Samsung LED + CEC + Crestron Digital Media - Page 3

As I mentioned in a previous post, which you can read HERE, I will be upgrading my DM 8x8 to a DM 32x32 and adding a few other goodies.

For those of you intrested here is a pic, front and back, of what the DM 32x32 looks like.



Just as in my original DM 8x8 install, the entire system will be fiber based.

More to come . . . .

Thanks.


To achieve "automatic control", the entire DM system has to be controlled by a Crestron processor (you can manually switch sources/displays through the front panel) and is controlled via IP using the LAN port. If you want to use a DM switcher, 8x8, 16x16 or 32x32, at minimum you will need to install a Crestron controller, such as an CP2e, AV2 or a Pro2 (which is what I am using), to name a few. For TP control you can use an iPhone or iPad.


As far as list pricing goes you can contact us or any other Crestron dealer as there are many, many options in configuring a DM system. You can go to the Crestron DigitalMedia section of Crestrons website and look at what Switchers, 8x8 or 32x32, you may need, what Input Cards you will need/want and what type of Output Cards you will want (all fiber, Fiber/HDMI mix, Fiber/Crestron DM mix, etc).

Hope that helps.

I sent you a PM.

Below is just my opinion on how I see copper (Cat5/6) playing out in the future. As in the words of the GREAT Johnny (John) Lydon "I may be wrong, I maybe right".

Also, ignore spelling and grammer. I am in a rush and did not proof read it.

So now . . . .

Are you referring to the 8G (DM 8G STP) single CAT (DM-CBL-8G) cable distribution?

If so, it's not based on HD-BaseT, 8G is Crestron own proprietary development. At DM Engineering class we were told that Crestron is an "Adopter" member but does not have any plans in implementing the spec. in their DM system.

As stated by the HD-BaseT alliance at this years CES, HDBaseT hopes to see native adoption in consumer tech products within a year to 18 months. So it will be some time before we see it in the consumer channel.

Now, back to your original question " . . . is there any point in going with fiber anymore?" as opposed to the 8G single CAT solution? My answer is yes for a few of reasons.

1) The 8G (DM 8G STP) single CAT (DM-CBL-8G) cable solution is limited to 330ft.

2) The 8G (DM 8G STP) single CAT (DM-CBL-8G) cable solution does not allow the use of DM repeaters so you can not extend distance. Your max'd out at 330ft.

3) The current state of copper solutions such as Baluns, HDMI over IP, etc are just life support for a cable that was not designed to carry the requirements of HDMI spec. which is Uncompressed Video (1080P, 3D, Deep Color, etc), Uncompressed Audio (Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD High Res, DTS-HD Master Audio, 8ch PCM, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, DTS, DTS-ES, DTS 96/24, 2ch PCM), CEC, EDI, etc.

4) The other issue with copper is distance. Baluns can go what? about 150' maybe. With HDMI over IP distance varies with product used but you can get 300-400ft on a single cable.

5) Currently the highest resolution available is 1080p. But as we know 2k & 4k is coming and will be main stream as 1080p is today within 5 to 10 years. I hear a lot of people saying well there is no 2k/4k content so it wont happen anytime soon. But just like 1080p displays when they first came out people were saying "there is no 1080p content" the highest at the time was 720p or 1080i. Now you have Blu-Ray, VDU HDX, and Other HD Streaming sources. Broadcast TV may never hit 1080p, 2k or 4k but as internet data rates get faster in the future, 50Mbps, 100Mbps even up to 1Gbps, we will be able to access more and more 1080p and even 2k & 4k content.

This leads back to Copper, will copper handle 2k or 4k? At this point, when 4k is as popular as 1080p is today, High Speed Wireless, WiDi, etc will have evolved and have become readily available and thus, I believe, will be a substitute for copper.

I see copper (CAT5/6) being irrelevant, as an HD AV distribution conduit, in 5 to 10 years.

The fiber system I have in our home carries the following to each room, Great Room, Media Room, Den, Kitchen, Master Bed/Bath and Guest Bath.
1) Uncompressed HDMI 1.4 video with support for Deep Color & 3D
2) Uncompressed Multi-channel Audio (Dolby® TrueHD 7.1, Dolby Digital Plus 7.1, Dolby Digital AC3 5.1, Dolby Digital EX 5.1, DTS-HD Master Audio™ 7.1, DTS-HD High Res 7.1, DTS 5.1, DTS-ES Matrix 5.1, DTS-ES Discrete 6.1, DTS 96/24 5.1, up to 8ch PCM)
3) Ethernet (10/100)
4) RS-232 (1 Port)
5) IR (2 Ports)
6) USB (1 Port)
7) Relay (2 Ports)
8) Digital/Contact
9) Ability to embed CEC commands directly within the HDMI Channel and send to any display
10) IP Phone System - Not only that I am able to run 1-9 above, but also our entire phone system over the same fiber cable that the DM system uses.

I understand why the AV industry, especially CI's, are trying to extend the use of CAT cabling but I feel the time has come to move to fiber. There are a few companies, besides Crestron, offering a fiber solution and in the years to come you will see more and more.

Again, as stated by the HD-BaseT alliance at this years CES, HDBaseT hopes to see native adoption in consumer tech products within a year to 18 months. So it will be some time before we see it in the consumer channel.

Remember this, Verizon has taken fiber directly to the home. Now it's only a matter of time before fiber is IN the home.

My 2 cents.

I apologize about that. I just set you a PM

It's not difficult to do, IF you have a good networking foundation.
With that said, I will not go into details on how I do it. Im a business and do not give away something that gives us a competitive advantage.

I do not know of any other source other than getting the proprietary CEC codes form directly from the manuf. and this is not as easy as it sounds. When you call a manuf. 99% of the time no one knows what you are asking for and you have to jump through hoops to find a person who knows what "CEC Codes" mean.

Even if you use the manuf. own terminology, for example Samsung calls HDMI CEC control "Anynet+", you have to ask Samsung for the "Anynet+" codes and even then they may not know what you are talking about.

The title is as follows,
"High-Definition Multimedia Interface Specification Version X.X"

Where X.X is the HDMI version you are are requesting, for example 1.3a, 1.4, etc.

Note that the document above gives you the standard CEC codes.

One way of doing it is to use one HDMI cable coming from the Blu-Ray player carrying both Audio & Video to the Dm 8x8. Depending on the type of DM cable you use, copper or fiber, you will install a DMCO card that has an output to DM-RMC and an HDMI output.

For example the DMCO-44 has 4 fiber outputs and an additional 2 HDMI outputs on output 1 & 2 along with the fiber outputs. So, on output 1 you would run the fiber output to the DM-RMC and the HDMI output to your receiver. In DM Tools, which is in ToolBox, You would setup the DM 8x8 so the HDMI output is sending audio only.

Another way of doing it is, you can also just send the video to the DM 8x8, via HDMI and the audio to your receiver via HDMI, as you are doing now. When you select "Watch Blu-Ray" the DM 8x8 will switch to the Blu-Ray player and the receiver will switch to the Input that you have assigned to the Blu-Ray audio.

There are many other ways of doing it. These are just 2 examples.

Hope that helps.