalibrated everything and still no 96/24 or SACD via HDMI. Gary finally admitted defeat and now I'll be sending my Halcro back for what I believe is the sixth time since I bought it (this is my 4th or 5th unit). The Denon AVP is beginning to look good, especially since my mains go through my BAT anyway. There is something to be said for big companies and the resources they have to do things right, or least that work.

The reason that you can play SACD thru your Halcro is because the PS3 decodes the SACD into MPCM then send it to you Harco via HDMI.
The HDMI MPCM upgrade Board is what allows that in the Halcro...you can do the same thing with any of the Oppo DVD players as they decode SACD to MPCM also.....I have been doing it with my MC-12HD and an oppo 981 for a little over a year.

RayJr

And you are correct. No one can decode SACD into a pure digital stream yet. The new yet to be released Denon player is supposed to have a decoder onboard. The Halcro was never designed to output SACD no processor can do that. Yell at Sony for that. The 96/24 is a issue they are working on.

And you are correct. No one can decode SACD into a pure digital stream yet. The new yet to be released Denon player is supposed to have a decoder onboard. The Halcro was never designed to output SACD no processor can do that. Yell at Sony for that. The 96/24 is a issue they are working on.

you are almost correct.......
The Oppo 980 CAN output pure DSD ( thats what SACD is steaming ).....and the Integra 9.8 and the Onkyo 885 can both accept Pure DSD in....and output it :)

you are correct...I don't think Processors were designed to output SACD...only players can do that.

RayJr

I have the original software and can play SACD thru my PS 3 all day. I have just added the Lumagen XD in the loop and play SACD thru the second output with no problem. Bland you have a similiar setup as mine; can you play SACD thru your Halcro / Lumagen setup? I have not tried 96/24 yet. The fallacy that the Halcro will not play SACD is just not true for all situations.


I assume you are sending the SACD 96/24 via LPCM? Or are you sending via bitstream (or is 24/96 SACD audio only able to be sent as LPCM)?

Are their any 96/24 BD discs out to test 96/24 acceptance in the Halcro??

I assume you are sending the SACD 96/24 via LPCM? Or are you sending via bitstream (or is 24/96 SACD audio only able to be sent as LPCM)?

Are their any 96/24 BD discs out to test 96/24 acceptance in the Halcro??

I am pretty sure the Chris Botti Blu-ray is 24/96 LPCM and it played fine for me on the SSP-200.

With the PS3, SACD is sent as LPCM over HDMI. In most SACD players it must be converted to analog in the player and sent over the 5.1 analog outputs.
The 2 96/24 BD disks I have are the Chris Botti disk and Dave Matthews Live at Radio City. There are some other music BDs which are 96/24. I'm not aware of any non-music BDs which are 96/24.

I might add, I have yet to hear 96/24 on my Halcro. I am sending it in for repairs, yet again, this week, and look forward to the day when I can report on the sound. I gather their repairs are now being done by a third party in Van Nuys, CA.

Terry,

Will they install the latest firmware (yet to be released)?

You know, See if you can insist on a SSP-200....

Good luck.

I am pretty sure the Chris Botti Blu-ray is 24/96 LPCM...It is, with a whopping bitrate (almost 14Mbps) for the audio.

Sanjay

Jeff,
Believe me, I tried. They insisted there was no difference between an upgraded 100 and a 200. If I can't get a speedy turnaround and a working unit, I'll push harder. I must say, for all the problems I've had, they've lost a lot of built up good will on my part for their refusal.

Hey,

Anyone here use the Halcro software to back up your settings??

I looked at it and noticed that 'MPCM HDMI' is not an audio option...just 'HDMI' audio...

Anyone try this????

Anyone compared the sound of these (SSP100 upgraded to SSp200) to a Meridian 861? I had the 861 and loved it. Have also heard the Levinson 40 and loved it. How does the Halcro stack up?

Jeff,
Believe me, I tried. They insisted there was no difference between an upgraded 100 and a 200. If I can't get a speedy turnaround and a working unit, I'll push harder. I must say, for all the problems I've had, they've lost a lot of built up good will on my part for their refusal.

Terry,

So what was decided? Are they sending you out another upgraded SSP-100, or a SSP-200? This will be your 5th unit?

Darrell

I just sent it in for repairs. If they can fix it easily, I'll be getting the same unit back. Otherwise I expect to get a new SSP200, which I believe would be my fifth unit. We'll see.

Anyone compared the sound of these (SSP100 upgraded to SSp200) to a Meridian 861? I had the 861 and loved it. Have also heard the Levinson 40 and loved it. How does the Halcro stack up?

I personally owned a Meridian 861 v4 at the time the Halcro SSP-100 was introduced. After hearing the Halcro with digital sources, at less than half the price of the Meridian, the decision was a no brainer. Also, as a Halcro dealer, I had to have stock and demo units. I'm not a Meridian dealer, so I sold the Meridian. With that said, I haven't compared the SSP-200 to an 861.

The Halcro has features the Meridian currently does not and may never have, but the Meridian is exceptional in what it does and offers an effective room correction feature. The Meridian is beatifully made and is reliable.

If it's within your budget and you can live without HDMI, MC- LPCM, Dolby True HD, and DTS HD-MA, go with the Meridian. If you require all of the features mentioned, you want a high performance Video Processor and much more, look at the new Cary Cinema 11 Combo. The Cinema 11 is absolutely bullet proof and the remarkable thing is, it's at least the equal to the Halcro sound wise.

Great comments, thanks. Will try to hear the Cary 11a when it comes out.

Great comments, thanks. Will try to hear the Cary 11a when it comes out.


My comments are based on the sound character of the current Cinema 11. The 11a will simply add all of the much desired decoding for HBR audio, through its HDMI ports.

Anyone compared the sound of these (SSP100 upgraded to SSp200) to a Meridian 861? I had the 861 and loved it. Have also heard the Levinson 40 and loved it. How does the Halcro stack up?

I did own a Meridian G68 XXV and a Proceed (baby Mark Levinson) AVP2+6 prior to the Halcro SSP-100 then 200.

Musically I think the Meridian and Proceed were better as the Halcro was a bit thin sounding in comparison. For movies the Halcro was the best I have ever owned which included Lexicon and Arcam as well.

The Cary that is mentioned sounds promising but when will the HDMI HBR option be available and for how much?

Is there any news on the firmware update to address the black crush and 1080p24?

Do we have any sort of projected timeline for delivery?

Dennis

I did own a Meridian G68 XXV and a Proceed (baby Mark Levinson) AVP2+6 prior to the Halcro SSP-100 then 200.

Musically I think the Meridian and Proceed were better as the Halcro was a bit thin sounding in comparison. For movies the Halcro was the best I have ever owned which included Lexicon and Arcam as well.

The Cary that is mentioned sounds promising but when will the HDMI HBR option be available and for how much?

The Cary is $3,500.00 for the Cinema 11 pre/pro and another $3,500.00 for the Cinema 11v Video Processor. Coming Soon!

Got my SSP back, and all's right with the world. 96/24 is working perfectly and sounds amazing. First thing when I finally set my system back up, my PS3 informed me of the 2.30 firmware update. The first film I watched was The Orphanage in DTS MA (7.1, although my system is only 5.1). The sound had me jumping out my seat and looking around the room to see what has happening. It felt as if my house was falling down around me. The most realistic audio I have heard in any theater, home or otherwise. Highly recommended for both sound and video.
Also, they are hoping to have the major firmware update including 1080p/24 and fixing the black crush issue within the next month or so (no promises, of course).

Hey congrats!!!! Agreed... I haven't heard anything better either...

If anyone is interested in talking to Bruce Hall of Halcro in person, he will at the next Los Angeles & Orange County Audiophile Society meeting (www.laocas.com).

Location: Evolution Audio & Video (www.evolutionhometheater.com) at 5341 Derry Avenue, Suite S, Agoura Hills, CA 91301.

Time: Sunday, April 27th, 2pm-5pm.

Free parking, free lunch served. Guests and non-members welcome.

(Our next meeting in May has Dave Wilson and his Alexandria X-2 attending.)

Sanjay

Got my SSP back, and all's right with the world. 96/24 is working perfectly and sounds amazing. First thing when I finally set my system back up, my PS3 informed me of the 2.30 firmware update. The first film I watched was The Orphanage in DTS MA (7.1, although my system is only 5.1). The sound had me jumping out my seat and looking around the room to see what has happening. It felt as if my house was falling down around me. The most realistic audio I have heard in any theater, home or otherwise. Highly recommended for both sound and video.
Also, they are hoping to have the major firmware update including 1080p/24 and fixing the black crush issue within the next month or so (no promises, of course).

You are one patient dude... ;)

Congrats on getting a working unit now. Enjoy the music and movies.

Congrats... Now you can echo all the praise I've been claiming for a year....

New firmware is due any day now. Anyone get it yet???

Nothing on my front.

Did Halcro say it is going to be available soon?

I understand it is very close to being released... I know little else.

Hi Jeff,

From the feedback I'm getting, sometime around end of this month is when we'll see it.

Dennis

Hi,
how do you find out which firmware is running?
Best
Tomec

Hi Jeff,

From the feedback I'm getting, sometime around end of this month is when we'll see it.

DennisNow that is good news!

Tomec,
Hold down the "ON" button when starting up the unit. You'll get a series of screens on the TFT, one of which will tell you the firmware #.

What is the new firnware going to do ???

Mainly, it will add 1080p/24 capability and fix the black crush problem.

Will that be downloadable ? or will we have to send it in to Halcro?

A fix for the 7.1 bug as well. I'll bet it is user uploadable to the Halcro..

It's my understanding that the firmware is user uploadable via the RS232 or USB port.

Thanks terrym4,
got my SSP100 back from MPCM upgrade and have version 036 on it!
It seems its still not the desired new version, as I still see black crush!
Cheers
Tomec

It will also fix the 7.1 issue and allow 1080P24 to pass through.

Any news on the upgrade?

Just spoke to Halcro. They are doing beta testing now, working out a few glitches.

I've been told that the upgrades will resume imminently.

You have been told right.

What about the firmware updates? Users doing them at home?

What is black crush ?? Never heard of it , Just orange and grape. LOL TY:)

Any newssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

I've heard from the importer from the Benelux today. He explained that the new firmware/software is as good as ready. Halcro will spend july 2008 testing it and confirming it's results. Release would be planned as soon as august 2008.

Greetings

:cool:

Spoke to my dealer and he has been using the beta version for sometime now and indicates he will email me the upgrade very soon (whatever that means)

Wow. Sounds good. I'm vacatioing in Vegas... Halcro's headquarters in the US. I wonder if I can drop in to get my upgrade? ;)

You should pop in and see if they will give you a copy......let us know

You should pop in and see if they will give you a copy......let us know


Didn't make it to Halcro when we were in Vegas... But we did make it to Mario Batali's erstaurant...Wow~ what a meal!

Anyone know any new info on the update?

I'm told it should be available in the next couple of weeks.

All I know is they are not shipping me my 200 until the new software is ready and my dealer has not been given any time table.

Congrats on the theater write up Jeff. Always nice to see HEMI people in the spot light :) I'm in the process of having a write up done myself.

Congrats on the theater write up Jeff. Always nice to see HEMI people in the spot light :) I'm in the process of having a write up done myself.

Thanks, Don... Looking forward to reading yours... make sure you let me know when it is published.

As

All I know is they are not shipping me my 200 until the new software is ready and my dealer has not been given any time table.

Bruce Ball,Halcro Natl Sales Manager, told me tonight at Esoteric Audio's Halcro demo that the new software will be mailed to existing SSP-200 customers within thirty days, and that the SSP-200 will then be identical to the SSP-220 in function and hardware.:D We heard and saw the only two current SSP-200s in existence as of tonight at Esoteric Audio.

Bruce Ball,Halcro Natl Sales Manager, told me tonight at Esoteric Audio's Halcro demo that the new software will be mailed to existing SSP-200 customers within thirty days, and that the SSP-200 will then be identical to the SSP-220 in function and hardware.:D We heard and saw the only two current SSP-200s in existence as of tonight at Esoteric Audio.

Rumor has it Steve you are considering going over to the dark side ............... Did you like what you heard?

Rumor has it Steve you are considering going over to the dark side ............... Did you like what you heard?

I heard the same.... a bird in the hand (e.g. the Halcro is here and now)..:)

I'd like that software update today!!!

Rumor has it Steve you are considering going over to the dark side ............... Did you like what you heard?


I am staying on the Theta side, as I have nothing to cry about sonically.
But it was a nice demo.

I heard the same.... a bird in the hand (e.g. the Halcro is here and now)..:)

I'd like that software update today!!!

And you will. Soon. real sooooonnnn. Its sweet.

Jim

Come Steve let your hair down. take a ride on the wild side.

And you will. Soon. real sooooonnnn. Its sweet.

Jim

Come Steve let your hair down. take a ride on the wild side.

Let your hair down. Come visit Phoenix. I'll give you a demo and you won't wanna go back. The Integra coupled with my Theta CB3 Six Shooter works wonderfully. No software glitches, Perfect video passthrough. Great sonics for high resolution HDMI 1.3 audio. I think this is thanks to my setting the Integra volume at +8 and using the CB3 volume (analog volume control) the rest of the way. I am set until Theta does their HDMI 1.3 upgrade, which will even be better. The Halcro demo was nice but my room's sonics are as good as I get until the Theta upgrade.

I am in a bit of a different boat having my Theta gear including Six Shooter and Extreme DACs. But the Halcro is a great piece and if I was buying new it would be on my short list.

I don't know if Jeff reported earlier, as messages were lost and I've been away from my computer all weekend, but I did the firmware upgrade this weekend and all is well. It took about 30 minutes ans was painless. The black crush is indeed fixed. I can't really appreciate any sound or video differences, but the HDMI switching is faster and cleaner. I spoke to Gary Barker, who tells me aside from the black crush and 1080p/24 fixes, this was a major reworking of the code to make it faster and more bullet proof. Everything does seem to be working without a hitch.
I also asked him about the SSP220. Although functionally this makes the SSP200 identical to the SSP220, there are production differences. For one, they removed the video scaler from the 220 (they had always advised me to keep it off anyway). I don't have many details, but would be interested in people's reviews of the 220 when anyone gets one. Gary also told me that they are not working on HDMI 1.3 at the moment.

I don't know if Jeff reported earlier, as messages were lost and I've been away from my computer all weekend, but I did the firmware upgrade this weekend and all is well. It took about 30 minutes ans was painless. The black crush is indeed fixed. I can't really appreciate any sound or video differences, but the HDMI switching is faster and cleaner. I spoke to Gary Barker, who tells me aside from the black crush and 1080p/24 fixes, this was a major reworking of the code to make it faster and more bullet proof. Everything does seem to be working without a hitch.
I also asked him about the SSP220. Although functionally this makes the SSP200 identical to the SSP220, there are production differences. For one, they removed the video scaler from the 220 (they had always advised me to keep it off anyway). I don't have many details, but would be interested in people's reviews of the 220 when anyone gets one. Gary also told me that they are not working on HDMI 1.3 at the moment.
If the SSP220 does not have the video scaler than wouldn't that make it a SSP180 with a color display?

Add a 4th HDMI input for the 220 as well...

I loaded it , too. All seems good except I had a some major hand shake issues when first loaded - likely new HDMI HDCP ( I had to unplug all components and resync the hand shake). Also, I noticed that manually switching between inputs (using the volume control) is somewhat difficult compared to be before - direct access of sources via RS-232 / IR is fine.

If the SSP220 does not have the video scaler than wouldn't that make it a SSP180 with a color display?

Some of the other differences are the number of HDMI inputs, only L/R balanced inputs on the 180, 4 versus 3 year warranty......

Some of the other differences are the number of HDMI inputs, only L/R balanced inputs on the 180, 4 versus 3 year warranty......

At least we got rid of the crappy scaler that every body said was so bad.

Added some new features, changed the series number, updated the software, improved selected hardware AND we are not charging an arm and a leg increase for this luxury. What more do you want? <grin>

Jim

When will the upgrades resume for the SSP100?

When will the upgrades resume for the SSP100?

When were the upgrades stopped?

Jim

I was under the assumption the upgrades stopped during the corporate transition. Is this not correct?

What corporate transition?

Halcro Audio split off from the parent company. Joe Payer, who was president of Halcro, is now with the parent company (I forget their name).

Halcro Audio split off from the parent company. Joe Payer, who was president of Halcro, is now with the parent company (I forget their name).

Google says... Minelab.

Interesting, thanks.

Where do I find the software update info. I was on halcros web site and saw nothing... TY

I would contact your dealer. The latest firmware is 0.55 for the SSP 200 or 220.

I got the upgrade from Gary Barker , all went well. PQ Is a bit better and no relay clicking when switching inputs which is nice ... I had no handshake issues with the PS3 , although with my TWC Box I had issues so I will try to use the HDMI with cablebox , dont know if it will work , but I dont mind using component cables and Dig audio.... All in all it was about 45 min to do the upgrade..

One thing ive noticed , Is that when switching channels on my display i get the Halcro LCD then about 2 seconds later the picture is on the display, where before the upgrade i didnot have this issue... Not a big deal though

Administrator please remove this email from the thread. Gary Barker has been overwhelmed with spam now because of this posting.

Edited: meant to be PM

Administrator please remove this email from the thread. Gary Barker has been overwhelmed with spam now because of this posting.


jbm007, you need to remove the e-mail address from the quote in your thread, too!!!!@@@ Or Mr. Barker will be abarkin' to you!!!@@@@:D

jbm007, you need to remove the e-mail address from the quote in your thread, too!!!!@@@ Or Mr. Barker will be abarkin' to you!!!@@@@:D

I have heard is bark ............. Done.

Thanks Steve.

Ever in Chicago your always welcome to vist the dark side.

Jim

I have heard is bark ............. Done.

Thanks Steve.

Ever in Chicago your always welcome to vist the dark side.

Jim

I was there two years ago for a wedding. Too late.

But if you break a leg you can see my nephew who is the attending ER doctor at Chicago Loyola ER! HAAAA!!!@@@@

Anyone check to see if the updated firmware allows for transcoding of 1080P24 over HDMI to component (I doubt it can convert it to 1080P24 over analog but to 1080i, 1080P)?? I doubt it but just asking?

I saw that the latest LUMAGEN Radiance update includes a fix for the audio issues occuring between the Halcro SSP and the Radiance... Anyone tried it and verified if they are fixed yet??

If not, I will re-cable and try myself..

The latest Lumagen update fixes the audio problem with the Halcro. I'm getting MPCM 5.1 from both my Toshiba A35 and Sony BDP-S550 with full center channel audio.

PM sent.

The latest Lumagen update fixes the audio problem with the Halcro. I'm getting MPCM 5.1 from both my Toshiba A35 and Sony BDP-S550 with full center channel audio.

PM sent.


Update did not work for me. Pana BD 50 is still a no show with the Lumagen/Halcro setup.

What do you mean 'no show'?

What do you mean 'no show'?

Still have audio issues with the PD 50

I just tried firmware versio 2/1/09 from Lumagen and still cannot get 7.1 LPCM

I thin k I am going to pick up a Sony 550 and see if the issue ie the Pano and not the Lumagen.

I have the SSP-200 with the latest firmware. I have a Pioneer Elite blu-ray player feeding it via HDMI. I cannot get the 200 to work with lossless on DTS content. Works fine on DD, e.g. set to MPCM in the menu it will not play Get Smart, but will play fine with Eagle Eye. If I change the 200 settings in the source to HDMI (not MPCM HDMI) it works of course.

Does anyone know if they have the same issue?

Thanks,
Kevin

I have the SSP-200 with the latest firmware. I have a Pioneer Elite blu-ray player feeding it via HDMI. I cannot get the 200 to work with lossless on DTS content. Works fine on DD, e.g. set to MPCM in the menu it will not play Get Smart, but will play fine with Eagle Eye. If I change the 200 settings in the source to HDMI (not MPCM HDMI) it works of course.

Does anyone know if they have the same issue?

Thanks,
Kevin

You erred in buying that Pioneer (09, 05, 51 models)... None can decode DTS MA to lossless.

Thanks for the quick reply.

And you just answered a question I've been researching - go with the new elite 09 (I have the 05) or the denon 3800. 3800 it is - I assume that it will decode the DTS to lossless?

Thanks,
Kevin

The 09 cannot do dts ms either. It may never do it either. No one knows. For the Halcro, I would look at the new Panasonics or if you feel the need to spend $2K, the Sony 5000ES. I own the Denon but feel the ES would be a better choice.

Jeff,

I would like to understand your thoughts on why the Sony over the Denon?

Thanks,
Kevin

Jeff,

I would like to understand your thoughts on why the Sony over the Denon?

Thanks,
Kevin

Faster load times.. Otherwise, I am pleased with the Denon.

Faster load times.. Otherwise, I am pleased with the Denon.
The Denon 3800 does not have BD-Live which is a plus or minus depending on how you feel about being hooked up to download the "special" features from the internet. It does have the HQV Realta video chipset which makes it arguably the best upscaling DVD player available.

The Sony 5000ES does have BD-Live; however, it has some proprietary DVD upscaling capabilities about which I have seen no reviews, but I seriously doubt rivals the HQV Realta. It reportedly has faster load times.

You might also want to consider the upcoming Oppo BDP-83. It has fast load times, BD-Live and ABT upscaling for DVDs which is said to equal the HQV Realta. It is going to be $599.

I have no personal experience with any of the three players, but I am weighing my options and these seem to be some things you might want to consider. In all likelihood I'll go with the Oppo.

The Denon 3800 does not have BD-Live which is a plus or minus depending on how you feel about being hooked up to download the "special" features from the internet. It does have the HQV Realta video chipset which makes it arguably the best upscaling DVD player available.

The Sony 5000ES does have BD-Live; however, it has some proprietary DVD upscaling capabilities about which I have seen no reviews, but I seriously doubt rivals the HQV Realta. It reportedly has faster load times.

You might also want to consider the upcoming Oppo BDP-83. It has fast load times, BD-Live and ABT upscaling for DVDs which is said to equal the HQV Realta. It is going to be $599.

I have no personal experience with any of the three players, but I am weighing my options and these seem to be some things you might want to consider. In all likelihood I'll go with the Oppo.

I have the OPPO BD player, too... Also, a very nice choice.

I have the OPPO BD player, too... Also, a very nice choice.
How would you compare the SD-DVD upscaling capabilities of the Denon 3800 vs. the Oppo BDP-83? I have a large DVD collection so it is an important consideration for me.

So you got picked for the BD trials - nice. I put in for the program but didn't get one of the first batch. Would be interested in hearing your thoughts - maybe a separate thread? (Obviously not in the $20k area...)

Bryan

I have to tell you, i am using the Denon less and less... he OPPO is so responsive and fast. Moreover, the PQ / AQ via HDMI is fantastic. I only use LPCM and 24P out. For analogs, I haven't tried it.. I would have to assume the Denon is the better piece via analog simply by its design. However, the 83 will be doing DVD-A and SACD.. Not so in the Denon.

I've been thinking about a Halcro to replace my ssp and I've been lurking on this post. I saw this http://cgi.ebay.com/Halcro-Logic-SSP-100-Processor_W0QQitemZ200321649418QQihZ010QQcategoryZ14978QQssP ageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem today on ebay. Is this a scam or what? Can that price be real? I realize that there are a few days left, but geeze. My finger is shaking to much to even put on the trigger let alone pull it. Thoughts?
Hiway

Ulikely you'd get it at that price, however, even if you did the SSP100 does not support the newer HD audio codecs so you would not be buying a state of the art unit.

I wouldn't buy a sound processor that can't handle the new codecs because they contribute an enormous amount to the movie experience.

I wouldn't want to bid on that as the seller has no feedback for selling anything. The only way I would bid on something like that is if it were close enough to pick up and pay for in person.

The SSP-100's without the upgrade are going for some great prices though. I have seen them sell in the low $2K ranges. With the upgrade would be better though and I have seen dealers sell there demo's for cheap.

Great processor especially for the price.

I'm not sure what the upgrade to SSP200 is going for now, but with the upgrade the SSP can handle all the new codecs through LPCM, as long as your player can decode them and output them as LPCM. I have a PS3 feeding my SSP200, and it is the best sounding HT experience I've heard. On eBay, there are often no bids until the last hour, but I've been following a few processors on eBay recently, and some nice ones have not been getting any bids at all, so you may get lucky.

Be careful.. All good words of advice for an ebayer with no feedback and a cheap price.

Agreed. MY SSP-200 is the best I've ever heard.

I wouldn't want to bid on that as the seller has no feedback for selling anything. The only way I would bid on something like that is if it were close enough to pick up and pay for in person.

The SSP-100's without the upgrade are going for some great prices though. I have seen them sell in the low $2K ranges. With the upgrade would be better though and I have seen dealers sell there demo's for cheap.

Great processor especially for the price.

Since Halcro closed its U.S. operations but contracts service to a company in California (correct me if to some extent this requires clarification), can one get the SSP-100 upgraded here in the states and at what cost? Will the servicing center do the upgrade?

Since Halcro closed its U.S. operations but contracts service to a company in California (correct me if to some extent this requires clarification), can one get the SSP-100 upgraded here in the states and at what cost? Will the servicing center do the upgrade?

If I remember correctly the upgrade costs $1,400 and the service will be done in California and does not have to leave the states.

The California service center that upgraded my old SSP100 was in the San Fernando Valley

I think the best bet to buy a SSP-200 / 220 and forego the whole upgrade process... unless the 100 is soo cheap. I know a few here had issues after upgrading their 100s but few have reported issues with a 200/220.

True, my SSP200 has had no isses at all, although my upgraded SSP100 has no issues either. I just wouldn't take the chance on the upgrade based on previously upgrade issues.

mjaudio has it right. The upgrade price (retail) is $1,399. Done at a Sepulveda, CA shop. Gary B. is in charge. If anyone needs his contact number PM me.

Halcro still sells and services their line, including the SSP's, and as previously noted all sales are processed through the Australia headquarters. They continue to have a service rep in the U.S. (Gary B.) and plan to maintain that relationship.

Jim

Still the only processor on the market worth owning.. There is nothing at all that is available that I am pining for.. It is like the high end SSP has simply stopped innovating.

I had all of the SSP from 100,200 and 220HD. I can tell you the new 220HD is best in performance and it sounds the best of all 3. Halcro has removed the video scaler and cleaned up some of the key areas for improving the performance.
I use the Marantz 8002BD, Denon 3800 and the 09 BD player and I can tell you the player that stays in my system will be the 09 (until the new FW comes out DTS HD MA is on hold) the Marantz and Denon will be in a different room.

Glen

The early SSP100 had a lot of problems, from buggy software to poor build quality. I have had no problems since upgrading it to the SSP200, except for the bug related to switching the source from the front panel (switching from the remote works fine). Gary tells me they're working on that one.

I hope that will be a free field upgrade. Not interested in shipping my SSP back to California.

I would expect it to be a firmware upgrade that can be done at home, as with previous firmware upgrades.

I hope that will be a free field upgrade. Not interested in shipping my SSP back to California.


If you are referring to the MPCM upgrade, it isn't free and it isn't done in the field. The unit would need to be sent to Sepulveda, CA with a week or more turnaround time, depending on scheduling.

Jim

I assumed he was referring to the bug fix.

Yes, I was referring to the bug fix.

I already have the LPCM upgrade that was installed at the Tustin, CA facility in December.

Yes, I was referring to the bug fix.

I already have the LPCM upgrade that was installed at the Tustin, CA facility in December.


Sorry about that!:o

Jim

The Pioneer Elite BDP09FD with DTS HD MA is unbelievable going through the Halcro SSP220HD. The pioneer's new FW 2.46 works fine with all DTS MA video disc, except with DTS HD MA audio only disc like Acoustic Reality Experience Vivaldi sounds comes out digitized. :confused:
But all in all the SSP220HD with MCPCM 7.1 is what puts me into audio nevera:)

Glen

The Pioneer Elite BDP09FD with DTS HD MA is unbelievable going through the Halcro SSP220HD. The pioneer's new FW 2.46 works fine with all DTS MA video disc, except with DTS HD MA audio only disc like Acoustic Reality Experience Vivaldi sounds comes out digitized. :confused:
But all in all the SSP220HD with MCPCM 7.1 is what puts me into audio nevera:)

Glen

Congrats!!

DTS MA and the Halcro are a fantastic combo.. I am wowed with my sound as well on my Denon 3800 DTS MA LPCM.

I finally picked up a Sony S5000ES this week to replace the Pioneer with the Halcro 200.

A couple of questions on how others have the settings:

On the movie Quantum of Solace I can get the HD audio if I change the setting on the Sony to direct from Mix. However, when I do this none of the audio from the trailers or menus work. If I leave the sony on Mix, I get all of the audio but none in HD. On the Halcro, I have it set to HDMI LPCM in the source Menu.

Secondly, when playing SD DVD's, I have to change the setting in the Halcro source menu to HDMI (from HDMI LPCM) to get any audio.

Is this consistent with others, or do I have something set incorrectly?

Thanks,
Kevin

I finally picked up a Sony S5000ES this week to replace the Pioneer with the Halcro 200.

A couple of questions on how others have the settings:

On the movie Quantum of Solace I can get the HD audio if I change the setting on the Sony to direct from Mix. However, when I do this none of the audio from the trailers or menus work. If I leave the sony on Mix, I get all of the audio but none in HD. On the Halcro, I have it set to HDMI LPCM in the source Menu.

Secondly, when playing SD DVD's, I have to change the setting in the Halcro source menu to HDMI (from HDMI LPCM) to get any audio.

Is this consistent with others, or do I have something set incorrectly?

Thanks,
Kevin

Direct is HD audio.. This is the setting you need for hi res audio (DTS MA / TRUE HD). You need LPCM output for it as well. MIX Audio is only used when you want the secondary sound from BD-LIve. But when engaged, you always lose HD audio output. This is for all players. So, generally, you will leave the setting to 'Direct'.

As far as Mix audio, it should work to get those trailer sounds.. Have you tried other Blu Ray discs?? Quantum, like other BD discs, may be faulty. Now make sure in your Sony player, you have HDMI AUDIO output to LPCM - not bitstream! Also, the Sony may have a menu item to ENABLE secondary audio output. You may have this set to 'OFF'. The Sony, if I recall, has a vague setting for this and / or secondary audio.. This may also be an issue.

If you are not getting sound on DVD, you may be BITSTREAMING the audio from the Sony.. Again, check the player's settings menu to make sure all HDMI audio output is LPCM. See the manual if any questions about setting this up..

Now, if this is an oddity with the Sony and you still are having DVD playback issues, your best bet is to set up a new 'DVD' input for DVD only playback in the Halcro and set it up with a TOSLINK or COAX audio bitstreamed from the Sony (you can still set the video part to share the same HDMI video input). The Sony player should allow you to have LPCM output for HDMI and either LPCM or BITSTREAM for the coax / tos outputs. Set the player to bitstream coax/tos output. You'll need to get an extra coax/tos cable to run from your Sony to the Halcro. So, if you need to do this, you'll have BLU RAY source AND a DVD source in the Halcro for the same Sony BD player.

OR use a second DVD player.

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/7179/vinciij8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Thank some of the kind folks that work on Halcros and other Vinci Labs products. This is a Gen7 V2 board used in a Halcro SSP-100. Note the 5 AKM DACs. AKM DACs are high quality DACS used in may high end pre/pros. From the looks of these pics there is nothing but quality on this board. But straight from a rep for NHT/Vinci this is the whole Halcro units audio processing system. Ed Meitner was a design consultant on some of Vinci Labs products as well as Vinci manufactures boards for some of EMM labs products. This info is from NHT/Vinci. Thank goodness for the internet, email and research. EMM labs make outstanding products. One of the things they do that most people don't is convert from PCM to DSD, most folks just go DSD to PCM. Well, I hope that helps. Back when the report is done.

Shawn

PS: If anyone is interested in building their own pre/pro, vinci labs would love to talk to you..:) Just a quick note, from what I gather a similar if not same Gen7 V2 board is inside the NHT Controller pre/pro, although I could not get a hardcore confirmation, but I will.

*** Big correction!!! I have been told the DACs on the Halcro are actually on the balanced audio board and they are a dual configuration, like I said, there is nothing cheap about the inside of the Halcro as it uses high end components. I hope to find out what model they are soon. I have been told the DACs on the Gen7 are for only the single ended outputs but that makes little sense because the AK4395 is a dual channel DAC. However that is the Gen7 Ver2 board in the pic. I have been told by two reliable sources two different things. However I can see with my own eyes the DACs on the Gen7 V2 card are indeed AKM and that card is right out of a Halcro unit. Also, the Parasound C1/C2 use AKM DACs and they are also a Vinci Lab OEM.

Was anyone able to verify the big correction about the DAC's on the balanced audio board vs. the single ended outputs?

Thanks

Blu-ray Denon 3800---> SSP200/220---->JVC RS20
I couldn't get 1080p24 from SSP200/220 to my JVCRS20. How to make it work?

Thanks

Blu-ray Denon 3800---> SSP200/220---->JVC RS20
I couldn't get 1080p24 from SSP200/220 to my JVCRS20. How to make it work?

Thanks

Perhaps a JVC issue.. The Halcro will always pass 1080P24 unless you do not have last year's final Halcro firmware OR you have HDMI output turned OFF in the Halcro Source Menu. To see which firmware you have, hold down the POWER button on the Halcro when powering it up. Hold it until the firmware version comes up (I think it is 5.6 or 5.7).

Otherwise, set your Denon to 1080P24 output by repeatedly hitting the HDMI resolution button on the player's front panel until you see '1080P24' - not '1080P' (that is 1080P60). If you cannot get 1080P24 doing such, check your Denon SET UP menu. Recall for 1080P24 output, the Denon has to have 'I/P Direct' set to 'ON' and HDMI resolution set to 'AUTO' in the Denon Video Menu.

If still no luck, then the issue is likely not with the Halcro or Denon but with the JVC.. Check its settings to see that you can get 1080P24 with another source or that 1080P24 is an enabled resolution (likely it is by default).

Blu-ray Denon 3800---> SSP200/220---->JVC RS20
I couldn't get 1080p24 from SSP200/220 to my JVCRS20. How to make it work?

Thanks

If you've got the correct firmware it should be working for you.

I'm running a Panasonic BD55 --> SSP180 --> RS20 and am getting 1080p24 support without issue.

Jeff's pointing you in the right direction. Check the configuration of the Denon first and then the Halcro.

Good luck

PS. Just noticed my sig. think it's time to change it. :)

Jeff & Dennis,
Firmware on SSP200/220 is 0.57 and set up on Denon is correct.

I'm not sure that the problem is Denon or JVC or Halcro. But I borrowed my friend's Lumagen Radiance to connect between SSP220 and RS20, then the problem fixed. I can get 1080p24 now.
I don't want to spend $$$ on Lumagen but I may need HDMI switcher. What is a good and cheap switcher in the market now?

By the way, SSP200/220 sound sooooo gooooddddd.

Thanks...........

So, HDCP issue with your JVC / Halcro.. Try changing power-on sequence of your sequence. Like Display ON, then Halcro ON, DENON ON... Or mix it up.

If you have a long HDMI run to your projector than could be a lack of HDMI signal strength and a switcher that amplifies (e.g. Gefen) or a better, long run HDMI cable would solve it, too.

BTW - I have a vertical green line that pops up on my Halcro screen that stays until my source is POWERED ON.. Then it disappears. Anyone else?

So, HDCP issue with your JVC / Halcro.. Try changing power-on sequence of your sequence. Like Display ON, then Halcro ON, DENON ON... Or mix it up.

If you have a long HDMI run to your projector than could be a lack of HDMI signal strength and a switcher that amplifies (e.g. Gefen) or a better, long run HDMI cable would solve it, too.

BTW - I have a vertical green line that pops up on my Halcro screen that stays until my source is POWERED ON.. Then it disappears. Anyone else?
You're right Jeff, that sounds like an HDCP issue. If the sequence changes Jeff suggests doesn't do it, try a switcher and put an A-B-A macro sequence in you remote to see if that re-establishes the handshake. We've had success with that in the past, although I'm surprised it's happening with the components you have. Regards, Norm

This is a bit off topic here , but I have a Halcro issue??? I powerd everything on UVerse box, TV I get the OSD on the Halcro but no picture ..Im using component ...then I had an extra HDMI cable laying around and It works, blu-ray works on HDMI but my DVD (EAD TheatervisionP) doesnt work (using component)to the display but OSD is fine audio is fine no pic to the display ... So my 2 component inputs arent working I have an upgraded SSP-100 to a SSP-200 that was done along time ago ...Any Ideas TY

I'm sure you changed the input to COMP1, COMP2 in the source set up in the Halcro? Scaler is OFF? You have COMPONENT as the VIDEO OUTPUT (rather than HDMI)?

Unfortunately, U-verse has no HDMI.

Your component input in your PJ is correct? You have the correct component video source input on your PJ?

I'm sure you changed the input to COMP1, COMP2 in the source set up in the Halcro? Scaler is OFF? You have COMPONENT as the VIDEO OUTPUT (rather than HDMI)?

Unfortunately, U-verse has no HDMI.

Your component input in your PJ is correct? You have the correct component video source input on your PJ?
my Video output is HDMI since im running HDMI out to the display (Sony KDS A-3000) my U-verse has HDMI it works on HDMI but not on component ....Scaler is Off BTW

I don't think I'm following what the issue is. Your uverse works via hdmi but nort component? Why not use HDMI? if you're trying to use a component input on the Halcro, you have to set up the source to select the particular component input on the Halcro (eg Comp #4).

well im using HDMI now ,, But it is kind of odd why it wont work I ran it Comp1 out HDMI to my TV Same with my DVD Comp2 out to HDMI but now it doesnt work Ive had it hooked up like this for the year and a half I had this set up ... Now I have to run the DVD to the TV via component now it works ... Seems like the Halcro isnt doing any component switching ... I tried all 4 component inputs no luck ...I will call Gary Barker since I have remote issues also, the display is all serewy hard to read...I use a Logitech 1000 ... But for the money this Halcro costs the remote should be flawless ...My 5 year old EAD Theatermaster had none of these issues

Just so I understand, are you not getting component OUTPUT from the Halcro or the Halcro is not converting the component inputs to HDMI??

ANd your OSD is acting up?? Maybe something going on that is effecting both..

yes the OSD will not display on he monitr... After talking with Gary yesterday and trying a few things ,, he thinks the scaler is at fault since it cannot convert anything from component to HDMI ...and with the HDMI to HDMI working ... so hes going to send a RMA and a box (Tossed the original one) and hopefully it wont take too long. Does anyone know what the turn around is with Halcro??..Do they usually fix the issue or as Ive seen in other posts replace the unit.... TY

I recently bought a 2nd hand SSP200 to replace my Integra processor. I've hooked up everything via HDMI (Toshiba HD-XA2 and Panasonic DMP-BD50 (set to PCM) to the Halcro (set to HDMI MPCM) and then to my JVC DLA-HD1 projector) but have been getting some very puzzling responses from my equipment.

When I try to use my Panasonic with the projector on, I get a message indicating Digital Error on my Halcro and a message on the JVC indicating that the signal is outside the frequency range. I get odd audio pops and hisses through my speaker until I switch the projector off. Once that happens, the audio works fine from the Panny through the Halcro. But if I switch on the JVC again, everything goes crazy again.

This would lead me to think that its got to do with the connection between the Halcro and the JVC but for some weird reason, if I use the HD-XA2, everything works fine (both video and audio). Any suggestions?

Plug your BD player into the exact HDMI input on the back of the SSP-200 and see what happens.

If a fails to work, then your BD player settings might need checking.

If it works, check your source settings in the Halcro on your BD HDMI input.

If one source works perfectly, then it is likely a player issue or Halcro set up issue.

I previously used my BD and HDDVD players with my Integra processor with no problems. Even then I'd been using the BD player to output PCM to the Integra.

When I replaced the Integra with the Halcro, I didn't change the settings on the BD player. The BD went into HDMI input 1, HDDVD into HDMI input 2. The Halcro settings for both BD and HDDVD were the same. HDDVD works. BD drives everything insane. I considered if it is a problem with the input so I switched HDDVD to HDMI input 3, and used the previously working (for HDDVD) HDMI input 2 for BD. Same problems for BD. HDVD still works (now on HDMI input 3).

I'm suspecting its a HDCP issue right now but have no idea how to resolve it.

I previously used my BD and HDDVD players with my Integra processor with no problems. Even then I'd been using the BD player to output PCM to the Integra.

When I replaced the Integra with the Halcro, I didn't change the settings on the BD player. The BD went into HDMI input 1, HDDVD into HDMI input 2. The Halcro settings for both BD and HDDVD were the same. HDDVD works. BD drives everything insane. I considered if it is a problem with the input so I switched HDDVD to HDMI input 3, and used the previously working (for HDDVD) HDMI input 2 for BD. Same problems for BD. HDVD still works (now on HDMI input 3).

I'm suspecting its a HDCP issue right now but have no idea how to resolve it.

Try turning on the PJ first, then the Halcro then the BD player. Right in that sequence. Before doing so, unplug everything so as to reset HDCP.

If that doesn't work, a different Blu Ray player will resolve it. I use a Panasonic BD-10, Oppo BDP-83, and Denon 3800 through my SSP-200 and no HDCP issues. I also owned a Sony S500. No issues with that either.

IS your PJ an older model? New firmware?

If the Halcro passes the HD DVD perfectly, it is likely a player issue or incompatibility between the player and PJ. Try other resolutions with the BD player.

Problem solved. I'm now using a splitter between the blu-ray player and the Halcro. The splitter sends the video to the projector and the audio to the Halcro (all using the same settings) and everything works fine now. Thanks for all the suggestions. I'd tried all the various sequences of switching on the devices. That didn't work. The projector is an older model of the JVC and I've not had the firmware updated. That would have been next on my list of to-try solutions. Thanks for all the suggestions.

Its been a hassle but the Halcro is clearly a step up from the Integra.

I just purchased an ssp220 and I have a problem...

My source is lx91bd (european Pioneer 09 elite) and my display is Pioneer KRP-600. When the player is connected through HDMI with ssp220 it passes only 576i signals to the monitor...

Does anyone have any idea why other resolutions do not pass to the display thorugh SSP220

Thanks in advance...

Problem solved. I'm now using a splitter between the blu-ray player and the Halcro. The splitter sends the video to the projector and the audio to the Halcro (all using the same settings) and everything works fine now. Thanks for all the suggestions. I'd tried all the various sequences of switching on the devices. That didn't work. The projector is an older model of the JVC and I've not had the firmware updated. That would have been next on my list of to-try solutions. Thanks for all the suggestions.

Its been a hassle but the Halcro is clearly a step up from the Integra.

What splitter are you using?

I just purchased an ssp220 and I have a problem...

My source is lx91bd (european Pioneer 09 elite) and my display is Pioneer KRP-600. When the player is connected through HDMI with ssp220 it passes only 576i signals to the monitor...

Does anyone have any idea why other resolutions do not pass to the display thorugh SSP220

Thanks in advance...

Cannot speak to PAL. Is your 220 PAL or N. American? Tried other BD players? Checked your 09 internal settings?

Is supposed to be PAL .... what actually to check in lx91?

I would like to ask you something...

I have SSP220 & MC70....
Ssignals above 576i are not passed through ssp220 to my monitor (KRP600a and source lx91bd - european version of 09fd) remains. I tried also 2 different sources and the problem exists.

I have also another problem with a hiss noise from the tweeter of the speakers. The hiss noise is much less when the ssp220 and mc70 are connected using RCA. Otherwise when they are connected with XLR (XLO) the hiss noise is considerably increased. The speakers setup is KEF X40 7.1 with velodyne dd12.

Have you ever faced hiss noise coming from the speakers with mc series amplifiers?

With regard to the hiss are you setting the switch on the back of each amp module to XLR when you run the unit with balanced interconnects?