[rob47v]

I hope this hasen't been covered but if it has would someone be so kind as to point me in the wright direcion! I have a pioneer elite vsx-49tx old but wonderful reciever, which I like to keep. It has 7.1 multichannel inputs. I know it cannot do dolby truehd nore dtshd master audio. Here is the quest. can a reciever like the harmon avr247 which has hdmi input and 7.1 multichannel output as preamp output be used, if the blueray player already decodes these formats? I just like to keep the pioneer as the amp, and let the harmond be the preamp. The harmond has hdmi input but does not decode the true hd nore the dts hd format. I hope I explained my self clearly. Help would be most appreciated!!!!

 

[rottenkid]

The Panasonic BD-55 has 7.1 analog outputs and internally decodes Dolby true HD and DTS-MA. That is all you would need.

 

[jostenmeat]

If the HK accepts mch PCM, you don't even need the mch analogs. Even the BD35 is good enough for you. Have the decoded PCM sent via HDMI, and then you can use your HK's bass mgmt, rather than the Panny's (which would be forced with the use of mch analogs).

 

[Denophile]

if i were you id go with a bargain prepro like emotiva or outlaw (when their new hdmi capable one comes out) but yes you certainly could do what you are suggesting for sure. wwould be a waste of a good avr like the hk 247 unless you could later put it to goo duse somewhere else. it has fantastic amps within!

 

[rottenkid]

If the op already has the HK, then that would be the way to go. If he is thinking he has to buy a new receiver to get the new audio codecs, it is not necessarry.

 

[mgoldsmith]

i've done just that with my setup. my blu-ray player currently does the internal decoding and via HDMI sends (upto) 8 ch of pcm to a pioneer vsx1018.

the pioneer 8ch pre-outs connect to the 8ch inputs of a denon a1se (to use it's amplification only).

the pioneer handles all processing/bass management.

My currently BD player doesn't do DTS-MA, so it just passed the dts core stream to the amp for processing.


The next step for me is to buy a BD player with hdmi1.3 that outputs HD streams for the pioneer to process/decode the HD audio instead of the player doing it internally.

I had a chance to use the sammy P1500 BD player and use it's HDMI1.3 out to the pioneer for processing... there was definitely an improvement in sound quality by having the pioneer do ALL processing. it's not a huge difference, but it does sound better than what the BD player can do......


Oh, and having relied on the 8ch analogue out's of my panasonic BD (and toshy HD A1) for the past 18 months (which were both fed directly into the Denon's multi-ch inputs, until i got the pioneer for xmas), i can definitely tell you that going HDMI for audio (whether the player decodes, or an amp decodes bitstream), is a HUGE step-up in sound quality over a player's analogue outs... at least at the low to mid end of the BD player market.


Matt.G

 

[Spiky]

So you are saying that the same player has better decoding for HDMI than for analog? That hardly seems likely.

 

[mgoldsmith]

the drop in sound quality comes from a player's Digital to Analogue conversion for analogue outputs only, not the actual decoding of the sound formats themselves, which is done prior to going through the DACs.... the DACs aren't involved when using HDMI for audiow which is why the sound quality is better in this instance.


Matt.G

 

[rob47v]

So let me see if I got this correctly. From what I've read 1st thing a Hdmi receiver is needed dosen't have to be v1.3 since thats only for lipsync and deep color, but the format can only be truly had via this connection. The player maybe or can be the only source of decoding, passes the hd sound via the hdmi to the non capable hd decoding sound receiver and thus that will amplify the sound at 7.1 if its a 7.1 capable unit, or preamp out to a higher unit. Is this correct?